THINGS I HAVE LEARNED

I have pretty much had an “anything goes” attitude when going through this experience with photographing figure skaters because this is a new area. There are photographers who specialize in sports or events who do this sort of thing all of the time and have their system down to a science and have invested in the specific tools to be able to specialize in that craft. And for the parents who have been to competitions and who have had experience with those specialized photographers, I would be honest in saying that I’ve been feeling at a disadvantage because I was not able to print on location, etc. It was similar when I would shoot military balls. Some of those photographers only do that type of photography and have invested tens of thousands of dollars into equipment for just that type of photography. But through it all …. this experience has been one of the most rewarding because the people that I have met and have had the opportunity to talk to have been incredibly kind and understanding. I have learned a LOT through this run and gone through what does and doesn’t work. What it seems like people want and what they don’t want. What’s helpful and what’s overwhelming. If this turns out to be something that people will value for next season. I welcome ideas and feedback. Below are some ideas.

Some ideas that were offered:

• Yearbooks

  • Spotlight pages for accomplishments over the year (passing tests, winning competitions, coach & jr coach pages, most improved, etc.).

  • Page per group;

  • Opportunities to advertise other local businesses (to help offset the price of the books).

  • Information pages

  • Aging out pages, etc.

• Digital Packages

• Incorporate a 10 minute Mini-Session into packages with sign-ups so that parents are certain to get shots of their children in motion performing the skills they’ve worked so hard to master. The Exposition of Competitors was relatively straightforward because they were individual skaters. The Ice Show was mostly groups.

• Attend a few competitions to get a variety of skaters in other outfits and doing individual routines.

This year we are excited to be working with the Ogdensburg Figure Skating Club to take action shots of your skater(s) at the Ice Show. This is not in place of the formal annual portraits that have been a long-standing tradition; this is in addition to them! Parents love photographs of their children and these years are so important! The images can be viewed through the links below.

UPDATE from Trudell Photographics regarding action shot orders: I want to thank you in advance for all who have ordered or plan to order. I also want to thank you for your patience in getting this information out to you. We had to sift through over 5,000 images! WOW!!! I have learned a lot this first time through and if this is something that you value and you want offered again, there are adjustments that we will make to ensure that the process runs smoother :)! We accept feedback!

HOUSEKEEPING

I have uploaded rough images from the Dress Rehearsal and the Ice Show.  Some things to keep in mind:

1. Your skater might be with other skaters, but if your skater is in focus, he/she might be able to be isolated for a print *unless body parts from others are in very close proximity.  Please ask if you aren’t sure.  In the case of Memory Mates, oftentimes people will get one that has their skater in the top frame and a team shot in the bottom.  An image of the group in a circle or taking a bow is great for this!

2. I can clean up some of the images to a degree if they have noise (look grainy).  Sometimes the grainy shots are great for photoshop work like in the Memory Mates or smaller prints.

3. Some skaters have their tongues out in some shots. I’ve noticed that a lot of skaters do this and there is likely not much I can do. It’s cute. It’s often what people do when they’re concentrating.

4. If you find an image or images that you are interested in, please look for the title of the image, not the number associated with it because these can change.  An example of a file name would be “Basic 4 Dress Rehearsal 8”  An example of the number (to NOT use) would be “8” as in “the eighth image.” This is because that number will change if an image is added, removed, or simply moved; whereas the file name will not change.

5. As I mentioned the images are rough, meaning I have not yet corrected the angles, cropping, or lighting perfectly. Some might seem like they are skating up a hill, may appear too bright or too dark, or a neighboring skater may appear to be cut in half or have body parts in the frame. Ouch!   These will be corrected once you order.  Between the dress rehearsal and the final show, there were over 5,000 images to sort through. PHEW!!!

6. The images on the site are low resolution and have our watermark logo on them. Your final print will not have the watermark on it *unless it’s a web file, in which case the watermark will be somewhere less intrusive. We will not print from the low resolution images.

7. You can purchase any packages or products from any of the candid images, Exposition of Competitors, Dress Rehearsal, or Ice Show using the order form below as a reference. 

CHOOSING IMAGES

• You are encouraged to create an account so that you can flag your favorites (click hearts).

• Search through the image you want to complete your package (or in the case of Memory Mates, the images you want) and jot the filename of the image and number next to your package number or item purchase number. ONE POSE/FILE NAME PER PACKAGE please.

• We anticipate making changes to make a smoother process if this is deemed to be something that parents find value in. Some things may be having the ability to select the images on site, etc.

• We have uploaded some Memory Mate Template samples below. The Template ordering numbers are below each image. The ability to use a Memory Mate may depend on how many usable images we have of your loved one (some routines are shorter than others thereby limiting what we can capture).

• PLEASE COMPLETELY FILL OUT YOUR ORDER FORM including email address and any pertinent information about your skater such as years of skating experience, current skating level, age, etc. These will be requirements for some products. One very exciting item that we are offering is the trader card packs. These are two-sided but require very specific information from you in order to be able to create this. The kids will LOVE this because instead of swapping wallets, they can exchange these cards like baseball cards from days gone by!

• Memory Mates are not the same as 8x10’s even though they are the same size. Your packages will come with an image that you choose. Memory Mates do not come in other sizes, although if you’re interested in posters, please contact me at patricia@trudellphotographics.org.

• Because this is a journey in new experiences the images from the Dress Rehearsal and Ice Show have been separated into galleries by skating level. Once you click the link below, you will be able to select the group you want to view.

ORDER FORMS & ORDERING INFORMATION

• FORMS ARE AVAILABLE HERE (click) FOR REFERENCE (along with samples of Memory Mates, Magazine Covers, and Trader Cards as well as their order numbers if you wanted to choose a template). Do not print out the order form, just use it for reference.

• Send an email to: patricia@trudellphotographics.org with 

  1. your package information (Example: Package D $38).

  2. the file name of the image (Example: Basic 4 Dress Rehearsal 8) and 

  3. ANY information pertaining to fixing the image.  (Example: There is an arm to the right edge and a skate on the right edge; can you please photoshop or crop this out?")

  4. So your email might look like this:

     1. “Hi, I’d like to order Package D with image Basic 4 Dress Rehearsal 8 for $38. Can you crop out the arm on the right edge and skate on the left? Also, I’d like to get a Standard Memory Mate for $25. I like images Basic 4 Ice Show 3, Basic 4 Dress Rehearsal 6, and Exposition of Competitors 125. I don’t have a specific template in mind so I’ll leave that up to you. I am kind of partial to SMM01 though. Oh, can I add 12 Trader Cards to my order? $25. I’d like to have it as her whole body, not zoomed in to her face. I think my total is $88. I will pay you when the order comes in. Thanks! Martha Oh, The information for the back is:

        1. Name: Winter Skaterson

        2. Years on Ice: 12

        3. Skating Level: Senior

        4. 15 years old.

        5. Accomplishments: 1st place Massena; Passed Preliminary Moves in the Field.”

• PAYING: I can either send you an invoice OR you can pay when I give you your items.

RECEIVING YOUR IMAGES

• I will contact you when your items come in and you can pick them up or I can meet you.

• I can also ship to you and invoice you for UPS shipping.

  • During the sample run of the Exposition, shipping charges were automatically determined by the website’s lab based upon what was ordered; and not by me. Feedback on this was that shipping was very expensive. So in order to mitigate this, it may be more cost efficient to meet up.

WHAT ARE MEMORY MATES?

Memory Mates are a wonderful way to capture this moment in time for your athlete.

There are two kinds that we offer. Standard and Enhanced Graphic. The difference between the two is that the Enhanced Graphic Memory Mate involves removing the subject from the existing background and placing in another background and working to create a new image. The Standard Memory Mate does not involve extracting subjects from backgrounds, but placing the original images as they are into designated spots. The images selected for those spots depends on dimensions, i.e. an image taken in portrait mode may not fit into a landscape oriented slot and vice versa.

Memory Mates Created from the 2019 Exposition of Competitors at OFA

The Memory Mates below are Coded so that you can include them on your order form.

Magazine Covers

Magazine Covers are a fun way to capture this point in time and include accomplishments or future goals on the cover!

Like the Memory Mates, there are two types of Magazine covers offered. The Standard Magazine Cover is using the image with the original background into the template. The Enhanced Graphics Magazine Cover involves removing the subject from the original background and creating an entirely new one before adding the finishing touches.

TRADER CARDS

Trader cards are like a cross between a baseball card and a wallet picture. They are the same size and thickness as a baseball card and they have information on both sides, but they are printed on photo paper and are intended for trading with friends!

The front side of the card is an image of the skater with graphics. The back side of the card contains stats/accomplishments for the skating season. How COOL! These are timeless!

Below are some samples of what the images look like.