Seniors Early Booking Special

Are you a member of the Class of 2011 or know someone who is? For the Class of 2011, anyone that books their Senior Portrait session with Doug Hilton Photography by March 31, 2010 will receive 10% off their session fee and a FREE soft-cover proof book (pictured above) of their session to share with their friends and family.

Sessions begin at $150 for 2 hours, including 2 locations and multiple clothing changes. All sessions include a studio style yearbook photo, online proofs and a sized digital file for use on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter etc. Contact me via phone (717.615.2557) or email (doug@dhiltonphoto.com) to book your session by the end of March 2010 to take advantage of this great offer!

First Friday Exhibition

As mentioned in the last post, A Look Back on 2009, a Look Ahead to 2010, 2010 promises to bring about a lot of interesting and exciting things for Doug Hilton Photography. First and foremost in those announcements is that I will be exhibiting my work for the first time during the Lancaster Arts First Fridays program for March.

March 5, 2010 I will be setting up an exhibit of some of my portrait work at First Reformed Church UCC Lancaster, located at 40 E. Orange Street in their Fellowship Hall. I will be hosting the showing from 6:00 PM until 9:00 PM. Please plan to stop by and support me as well as learn about exciting new specials for 2010.

A Look Back on 2009, a Look Ahead to 2010

2009 brought about quite a change for me photographically, in a good way. While I had photographed people at events and fundraisers, and even a wedding in the past, I never envisioned myself shooting portraits, never thought I would like it. Thanks to multiple opportunities for exposure to this from local groups like The Lancaster Camera Club, The Lancaster County Photography Meetup Group and David Hobby's strobist.com, I found myself looking for people that would allow me to experiment in the realm of portrait making. I put out a request using social media, and Jenna was kind enough to help me out. She was such a great model to work with, and really set me at ease, giving me a great taste for portrait photography. She was so happy with the results, she purchased a number of prints to give as gifts to her friends and family. Some of my favorites from that shoot include:

Another great opportunity came from The Lancaster Camera Club hosting an outdoor portrait session with a number of models and photographers at Lancaster County Park in the Garden of the Five Senses. The interaction with other photographers of all skill levels allowed for a lot of information sharing, and the models were great to work with again, willing to do whatever the photographers wanted. Again, some of my favorites from this shoot:

2009 also saw the initial launch of my newly designed website, photo blog and Facebook fanpage where friends, family, clients and potential clients can keep in touch with me, view on-line proofs and look through my portfolio. I look forward to keeping these up to date with new shoots throughout 2010, and will be using them as great business tools to attract new clients.

I can attribute a portion of my growth and successes to having met a number of local photographers that were willing to share their experiences and advice with me, even encourage me to go for it. To Beth Cardwell and Mike Miville I am eternally grateful.

2010 promises to be another great year with opportunities abounding. I already have a Bar Mitzvah booked for early Spring, will be volunteering again for the American Heart Association's Start Heart Walk in the fall, and will once again be participating in Images for a Cure in the fall. I hope to have an announcement about an exhibition for First Friday coming soon! I am also looking at ways to market myself to the growing family population in our area, including kids, families, and seniors. If you would like to discuss your ideas for a photo session, or book something for 2010, contact me at doug@dhiltonphoto.com or via phone at (717) 615.2557.

Happy New Year and Best Wishes for a prosperous 2010 from Doug Hilton Photography!

Pet Photos with Santa

Castaway Critters

For the past 4 years, I have volunteered to do Pet Photos with Santa as a fund-raiser for Castaway Critters, a Central Pennsylvania 501 (c) 3 no-kill animal rescue. Saturday, December 12 was the date for my services to be volunteered this year at PetCo in Mechanicsburg. Patrons could have their pets photo taken with Santa for a fee, and a large portion of that fee supports the efforts of Castaway Critters. As in the past, we had a good turnout with 31 families coming through, keeping Santa busy throughout the day with many dogs, and the occasional cat. Nothing exotic this year like the rabbits or turtles in the past, but a good day. As an additional service above the 4x6 they get for their small fee, I put the photos up on my website and allow them to order additional prints and enlargements. A portion of this is then donated back to Castaway Critters.

The photos from the event are available at http://www.dhiltonphoto.com/091212_PetSanta/. To order additional prints or enlargements, contact Doug Hilton Photography at (717) 615.2557.

Images for a Cure

Sunday, October 11, 2009, I will be participating in the Images for a Cure fundraiser for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation®. You can help by scheduling a session with myself or other participating photographers. All session fees collected that day are a donation to this great organization to aid in their research efforts to find a cure for breast cancer.

I will be offering sessions for single persons through small groups, including Senior sessions and Engagement sessions. The session fee donation varies based on the type of session. Included with your donation is a one or two hour private session at the location(s) of your choice. You will also receive an 8x10 print of your favorite image. Additional prints are available at standard prices.

Space is limited, as sessions will only be happening on Sunday, October 11. Book now to get the best available time. For more information or to book a session, call or email me. I can be reached at (717) 615-2557 or doug@dhiltonphoto.com.