Quick reminder!

Today is the last day for submitting your Pet Photos for the August Photo Contest!

Get them in by midnight tonight! That’s PST time too!

Email your images as an attached JPG to contest@merakoh.com!

I know that come Tuesday, many of you start back into the schedules of making lunches, early morning breakfast with sleepy head kids, carpool mania, homework and so much more…

We’ve got a three day weekend. If you are a parent headed into this big change in schedule, I encourage you to take one last escapade this weekend.

Do something for yourself…

Float on a log down the beach.

Take yourself on a creative date with journal and latte in hand.

Take a photo walk around the block and capture details on your street in a new light.

Take a walk with nothing but yourself and soak in the sounds of birds, sprinklers and lawn mowers.

Pull out your bike one more time and get a good ride to finish off the summer.

Finish that book you’ve been reading.

Call a friend you’ve been meaning to catch up with.

Buy yourself a bunch of flowers at the Farmer’s Market.

Whatever it is, do something to fill yourself up. Even if it’s the smallest thing.

You deserve it. You need it. You are worth it.

After you’ve done it, come back here and tell us what you did! I can’t wait to hear!

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For more fun photo exercises, check out our popular Instructional DVDs Refuse to Say Cheese , our 101 Kits for starting or expanding a business in photography, click on the words of your choice!

The Chicago Workshop is sold out. But the Seattle December Workshop is now open for registration! Click HERE to register!

To submit a photo for August’s Photo Contest, email us an image that is about your Pet. The image has to show off a part of their personality. Attach the image as a JPG and send to contest@merakoh.com. The deadline is the last day of August! For the August prize info, click the word!

Brian and I got the most wonderful gift in the mail.

The San Diego workshop ladies, sent us a package with page upon page of thank you’s and feedback from our time together this last May.

Wow, this was so unexpected. Brian and I were overwhelmed to read some of the things you wrote. Thank you so much for sharing from your heart and letting Brian and I know how much the workshop not only impacted your love for photography but your own inner wells of creativity, femininity, and healing. Brian and I were speechless as we read all your beautiful comments.

And on top of all this, the San Diego ladies sent us a beautiful necklace. Well, they sent me the necklace–not Brian. And I LOVE it!!

One of the mommy models in our workshop has her own jewelry business and made this herself. So beautiful. The necklace says “San Diego” through and through. This is a photo of her and her daughters. The amazing Carey of Barefoot Memories caught this beautiful shot.

Every time we teach a workshop, Brian and I feel so blessed to make new lifetime friends. We see lives change, healing ushered, and creativity infused. The weekends together are truly divine times. Thank you for affirming this in all that you wrote to us. Seeing your names took me back down memory lane!

(all these San Diego workshop photos are from Carey’s fantastic blog!)

All this talk makes me excited for the Chicago and Seattle workshops. Who will we meet? What challenges will these women face? What freedom will they find? What things will we laugh about and cry about? I can’t wait. Brian is especially excited about the crying part!

Last thing, if you haven’t been able to register for the Truth or Dare 1 day conference, the registration is running! I’m going to end the whole day with a special event for women only. It’s called “More than Emotion: The Undercurrents of Feminine Wisdom”. Click the title to read all the details around this special session that is so close to my heart.

The whole day is crazy cheap! $39 per person. AND everyone gets a free PDF copy of Fast Track Photographer by Dane Sanders. Insane, huh!! Come join us! It’s going to be crazy fun!

Also, if you are interested in more details on the Seattle December Workshop, click here. For the next couple weeks, we are offering the Early Bird Discount. See all the good stuff by clicking away!

Summer is coming to an end as we all get ready for school to start up.

Brian and I are excited to start our new homeschool year! Last year I created the curriculum as we went and used a lot of Waldorf materials. This was a little more work than I had thought it would be. This year, Brian and I have decided to try Sonlight. We are so excited to get it in the mail. Since we’ll be heading to Thailand for six weeks in early 2009, this curriculum seems to fit us the best. And we hear endless good stuff about it.

But the things we’ve learned just playing this summer…the wonder that has been lit in kids’ eyes…this has been so good, so rich. I think one of my favorite memories is the day we found a big old crab on the beach. I just love the total innocence and wonder in Blaze’s eyes. He is focused on whether or not this thing is really dead, looking for the slightest bit of movement.

What is your favorite “wonder” moment this summer that you experienced with the kids? Tell us in the comments.

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For more fun photo exercises, check out our popular Instructional DVDs Refuse to Say Cheese , our 101 Kits for starting or expanding a business in photography, click on the words of your choice!

The Chicago Workshop is sold out. But the Seattle December Workshop is now open for registration! Click HERE to register!

To submit a photo for August’s Photo Contest, email us an image that is about your Pet. The image has to show off a part of their personality. Attach the image as a JPG and send to contest@merakoh.com. The deadline is the last day of August! For the August prize info, click the word!

We only need 12 more votes, and we’ve hit 400!!

C’mon!!! We are so close!

Deadline to vote is tonight at midnight PST!

Click here to cast your ballot for the top Water Themed Finalist!

As many of you know, I’ve had the pleasure and honor of being a part of 8 women in what we call the Next Octave. All eight women are fascinating, beautiful, and rich with wisdom. Together we are on a journey for 9 months in helping each other reach the Next Octave in our individual lives. Many wonderful things has come from this journey, but one unexpected gift is the break I get from being the Source.

If you are a mom, you are what my friend Genie calls the “Source”. Everyone in the family comes to you for direction on what to do, how to feel, where to go. As my pastor once said, “If mom’s not happy nobody is happy. If dad’s not happy–who cares.” I know all you husbands reading this know how true the statement can be! And all you moms reading know how taxing it can be to be the source of what meals to cook, lunches to pack, carpools to organize and swim lessons to finish up. When I come to be with my Next Octave girlfriends, I don’t have to be the source.

I get to crash on their living room floor and sleep in late. I get to stay up until 1am as I pick their brains about the meaning of feminine wisdom. I don’t have to pack any lunches or carpool. I just receive, laugh, cry and breathe deep.

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of staying with Peggy. We call her our “Den Mother”. All the other women in this group are twenty years older than me. Peggy is our oldest member and says it with pride. And she should. Her life holds experience that I stand in awe of. She and I stayed up past midnight as she let me ask her question after question about her life.

Peggy has survived the deep loss of losing her oldest daughter to ovarian cancer. Beth was in her thirties, bright, alive, and a firecracker in spirit. She went in for a routine check up and was gone in 93 days. How does a mom survive such tremendous loss?

Peggy has survived what seems un-survivable. Every part of her that has chosen to keep going, keep being a mom to her other children, keep being a wife and keep loving other women like me–leaves me speechless. To make the choice to live with an open heart, when life has been so unfair…this is a miracle. I was going to take a picture of Peggy before I left, but instead I wanted to capture the many parts of her home that symbolize the essence of Peggy.

Her raised Victorian in the heart of Berkley, breathes deep with comfort, warmth and beauty–it breathes Peggy. The details surround you from the moment you pull up to her home. Sunday morning I took about twenty minutes and walked around her house with my camera, picking and choosing the details that best describe Peggy’s beauty. These are the symbols I found around her home so you could experience her too.

It starts with the stairs to her front door. Eye catching in a brilliant blue, so incredibly inviting. The purple flowers and vines wrap themselves around the white banister pulling you in to a home of rest.

But Peggy is also strong and certain. Like the magnificent 100 year old molding in and around her home, she seems to know the lines she has walked, is walking and continuing to follow.

Peggy isn’t wishy washy. She doesn’t mince her words. She says things like they are. Her passion for women, for their voice, for her voice is precise It wraps around the home of her heart as well as the home of her dwelling place.

Even the design of her chair seems to circle round and round you.

Peggy is also vibrant! Over the years, she has taught workshops on sensuality, bringing confidence and healing to women. Her bright yellow lantern is in the back hallway, one could almost miss it because the placement is subtle and unobtrusive. This reminds me of Peggy. She is strong and vibrant, but her sense of femininity and passion are never obtrusive. Instead they lure you in, wanting to know her more.

And when Peggy retires for the night, she climbs a steep ladder up to her bedroom loft. To climb down a ladder every morning and then back up every night is something I could journal for hours around. The symbolism makes my head spin, so I’ll leave you with this simple image.

Can you guess what the photo exercise is?

Photo Exercise in Symbols

Pick someone in your life that causes an emotion to rise up in you. Maybe you are intrigued by them, curious about their life. Maybe they are the opposite of you and confuse you to no end. Maybe it’s one of your children, a parent, or grandparent. Maybe an old friend or a new friend like Peggy.

Once you have your person, visit them and ask if you can spend twenty minutes taking detail photos of their home or bedroom. This is a wonderful exercise to do with your kids. As I share on DVD 1, Refuse to Say Cheese , capturing the details in our kids lives can be so fun because in months they will have already changed on us. The details that define their present stage in life will be all new. So you don’t have to travel to Berkeley to do this exercise, a walk down the hallway will do just fine.

Use the lowest aperture/F stop you can because the story of your images are the details. The blurred background will help give more attention to the details you are capturing. If you aren’t comfortable shooting in Manuel try AV or A mode. This means you get to set your aperture to its lowest point (2.8 or 3.5 or maybe 5.6–it all depends on the lens you are using. The lower you can go the more dramatic your blur is.), and the camera will figure out your shutter speed. If this makes you break a sweat, turn your camera to the Portrait Mode. There is usually an icon with a lady’s head to symbolize Portrait Mode. You can find this mode on a DSLR or simple Point and Shoot. This is basically taking photos at a low aperture and choosing the appropriate shutter speed. As you can see, there are many ways to do this one exercise. Modify it to whatever level is most comfortable for you.

Recipe for Peggy’s Details:

All the above images were shot with my Sony 350 and 35mm lens. The 350 is a great DSLR that is super easy to travel with and has fantastic color! I was at a 1.6 aperture for extreme blur in the background. My shutter speed was 1/500 or 500th of a second. When I was outside shooting the blue steps and molding, I could be at a 100 ISO. But when I came in the house, I lost light and needed to bump up to a 400 ISO.

Enjoy! Tell us how it goes! If you want, you can even send me some of your images. I would love to see! Email them to mera@merakoh.com.

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To vote for one of the Five Finalists in the Water Themed Photo Contest, click here! If we get 400 votes, we’re giving one random voter a copy of Adobe’s Lightroom Software! So make sure you vote before midnight tonight! Midnight PST is the DEADLINE!

The Chicago Workshop is sold out. But the Seattle December Workshop is now open for registration! Click HERE to register!

To see our day job , visit here.

For more fun photo exercises, check out our popular Instructional DVDs Refuse to Say Cheese , our 101 Kits for starting or expanding a business in photography, click on the words of your choice!

To submit a photo for August’s Photo Contest, email us an image that is about your Pet. The image has to show off a part of their personality. Attach the image as a JPG and send to contest@merakoh.com. The deadline is the last day of August! For the August prize info, click the word!

It’s Monday morning, and the Early Bird Registration has now started! YEAH!!! Click here to sign up today for the Seattle December Workshop!

This is our last workshop for 2008! And we’re excited to have it in Seattle, our own stomping ground!

To sweeten the deal (b/c we had so much fun doing this with all of you for the Chicago workshop), we are offering an Early Bird Registration of $749! If you register before September 20th you can get in on this rate. If you register for the workshop after Sept. 20th, the tuition for the workshop is the normal rate of $999.

For all the yummy details and instructions on how to register for your spot in the workshop, click on the word yummy! Be sure to read the comments from others who have attended (at the bottom of the yummy page).

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Before I went to bed last night, I was so excited to see that we were up to 273 VOTES!! I was so excited!!

You know what that means? All we need is 127 more votes, and then we’ll hit 400! When we hit 400 one of you 400 voters wins a free copy of Adobe’s Lightroom software!

127 more to go, no problem!! Deadline is Tuesday (tomorrow) at midnight Pacific Time!! We are so close!

It’s a big “hats off” to all of you for getting us this close in votes. I’ve been reading over some of your comments, and wow, you are all wonderful! Your votes and words of encouragement are gold to the finalists. Your feedback is priceless. Thank you for spreading the word about the blog and this photo contest. I know you have all blessed these talented Five Finalists beyond measure! Spread the word to 127 more people, tell them to vote, and we are HOME FREE!!!!

How fun!!!

I have exciting news!

I don’t think I’ve mentioned this on the blog yet, but the Pictage Partner Conference is September 9th and 10th 2008. (but this isn’t even the half of it!)

If you are a Pictage member, you must come to their conference! The conferences are so much fun, and you walk away with such good information and new friendships. The networking that happens is worth every penny it costs to come. Brian and I are also teaching a special session called Photo Coaching.

We’re going to demonstrate how we Photo Coach our clients when shooting so they are able to relax in front of the camera. To read our summary, click here!

But it gets even better! I’m posting this blog on a Friday afternoon because Monday, September 8th, the day BEFORE Partnercon, is a GO!!

What’s Monday, September 8th?

The awesome Photography Mentor team has decided to do a one day seminar for $39!!! It’s the Truth or Dare Event! (Hear the Truth and Dare to Stand Out!)

This means you get to hear direct from Carlos Baez, Robert Evans, Sara France and Dane Sanders. AND…Pictage is going help sponsor all this PLUS, a special evening event that I get to lead for women!

The evening event is why I’m posting this on a Friday afternoon! This session is one of those things that I’ve had a desire to do for a few years, and I’ve put it out there and for one reason or another it just hasn’t worked out. But it’s going to work out and happen on Monday night, September 8th!!

I have had a vision to do a Women’s Evening Event where we set our cameras down and talk about what it means to be wise women. How this affects our business, our family, our dreams. I asked Pictage a few months back if I could do this at Pictage’s LA conference. Pictage loved the idea, and then we started talking with our friends at Photography Mentor, and then we all got together and the Women’s Evening Event is a GO!!

From 7pm-9pm, Monday, September 8th, (the night before Pictage’s Conference starts) we are going to come together as women, mothers, daughters, grandmothers, sisters and friends.

Here is a brief summary on what this evening session is going to be about.

More than Emotion: The Undercurrents of Feminine Wisdom

This is an evening session set aside for women only. Together we are going to explore the inner workings of what makes us different than men and how this affects everything from our business, to those we love, and those we lead. Before her photography career, Me Ra Koh traveled nationwide speaking to thousands of women on subjects surrounding the beauty and strength of femininity. Join her for a window of time as we step outside of photography and speak to the power and grace of feminine wisdom. The format of this evening is three fold; Me Ra will share her heart on matters that define the undercurrents of feminine wisdom. She will then lead participants in a time of personal reflection. And then the evening will end with guided small group discussions. We invite you to a special evening of building relationships with others and yourself.

A couple years ago, I started out on a journey to know what it means to run my business in a feminine way. Without doubt, I have started finding so much more strength and success because I have learned to approach my business as a wise woman would. I make decisions and execute strategies that pull on all my feminine wisdom. On the outside, it may or may not look different. But the internal structure of my business, family and friendship is very different than how a man might run his business. Neither one is better than the other, but it feels right to do it the way a woman would since I am a woman. Right? I’m not talking about Women’s Rights and Feminine Power stereotypes. I’m talking about operating in grace, fluidness, sensitivity, and creativity–all the things that make up our design as women. I am so excited to set the cameras down and spend an evening on this subject.

Are there any women out there who will you join me? This evening is a test for some–a test to see if there really is a need out there for this type of event at photography conferences. By joining me on Monday night, September 8th, you help me show them that there certainly is!

We are going to dive deep into what makes us wise women. And let me tell you, it’s so much more than emotions! If you are a woman with a camera, set your camera down, breathe deep and come join us for this special evening! I am counting the days!

If you aren’t signed up for Pictage’s Conference yet, head on over there!

And then get over to Photography Mentor to sign up for the Truth or Dare event on Monday.

Space is limited, and you know Monday’s event is going to go fast when it only costs $39!

It’s been so exciting to watch people vote and comment on the Five Finalists for the Water Photo Contest! Aren’t they all AMAZING!

I’ve got a few great links you must check out! I just found them as I’ve been reading through your votes.

For one, I didn’t realize Ali, photographer of the Wet Dog, has a blog too! Oh my goodness, her baby photos are just breathtaking! Go check out her blog!

I also followed Kirsten’s blog, photographer of Dancing on Water, to a Flickr page with more Dancing on Water images. These images are so cool! I wish I was there shooting with you Kirsten. That event looked like a blast!

Then this morning I got an email from Banner in Charleston. Banner and I met through my blog, and I just love Banner’s zeal for her photography business. She sent me a link to an artist named Eric Zener who does paintings of swimmers. These paintings are incredible! I have to share them with you too. And check out Banner’s beautiful work while you’re at it! (Thanks for sharing the paintings with us Banner!)

Now for the December Workshop Announcement!

Your votes were so helpful and difficult at the same time! It was practically a tie between two options! So after much conversation, Brian and I came up with a plan.

Starting Monday morning, registration for the popular Beginner 2 Day Workshop on December 6th and 7th 2008 will go live!

This will be Early Bird Registration!! This means if you sign up before September 20th, the tuition is $749 instead of $999! So get ready, and come find the link on Monday morning to sign up!

Since there were so many people who voted for the Combo Deal, we are going to offer this workshop in 2009! We’re still thinking on whether we’ll do this in Seattle or somewhere else, or both! We will let you know in the near future. Stay tuned!

But back to the voting for the Five Finalists! They are all talented and deserve every vote and wonderful comment they get! Keep passing the word! It’s a wonderful gift to give them, and if we hit 400 VOTES by midnight on Tuesday we’re giving one lucky voter a copy of Adobe’s Lightroom!

Love you all and have a wonderful weekend!

p.s. Remember that new photography exercise I was going to post this week? Didn’t forget. It’s coming on Monday or Tuesday, and I think you’re going to have fun with it! xoxo

We received more photo entries for the Water Photo Contest than any other! Isn’t that cool! There were at least a few hundred images!! Way more than I realized. (thank you Brian for buying me another day with your poetry–isn’t his poetry amazing!)

Before I say anything about the Five Finalists, I think we need to start this post with a quick tribute to the “Man of Water” these last couple weeks. Boy, did he ever clean house at the Olympics!

His relationship and understanding of water must be amazing.

As Brian and I looked through every image submitted, we saw the deep connection that humanity shares with water. We believe the Five Finalists are a great representation of how water inspires us, calms us, refreshes us, makes us laugh and then takes us to a whole different world. Whether water brings peace to your soul, relief from the heat, joy, or surprise…one thing is certain, water is powerful

The first finalist captured so much in her single image. It’s the type of photo you could write a hundred stories around.

Finalist #1, Where a Creek Meets the Ocean, by Heather.

This image is amazing! Not only is the water and landscape beautiful, but it shows us how power and quietness in water can coexist. You can almost hear the waves crashing onto the beach. But then to come from behind the waves and see the water bringing quiet, slow shape to the sand, it’s a movement that is almost healing. Over the years, I’ve prayed that God would wash over me with His gentle, forming waters. Smoothing my rough edges, shaping me with gentleness. All the while knowing His power is real and able to crash down upon me, yet knowing His love is soothing and gentle. Heather submitted this photo and put a short note with it saying that she captured this on their vacation. That’s about all she said. But isn’t it amazing how much meaning an image can have to another person? Thank you Heather! This image is amazing and full of story! I hope I haven’t offended you with my thoughts on it. Your image just brings up so much emotion and life. Thank you for sharing it with us.

The next finalist caused me to do a double take, then a triple take, then a “Brian, come see this. How did she do this?”

Finalist #2, Dancing on Water, by Kirsten.

Kirsten, how did you take this image? We can’t figure it out! Amazing! Can you see why this is a finalist? The image was so unusual in how she shot up into the feet. The composition is also beautiful in how Kirsten implemented the thirds principle with the feet being in the far left third of the image. (If you are unfamiliar with the Thirds Principle, we teach it here.) And don’t you absolutely love the blur in the image. Sometimes I’m to quick to delete a blurred image. But for this image, the blur of the feet and water work so well. The blur gives us a feeling, again you can almost hear it, of the rush of water around the dancing feet. Can you hear the feet splashing? I can even hear a girl giggling. This another story provoking image that gives us a wonderful gift. It makes me want to sit down and free write a story about this dancing girl. It allows any viewer to fill in the blanks and let the imagination run wild. To be able to capture this in a 1 dimensional image is incredibly tough. I think Kirsten has pulled it off beautifully! And I checked out Kirsten’s blog last night. So cute! You must see it! Thank you so much for submitting Kirsten!

If we are thinking of the Five Senses, and the last two images have touched on Sound with crashing waves and splashing, dancing feet. Then Finalist #3 evokes one of the Smells water can have!

Finalist #3, Wet Dog, by Ali

The detail in this image is fantastic! When you have it big on your screen, you can see every single water drop outlined. And doesn’t this image just make you smile! I can literally smell this wet dog and hear the boy giggling. Now that we have our own puppy, Rosie, the bathing thing has become more and more familiar in how you smell when it’s over.

Ali shared in her email how she used our advice from the DVD series by setting this scene up. She had the kids suited up for giving their English Mastiff, Sam, a bath. Then she shot away as the experience unfolded in front of her. I have to commend Ali for setting up the scene. Sometimes our best shots of the kids and clients come from Scene Setting and Photo Coaching. It doesn’t always have to be pure photo journalism. It’s more than okay to set yourself up for success! From a technical standpoint, Ali did a great job using a fast Shutter Speed. The quick shutter speed and an aperture on the higher end, helps you grab all the detail of the water spraying. The dog’s face is blurred, but it works. It’s more important that we see the dog’s face in a blurred motion and feel the water spraying everywhere. And we can’t forget to comment on the little boy’s face! It’s the perfect mix of shock and delight! Way to go Ali! Way to set up the scene and grab authentic, in the moment shots!

We received a number of pool photos. But there was one that jumped out from all the rest.

Finalist #4, Summer Reunion, by Deene Souza!

This image makes me laugh!! I LOVE it!! I can’t get over the different expressions on all four kids! Look at the sweetie on top, isn’t she priceless! Then the guy on the bottom, his expression says it all from “being on the bottom” of the totem pole. Deene, you did an amazing job catching this image! It’s incredible! It sums up all the joy I remember from being a kid and swimming on hot summer afternoons.

I also want to point out a few other things I admire about this image. It looks like Deene shot this in bright sun. Getting the right exposure can be tough in bright sun. But she did an amazing job! All the faces are exposed well, no one is super bright or super dark. The color of the blue water and the green plants behind are rich and vibrant. Not only is their incredible humor and life in this image, but the elements of exposure and color are done well too! Great job Deene! And by the way, your blog is fantastic! I love your blog header with the dog–hilarious! I know your going to submit something for the Pet Photo Contest!

Ready for the last Finalist? Finalist #5? This is an image that you won’t forget.

Finalist #5, Millennium Park, by Amber.

I was speechless when I opened up this image. Doesn’t the composition just grab you? It evokes so many different, conflicting emotions that I don’t know which ones to follow first. Is the little girl sad, peaceful, tired, hungry? (See what I mean!) Where is the little girl? Amber has done such a great job with her composition that the little girl feels out of time and place. Amber’s framed the sand and water to give this overall circular feel to the image, you feel the girl surrounded and wrapped–safe and out of time. Amber’s email says, “This image is of my friend’s daughter, from when we had a play date at the park. What I love about the photo is that you would never imagine that there are thousands of people, mainly kids, running right around her…” Doesn’t that bit of knowledge enhance the image even more? I mean, talk about catching a child in a moment. I love this moment! But it’s not just the child she’s captured. I feel like the water is the other main character in the image. It’s murky, and yet silky smooth on the little girl’s legs. The sun flare in the bottom is well placed too. How does the sun flare add to this image for you? I can think a few different things, but what are your thoughts? Amber has her own blog too! Make sure you check it out. I looked through it a little bit and read that she’s in photography school. But what strikes me most is her eye for composition. Beautiful work Amber! Thanks so much for sharing with us!!

Prizes for the Winner and the Random Voter Winners!!______________________________________________________________________________________

There you have it!! How is that for Five Amazing Finalists! The subject of Water inspired some amazing images.

I want to thank ALL of you for entering your images. I had so much fun seeing your work and reading your stories. I don’t think I’ve ever smiled so much looking through the Water Photo submissions. There were so many great, fun shots that you captured. Thank you for sharing them with us! So many of you have bought the DVDs and said the most wonderful things about what you’ve learned from them. Thank you so much! Even if you weren’t a finalist in this contest, I hope that you keep shooting, keep submitting and keep loving all that your learning.

But don’t forget to vote before you leave! You could be picked as a Random Voter and win a gift card to Starbucks or a copy of Adobe’s Lightroom! Yep, that’s right! You heard me say it correct!

In our last photo contest, we had 356 voters! If we clear 400 votes on this contest, we are going to pick a Random Voter (not necessarily #400, but a RANDOM Voter) to win a copy of Adobe’s Lightroom software too!! And then we’ll keep going and pick two more Random Voters who win a $25 customized, cool looking Starbucks card!

Deadline for all voting is this Tuesday night at midnight PST!! That means we have to clear 400 votes by that time!

The winner of the Five Finalists will also win a copy of Adobe’s Lightroom Software!

So cast your votes and lets give some Lightroom Software away!

Question: How do you vote?

Answer: Just click on the pink word “Comments” at the end of this blog post, and then post a comment that says which of the Five Finalists you vote for. And add few words about why you like their image the most. Remember, your comments and feedback give to the Five Finalists more than any prize from us. Please be kind, encouraging, and share all that you can with these wonderful Five Finalists! Your feedback on their images is priceless! That’s why we do the Random Voter Awards, because we appreciate your voting and feedback so much. So spread the word to family and friends! And ask them to vote!

Next Question: What is the theme for August’s Photo Contest? And when is the Deadline?

Answer: The theme is Pets. You must send an image of your pet that shows us their personality. Deadline is at midnight, the last day of August! Send your images to contest@merakoh.com.

Last Question: What is the Workshop Combo going to be for December 6th and 7th 2008?

Answer: We’re going to spill the beans tomorrow! If you haven’t voted yet on what workshop combo you want, make sure you do today! Go here to vote on the workshop stuff!

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To see our day job , visit here.

For more fun photo exercises, check out our popular Instructional DVDs Refuse to Say Cheese , our 101 Kits for starting or expanding a business in photography, click on the words of your choice! The Chicago Workshop is sold out. But the December one is going to open for registration soon!