A shot of my dad's...

My dad just returned from a multi-week long river tour of Europe last night and he sent me this photo today... unedited, out of the camera, and taken while walking from one part of the castle to another... just had to share!

I love it!

Butterflies!

While I was in Chattanooga earlier this week, I took a short excursion with the Holritz family to the Tennessee Aquarium... I love that place! ...and one of the things I love about it is that it has a lepidoptary (butterfly garden). I had only about an hour in there but it felt like 10 minutes.... trying to shoot butterflies in flight is hard! Thanks to Becca for letting me borrow her 105mm macro (I stupidly sold mine and will now be buying it again). 

Here's a slideshow.

Corey

Speaking in Chattanooga, TN

As soon as my wedding on Saturday finished up, I started packing for a short trip to Tennessee to speak for the Chattanooga Professional Photographers' Guild. I had a great session with an awesome group of photographers! We crammed a lot into one day... I spoke in the morning, Amber in the afternoon, and then we all shot an engagement session at a local park... Christa and David were great models! I actually didn't shoot very much, but here are a few of my shots from the day. (Stay tuned for a post about a very short excursion before I left for Asheville).














...and here's a slideshow I threw together super fast. Click here.

Thanks to Nathan and Amber for their faboulous hospitalty (and for the shots of me speaking and the groups~!)

Corey

Gas shortage!

If you live in Asheville, you know how hard it is to find gas! For those of you out of the area, gas is nearly impossible to get here right now. I spoke for the PPA in Tennessee earlier this week (more about that in a forthcoming post) and returned to find that the hard-to-find fuel situation had escalated drastically while I was away. Now, IF stations have any gas, which hardly any of them do, it's only for about an hour or so until they run out... and you have to wait in a line that's about 2+ hours long... you do the math. Needless to say, there are fights breaking out all over town and stores and business are starting to close up. All that to say that we'll be limiting the time we will be spending in the studio to conserve as much fuel as possible. We're still keeping our appointments (assuming our clients have gas to get to us!) and we're still happy to meet with people anytime. We will be checking messages at the studio regularly at 828.254.4954 and you can always reach us via email at the addresses below. Have a great day and good luck at the pumps!

Corey: info@coreymcnabb.com

Katie: katie@coreymcnabb.com

Jeremy: jeremy@coreymcnabb.com

Amber: amber@coreymcnabb.com

Keep'N it Fresh!

Hi all! I'm back from a great Pictage conference in LA and am already excited for the next speaking engagement. Coming up in a few weeks, I'll be the featured speaker for 4 education-packed days at the Keep N it Fresh workshop! We'd love to see all of you photographers out in Kansas October 20-23, 2008. Here's some verbiage from their site...

Are you ready to take your photography business to the next level?

Wondering how to reach the privileged masses from your own backyard?

Internationally recognized photographer Corey McNabb shares his secrets for creating rock star demand in a hometown locale.

After taking on SoCal’s Hollywood scene for more than a decade, McNabb successfully transplanted celebrity rates to his hometown of Asheville, N.C. — population 75,000.

McNabb shares professional secrets during a powerful hands-on workshop that will help you book more sessions, shoot on the fly, edit like a master and market like a pro.

Tuition includes:

• Four days of interactive training with Corey McNabb as he takes participants through hands-on workflow. From artfully closing a consultation to managing an editing backlog, McNabb will free you to learn more and earn more.
• Workshop sessions with a think-on-your-feet approach to on-site shooting, natural lighting techniques, web-based client management and color correction software.
• Break-out sessions with marketing and accounting consultants who specialize in strategic business planning for photographers.
• Professional models.
• Most of your meals, and transportation to and from session locations.

Who should attend:

• Photographers who want to grow their businesses and better manage workflow.
• Professionals ready to invest in real-world techniques designed to unleash artistry and improve income.
• Photographers who want to build a professional network of resources.
• Trendsetters ready for a chance to win more than $6,000 in industry-chic prizes.

Going back to Cali...

...Cali, Cali! 

I'm headed out to Los Angeles in the morning to attend the next Pictage Partner Con! These conferences are always a great time... lots of networking and learning from one another. This one will be September 9-10. 

Not only will I be there to learn, but to speak as well. I'll be giving an all new presentation for me this time... one that's not been tried by anyone before (to my knowledge): a LIVE sales presentation! Though I've spoken at conventions before about sales, there are a lot of variables to consider when doing something live like this, so hopefully with careful preparation and good planning all will go as expected. In a recent survey, the number one question I got from other photographers was "How do you handle the actual sales meetings?", and I could think of no better way to showcase the answer but to simply sit down with "clients" and go through the process live on stage! I've honed my sales meeting techniques over the years to a point that works well for me and I hope that sharing my experiences will help benefit other photographers from across the country. 

Hope to see many of you there!

Corey

Recent WPJA placements...

In the most recent contest held by the international Wedding Photojournalist Association, I'm happy to report that two of my images placed... one in the Great Natural Light category and one in Weather. Thank You to the WPJA and its judges!

Here are a few other images that I submitted:

Please help support a great cause!

My wife, Jill, has undertaken a huge commitment and she needs your help!

I've recently challenged my fellow speakers at the upcoming Pictage Partner Con! No, not to a game of poker or a darts tourney, but to support a great cause. Jill will be flying to Washington DC in a few weeks to walk 60 miles in 3 days in support of breast cancer awareness! Her dear friend and mentor, Stacey, passed away at only 38 years old. Breast cancer took this strong, beautiful mother of two small children away from her friends and family much too early!

Jill's goal is to raise at least $2200 (and more if possible) for the awareness walk, and she's well on her way, but she still needs their donations.... and yours too! The challenge, for my fellow PPC speakers, is this: my hope is that they'll all be able to give something, however small, to help this noble cause... however, I'm prepared to match the largest donation by the one of them that gives the most! That's right, game's on! Which ever speaker at the upcoming PPC donates the largest amount by 11pm EDT September 15th, will have that amount matched by me.

The cause needs more than just the speakers' help though... it needs your help too! So, please, if you can, click on the link below and give to this great cause. 

It's easy to donate, simply follow the below link or photo, click on "Donate Now", search for Jill McNabb (from North Carolina), and donate as little or as much as you can!

http://www.the3day.org/

Thank you!!

My Amazing Associates!

You know what they say... "Surround yourself with people better than you" (Chris Albrecht, CEO of HBO and George Steinbrenner, owner of the Yankees, among others). My team certainly and continually challenges me to stay at the top of my game! They're two extremely gifted photographers and I'm happy to announce their new websites... each generously sponsored by BluDomain,  one for each of my very talented associates: Jeremy and Amber!

Please check out their sites and let them know how great you think their work is!

Jeremy:

Amber:

And though she's not a shooter, having Katie in the office is great! I'm very fortunate to have such a fantastic team! Thanks, you guys!

Corey