Julie and Andy's Reception

executable file

Renae Pictures

Renae's Pictures (Pro-show Gold file -- will load a couple applets and then run)
Eric's Family (same)

Welcome Google Neighbor

Thanks for clicking! My name is Mark Haffner, and I am the owner of the coolest photography studio in the Tri-Cities -- ENVPIX. Call me at 509-378-0900, or just leave a comment on this blog, and I will be happy to talk to you about what makes my pictures the envy of every Senior who has their pictures taken somewhere else.

If you want to see some samples of my work, you can just browse through this blog or check out my web site at www.emvpix.com.

ENVPIX. Everybody Wants One.

Welcome Facebook Clickers

Hello Facebook neighbor. I am glad that you are interested in having some very cool senior portraits taken at very reasonable prices. Please send me an e-mail at mark@emvpix.com, or call me at 509-378-0900, and I will be happy to answer all your questions and set up an appointment.

Or better yet, just leave me a comment right here.

You are welcome to scan through this blog to see some samples of my work, or visit my website at http://www.emvpix.com/.

ENVPIX. Everybody Wants One.

Derrick

Derrick's Photographs

Sean and Neal

Two video versions of the studio portrait session with Sean and Neal. One I kind of did for fun; the other one is more serious. I will let you decide which is which. Except I think the file name gives it away. Except you can't readily see the file name.

You will have to down load some Software to view this. It is quick and harmless.

One

The Other One

Ruse II: Corporate Identity

I might make this a habit. My main audience for this communique is the world famous photographer and Photoshop wizard, Suzette Allen. But if I post this here and direct her to it, another world famous photographer will have visited my site, and those google creepy crawlies will be even more impressed.
To wit: I have long wanted to record the story of my company name. Now another chapter may be developing, and I want Suzette's input -- and anyone else who would like to share an idea or two.
It all started out this way. Two years ago, when the notion of conceiving a photography business was conceived I went back to my photojournalistic roots and thought I would dabble in sports -- event photography. I didn't know then it was called event photography, but I do now.
Anyway, I came up with what I (and others) thought was a very clever name -- MVP, which was short for MostValuablePhoto. It was, of course. also a play on Most Valuable Player. Pun intended. I have attached an image file of my original MVP logo -- the red and black one.
Well, as things developed and I began to see that there were, seemingly, more lucrative and simple opportunities in portraiture, the Most Valuable Photo thing began to lose some of its lustre. So about a year ago I designed a new logo and changed the name to MostValuablePortraits; still with the emphasis on MVP. The tagline that evolved, which has been justly criticized by some but still retains a modicum of cleverness, is "Our MVP . . . is you!". I have attached a copy of the update logo, the one I am using now most of the time. It is kind of teal and gray.

The next step in this migration began when I started to get serious about a web site and domain names. It was more important to me, as a frequent typer of URLs and e-mail addresses, to be short than it was to be descriptive. So, condensing this narrative somewhat at this point, the domain I reserved was http://www.emvpix.com./ It is kind of a phonetic bastardization of MVP. Pix, of short, is sort of a slang abbreviation for pictures (or, in this case, portraits); and, if you pretend phonemically that the "e" is kind of silent, you can squint and get "MVP" out of my domain name. Not elegant, perhaps, but at least kind of whimsical.
As I played with the "EMVPIX" thing, I liked it more and more almost as a made-up brand (I know there is a name for those in the marketing world). When you give it a drop shadow and some other layer styles in Photoshop, it looks almost romanesque and noble. I have attached a prototype business card that reflects this.
Well, then I was thinking, what if I now changed the name by one more letter -- to http://www.envpix.com/ (I have purchased that domain name which was, thankfully, available). It takes things in a whole new direction, or at least almost a new direction. I still retain the roman grandeur of the visual graphic -- "EMVPIX" and "ENVPIX" look almost like Roman Numerals. But now I have a name that makes kind of a pithy statement. Competitors -- and students and brides who have their pictures taken elsewhere -- look on my pictures with envy. My pictures are envied throughout the known world, including Walla Walla (take that, ye crawlers!).
So, I guess the long and short of it is -- whaddya think of ENVPIX for a name?

The Legend of John Hartman and the Outdoor Flash

This is actually a clever ruse to drive a little photographic traffic to my blog. I could be sending this to John Hartman as an e-mail, but I am going to e-mail John with a link to this blog so the Google creepy crawlers will see that a world famous photographer has visited my humble site. Thanks, John.


I am almost reluctant to talk about John's miracle outdoor flash solution in public. It is so simple and so good it is almost like a secret weapon. Actually, I am just using this blog to ask John some questions about his technique, not to describe it -- so if you want to find out how it works you'll either have to ask John or pry it from my cold, dead fingers.


So John -- I am (somehow) going to attach three zipped files that contain small copies of a dozen or so images I have recently taken. In kind of a Clint-Eastwoodish style, I have called them The Good, The Bad, and the Huh? The titles are self explanatory -- I like the good ones (although I like some better than others), I don't like the bad ones, and I wonder what in the world happened in the Huh? ones.


I am guessing you could spend less than 46 seconds looking at all these files (not each of them) and come up with seven pointers for me as to how I can improve on your miraculous outdoor flash technique.


A couple specific questions: I don't remember reading this anywhere, but I have assumed that you are shooting in Aperture Priority mode. That is what I have done whenever I am using this technique. Another: Although this will likely come out if you are kind enough to review the sample images I sent, I would like some general guidance on shooting in open sunlight. Do you want to try and overpower it with the flash, or just use it as your main light and the flash as fill?

The Good

The Bad

The Huh?

Ambiance Tour Links

Hello. The purpose of this post is to provide folks with a couple differenent ways to view the Ambiance Gardens Photographic Tour that I put together.

Option 1: View on the internet. If you have a zippy internet connection and a zippy computer, this could be for you! Click on the link below, install the ActiveX controls as prompted, sit back and enjoy the show!

Option 1 Link

Option 2: Download an executable file to your computer. If you are unsure of your internet connection speed, or if your computer isn't the latest and greatest, this could be for you. With this option, you will download a file called Ambiance.exe to your desktop. When you double click on the file, it will run on its own. You will be asked to install a couple of small pieces of software from Photodex Corporation. They are trustworthy. With this option, you will have a copy of the file you can watch whenever you want!

Option 2 Link

Option 3: If you don't like downloading, or maybe if you have a fast internet connection at work but not at home, send me an email at mark@emvpix.com. I will reply with the executable file as an attachment. If you're at work, you could just copy the file to your thumb drive and take it home!

Option 4: Call Roberta at 509-586-0708, or call me at 509-378-0900, and we will mail you a DVD with the presentation on it. You will have a DVD that you can play on your TV or your computer.

Ashley at Ambiance

Ashley and I had another good photographic safari last Friday. We took this beautiful series of pictures as part of her Senior Portrait portfolio.

Ashley at Ambiance

Haley

On the Blog Again

I guess the value of these things develops over time. While any one entry might not seem very worthwhile, the patterns and connections that emerge as you add new entries increases the worth of the whole blog. That sounds kind of like something from New Rules for the New Economy, one of my favorite books. But I ain't nearly that smart.

Photographically speaking, a lot of good things have been going on. I have, over the past weeks, serenipitously developed a great relationship with Ambiance Gardens. It is simply a stunning place to get married in the Tri-Cities. In the spring, summer, or fall. I suppose a lot of people start places like this to make money, but it strikes me that Roberta, the owner of Ambiance Gardens, loves beauty and plants and that making money is just a side benefit.

I have uploaded a picture of their wedding patio. If you visit my website at www.emvpix.com and click on "Information," then "Ambiance Gardens," you can view a (rather lovely) presentation I put together for Roberta -- I call it a photographic tour.

The Poetry Intelligencer is Launched

I have just uploaded the first edition of my planned weekly Poetry Podcast, "The Poetry Intelligencer." At least until this post scrolls down, there should be a little box just to the right of what you are reading right now where you can listen, download, or subscribe. Let me know what you think!
I really consider this to be something of a rough draft, both content and technology-wise. I am certain I don't understand my audio studio software completely, and I am also certain that my narration is imperfect -- but I wanted to get this thing off the ground!

Podcast Almost Ready

My initital poetry podcast -- I have named it the "Poetry Intelligencer." I am going to use this blog, for now, to house my show notes. I plan on reviewing the podcast with my daughters tonight and posting it as early as tomorrow.

The floor is all finished in my new studio, and I am starting to set things up for my first shoots this weekend.

Poetry Podcast

I have spent a lot of time lately -- time that was formerly not as well used -- listening to Photography podcasts. There are a lot of good ones out there, and I have become very interested in the medium. I have decided to start my own weekly podcast -- on poetry. It will have an advanced secondary educational bent, but will be designed to be accessible to anyone who is interested. I am going to focus on the poetry I know and love best -- the English Romantics. Stay tuned for more updates. I get my podcasting studio from Amazon on Toosday!

Garage Studio

I am renting a 20x40' garage/storage unit to use as my studio. It is cheap and very flexible -- a big open room with 16' ceiling. I am quie excited about the possibilities -- and the picture shows where I am starting.

It seems like lots of people use their garage for a studio; I didn't have a spare garage, so I found one. It has a 100 amp power box with enough current to light a small city. It is almost all neutral colors -- the ceiling, the floor, the walls. The owner is giving me a great deal of latitude in what I do with the unit. I plan on keeping it kind of a quasi-industrial feel, but clearly a studio. I am drawing some of my inspiration from the facilities at Shootsmarter.

Poetry and Semiology

I made some compelling connections this week, linking my scant knowledge of semiology with a means of interpreting and understanding poetry. I teach AP English at Ki-Be High School. Early Wednesday morning, I threw my thoughts together into a Power Point presentation and then gave an hour-lomg lecture 1st hour. It worked pretty well. Here is a copy of the presentation: Semiology and Poetry. If the link works as I hope it does.
There. I didn't want to start my first-ever blog entry, on my own blog no less, by saying "this is my first blog entry ever." So I got 'round that one rather nicely.
I am a teacher and a photographer. In that order. I am not sure quite how the latter came about; perhaps I will address that later as the blog develops. I have a passion for both.
I had a busy day today. I polished off my new web site, which should go live on Monday; I designed a marketing piece for Senior Portraits which I think is quite clever; I designed a new business card, which I would give a B- grade to; and I made arrangements to seal the floor at my new studio this weekend.
And in the morning I am supposed to run the St. Patrick's day race with my daughter. We'll see.