So, a couple days ago, my talented artist friend Naomi invited me to attended a taping of Let’s Make a Deal. It’s one of the shows you have the greatest chance of winning something like cash and prizes including trips, furniture, jewlry, and cars! I’ve acutally never been to a show taping in Los Angeles in the 10 years I’ve lived here, so I thought why not!?

Overall, I’d say it was a fun experience! If you’re intersted in attending the show, read this post before going.

SJP’s Top 4 Tips for attending Let’s Make a Deal

1) During the first round of Interviews, I noticed that all of the contestants chosen for the show had outgoing personalities, interesting jobs, and fun costumes. During the check in process they do a short group interview. Some of the questions they asked include your name, where you’re from, and what you like to do for fun. You should speak clearly and be engaging! They also like long answers and not just one word answers so if you say you’re from somewhere like “Chicago” give a little more details like “my name is John, my hometown is Chicago and I’m a huge Cubs Fan. In my free time I like to travel.” I think they try and match up the games and prizes based on your interests. They will also ask you what you like most about the show. I suggest at least watching a few episodes of the show before going so you have an answer ready!

2) Wear a fun costume! Since the show is on CBS, I would recommend wearing something their TV advertising would agree with (like, don’t wear a HBO show Game of Thrones costume or a costume promoting a show on ANY other network.) It seems the homemade costumes were most appreciated. Contestants for our show included a) retired banker dressed up as the Monopoly Man b) Gladiator Girl who was a nanny c) Yoga Teacher / Newlywed dressed as a red hot fairy d) a woman who worked with children with mental health issues, dressed up as a green fairy e) guy dressed in scrubs who was in school to be a human lie detector f) a collage aged girl from family set of 4 costumes they made to look like those tall balloon things they have in front of car wash places (no clue what it’s called but you might know what I’m talking about?!) If you don’t have a costume, don’t worry! They have some for rent after you go through screening. BUT, if you want to get noticed during the first round of interviews you should be in costume when you arrive. The doors open at least 60 minutes before the call time, so make sure to be early too!

3) Check the “LetsMakeaDeal” Twitter account a day before the show to find out what “secret item” you should have in your pocket! Be sure to keep the items in your pocket a SECRET until asked for it. If you are chosen and have the item, you will win $500 cash! For our show they asked us to bring an unopened bandaid, bottle cap, and nail file.

4) They ask everyone to be positive, have high energy, and dance a lot. They take phones away during filming, but you can have your purse or backpack under the seats. Bring snacks since it’s a long process! I was there from 8am-2:30pm for a 9am call time. They have a couple oppertunies for people to purchase snacks like chips, pasteries, coffee, etc.

Even though I did not get picked to play any of the games, I had lots of fun dressing up, hanging with Naomi, and attending the show! I will definately be on TV in the shots with the studio audience! I will try and find out more when the show will be airing and share that with you so check back for updates.

If you live in the Los Angeles area or will be visiting sometime soon, you can GET YOUR FREE TICKETS HERE! Currently, tickets are available until the second week of June 2018.

Sean & Dallas’ Wedding: Long Beach

sjphoto Wedding

Alan & Jenny Engagement

sjphoto Engagement

Today, I’d like to share a little bit behind the scenes how I photographed a recent engagement session. I believe, a big part of my service for my portrait clients is to creating images that are both meaningful and pretty… in addition to facilitating an experience that is also fun.

For Alan and Jenny’s session, they wanted to include their two dogs Millie and Honey. They are both huge animal lovers and Veterinarians! They enjoy spending time together hiking and exploring. Our first thought was a portrait session at the beach, but after timing it out on a weekday for sunset, it didn’t make much sense being in traffic 4-5 hours. Then, I thought about a recent meetup I attended in Orange County with some fellow photographers. It turns out, Carbon Canyon wasn’t too far from where they live! I really love lots of things about Carbon Canyon including pretty views with rolling mountains, lots of plants, a big lake, and good light.

With our location figured out, next on the planning agenda was wardrobe styling. Jenny initially sent me a picture of a dress she wanted to wear. From the dress, I created a style board including some options for Alan and the dogs.

Here’s what the session ended up looking like:

Above is a shot I did with one off camera flash a little to the right of camera. Below, you can see the same pose but with natural lighting. Notice how much detail we can see in the background from version 1 and version 2? Which do you prefer?

Above and below is another great sample of natural lighting vs flash.

Alan and Jenny have been to the park before hiking with their dogs. A couple weeks before the session, they found the mustard fields bursting with color!

We did a couple options with natural light with one facing toward the sun and the second set was backlit for a softer glow. <3

For our third location we went over to the lake at sunset for a couple more romantic shots. We were lucky to catch the last little kiss of sunlight before it set over the mountains.