NEW HOME FOR THE THOMPSON and SPRING BLOG

For those of you who follow the THOMPSON and SPRING blog on Blogger my blog has a new home as of April 1, 2010. Come see what's new by clicking over to:

www.THOMPSONandSPRING.com

You can also check out my new portfolio site at:

www.THOMPSONandSPRINGphoto.com

[PERSONAL]: Viva Las Vegas

photo courtesy Las Vegas Convention Center

Anyone who knows me knows that Las Vegas is not my kind of town, either aesthetically or culturally. Granted I have never given myself much of a chance to get to know it and my recent trip there really didn't give me chance to see anything besides the MGM Grand. I was literally in the hotel for five days straight never having a chance to breathe fresh air, or feel the warmth of the sun on my skin.

No, I wasn't on a gambling roll, in fact this gal doesn't gamble. I never went near a roulette table, or even a 25 cent slot machine. I was in town for the annual WPPI Conference and Trade Show, the biggest show of its kind in the nation for wedding and portrait photographers.

As a Los Angeles maternity and child photographer I mostly work on my own, as do most other photographers in the industry. This can be quite isolating, so the conference is a great way to bring this fragmented industry together. One of the funny things is that on my first day there, I met another Los Angeles photographer and she was not just from any part of Los Angeles, turns out she's my neighbor living on the next street and we wouldn't have met had it not been for the conference.

Besides my neighbor I met some great photographers from all around the country, from New York, Kansas City, Chicago, Seattle and everywhere in between. So, while it can be isolating, it's nice to belong to a community, albeit virtual. The other great thing was seeing the new products.

So, be on the look out for new products I will be introducing and new programs I will be launching. But first thing on my list of to-dos is another web redesign targeted for April 2010 and a web-redesign targeted for May 2010... I thought I'd put it out there so that I am accountable to get it done.

[PARENTING]: Reading

Why is it that all of my favorite magazines have folded? First domino, now cookie...

The publisher's sent me a note informing me that the remainder of my subscription would be fulfilled by Glamour. Who in the world thinks that a person who reads domino and cookie would have any interest in Glamour. Have they not studied their demographics?

Anyway, I digress from my real intention with this post. The last issue of cookie featured a kid's library designed by Kelly Wearstler for her two boys. The minute I saw it, I knew I wanted my son to have one. Not only had his pile of books become unruly, but I wanted to further encourage his already strong love of reading.

photo courtesy Cookie Magazine

So I turned a junk cupboard in my son's room into his new little paradise. The project took my husband and I one and a half days to complete over the Holiday break (including demo, painting and installation).

BEFORE:
AFTER:

The first words out of my son's mouth when he saw his new room, were "WOW, WOW!"


Would love to know what you think, so please leave a comment.

P.s. now I just have to figure out what to do with all the junk that I used to store in the cupboard... but that's another story.

What to Buy: Polaroid

While I fully embrace the digital age and my DSLRs, I have been feeling rather nostalgic for the old Polaroid. I've had images running through my head of pictures taken with our old Polaroid and remembering my childhood anticipation and awe as I awaited for the image to magically appear.

Unfortunately Polaroid is no longer, R.I.P. However, Fuji has risen to the challenge with the Fuji Instax Camera, with styling friendly to the iPod generation, the kids these days will think this is something their generation invented.


I went on a search for all things Polaroid. Check out these cool finds that also make great gifts for the holidays.

Retro Polaroid Paperweight:


2010 Polaroid Calendar:


Polaroid Photo Frames:


I wish you Happy Shopping now that I've shared my current obsession!

About Town: SPORT

photo by Neil Leifer

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I'm not a huge sports person, whether it's about watching sports or doing sports myself it's just something I'm not that really into. I'm by no means a girly girl, just not that into sports. That said, I appreciate what it takes to be an athlete and I obviously love great images. The two have combined beautifully for a show at the Annenberg Space for Photography, for their newly opened show SPORT featuring the work of two of the greatest sports photographers of our time, Neil Leifer and Walter Iooss. If you live in Los Angeles, make time to see this show. It's inspiring. It shows the power that images can have in capturing timeless moments.

photo by Neil Leifer

photo by Walter Iooss

I was lucky enough to score a invitation to the opening reception filled with celebrities and sports legends. My husband and I made an evening of it, enjoying the powerful and iconic images on display, then heading over to Craft for a rare grown up dinner out.

photo by Walter Iooss

Inspiration: New York City

I just came back from a short trip to Manhattan. Since becoming a mother travel has been less frequent than it was in the past. I nearly canceled my trip at the last minute as I looked into my son's eyes and knew I was going to miss him terribly. In the end, I'm glad I went as I was able to reconnect with old friends and my favorite city in the world, New York City.

People often ask me why THOMPSON and SPRING Photography. Well, here is the answer to the question:


It's a junction. It's where I lived in NYC and a place from which I draw energy and inspiration. It's in Soho, but the quiet part of Soho with the neighborhood cafes and the cobbled streets. It captures a lot about what I appreciate aesthetically; it's pretty yet urban, it's sophisticated yet rough around the edges, it's modern yet old. I don't like things to be too perfect, but this is perfect in it's imperfections.

While in New York, I walked miles... literally and while I love our life in Los Angeles I do miss the walking. You see more when you walk and because of the time of year, I got to enjoy the beginnings of Fall foliage.


This is what inspires me. Hope you enjoy it.

Pumpkin Extravaganza

The weather has been chillier here in Southern California. We have also been blessed with a generous downpour of rain, not much of an event for other parts of the country, but for us it's a big deal since we are in a drought.

While the rain kept some people home, my son and I ventured out to a local pumpkin patch and he couldn't have been happier. These images capture the spirit of the season.


I added some texture to these images to give them a greater weather-worn feel. I hope you enjoy them.

EVERYDAY HEROES

Every year fire stations around Los Angeles have an open house to meet the community they serve and get the kids involved.

As a family we went to give our son a ride in a big fire truck, but my husband and I enjoyed the visit even more than our son did. The firemen were all so nice, helpful, and full of information. We walked away having learned a lot more about our local everyday heroes.

While the big red trucks are cool, it's the men and women who take pride in risking their lives that really made our day. If you've never checked it out, I highly recommend going to your local fire station open house next year.

Check out our little hero in training.