Archive for February, 2011
Like a guardian angel sent from heaven, Kat fell into our lives.
It was in late August, 2009.
God always knows the perfect timing. Last minute!
Julie and I were expecting our twins to arrive just a few weeks later and having lost our full-time associate Rosanna (she got married and ran off to Atlanta.. booo!)…
We were in pretty bad shape with little hope of finding the right person before our lives were turned upside down.
I interviewed Kat a few times and was 100% sold.
I was actually sold within the first five minutes of the first interview when I saw the way she was with my kids.
Kat was no stranger to children. She grew up practically raising her four younger sisters.
Her character shined and so did her smile.
She had great style and an outgoing personality.. both necessities in my business.
Julie and I both knew that she was the one.
To carry us into the eye of the hurricane that lay ahead of us…
Rosanna flew the nest on a Friday… and Kat became available to start work on very next Monday!
Everything about her just fit.
She learned fast and fearlessly stepped up to the many challenges the job presented.
Including the much needed help on the home-front!
Editing, Photoshop, Changing diapers, Booking flights, Interviewing brides, Warming bottles, Styling shoots, Planning workshops, Picking up Aidan from school, Emails, Phone calls, More diapers, Meetings, Charging batteries, Packing gear, Calming babies, Travel, Shooting weddings, Album design, Giving us a date night, Retouching, Printing, Framing, 100 more diapers, Texting me, Texting Julie, More emails, Breaking down crying, Keeping Julie from crying, Cooking for boys, Calling clients, Pushing me to be creative, Dropping off Logan at preschool, Picking up Starbucks, Airport runs, Pushing me to finish website, Pushing me to blog more, Praying for my family, Downloading images, Backing up images, Listening to my crazy ideas, Picking my brain about photography, Uploading weddings to Pictage, Answering calls from photographers, Hiring models, Scanning receipts, Booking reservations, Bank deposits, Making lemonade for clients, More baby bottles, Shooting for inspiration, Learning Flash, Tracking me down when I miss a meeting, Rocking babies to sleep, Quickbooks, Begging me to blog more, Shopping for photo shoots, Invoicing, Formatting Cards, Packing my laptop, Taking kids to the park, oh man I could go on forever…
The tasks listed above reveal why we think of Kat as our guardian angel.
I honestly don’t know how we would have gotten through the craziness of the last year and a half without her.
We can no longer keep her to ourselves.
She is far too talented to hide her behind closed doors any longer.
World… I am so proud to introduce to you Kat Harris of Mike Colón Photographers!
She is now available to bless you too. With her talent, style, personality, and photographs!
Visit Kat’s Blog (it’s new!) and say hello!
To View Kat’s Awesome Portfolio choose from the links below:
A special thanks to the talented Trevor Hoehne for the photoshoot of Kat above!
I also want to give a shout out to Rosanna Marie Herd.. who was just as amazing as Kat and is now killing it in Atlanta with her own business. Jared you rock too!
To view more images from this shoot CLICK HERE
I met Gavin Wade back in ’06 when he modeled for one of my 4-Day Intensives here in Newport Beach. I remember thinking… this guy is waaaay too nice! How can he keep this act up? I wanted to be a fly on the wall to see him kick his dog when nobody was looking so I could expose him. No such luck: the guy is for real. A genuine and perfectly nice fellow. Rare these days.
Then Erin came on the scene and things changed. Dramatically. But don’t worry… She didn’t steal his innocence and turn him into a bad boy. No, she was a good Christian girl who loved God and loved Gavin too. The change I saw was a fire in Gavin. He was on a mission to make this girl his wife. And he was on a mission to pursue his dreams in photography with her by his side.
Little did he know, she had a fire inside to pursue her dreams in photography too. And to make him her husband!
Gavin called me up one day in the late summer of 2008 and asked if he could buy my lunch and pick my brain. At lunch, Gavin told me all about his plan to get married and start a new business with Erin as wedding photographers. I was so proud of him for his decision to pursue his dreams. I mentioned that I was planning a retreat-style workshop/surf trip in Maui that winter. His eyes lit up and he said “count us in!” I knew instantly that this guy was going to make it. Not because he was coming to my workshop, but because he knew what he wanted and wasn’t afraid to make a decision. He didn’t even flinch at the $10K plus it would cost for the trip even though I know it was a stretch for them.
It was in Maui when I got my first glimpse of Gavin & Erin “the team”. They were perfect compliments to each other. What stood out most to me was their humility and passion for learning. Pair up humility and passion with some serious talent (I’m talking BOTH of them) and you have a recipe for superstardom.
I had my eye on them ever since that workshop in Maui. I knew they were going places and I wanted to help. Over the next couple of years, we stayed in touch and got together quite often. In July of 2010, I called up Gavin and asked if they wanted to be guinea pigs for a new “Mentorship Program” I was forming. I explained my goals for the program which was to meet with them every week and help them polish up their photography skills, presentation, and marketing plan.
Over the last several months, I’ve had the privilege of watching this young couple make leaps and bounds in their photography business. They are not only booking upwards of 30 weddings per year, but they are already teaching and giving back to the wedding photography industry (Check out their upcoming workshop in Vegas at WPPI). They are truly a breath of fresh air for me and everyone who knows them personally. They are an inspiration to so many already and they deserve every bit of the hard-earned success that keeps coming their way!
This post is a thank you to Gavin and Erin for being great people, amazing photographers, hard-working students, and the perfect blend of talent and humility! Oh… and they ain’t bad to photograph either!
Make sure you check out Gavin & Erin’s work on their website and say hi on their blog!
It was great getting to go through everyone’s comments. I wish all of you guys could come and hang for the day! Unfortunately there is only one spot for the giveaway.
And the winner is…drumroll please…Annie Yambot of Jovanni Photography. Annie please contact my assistant Kat for more details: kat@mikecolon.com, and I can’t wait to meet you in person next Friday!
Vegas…here we come!
WPPI is just around the corner, which means that The Seven Workshop Las Vegas is also almost here. We’re going to have a full-day of interactive teaching where I’ll cover the Seven Most Important Topics in Wedding Photography. On top of that we’ll have a styled bridal shoot in Vegas, and finish it all with dinner on the town.
This year, I want to do a Scholarship Giveaway for 1 spot at The Seven Workshop Vegas. Read below for details, and for more information on the Workshop CLICK HERE.
How do you win a free spot to The Workshop?
Simple. Leave a comment on my blog about why you want to come to my workshop, and then Tweet “I want to win a free spot to @mikecolon ‘s #sevenworkshop”. I’ll announce the winner on Friday. Good luck:)
(The Scholarship Giveaway covers the $777 registration fee to the workshop).