Natalie, 2021 Model
Thank you to everyone who commented or sent messages to be entered into this giveaway!
We truly wish we could extend an invitation to each one of your families.
The plan was to offer one free session in each free sharing group on facebook, and we simply could not decide on just one in the Buy Nothing group, with so many people commenting. We have four winners now, and have also chosen three runner-up families who will be called in the event of a cancellation.
Buy Nothing: WBL group winners:
Angie (senior)
Canong (siblings)
Jess (kids & mom)
Samantha (newborn)
Runner-Ups:
(In no particular order)
Kionte T.
Sherrie E.
Mai P.
How families were chosen:
This was a delicate and careful process. First Laney contacted each person who was genuinely interested. We gathered information from you/ your facebook profile, and also considered what we need (as this was a gift and an ask).
It is our commitment this year to expand our models to include a diverse group of children and mothers, models who do not not look like previous models or like each other, etc. We also listened to your stories about why you wanted free sessions. All of these things were considered, not just one factor, and certainly not based on looks or "It" factor alone. It would have been easier on us to just draw names out of a hat in this case, but it would not have achieved our goals!
We appreciate your understanding and support, as a small business, and an artistic one at that-- at the end of the day, we are a family too, and we spend a lot of time setting up these special photo shoots (hours) and blocking out entire weekends of our summer break just for this, so we really want to make sure it benefits all of us.
A little backstory on free sessions...
In August 2021, we opened back up our studio (with a lot of caution), thinking we were taking every measure to be safe, and our family still got hit hard by Covid after the first weekend. We had 12 models in 2021, and most of the families were so incredibly kind and fun to work with, but there were a few that did not follow rules, or didn't show up at their session time (or ghosted us all together). That is why we have limited the free sessions, with runner ups who will be called if there is a cancellation or no-show. These free sessions are scheduled before and after paying clients (or models) during our busiest time of year, and cancellations take the opportunity away from others who would have been there. Due to this, we are offering the rest of the available slots as partially paid sessions because we believe that when people pay for their session, they are more likely to value the time we have set aside for them (not to mention, this is our work, and it takes a lot of time and effort to photograph and edit multiple models). Paying models still receive a significant discount off the normal rates, and an equally amazing photo shoot with all the same perks and fanfair. The prices end up being comparable to a lower end professional photo shoot, but with the luxe look of an expensive shoot. As of May 31st, there are three of these slots left for weekends in late June and early August. If you're interested in filling a discounted session slot, just send Laney a message via email or PM with your availability.
One more note-- We know things can happen, and we are parents too who want you to get great images of your kids! No one takes a good photo when they're sick or hurt, so we do allow 1 reschedule for all free sessions (up to 3 reschedules for paid sessions) if you call us at least one hour before your scheduled time.
Thank you again, for your comments and messages. It was such a beautiful response to our model call this year, and we couldn't do this without you. We wish you all a lovely summer!
(WINNERS, if you have not received a separate email about scheduling, please check your spam folders or let us know!)
Leah & Liam, 2021 Models