AIRBNB PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP // HELLO LA

Airbnb is hosting five days of events called Hello LA, starting this friday at some of LA's coolest locations. There will be pop up housing designed by celebrities and tastemakers, parties, concerts and even workshops. They have asked Kimberly Genevieve and I to host a 90 minute photography workshop in the Arts District and the best part, it's FREE!! Just sign up here. We will be teaching 5 tricks to improve your photos, whether they're taken on your DSLR or iPhone. I promise it is going to be ridiculously fun and to top it all off there will be Handsome Coffee baristas and delicious snacks on hand. I hope to see you there! 

WHAT: HELLO LA MAKERS CRAFT WORKSHOP
Photography with Jessie Webster & Kimberly Genevieve
5 Tricks to Improve Your Photos

 WHEN: Monday September 30th, 1-2:30pm

WHERE: Arts District. East 3rd Street Los Angeles, California 90013
LINKS:Photography Workshop Sign Up PageAirbnb Hello LA Info Page

IPHONEOGRAPHY // MY PROCESS


I blogged about my Instagram photo editing process last year and it is still one of my most viewed posts. Since my process has slightly changed, I thought I'd do another tutorial for you. I'm not saying that I go through all of these steps every time I post a photo on Instagram. Sometimes I just quickly add a filter and that's it, but I would say the majority of the time I go through each and every step. Taking the photo is the easy part, It's the editing that can take time. And by time I mean five minutes rather than one. 
VSCOcam // I've said it before and I'll say it again, VSCOcam is my favorite and most used photo editing app. I love the filters- G3, G1 and M5 being my most frequently used. You can also decide the strength of the filter from 1 to 12, which no other app does. I love that they have added features like the straightening tool and the ability to take your photo with a square frame around it, making it easier to gage what can fit into frame if posting on Instagram. I also use this app to lighten, add warmth or contrast. 
AfterLight // This app also has great filters and many tools that I love like sharpening, darkening shadows and adding clarity. 
Touch Retouch // I use this app to remove shadows, smudges, gum from a sidewalk, anything distracting. Sometimes it's not totally accurate or can make a smudge on a wall worse, but most of the time it is amazing. It's like photoshop on your phone. 
Snapseed // I have stopped using this app to straighten photos, since VSCOcam now offers this feature. However, I do still use it for a really genius feature- the ability to lighten, darken and add saturation to one section of my photo, rather than the entire thing. I have yet to see this feature on any other app and it can be very useful. 
TimerCam // To be honest the photo in the tutorial above was a self portrait taken from the top of my car using Timercam. It's a very straightforward app that takes a photo on a 5, 10, 15 or 30 second timer. It's great for self portraits and it's free. You can't beat free. 

I hope this tutorial gives you ideas, or some insight into my process. See you on Instagram!

LATELY

Since I have so many instagrams from my trip to Martha's Vineyard, I decided to extend my lately post and include them all. Even though I've been going to the island for 24 years, I think this summer will stand out as one of the best ever. That has a lot to do with my wonderful travel companions, Phil and Afton. They love to explore and take photos as much as I do and their excitement about being on the Vineyard definitely transferred to me. We had all kinds of adventures and moments that I will forever hold dear in my heart. Our trip was full to say the least- we went to two beaches, a pond, took a boat to another island, eat lots of lobster and oysters, had dinner parties with old friends and new, sung karaoke, played running charades, went to a dance party, saw plenty of lightning, bought friendship bracelets at the flea market and eat far too many Backdoor Donuts {if you've never been, you must}. It was more than difficult to say goodbye, but this time instead of waiting a whole year,  I get to come back in one month for a wedding. As you can imagine, I'll be counting down the days. Here is a little look at my life of late and a few of the sweet things making me smile... 
Packing for our trip
Nautical details
The light and shadows
A photo walk around Menemsha
A dreamy dinner with friends old and new
Spending time with my parents
Adorable Swedish friends
A boat trip to Cuttyhunk & a 14lbs. lobster
Lobster, lobster & more lobster
Sunsets on the deck & island exploring
The sweet summer breeze
Fantastic meals & beaches
Gorgeous scenery everywhere you turn
My family's cottage

IPHONEOGRAPHY // VSCO CAM

My favorite iPhone photo editing app VSCO CAM just upped their game and came out with a new version. Let me tell you in is phenomenal. It takes iPhoneography to the next level. There are so many amazing features, like the ability to take a photo in a square format, to focus on two subjects, white balance and 48 new filters. The list goes on. Oh and it's free! They also licenced about 30 of my iphone photos to showcase different filters. It's so fun for me to see my photos (some of me) in an app. I guess I can add 'App Model' to my resume. Who knew when I got an iPhone a year and a half ago that it would completely change my life as a photographer. So rad. Here is a walk through of the app for those of you who are curious. 


*side note- VSCO did not pay me to write about the new app, I just truly love it so much I had to share. 

IPHONEOGRAPHY


Like so many others, Instagram is by far my most used and favorite iphone app. People often ask me how I edit my photos on my phone, so I though I would share my process. I've waisted many dollars on photo apps, but really only use these three... 

1. Snapseed has one of my most loved features- the straighten feature. In the past I wouldn't post photos when lines were off or a window was crooked, but now with this app I can make them perfectly straight. I also love that you can brighten, add contrast or saturation to a section of the photo rather than the whole thing.
2. VSCOcam is by far my favorite photo editing app, because the filters emulate film. Ever since this app came on the scene I rarely use instagram filters. You can also use the app to lighten, add contrast, saturation, etc. 
3. TouchRetouch is genius. I just found out about the app a month or so ago and it has changed my life.  You can remove anything unwanted from a photo, sort of like you would in photoshop. In this photo I removed a speaker and a fire alarm, which would have taken the focus away from my subject.