I have sold a total of five photos so far from my Etsy Shop – I am SO, SO, SOOO excited.

Prints are now available for sale in 8 x 10s, 11 x 14s, and 16 x 20s, unmatted, unframed, and borderless, printed at a professional photo lab on quality, lustre-finish archival paper. Please revisit my Etsy Shop at charleneprecious.etsy.com for new listing details and updated Shop Policies!

I’ve broken my offerings down to two categories: 1) Digital Photo Downloads 2) Prints, just so that I can accommodate those who prefer one over the other. :) I am thinking of a third category – something to do with frames, I think.

Ahh – I feel great. I bought these rustic white frames today – I love them. There’s no glass, no backing, I have no idea what to do with them, but I love them.

I hope you don’t mind,
I hope you don’t mind,
That I put down in words,
How wonderful life is while you’re in the world.

A beautiful cover by Ellie Goulding of a beautiful song by Sir Elton John.

I visited a professional photo lab this afternoon to get educated on prints – from stock to pricing. I went ahead and ordered an 8×10, 11×14, and 16×20 printed on premium lustre, archival photo paper – these are the size options I hope to make available for my shop. I’m picking them up on Thursday and if they dazzle me, then we’re almost set. Then I stopped by Staples to jot down pricing for three different sizes of bubble mailer envelopes that I’ll be using to ship my prints, including cardboard pieces to insert into the envelope to prevent the package from accidental folds. Then I stopped by Canada Post to get an approximate cost for the actual mailing of each of three packages, but realized it wasn’t possible without knowing the weight of the final packages. So, that’s for later.

Now that I’ve got my costs in order, a friend of mine is going to create a magic Excel spreadsheet with magic formulas that will calculate my markup, profit margin, and all that financial gibberish that isn’t my favourite, which will ultimately lead to my final selling price, at which point, I can offer prints for sale! :) We’re not far from the finish line as far as prints!

I’m letting you in on my entire journey to bringing A Photo A Day to the next level. Thank you so much for following this blog.

When I woke up yesterday morning and saw flat gray skies outside my window, I almost passed up the Christie Antique Show. How grateful I am today for not making such a silly decision. I picked up my girlfriend (who I knew would appreciate the show as much as I did) and headed to Dundas, Ontario. When we got there, we were both dumbfounded, overwhelmed, overjoyed, we both felt a stroke coming on. We giggled and shrieked like little girls at a Justin Bieber concert. My head felt like exploding and I was stressed out because I didn’t know where to begin. Everywhere I turned, I saw acres and acres of BEAUTIFUL antique knick knacks, furniture, trinkets, and all things vintage – I was paralyzed by the sight of my heaven. I am INSPIRED to save, save, save for my house, particularly my creative studio inside my house and dress my haven in rustic antique furniture.

I’ve always known that I wanted a creative room in my home (this has been a part of my personal bio for years). I’ve just never actually been able to visualize it. Not until yesterday in the midst of all that antique beauty. The sudden strike of my studio’s visual INSPIRED me to take my photography to the next level by exploring PRINTS & FRAMES. Sure, I can sell digital copies of my photos, but I can sell for more if I developed high quality prints and placed them in unique, crafty frames that I will put together myself to reflect the style of my work. I’ll brand it and I’ll sell it in this complete package. After all, I have a career in Marketing, so this should come naturally. Execution is everything and lucky for me, it’s my favourite part of the process. Ideas mean nothing until you make them come alive. Execute.

So, I actually wrote up my Shop Policies on Etsy and have made a note (or commitment) that Charlene Precious will soon offer professional prints in addition to digital print-ready files. :) I’m going to start by offering prints and then move onto the frames. I’ll work through this step by step.

I urge you: go out and get inspired.

“I had always heard your entire life flashes in front of your eyes the second before you die. First of all, that one second isn’t a second at all, it stretches on forever, like an ocean of time… For me, it was lying on my back at Boy Scout camp, watching falling stars… And yellow leaves, from the maple trees that lined our street… Or my grandmother’s hands and the way her skin seemed like paper… And the first time I saw my cousin Tony’s brand new Firebird… And Janie… And Janie… And… Carolyn. I guess I could be pretty pissed off about what happened to me… but it’s hard to stay mad, when there’s so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I’m seeing it all at once, and it’s too much, my heart fills up like a balloon that’s about to burst… And then I remember to relax and stop trying to hold on to it, and then it flows through me like rain and I can’t feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life… You have no idea what I’m talking about, I’m sure. But don’t worry… you will someday.” –Lester Burnham, American Beauty

“We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.” –Professor Keating, Dead Poet’s Society

I’m deciding on a destination for another mini road (day-)trip this weekend. I heard about an antique show just outside of Hamilton that’s happening tomorrow, so I’m probably going to swing by, pick up a few treasures, and then just drive aimlessly to the countryside after that.

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret to getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks and then starting on the first one. Don’t wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more confident, and more and more successful.” –Mark Twain, Mark Victor Hansen combined

Can you even combine quotes like that? I’m sure I’ve violated some code. Anyway – get up and get started with whatever it is you’ve been wanting to do.

A few things:
1. I added a “What’s in my tool box?” list to the ABOUT page, in case you care.
2. I backed up this blog and charleneprecious.com to deal with a sudden fear that I was going to lose them in an accident.
3. I updated the ABOUT and RATES page on charleneprecious.com with new photos for a fresh look.
4. I invite you to visit my Etsy Shop if you haven’t already. :)

I thought it’d be cute to open up my own Etsy Shop. I could and I had a reason to, so I did. Why the hell not? Nevermind stock image sites. Your photos just get buried beneath a sea of photos and will never be seen. With Etsy, it’s a little more elite. Plus, I love the community of artists because they INSPIRE. I chose 30 random photos from my A Photo A Day collection, listed them in my shop, and am selling them for a humble $2.00 each. :)

charleneprecious.etsy.com

I’ve added a SHOP link on the top right navigation panel of this blog and my mother site.

“For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit – stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again.” –Benjamin Button

From today’s photoshoot – Aman and Parveer’s engagement. We beat the rain and clouds. The sun tried to slip away but we held it hostage. I love capturing love, so thank you, lovebirds, for letting me do this.