Thankfulness

We have been in our studio space here in the Orchard Mall for about three years now and we really are living our dream.  It hasn't always been easy building a young business but it's been a labor of love for sure, and today on the day after Thanksgiving was one of those days when you just realize how thankful you are.

We are humbled by the opportunity to be a part of the lives of our people who we lovingly refer to as the "frameables".  We had so many people come by the studio to visit us over the last couple days - especially our high school seniors - some who are still in high school and just had a couple days off and some who are home visiting from college.  They all make us smile!

When new parents bring babies to the studio to photograph and back to visit and photograph as they grow up, when a wonderful 90 year old lady brings a 90 year old photo in to restore and tells us stories, when families come together from out of town and gather in our studio to allow us to be a part of that reunion and document it for posterity, when a dog owner brings in their best friend for a session, these are the moments that have given us so much.

We are thankful for you.  All of you.  Thank you so much.

Ally and Doug

Samira's Baking Journey

We've had the good fortune to be called upon for some very interesting photo shoots over the years and we thought it would be fun to share some "frameable things" - not just faces...  

So cue the music - "These are a few of our frameable things....."

You've probably seen or heard us gushing about Samira Cholagh and her cookbooks, one of which (Treasured Middle Eastern Cookbook) is available at our studio here in the Orchard Mall in West Bloomfield.  We met Samira in 2009 as she was working extremely hard on her third book, and she needed someone to photograph the dishes she was going to feature.  A special friendship was born (Believe that - Doug and food?  Do you know Doug?) as we spent a good chunk of that summer at Samira's home photographing and eating.  It was incredible - this book focuses mostly on baking so we were eating pies, tarts, pastries, and cookies pretty much daily.....  oy.   Samira is the genuine article - sweet, generous, full of life, and her recipes are fantastic.  We think the Food Network needs to discover her and have a show that focuses on middle eastern cuisine.  Indeed, her show Samira's Kitchen can be seen on MEA TV & Radio every Thursday at 7:00 PM and you can go to her YouTube channel or Middle Eastern American TV & Radio for more details.

We were very excited to see Samira on Detroit's Fox 2 News again yesterday morning doing a cooking demonstration and promoting the new book A Baking Journey, and you can watch the clip from the show right HERE from the myFOXdetroit website!

Meanwhile here are 4 photographs we took which appear in Samira's book!

Yes - this is what we did with our summer that year....

Pineapple and coconut - one of Doug's favorites from the book...

Beautiful - and yummy... 

The fig pie is incredible - Doug's other favorite - we just made this one ourselves a few weeks ago...

Blogging Revisited

So.....  we had a meeting with my friend and new guru Melissa Brodsky this morning and I am very excited!  You see, Missy is an incredible and very accomplished writer and blogger and she knows her way around social media.  I've mentioned her blog www.rockanddrool.com before and if you don't follow it then you can't be my friend anymore.  Okay maybe that was a little strong.  But you really should check it out - it's fantabulous.

As most of you know I spend a lot of time updating our facebook pages and scouring the web for cool content that I think y'all will enjoy and get some use from.  I tweet, I set us up with a page on LinkedIn and connect with people there, I've got Frameable Faces going on Foursquare, Yelp, YouTube......

It's now time to revisit and take our blog seriously.

Little by little our online presence has morphed and grown quite a bit and this blog will once again become an important piece to the puzzle that should allow us a more robust platform and outlet for our creative energies (read - Doug can write and post more stuff), help us expand our reach, and help tie the strategy together.

All of those details might not mean a ton to all of you, but I know there are a decent number of frameables who are into this subject and regardless we just like to let you know what we're doing and why.  The blog gives us some additional flexibility and another way to build relationships online.  We will continue to post on facebook and we will let you know when there is something to see here (which will be often) and we will ask you to continue to leave your comments, feedback, questions and come along for the ride!  Feel free to leave a comment below and let us know what you think!  The frameables are the reason we are here and we look forward to giving back to you!

Frameable Faces - What's In A Name?

For some time Ally went by "Allyson Cohen Photography" before changing the name to Frameable Faces Photography. At the risk of sounding a little corny, Frameable Faces for us genuinely means many things and we thought we would share...

Community

It's not just about Ally which is one of the reasons the change was made in the first place. Frameable Faces is a place - it's a physical studio and a business true, but it only works because it's more than that. It is really a community - all of you! The smiling and frameable faces of the people who pass in front of Ally's lens make up Frameable Faces Photography. You are all a part of it and it wouldn't exist without you. You ARE the frameable faces.

Lifestyle

Sure we take pictures and capture memories here, but we try to promote the idea that being "frameable" is an attitude and even a lifestyle. People are here because they live life to the fullest - otherwise they wouldn't be looking to have it photographed. Sometimes people walk through our doors hesitantly - they don't think they are photogenic. Those people deserve a lot of credit for overcoming their doubts and getting in front of the camera, and they end up discovering how frameable they really are. Is your attitude, your family, your life, your smile, your face worth displaying on a wall (or on a purse or in an album)?

Fun

We think the name is fun. It makes us smile, and taking pictures should be fun. We even think our little flower in the logo is fun (don't ask us how it evolved into our little trademark symbol because we're not really sure - but it seems to fit). We enjoy meeting so many wonderful people and getting to know our peeps, staying in touch, watching their children grow and celebrating life's milestones. Sometimes it's downright hilarious (like when a newborn baby poops on Ally).

So there you have it. Yep - it's sugary sweet but it is what it is!