is almost here, so I thought I’d share 2 valentine’s themed cards, you can use these for your loved ones, or offer them to your clients.

Download the cards here - (remember to read our terms or use) they are both 5 x 7 and in PNG format.

Here is also a simple gift idea for you

Start by taking your container (hat box works great) and lining it with tissue paper before filling with items
Some ideas for your box:
Sachets of lavender
CD of songs that mean something to you
Candles and matches
Bubble bath
Couple of wine glasses for your favorite wine or beverage
Gift ( jewelry, engraved locket, compact etc.)
Book of poetry or journal or diaries you could share
Special photographs of your wedding, vacation, etc. to look at
Some of your love letters to each other
Some IOU (I owe you) cards
Cover the opening of your container with tissue paper, place the lid on and tape closed.

Till next time, take care.

only a week late in wishing everyone that! but whilst the Northern Hemisphere is enjoying winter, the Southern is in the midst of a heat blast, wedding season and many still on summer holidays.  Don’t you love how a new year arrives like a new baby, so fresh and exciting, all clean and full of hopes and possibilities?….but there is also the fear of the unknown, the nervousness of wondering how many sleepless nights you will have and if you will survive the ups and downs, the twists and turns and be able to navigate all those unknowns and still be successful.  As every parent knows, you take one day at a time, and somehow you get to the end and look back and realise that you have grown, changed, matured and become a better person because of all those mountains and valley’s.  So that is our wish for all of you this year; that the mountains and valley’s of the next 12 months make you a better, stronger and more matured photographer (yes it was sounding a little Steve Austin there for a minute!…better, stronger, faster….we can rebuild you!….)…..LOL…

A quick update to say that there is only one spot left for Phoenix; so if you were thinking about coming, had contacted us about coming but not paid your deposit yet; please do so TODAY, otherwise you will miss out.  Schedule and Details are posted under the Phoenix Tab at the top of the page.

We are looking forward to an exciting year with amazing speakers; which I’ll share later this week! ….and continued learning and sharing as a community.  The next Issue of Essence Magazine is due on in another 6 weeks (the Magazine of Beyond Just Images) and the site www.2findaphotog.com is also undergoing a facelift and will be open for new listings soon, we will post here when that happens, but all Beyond Members will receive an email first.

…and couldn’t do a post without also leaving you with some images!

Dawnn’s beautiful image….and you can ask her about the cute peapod hat too!  She sells them!

The fabulous Amanda Andrews…and her stunning Senior work…and finally Ken Deboe, who not only has increased his family with this beautiful angel (Congrats Ken and Family!~) but also took the bottom image with OCF for this family’s christmas cards.

Some papers for you!

Download here.

You are welcome to use these on your website, your splash page, cards for clients, ect.
No link back required.
You may not use these in templates for sale or giveaway, without written permission from me.

Enjoy.

Some of us have already had Christmas morning, some are still getting children into bed, waiting for Santa to arrive and the excitement of christmas morning to begin! …no matter where you are in the world (and Beyond members are from all over the globe), we want to wish you a Joyous Day with your family, friends, online colleagues, etc.

You still have time to photograph Santa at your house!  Ginny Haynie shared this link:

http://www.capturethemagic.com/

So much fun!!!

The stunning christmas tree image was supplied by Heidi Brand.

As we know the season is all about Giving…..both to family and friends, but also to those that we may never have met, may only know “online” or those that are less fortunate than ourselves; and wouldn’t have gifts or even food/water without our help.

One of the things I LOVE about Beyond is the giving spirit that resides there, that a member gave another member a FlashPalette Website, because they knew she couldn’t afford one otherwise.

On Christmas Day, another member will receive a Bludomain Site as a prize from the 12 Days of Christmas, and then on New Year’s Day we are giving away another Bludomain Site, a Splash Page and a Custom Blog…..all generously donated by those sponsors to someone who needs a little bit of help in order to realise their dream.  Members have nominated who they think should receive this prize and the Sponsors will chose someone……and that person will start off 2009 with this fantastic gift bundle for their business!  The really amazing thing about this prize is that it was not Beyond’s idea, the idea itself came when Danna Bowes donated a site she won to a member she knew wouldn’t afford one otherwise….and so many of us were so touched, including Samantha from Bludomain, that it was her idea that we do it again as a Christmas Gift; Blu have fantastic Staff!

We are also really privileged to support and know Lindsay from PIF Blog.  If you have never visited this Blog…then you are truly missing out!  Not only is the information amazing, the sharing fantastic but they truly know how to “Pay It Forward”…and there are heaps of freebies to be had!  So go check them out!….and if you have something contribute contact Lindsay!  She’d love to hear from you!

Some of the beautiful and funny items from the Season come from:

Laureen’s “When Elf’s go Bad”

Jesse P’s beautiful Christmas miracle…and that of course leads to all the wonders that come all year round….. like this gorgeous babe photographed by Rebecca Bennett

or (ssshhhh!) this amazing shot by the VERY talented Kate Austin!

Enjoy your peaceful and relaxed Christmas!

….Ali Hohn’s Off Camera Flash Manual is now avaiable for purchase; visit her site at HERE and let her know you came from the Beyond Blog….she is also running a class that works in with her manual, it will let you ask questions, complete assignments and really help you master this fantastic technique.

Perfect for some Christmas Reading and Training, while you are taking a break! (IF you are! that is)

The Schedule Outline for Phoenix will be out by the end of the week, and there are only 8 places left!  This is going to be a fantastic weekend, with Cari Clinkenbeard also assisting and helping out with teaching on Studio Lighting.  The calibre of teachers and those attending is fantastic!

The 12 Days of Christmas is finished on the Forum, and we wish to thank all the sponsors for their fantastic donations of products, services and discounts for members who didn’t win the actual prize.   Your support and believe in us and the Beyond Community is amazing.  We will be featuring all the sponsors on the Blog over the next 12 months, because their products seriously do Rock, and are all products that photographer’s around the world love and use.  Be sure to check them out HERE.

..and finally ….because this post is kind of short and sweet due to us being so busy with the Christmas Rush! …like most of you are I suspect! …here is the funny of the week; sent in by the very funny Kella Vella.   Possibly only those that dwell “Down Under” will get it!

Spice up your cards and storyboards with lovely quotes, 11 quotes to choose from, all in PNG format.  Change colours if needed.

Download it here

Phoenix has 9 spots left….make sure you email as soon as possible if you wish us to notify you when the last few spots are left. The schedule will be released in the next few days, and it looks amazing!

So a few people asked about our big announcement….here it is …..

We are very very excited to announce that Anastasia Chomlack will be joining the Teaching Team for Phoenix Conference 2009!

Anastasia (Stace) is best for her maternity work, and her interest in the ‘Celebration of Life’ Programme, which enables communities to nominate those in need for a free photo shoot. Many of us have all been touched by the stories and photos from this amazing Programme; if you are interested in finding out more information about “Celebration of Life”, please contact Stace for more details.  Stace is known for her giving and generositiy to others, so it is a privilege to have her extend her giving spirit to the Conference!

Anastasia is in her third year of business as a portrait/ lifestyle photographer and will share with us that process… As well as some shooting tips…. Location hunting (making something of ummm… Nothing…which as most of us know, is vital for on-location, natural light Professionals). This last year Anastasia (with her husband Chad) added weddings to the Business and not only did they suddenly find themselves fully booked for the season, but many of those weddings were “destination” weddings as well. They will be launching their new wedding website around the time of the conference. This past year has also seen Anastasia Chomlack Photography enter the Commercial Photography field.

She is excited to share that process as well as to facilitate discussion on products, web content, marketing, promoting yourself, how she creates a connection with her clients, finding your own style, giving back to your community, etc.                                                                                                                            You can see more of Anastasia’s work in some of her recent commercial ventures including FIG KIDS, TWICE SHY ORGANIC CLOTHING, CHRISTINE VANCOUVER LINGERIE, VOMO FIJI RESORT, THORNHILL GROUP REALESTATE, MILKSHAXS BABY WEAR, NAMESTHE TEA COMPANY, GOTTSCHALK ARCHITECT, BRIDGE MAGAZINE (Vancouver) and the GREEN LIVING SHOW.

We are very excited to announce some additional news about Phoenix! ….not only is it going to be an amazing Conference, with a fantastic schedule, but we have exciting news that will add to this awesome event!  Only 10 spots left, so if you are intending on Booking, please do so as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.  When those 10 spots are full, even pleading, begging, chocolate won’t get you in….okay maybe we will consider chocolate!

Tonee Lawrence  shared this cool trick on the Forum: 

Wanna macro lens?? .. yeah me too. Did you know that pretty much ALL us have one right now? Yup.. sure do! Right under your cutsey noses! Plop on your kit lens (i know i know) get out your 50mm, flip it around and butt it right up against the lens attached to the camera, then get in loooooow and super close!
NEAT HUH!!!! Now go… go be addicts like me!

As you can see above, Susan Roberts gave it a go too! and with amazing results (using two 50mm lenses).  This is a fantastic idea for capturing some of the “details” of christmas this year!  If you take an image doing this and would like it posted on the Blog with a link to your site; simply email it to admin@beyondjustimages.com    Thanks!

Dale from Life’s Colorful Canvas is giving away an amazing set of her presets today as part of the Beyond 12 Days of Christmas Competitions!   Open to all Beyond members!  She has also put together the “Best of….” set…and we love it!  LR and ACR sets available! Visit her Blog (linked above) to purchase at a reduced price!

                                                                                                     Malin from HiF StoryboardMaker supplied the Contest Prize yesterday…and if you have ever wanted to do Storyboards but thought they were a hassle, difficult, couldn’t find the right template, etc…then we are going to let you into the best secret you’ll hear this year!  Malin’s Storyboard Maker is amazing! ….visit her site to see it in action and explanation on how it works.  Fully automated, and you can use it for web OR for print.  Love it!

…and this!  Dale’s actions, Malin’s Storyboard Maker….Images by Dale.

We are so excited to be running the 12 Days of Christmas on the Beyond Forum again this year! So many amazing Sponsors (see link above for great products that can take your business to the next level!)…..  We are thrilled to share some of the Sponsors here and give you the chance to add their products, services, etc to your Line-up for 2009!

NICHOLE VAN

Well known in the industry for her stunning images! unique style and giving spirit….Nichole also provides actions, textures and templates for Photographer’s via her Flourish Website and right now if you go to her site you can receive this Card Template for FREE!!!! (told you she was amazing!)

Click on the card to start the free download BUT if you go to Nichole’s BLOG you will get an extra coupon surprise!  GO BEFORE MONDAY!!!

Who else are we lovin’ on the 12 Days????

 ITUNES …sounds to proof too!

DANE SANDERS….the perfect under the tree gift AND you can even buy his mellow voice to put on your ipod! ….see post below for links.

TINA PARKER!

Tina is an amazingly creative, giving, warm, special person, Sponsor and friend of Beyond.  She has been part of the Forum since it was started and has always given and helped members, doing custom design work for them, as well as creating beautiful cards and background papers etc.  Her site is full of items that your customers will love! …..click the image to the right, say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to her….and see what surprise she has on her Blog for you today! …links to her amazing products can be found as you scroll through the Blog, purchase buttons are on the right hand side.

Another freebie for you, a 20×10 storyboard in psd format, text is on a separate layer so you can remove it if needed.

Download it here