Brian and I are coming to Vegas and Tennessee in February, and we would LOVE to meet you!

First stop is  WPPI 2012, February 16th-23rd in Vegas!

Wishing you could have a reunion with your CONFIDENCE sisters?  Why not WPPI!  Take it from the San Diego CONFIDENCE Workshop!  These ladies have kept up this reunion for three years now!

WPPI is the largest Wedding and Portrait Photography Conference!  Thousands of photographers come from all over the world, but don’t fret.  The attendees range from beginner to old pro.  The speaking sessions are awesome, down to earth, and cover EVERY THING you could think of from lighting, posing, social media, running a business, etc.  Every product, vendor, I mean…any photography related THING, is at the tradeshow–and often vendors save their BIGGEST discounts to offer to WPPI attendees.  So if you are thinking of upgrading your camera equipment, save your dollars and do it at WPPI!  This is an amazing conference!  It’s one of our Grand Prize awards in the Nielsen Photo contests!  In fact, I’m super excited for Leah, the Grand Prize winner of the New Beginnings Contest to go!  She gets full registration to WPPI as one of her prizes!

Remember the talk I gave at Photo Plus in NY called “Using Social Media Strategically:  What Works vs What is Noise”?  I know a lot of you were unable to attend Photo Plus but wanted to hear the talk!  You are in luck!!  The audience feedback was so great in NY, WPPI is letting me bring the talk to Vegas!

Mark your calendars.  My session will be on Wed, February 22nd, from 8-10am!  I will also be doing several shooting demonstrations at the SONY booth on the tradeshow floor.

So you better say hi!    Register for WPPI and save your spot for my talk online today!

From Vegas, we fly to Tennessee for  Blissdom 2012!

Calling all women who love blogging, taking pictures, writing and dream of running your own business (or currently have a business)!  Blissdom brings 750 women together for a two day conference that will blow your socks off and infuse you with inspiration and friendship!  I’ll be teaching all day on Friday for those interested in photography!  My talk is titled “Shoot Like a Woman”!  And I can’t wait to meet you there!  This is my first time going to Tennessee, so EXCITED!

Blissdom is held at the  Opryland Hotel.  From what I hear, this place is a great family vacation spot too!

But first, before our CONFIDENCE Workshop in Seattle and Florida, before WPPI in Vegas, before Blissdom in Tennessee, we head to Costa Rica this week to shoot a very, very special wedding!  (Bring me sunshine!)

So where am I going to see you this new year?  Seattle, Florida, Vegas, Tennessee or California?  …Costa Rica?

xo,

m

I’m not sure what got in to me, but I didn’t want to have the perfect model this year at Photo Plus Expo in NY.  I wanted to try babies, and then I wanted to try a two-and-a-half year old, and if the attempts utterly failed, I figured it would still be real. AND, we would all learn a ton through it.

These little ones kept me on my toes!  And I LOVED every minute of it!  It’s a bit like The Nate Berkus Show intensity without lights, cameras filming and two million watching. 

I turned around a few times to talk to the audience about the specific strategies and shooting techniques I was using,

but all in all, I had to keep my eye on the little ones before they crawled away! 

Oh boy, isn’t he a HANDSOME guy!

I LOVE this one of him standing tall between mama’s boots!

And mom, well, she is simply gorgeous–shining through and through!

Endless adjustments and direction to the subjects makes all the difference, along with a big smile on your face to keep them at ease.

And what about that two year old?!  Meet sweet Lila and her mama!

We can’t leave out her best friend Diego!

I think she was trying to decide what she thought about the whole photo shoot and audience thing.  What a trooper she was!

But that couldn’t keep her curiosity away!  I love the honest look in her eyes for this one!

I don’t think a photographer has ever done a demo shoot of a baby or toddler on the tradeshow floor, but I’m thinking it’s a must for WPPI in Vegas this year!  It was such a ride, so much fun, and the kids made us all smile wide!

Believe me, I was NERVOUS!  But if we aren’t challenging ourselves, pushing our limits, trying new things, our creating becomes paralyzed.  Risk taking seems to bring creativity back into play.

A HUGE thank you to all of the moms, dads, toddlers and babies who played along with me!  What a wonderful time we had!

The tradeshow floor has never been so CUTE!!!

xo,

m

For those of you who have asked about the equipment I was using, here you go!

Camera body:  SONY a850 DSLR

Two Lenses: SONY 24-70mm, Carl Zeiss, f/2.8 and the Fixed SONY 85 mm, Carl Zeiss, f/1.4

p.s.  Sweet Lila, the two year old, was one of the babies in my book “Your Baby in Pictures”.  Can anyone guess what Photo Recipe she is in?!

p.s.s.  Last day to enter a Texas mom for the Running on Empty Contest!  CLICK HERE to enter yourself or someone you know!

At 11:30am today on the tradeshow floor at the SONY booth, I’m going to demonstrate a photo shoot of a TODDLER!!!  It’s NEVER been done before by anyone!  I have no idea how this will go down.  Some people are telling me I’m crazy.  But you know what, it’s going to be REAL!  And we are ALL going to learn a ton from it!  I can’t WAIT!

Yesterday, I had a mom and baby.  And people thought that was nuts!  But, I say we up the challenge and bring the two year old in.  Photo Plus Expo is all about learning, being inspired, being challenged, walking away empowered!  What better vehicle than a two year old for all of us! 

(but seriously, wish me luck!)

Here are some fun photos from yesterday at the SONY booth!  I’ll be demonstrating three times today and five or six times tomorrow with  more babies and families!

and another fun one!

Special Book Signing for “Your Baby in Pictures” at the Chelsea Museum tonight from 6:30-8pm!  Hope to see you there!

So…do you think I’m crazy?

xo,

m

Friday, October 28th, 6:30-8pm, Special Book Signing at Chelsea Museum with other SONY Artisans, Brian Smith and Andy Katz!! See their books below! Buy an autographed copy or bring the one you own!

Chelsea Art Museum | Home of the Miotte Foundation
556 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
Phone: +1.212.255.0719 x116 | Fax: +1.212.255.2368

It’s that time of year again!  Photo Plus Expo’s crazy, intense, inspiring energy is escalating!  Next week is starts.  I swear, I think I rest up for this week all year!  With three talks a day at the SONY booth and a two hour presentation on Social Media “working for you”, dinner mtgs, an exciting new exhibit of latest work from me and the SONY Artisans at Chelsea Museum, and amazing party by SONY and American Photo to kick off the exhibit, and most of all, the awesome catch up with old and new friends…it’s the week to be in New York City if you are a photog lover! What is Photo Plus?  Watch this VIDEO!

It’s not to late to still register and get your booty there!

This is what I’m talking about for two hours in NY next week “Using Social Media Strategically for YOUR Business”…subtitle…instead of finding yourself in a black hole and having wasted a WHOLE LOT of time!  Anyone hear me?    Mark your calendars and come see me!  The date and time of my presentation is Wed, 10/26, from 1:15pm-3:15pm at the Javits Convention Center in NYC.

Be prepared for a candid, super honest conversation, in strategies that have failed horribly (and most importantly–why) and strategies that grow our business from quarter to quarter.   There will be a TON of other fantastic speakers all week!  If you are in need of inspiration, empowerment, a brush up on the skills around your photography or growing your business, you want to come to the Big Apple next week for Photo Plus Expos and WPPI East!

Below is my talk description.  Much of my content is based on weekly emails I get from all of you about Social Media, what to do and not do.  Very excited to see you there!!  Am I going to see you there?!

Title:  Using Social Media Strategically for YOUR Business

What type of Social Media benefits a photographer’s business the most?  Do you need a static website if you have a blog?  Do you spend your time on Facebook and forget about a blog?  How important is Twitter anyways, or a Shopping Cart for that matter?  Or, do you already take advantage of all five of these platforms and still not get the traffic you are looking for?  The question isn’t whether you need one platform over the other, but what is the purpose of each and will it help you meet YOUR specific business goals.  Me Ra Koh is going to share how she uses all of these platforms for different parts of her business.  At the end of the day, time is what we value most.  As a busy mom, business owner and photography expert for The Nate Berkus Show, Social Media needs to not only grow Me Ra’s business but save her time by multiplying the work she’s already done.  If Social Media isn’t saving her time and making her money, it’s not worth doing.  Come hear Me Ra share what she’s found that makes sense for photographers in the Social Media world, and what is just noise.  Whether you are just launching a new business and trying to book clients or your an established pro wanting to expand your brand, Me Ra is going to leave you excited and empowered with a whole new juicy set of Social Media tools to grow your business, make you money and most of all, save you TIME!

Am I going to see you there?!

A few of the other “AWESOME” SONY Artisans are giving two hour presentations that you want to see!  Here they are!!

And remember that contest, where you told me what confidence and photography meant to you in a comment below?  That’s still going!  The winner gets free passes to the show!  Post your thoughts below!  All comments, from today’s post and the other, will be considered!  I’m even going to see if I can get the winner two VIP, invite only, tickets to the big SONY bash Thursday night!  So post your comments on what confidence and photography meant to you!

xo,

m

p.s.  Tomorrow’s post is another Amazing Mom interview with a Boudoir Photographer!

1. I REALLY need to step into the current century and swap  my Blackberry for an iPhone!

2. Twitter is more powerful than I realize!

3. Oprah doesn’t have it all figured out, and that’s why we LOVE her so much!

I’m a newbie to Social Media conferences, so I wasn’t sure what to expect when Brian and I arrived at EVO.  Can I just say my expectations were blown out of the water!!  First of all, Utah…PARK CITY…is CRAZY BEAUTIFUL-TAKE YOUR BREATH AWAY-PINCH YOURSELF EVERY MORNING YOU OPEN YOUR CURTAINS kind of scenery!  Just look at this cloud photo Brian took on his iPhone!

With a gorgeous background, this was the most fun three day conference (and not just for me and Brian but our WHOLE family)!  The kids went to the coolest adventure day camp, riding gondolas up to awesome hiking trails (Pascaline saw her first MOOSE!), swimming in the afternoon, bowling, and more!

The keynotes were fascinating, especially hearing the candid creative process that Oprah and the Harpo team are in the midst as they reinvent themselves with OWN.   The workshops had such great hands-on takeaway too!  Brian and I had a blast doing an intensive photography workshop with the fabulous WhiteOnRice duo.

And all the EVO sponsors were incredibly approachable from the Sesame Street marketing team to the Southwest Airlines group to crying over babies stories in the Huggies suite.

But what strikes me most about this conference is what was missing from EVO.   Ego.  Ego was totally missing from this conference!  No rock star attitudes whether you were the VP Creative Director at Harpo or a down-to-earth @Bloggess who keeps it real while blowing her audience away, despite her fears of presenting.   Instead of ego, there was intense PASSION for making the world a better place, whether your tool is Social Media or a nerf gun with intention of empowering other parents to engage in SERIOUS PLAY with their kids (thank you Meredith!).  There was room for every kind of passion, and I especially love the ones that have a mind to spread sparkles everywhere!

Everyone I met at EVO was so incredibly approachable, friendly, wanting to learn from each other–I wish I had more time with every new friend I made.

(me with Meredith from Hoo-dee-Hoo!)

And I know I made new life long friends that will help me grow and laugh along the way.

(me and Rachael Herrscher of Today’s Mama / Co-Founder of EVO)

Whether you are a newbie to blogging, Twitter, and every other vice of Social Media, or maybe you are an old pro at it all, or maybe you want an excuse to come to one of the most beautiful places in the world and make new friends while your kids have a blast at the coolest day camp (and you scream your pants off on the Alpine Coaster)–whatever reason you can justify to come to EVO next year–YOU HAVE TOO!  The word is that EVO’s Early Bird Registration started (and last year they sold out lighting fast!).

And Jeramy, dudes are invited too!!  The tagline of the conference is “the evolution of women in social media” but it was awesome to see a handful of men attend who are interested in seeing how women are shaking up the sm world!

Big shout out to my amazing publisher, Amphoto Books/Random House!  They gave a copy of “Your Baby in Pictures” to the first TWO HUNDRED people to grab their seat for my closing Keynote!  I LOVE this photo!  It’s the perfect combination; women laughing while eating chocolate and holding my book!

But seriously, I can’t thank YOU enough for all your well wishes, thoughts and prayers toward my Closing Keynote.  I practiced that talk for weeks, and I can’t imagine it going any better.  My stomach was a flurry of butterflies in the hours leading up to my talk, but when it came time to get on stage I thought of Oprah’s words “Fill Your Space”, and I went for it.

The response that has followed on Twitter has left me speechless.  So many hearts resonated with what I shared, and I love that we got to go on a journey from a psych ward to the jungles of Thailand to the Nate Berkus Show set–and we even whooped like Gibbon Apes with Pascaline’s help!  (big thanks to Trevor Christensen for these photos!  I love my baby girl’s smile as she stands on stage with me!)

When we left Utah Tuesday night, I tweeted “My heart is full.”  EVO truly filled my heart on so many unexpected levels. Fingers crossed we’ll see eachother next year!

Thank you to the amazing #evoconf team for ALL their hard work, thinking of the smallest details, and making us feel so welcome.  It was a honor to be with all of you!

I took a TON of photos at the party after my keynote, if we got a photo together will you tag me on Facebook on this page?  I’d love to see them and stay in touch!

Now, for those of you who are veterans at attending social media conferences, what are your favorite reasons for going?

xoxo,

m

Me Ra, Brian and the kids are headed to Park City, Utah this week for the EVO Conference! I love EVO’s tagline; the evolution of women in social media! It’s going to be a power packed three days, hosted by Rachael Herrscher of Today’s Mama!, and her amazing team!

Major influencers in the social media world are doing keynotes from Jon Sinclair who is the VP Creative Director at Harpo to Andrea Wishon, Supervising Producer for The Oprah Winfrey Show to Jason Pollock,  filmmaker, writer and digital producer (who has 92K plus people following him on Twitter!) to Martha Stewart’s marketing team to Johnson and Johnson’s team and MORE!  And in the midst of all these amazing influencers, our Me Ra Koh has been invited to do the Closing Keynote on Saturday evening!  Yeah Me Ra!!!!! (see her talk description below!)

But here is the BEST part!!  You can watch all the powerhouse keynotes, including Me Ra’s, on EVO’s Live View website!

CLICK HERE to watch Me Ra live on Saturday night at 5pm Central Time!

What time is Me Ra’s talk in your time zone?

Seattle/West Coast friends: 4pm PST

Utah, Colorado and all our other Mountain time friends: 5pmMDT

Texas, Kansas Wisconsin and all our other Central Time Zone friends: 6pm CDT

All our buds on the East Coast: 7pm EST

Me Ra would love to have you join the audience and already feels your support.  She appreciates all your Tweets, prayers and emails of encouragement!  Brian said she has been rehearsing her Keynote for days, wanting it to have the most impact ever!  The theme is Living a Life of Adventure! She would love people to pray that she FILLS HER SPACE and doesn’t shrink back but steps up to that stage with FULL CONFIDENCE.  Thanks for saying a prayer for our Me Ra (we know she’s going to rock it!).

CLICK HERE for the full schedule of all EVO Keynotes!  (only the keynotes will be live online)

If you are one of the 50K beautiful readers who brew a cup of coffee to meet Me Ra on her blog each morning, heat up the pot Saturday afternoon/evening or pour a glass of wine, pop some popcorn and enjoy watching Me Ra live this Saturday!  I have a feeling that it’s going to be magical.  With the conference theme being adventure, they have asked Me Ra to close out the conference with a keynote that inspires an adventurous life–who better than Me Ra?!!  See her talk description below!

See you this Saturday!

love,

Genie

Closing Keynote: Me Ra Koh (click here to see it LIVE!)

If you knew fear and doubt would always be there, regardless of what you achieved…what would you go after?  What impossible would you pursue?  In twenty years, Me Ra went from living out of her car in Seattle parking lots to inspiring millions of viewers on The Nate Berkus Show.  Fear and doubt have been her unwanted companions, every step of the way.  But the search for worthiness, worthy of living her life to the fullest, worthy of being loved, worthy of having Voice, has been the fire behind the adventure of her life.   Join Me Ra for an incredibly candid, inspiring Closing Keynote where she shares it all, the highs and the lows, (even the times her family has lived with monkeys and apes in Thailand’s jungle!), all the while empowering you to join her in living your impossible!

___________________________________

Catch Julie Watts, awesome pro photographer and incredible mentor to so many, on the SOARORITY! Forum Tonight for our Ask and Learn with a PRO!  We start at 5pm PST, and you get to ask Julie as many questions as you want for two hours!  She is amazing with giving feedback on photos too, so if you have an image you’d like her to critique, be ready to upload it tonight for her!  Read more about Julie Watts here!

They are going to do it!

The number one request received from CONFIDENCE Grads is to do a follow up workshop dedicated to Photo Coaching.  Well ladies, it’s time!  If you are a CONFIDENCE Grad REGISTER HERE!!  There are only a few spots left!

In 2007, Brian and Me Ra coined the term “Photo Coaching” in a standing room only seminar in Los Angeles, CA.  Me Ra knew that she would NEVER be the “silent, fly on the wall” photographer.  There were seminars on posing or photo journalism photography, but what about the bride who wanted help, and yet, didn’t want to look posed?  Even if she wanted to be photo-journalistic photographer, she felt their clients needed help, guidance…what she called photo coaching in how to relax in front of the camera.  Together, Me Ra and Brian, started coming up with a BIG bag of photo coaching techniques and little set ups (or tricks ) to help their clients not only be at ease in front of the camera but have FUN!  Their seminar of Photo Coaching was such a hit that photographers emailed them with their photo results for the next few years!  But more importantly, when clients referred them to friends, it was the Photo Coaching piece they talked about the most!

Capturing the joy, laughter, quiet moments and total surprise reactions became the signature style behind Me Ra and Brian’s wedding work that took them to shooting million dollar, televised weddings.  But whether your bride is on a tight budget or has a million dollars to spend, everyone feels self conscious when the camera comes out.  What can you, as the photographer, do to change that?  Come join Me Ra and Brian for a special Photo Coaching Workshop on June 29th in Seattle and find out!

What:  Photo Coaching for Weddings (an Intense Mini Workshop)
Who: CONFIDENCE Grads only (for now).  Brush up on those CONFIDENCE notes ladies, we are going to be pushing our meter the whole time!
When :  Wednesday, June 29th
Where:   Two Locations in Seattle.  The first half will be downtown and focused on integrating Photo Coaching with an urban scene and tricky lighting.  The second half will be in a wheat field, just in time for sunset, with a whole different landscape to play with!  We will email attendees the exact locations next week!
Time:   4pm-8pm
Cost: $350 per attendee  (There are only a few spots left!  How did it fill up so fast since we are just now blogging about it?  Me Ra first released registration to those who had commented on her FB wall when she posted the topic as a gesture of thank them for their feedback, and then on Friday she released registration to our newsletter peeps.  If you aren’t following her FB page or signed up for her newsletter, make sure you do for more goodies!  See the right hand margin, sign up spot, on www.merakoh.com main page.)

Schedule for Wednesday, June 29th

You will meet Me Ra and Brian at a location in downtown Seattle.  You may want to leave a bit early so you have enough time to find parking and get to the location on time.  Me Ra is going to do a review on shooting in manual with the camera’s meter as our guide.  Remember that second morning of the CONFIDENCE Workshop?  She is going to WORK that muscle!    Me Ra and Brian will demonstrate some of their favorite Photo Coaching techniques with the bride and groom models.  The group will then split into smaller groups and be assigned their own bride and groom with a shooting assignment.  Me Ra and Brian will then float from group to group and “up the challenge” as needed.

The second half will be at a wheat field location that is about 10-15 minute drive.  Me Ra and Brian want to work with you on sunset lighting, metering, and taking advantage of a complete opposite landscape to draw out a different romantic feel and energy.  Together, Me Ra and Brian, will walk you through their strategies (while entertaining you.  )  But again, you will be split into groups and given the opportunity to put their techniques into practice.

Once we get our last few attendees registered, we will send out an email to all of you with directions to both locations!  It’s already shaping up to be such an AWESOME group of CONFIDENCE Grads!!  Me Ra and Brian can’t wait to see all of you!!! What do you think about doing a big group dinner afterwards for anyone who is interested in processing your time together?  (please note that dinner would not be included in the workshop cost)
Benefits

-Intense practice and focus on Photo Coaching your clients.
-A bag of new tricks to try for this wedding season!  When your bride says, “What do you want us to do?”  No more fears. You are ready!
-Refresher in metering and shooting in Manual
-Filling up your creative spirit for your upcoming weddings.
-EXTRA CONFIDENCE to BOOK those weddings that people are asking you to shoot.
-EVEN MORE CONFIDENCE to raise your prices.
-A wonderful, diverse new set of photos to grow your wedding portfolio.
-Limited spots left for a more intimate experience.

CLICK HERE to register!!!

Questions?
Email: info@merakoh.com

Want a Photo Coaching workshop to happen in your city?  Let us know!

For all the fine print, CLICK HERE!

love,

Genie

p.s.  MODEL OPPORTUNITY!  Maybe you aren’t a CONFIDENCE Grad but you are a newlywed!  Me Ra is looking for two more bride/groom couples that will put their wedding attire back on and be the AWESOME models!!  They will walk away with so many wonderful images!  And if you are interested in photography, you’ll learn a ton of stuff along the way!  If you know a bride/groom who might be interested and available on Wednesday, June 29th from 4pm-8pm, have them email us ASAP!

p.s.s. Last Monday, Me Ra announced our Fall Workshop Cities! All four cities are already 30% full!!! Women are flying in from Hawaii, NY, and even out of country!  It’s so exciting to already be chatting with these ladies via email!!

If you live in or near Washington DC, Sacramento, Dallas or Seattle and have always wanted to attend a CONFIDENCE Workshop, CLICK HERE for more details!!

What are you doing in July?  How about meeting me, plus two amazing Oprah Producers (Jon Sinclair and Andrea Wishom), a few dozen powerful blogging/social media speakers and experts, plus 300 awesome women attendees!  The EVO Conference, a POWERFUL Conference that is all about The Evolution of Women in Social Media, is happening in Park City, Utah!  And I’m crazy excited to be doing one of the three keynotes!

Instead of this being a HUGE blogging conference with thousands of attendees, the EVO Conference takes a different approach.  Last year was EVO’s first year, and Jon Sinclair and Andrea Wishom did the Keynote.  They were so inspiring and awesome that they are back by popular demand, and the authenticity of all the speakers and attendees created an unforgettable conference that was life changing for so many!  Part of the magic behind EVO is that they limit registration to a few hundred (versus thousands) to help nurture some serious sisterhood, networking and CRAZY FUN together!  Seriously, I’m counting the days!  But not just me, our whole family!

Brian and I are going to bring the kids because the masterminds behind EVO (Today’s Mama and Mom it Forward) have thought of EVERY THING that a mom would want for a summer conference which includes the COOLEST DAY CAMP ever for kids!  So while the kids party, dad is going to go explore, hike (pretty much play!) and mom is going to be rocking it with 300 awesome women!

Register Here Today!!

This is the Keynote Speaker line up.  (Yes, I’m elated and incredibly honored!)

Keynote Speakers

Me Ra Koh

Me Ra Koh loves cameras, kids, and empowering women: she spends her life bringing them together. She is the regular photo expert contributor for The Nate Berkus Show on NBC, and her work and photo-recipes have also been featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Lifetime Television, and VH1. She is the author of the bestselling book, Your Baby in Pictures; The New Parents’ Guide to Photographing Your Baby’s First Year (Amphoto, 2011).  Her CONFIDENCE Workshops for women have sold out nationwide for the last four years, empowering women to take their creative passion and fly. Me Ra is proud to be one of the SONY Artisans of Imagery, as well as host her annual SOAR! Scholarship Program for aspiring women photographers. She often shares with her audiences how she did not find photography, but photography found her. And then it healed her. She brings her inspiring story to EVO this year.

Twitter: twitter.com/merakoh

Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/MeRa-Koh/209564791813

Jon Sinclair

As vice president of development and creative services at Harpo Studios, Jonathon Sinclair works to create and promote new shows, series and specials that continue Harpo’s legacy as the most successful production company in daytime talk and expand its content across other platforms. In his role, Sinclair has served as part of the team that developed syndication’s newest hit talk show, “The Dr. Oz Show,” and is also working to launch the upcoming “Nate Berkus Show” this fall. Based at Harpo Studios headquarters in Chicago, he is also responsible for the creative services team that produces episodic promotions and marketing materials for both “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and “The Dr. Oz Show.”

Prior to joining Harpo, Sinclair was a writer and producer of special projects at WDTN-TV in Dayton, OH where he was awarded a Regional Emmy and Iris Award. He is also the recipient of multiple Telly Awards.

Twitter: twitter.com/jonnysinc

Andrea Wishom

Andrea Wishom is a Senior Supervising Producer and 17 year veteran of The Oprah Winfrey Show, the number one daytime talk show for the past 24 seasons. She’s produced some of the shows most high profile interviews and highly rated large scale productions (Wildest Dreams Come True, Welcome Home Olympic Athletes, Oprah’s After Oscar Party) In that time she’s also worked on Primetime Specials – “Oprah’s Legends Ball” “Oprah’s Primetime Oscar Special 2010? and “Christmas at The White House.” Aside from producing memorable and top quality programs for Season 25 (the farewell season of The Oprah Winfrey Show), she also oversees high profile bookings, including headliners, newsmakers, celebrities, best-selling authors and top selling artists. On Sunday nights you might catch a glimpse of her on OWN in the docu-series “Season 25: Oprah Behind the Scenes.” She considers herself a fan of blogs and is always looking for new ways to combine her love of social media with her television experience. Prior to joining Harpo, she attended The University of California at Berkeley and spent a summer at the famed Radcliffe Publishing Course in Cambridge Massachusetts. Andrea lives with her husband and three children in the Kenwood/Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. She too has a dog, a cocker spaniel named Webster.

Twitter: twitter.com/hydeparkmom

Blog: oprah.com

To read about all the other amazing speakers, CLICK HERE!

So are we going to party in Park City this July?! 

xoxo,

m

My heart is so full after reading ALL your comments yesterday.  I spent a lot of time writing last week and over the weekend, pushing through  my own walls of limitations.  It’s a honor to share with you pieces of what shakes out for me.  You must know that I’m talking to myself in that post as much as I’m writing to you.    Are we in this together or what?!  And the week is just getting started!  Lots to watch online and on TV this week!!  But let’s look at Thursday specifically!  Thursday is going to be INSANE FUN!  If you are a mama in the greater Seattle area, I’d love to meet you on Thursday!  We can even meet on TV! 

Looking for THREE BABIES for TV this WEEK!

Do you have a sweet baby that you would LOVE to show off on TV?  Do you live in the greater Seattle area?  If so, email me a photo of you and your baby ASAP!  I’ve been invited to talk about my new book, “Your Baby in Pictures”, on King 5′s daily program “New Day”.  I’m so excited for this show because we are going to demonstrate a few of my favorite photo recipes from the book!  But I need three sweet babies to make it happen!  That’s where you and your baby come in to the picture! 

I’m looking for three specific age groups;

1.  A sleepy newborn that is less than two weeks old.

2. A 3-6 month old who can push themselves up on their hands and knees (like they are going to crawl) but still to young to crawl.  Instead, they just rock back and forth.

3. A 6-9 month old with CRAZY BIG CHUBBY LEGS!    If your baby’s got some serious thighs and ROLLS, email me today!

This is going to be such a fun experience.  I promise to walk you through the whole thing.  And what a wonderful memory for your baby to always have and watch when they are older.  They were famous from Day One!    If your baby fits the description, email me today at info@merakoh.com WITH a photo of your baby, plus their name and age.

Bring Your Baby and Girlfriends and be in the Audience for King 5′s New Day Northwest!

Want to mix up your Play Date routine or have a special morning out with your girlfriends?!  King 5 has seventy tickets for all parents and babies to be in the audience!  We want to fill the audience with all of YOU!  Call your play groups, gather your girlfriends, and join me on set at King 5 in Seattle on Thursday morning!  I can’t wait to meet you and your sweet baby!!  RESERVE YOUR SEAT by emailing; newdaytickets@king5.com with Thursday, 3/31, Your Baby in Pictures Show in the Subject Line. (It’s going to be so fun!!!)

Set Your DVR for The Nate Berkus Show on Thursday!!

I’m back on, and this is one of my favorite shows yet!  I’m so excited because the topic is Turning Your Passion into a Paycheck!  It’s a full hour of women bringing you their inspirational stories.  My stories are going to be a bit embarrassing (but also inspirational!  LOL!).  Keeping it real. 

So…tell me that we will see each other on Thursday in one way or another!

xoxo,

m

p.s.  We just found out that Your Baby in Pictures is going into a SECOND PRINTING!!  It’s two weeks today since the book was released!  Wow!  Can you believe it!!

I’m so excited to share a couple FUN upcoming events to celebrate “Your Baby in Pictures” New Release!!  One on the West Coast, and one on the East Coast!  Woo-hoo!

#1  Mamas with Cameras, Seattle, WA

Date and Time: Monday, March 28th.  Starts at 6:30pm.

Location: Studio R, 315 N.36th street Suite 201, Seattle WA (in the Fremont neighborhood)

RSVP: They have limited seating at this location.  Last I heard, it is almost full!  So make sure you RSVP Mary [mbalmace@yahoo.com] to get your name and spot confirmed on the list.  This is a free event!

What to Expect:  Are you a mom with a camera in the Pacific Northwest!!  If yes, I’m coming to the fabulous group “Mamas with Cameras” in Seattle!  This is will be an evening of inspiration as I share some of my favorite tips and tricks for working with babies, as well as some fun behind-the-scenes secrets from Your Baby in Pictures (the secrets you just can’t publish! Ha! ).  There will be a Q&A during the second half (so make sure you bring me ALL your questions, especially the ones you think are silly!), and we will also have a book table for a book signing at the end.  If you’ve already purchased “Your Baby in Pictures” bring it along because I would love to sign it for you!  If you haven’t picked one up yet, we will have copies for purchase that night!  Can’t wait to see you Monday evening!!

**And then we head to the East Coast!!!**

#2  Barnes and Noble in Park Slope, New York

Date and Time: Friday, April 15th.  Starts at 4pm.

Location: Park Slope, Barnes and Noble. (267 7th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215 / ring.718-832-9066

RSVP: We’ve created an Event for this on Facebook.  Please RSVP because seating is limited, and the store wants to make sure they are prepared!  Ha!!  Going to be a BLAST!!

What to Expect: If you are picturing me sitting at a table for two hours signing books, THINK AGAIN!  First, I would GO CRAZY sitting for two hours!  Second, there is so much fun to be had!!  Our team is working with the store so I can do a live shooting demo for you, as I share some of my favorite photo-recipes!  Got a cute baby?  You better bring that sweetie!!  I’ll be pulling volunteers from the audience for this event, so you may get a couple photos from it too!!  Spread the word to all your mommy friends!

We are so excited because the next day we will be holding our CONFIDENCE Workshop in NY, but we know that not everyone can afford the weekend workshop with us.  So if your budget is tight but you want to be infused with inspiration for capturing your little ones…well, I’m so excited to meet YOU!  And I may ask if I can hold your baby to get my little baby fix!    At the end of the event, I will be signing books so if you have already purchased yours–bring them for sure!  I’d love to sign your books for you or for a friend if it’s a future baby shower gift!  If you haven’t purchased a copy of Your Baby in Pictures, Barnes and Noble will have a ton in stock for you!!  Can’t wait to see all you beautiful moms there!!  Be sure to RSVP by CLICKING HERE!

#3  Your Front Doorstep!

Date and Time: Could be Today, This Weekend, or Monday!!

Location: Nationwide!

Headed to the Post Office!

If your beautiful baby was featured in my book, or you were one of the winners for the Amazon Reviews contest, keep an eye out for the postman!  I’m sending you all a signed copy of Your Baby in Pictures and can’t wait to hear what you think!

For those of you who have babies in the book, may those little ones always know how beautiful their spirit is.  From there earliest months, they took our breath away.

xoxo,

m

p.s.  A HUGE thank you to all of you writing reviews at the Barnes and Noble website!  Wow, what a gift to find those there!!  So exciting to hear what you think!  Every review means so much!! Thanks for continuing to share your excitement!!