First and foremost we must give a big thank you to Tamrac for their generous donation of a gorgeous Adventure Messenger 4 for April’s monthly contest! Keep reading to find our winner!

One of the reasons why Jules Café hosts a contest every month is to encourage readers to come back and visit the site. Jules Café has fresh, new content all the time, and it is built to help you, the photographer learn, grow, and share!

Look in the Grow section to find information about lighting, shooting, and equipment. The Learn section will have articles about business, marketing, networking, conventions, and workshops. You can find inspirational interviews and information about photography contests, charity work, and other fun tidbits in the Share section.

So grab a cup of coffee, curl up in a chair with your laptop, and dive in to Jules Cafe. In fact, don’t miss our inspirational Coffee Break series featuring both well-known photographers and those-to-watch who have given much to the industry, and contribute to the Learn Grown Share motto of Jules Cafe. Next week’s article will feature the lovely and talented Justine Ungaro.

Because April’s prize was a bag designed to hold equipment, I asked our readers to leave a comment about which piece of equipment was their favorite and why. The parameters of the question left it open to be anything at all that made life as a photographer better or easier.

Here were some of our favorite answers. Read below to get some GREAT ideas of equipment that has made other photographer’s lives easier. To see all of the answers, go to last months’ contest and check out all the comments:

Lisa Llarena says:
Since you specifically mentioned equipment that goes in the bag, I’d have to say my lens pen. It keeps everything else in the bag clean and ready for action. It gets the smudgy fingerprints off (yes, I’ve been known to space out and change lenses without having the caps on) and my sanity intact.

Corey Hage says:
Right now I would have to say my favorite piece of equipment is my 4GB SD Plus Card. I can shoot to it and then take it out and plug it right into my USB port and download the images, no card reader needed!!! It is the greatest time saver not only at the reception when making the slideshow but also when you have small shoots to do. No need to carry card readers and take up space in my gear bag. It is a must have if you shoot with the 1D series.
For those interested, here it is….

Terra Dawn says:
I would have to say Matt Kloskowski’s “Killer Lightroom Tips”. I, like most photogs, am constantly working towards learning new techniques and technologies (that’s we we all hang out at Jules Cafe!!). His blog has weekly action downloads and techniques to use in lightroom. Luuuurve this man’s blog. He’s helped me grow leaps and bounds in my post processing. (If you’re looking for an answer that involves actual equipment..lol….I am going to say my Shootsac. It’s colorful…incredibly helpful…and makes me happy.

Jessica Conroy says:
My favorite piece of equipment would have to be my camera slinger!
No more back pain with weddings. I now can shoot with two cameras and not have pain anymore.

And now what you’ve all been waiting for: Our April Winner is Cherie-Lynn Buchanan of CL Buchanan Photography! Cherie-Lynn, congratulations on your Tamrac bag!

Cherie-Lynn says:
Picking just one piece is hard, I try to love them all equally. My absolute fav has got to be my 50mm 1.4 (please don’t tell my 85 or 24). It is almost always on my camera and everything/body i shoot with it just seems to be better. The other thing I love is my Jill-E bag and my Shootsac. It’s nice that someone is bringing fun to women’s camera bags. Then there’s my iPhone just plain coolness. OK back to my first one my 50mm lens, yeah that’s my favorite.

I’m very excited to announce that Tamrac has donated an Adventure Messenger 4 (in your choice of red or grey!) for our April prize!! Go to the blog at Jules Café right now to find Olive’s Monthly Contest. Because this month’s prize is a bag that will hold your equipment, I want to hear which is your favorite piece of equipment and why. Leave a comment with your answer and be entered to win this great bag!

The March Question is: If you could do one thing for your business for 15 minutes every day, what would it be? (and then answer THIS question for yourself: WHY AREN’T YOU??)

I’m really impressed with all of the fantastic answers we’ve gotten so far. Here are just a few, but please go to Olive’s Monthly Contest to read them all. There are a lot of great ideas there.

“I would say take 15 minutes and identify one thing about yourself that is unique… that says who you are and what sets you apart as a person and an artist. Then, at the end of one year you will have a 365-point list of who YOU are. At that point you could take the list and develop a mission statement, or a poster, or a screen-saver, or a calendar, or a journal that you can have at your studio with you everyday. Too often we loose our identity in our creative work and forget about all the things that make us… US! You just never know… a bad day next year might be saved by your own encouragement your new screensaver!”
Paul Ernest

“I wish I could take 15 minutes a day to visualize shots I want to take, so that then I could figure out how to get the shot pictured in my head. Too often while shooting I feel rushed, and when I DO have a few extra minutes, sometimes I draw a blank and don’t know what to do. I think if I had pre-visualized shots I wanted, I would be able to quickly arrange it, and get something for “me”!”
Lisette Arencibia

“My goal would be to learn one more thing. I believe that if we all learn one thing or simply improve 1% every day, we could have dramatic improvements in what we do. Think about it: 1% improvement a day (or even a week). How fast does that add up! Is there a new technique or shortcut that I can learn? Can I find a new blog that will help me with marketing? A shortcut in Photoshop? Anything and everything is up for grabs. Is is the simple goal of improving 1% per day.
So I would use those 15 minutes to learn, study and execute one small idea that will allow me to improve 1% that day.”
Christopher Bloor

“I am just staring out, so the best thing for me has been to network with other photographers through forums, blogs, twitter, etc. I have gotten such great advice and made some fun friendships that have really helped to give me clarity about myself, what I am doing, and why I am doing it!”
Carol Cobb

“For a budding new photographer in the industry, a 15 minute dedication to my business GOLDEN. I would spend 15 mins each day looking for new ways to push my business forward using the acronym SSS.
* Setting – constantly look for new locations, backdrops around SF.
• Subjects – look for creative ways to market and attain clients
• Skill – practice everyday and push harder to strive for excellence
All of the above can be achieved in 15 mins or less thanks to the world wide web!”
Veronica Suh

Marty and I met Joy at the airport on Valentine’s Day, and it was pretty much a whirlwind from that point on.

Highlights for me were:

• Being awarded 2nd place for “Olive Goes to Hollywood” in the Non-Event Informal Album Competition. (See where a “pet” project can get you??)

• Doing an informal Q&A alongside my friend, Dane Sanders, at the Pictage booth on the trade show floor (Thank you to Brian Hancock for sending me the shots of us speaking!)

• Having four of my prints win accolades in the 16×20 International Print Competition.

• Meeting Ty Miller, the fellow who “won” me in the Thirst Relief mentorship auction. Ty is such a great guy, and I am really glad I got the chance to get to know him. (I’m going to insert a photo here as soon as Ty sends it to me!)

• Going to the kick-ass party Pictage threw for its photographers at Studio 54. There were 1040 photographers there, and it was the most fun I had the whole week.

• Doing a soft-launch of the newly re-designed Jules Café by providing refreshments at the Fast Track Photographer Blogger’s Lounge on the trade show floor. I absolutely love the new look designer Marty Thornley gave the Café. Please come and check it out. We are writing articles as well as pulling interesting feeds from sites all over the internet to make learning, growing and sharing that much easier!

A few months ago I won with this photo…the theme was “pet peeves”

THANK YOU to everyone who voted. Here are just a few examples of the fantastic comments:

8. “A Kiss in Union Square” by Jules Bianchi is not only the image that captures the nostalgia of a wedding day best, but her image seems to also be the most technically difficult to pull off. Ms. Bianchi some how managed to capture a calm, intimate moment of love in the middle of a chaotic and busy downtown location. Love conquers all.

Kimberly Stevenson

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8. “A Kiss in Union Square” by Jules Bianchi
I have been married for 35 years now and I must admit Jules has captured the way I look back at my own wedding. Nothing else matters but the two of us. We will forever be the fountain of youth for each other and time is no longer important. When I say my wedding vows on my 50th Anniversary I want Jules to do my wedding. This image is so relevant for those of us that have been married from that first day to a lifetime.

Lee Svec

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8. “A Kiss in Union Square” by Jules Bianchi
I love the how Bianchi creates a moment that seems caught by a bystander, so candid and entirely unexpected from just a bit of distance.

alex asher sears

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#8 Kiss in Union Square by Jules Bianchi. I’ve been married for almost 12 years and when I think back on that day I remember a blur of faces of close friends and people in motion dancing, eating, and celebrating. But my strongest memory is of a moment of calm in the middle of it as the world stood still and I kissed the love of my life for the first time as a married couple.

Ron T.

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#8 A Kiss In Union Square by Jules Bianchi.
The composition is brilliant, and her expression of the technicality of photograpy shines above all the others.

Frances

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click here or on the image below to cast your vote! Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom of the post to make your comment/vote.

(Just a technical side-note since a few folks have asked how the image was shot… The effect was done in-camera using a tripod and a very long shutter speed. I asked Matt & Elena to hold their kiss while cars, bikes and people moved around them.)

They were looking for an image with a NOSTALGIC feel (note: not necessarily an old photo, but one that has a nostalgic sensibility). The photo was to capture a magical, emotional moment in a wedding celebration. It can be any extraordinary shot that instantly conveys emotion. The shot Joy entered was from Elena & Matt’s wedding that I shot back in 2005!

My darling sister, Joy, entered the following photograph. I am honored to have won a spot amongst these top 10 finalists: Stephanie Williams, Steve DePino, Jeremy Lucero, Jennifer Skog, Jessamyn Harris, Christian Oth, Heather Waraksa, Lindsay Docherty & Frank Amodo

click here or on the image below to cast your vote!

THE CONTEST:
Since Kubota’s mantra is to EMPOWER PHOTOGRAPHERS, we want your best photography tip, or your worst nightmare. Email Joy at joy@julesbianchi.com the story of your best practices or what NOT to do, and we’ll pick the winners from the stories, as well as share some of them on Jules Café! Title of email: Kubota contest. Deadline: May 25th.

The Jules Café contest is going to be a fun one. The prize is Kubota’s latest product– the award winning RAW Workflow for Lightroom!

THE PRIZE:
This new tutorial, available as an interactive program on DVD, helps photographers learn how to efficiently use Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom!”. Kevin Kubota’s comprehensive, easy-to-follow teaching technique streamlines the process of working with RAW files in Lightroom. Kubota RAW Workflow for Lightroom takes the user step-by-step from proper organization, to efficient editing, to quickly adjusting the images, to enhancing, to final presentation. Kevin shares his insider tricks that have made his workflow tutorials and workshops an overwhelming success. More than just another Lightroom “Manual”, this interactive instructional is based on a proven workflow system used daily by busy digital studios.

THE CONTEST:
Since Kubota’s mantra is to EMPOWER PHOTOGRAPHERS, we want your best tip, or your worst nightmare. Email Joy at joy@julesbianchi.com the story of your best practices or what NOT to do, and we’ll pick the winners from the stories, as well as share some of them on Jules Café! Title of email: Kubota contest. Deadline: May 25th.

Don’t be too disappointed if you joined the mailing list and didn’t win… we will be running a new contest very soon… I can’t reveal the exact prize at this moment, but here is a little hint: