what do you DO, anyway?

Posted on May 7, 2010 by elli

i recently found myself in a phone conversation with my insurance agent about my business policy, trying to explain to her what it is that i do.  she was trying to understand which equipment to insure under which business and i was trying to explain that it’s all one business.

her: so, people get design and photography from you.
me: yes.
her: at the same time?
me: sometimes, yes.  sometimes no.
her: so it’s different businesses.
me: no, it isn’t.
her: but you have a design business and a photography business.
me: i have a design and photography business.

this went on for a bit.  it occurred to me later i could have used the target analogy.  you know how sometimes you need to go to target to buy, say . . . some socks?  and other times you need socks AND lunch meat.  but sometimes you just need lunch meat.  it’s like that.

i am involved in a lot of different projects and jobs, and i’m told i can be very confusing.  i am okay with being a little confusing, and i don’t mind if people don’t know everything i do.  i will never be satisfied with being just one thing, having just one job.  and if you are one of my clients and you are reading this – don’t worry.  i have it all written down.  i have a system!

i was recently advised to make a separate business card that makes it look like i only do photography, but i’m not going to do that, it isn’t true.  i would prefer it if you know that i can take your family photo for your holiday card, and then also design a custom card for you.

i would prefer it if you know that i can come photograph your business, and then use the photos to build you a yummy website.  (www.aster-cafe.com)

i also like to collaborate, it gives me energy and makes me feel creative.  i like to do design for the sake of design, and take photos that may never be seen by anyone except me.  i find them later, when i am looking through my library for stock or specific images, and it is like finding little treasures.

my current list of collaborations is getting pretty long.  i work with cleverkate, we have a few different events and projects up our sleeves, and more than anything we bounce ideas off each other and support each other as independent, small business owners.   i work with kate kunkel & pam cariveau on a breast cancer awareness project called of scars that i am very proud of.   i have worked with pam cariveau on other projects as well – she is my wonderful and talented sister at the helm of eleven pictures.   laura brown and i are hatching a plan to make some art together, but it’s too new to even talk about more than that.

and, drum roll, please – i am happy to say that some time in the next week i will be signing a lease and going in on a studio gallery with a photographer i greatly admire, elizabeth barnwell.  my mind is bursting at the seams with ideas for that–i have barely been able to contain my excitement about it and will have MUCH more to tell you after the papers are signed.

so.  to summarize!  everyone loves a good summary!

  • i get to design things all the time – business cards–like this one that i just made for Josh the Barbarian!  and also postcards, logos, advertisements, cd covers, and much more.
  • i get to take photos of wonderful things.
  • i get to talk to bands all the time because i book them at a music venue – the 318 cafe in excelsior.  (and soon, the aster in minneapolis.)
  • i get to do creative projects with awesome people.

don’t tell my insurance lady, but . . . i am just not sure how it would be possible to put an insurance policy on the best. job. ever.   my best insurance would be that people keep coming to me for design work and photography, and keep telling other people that i’m professional and nice to work with.  so far, so good!

Posted in design, news, photography | 3 Comments

paperlily HQ moves to the big city

Posted on April 2, 2010 by elli

from toothpaste for dinner dot com

well, it’s official.  after spending the last few-and-a-half-years in rural parts, paperlily HQ is now installed in NE minneapolis.  the essentials are unpacked:  the hard drive fleet, the surge protectors, and the panflute flowchart.  the rest of everything is still in boxes, partly because i need to get a shelf to put it on and partly because i’ve been working, working, working like a busy little bee.  i keep hoping that the Puts Away All Your Clothes Fairy would come, but so far no sign of her.

i will post a better picture of the officey area when it looks better, but i think it’s off to a good start:

and! i unpacked in just enough time to find my lenses and my battery chargers and head off again to the james j hill library to shoot the americana showcase.  this is my favorite of those, click it to view the rest.

benson from the Pines

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the Jennefit: tonight! why?

Posted on March 26, 2010 by elli

there has been a lot of press and buzz about the show tonight, The Jennefit.  not everyone has understood why this is happening and why we wanted to do it.  soooooo many people have, and for those who have rallied around this show and given support and encouragement, i most humbly thank you.

at this point all i can really do is show up and enjoy the show – which is so great because the music is going to be so, so good.  but i did want to take just a few minutes to lay down a few facts about what is going on tonight.

1) jenn barnett is an important local photographer who has **donated** a LOT of her time promoting local music, and shooting great images that local bands use to promote themselves.

2) jenn’s camera died, and she needs a new one.  she’s a single mom that just made it through a horrible recession year as an independent photographer.

3) lots of cool musicians offered to put on a show to help jenn raise some money for a new camera body, and they were more than happy to donate an evening of their time to thank her for all she’s done for them.

i can think of at least 5 other people who will be there tonight who are going through some kind of major life or health crisis, all of whom deserve a benefit of their own.  the thing is though, if you allow a benefit to be thrown for you, you are also agreeing to have your personal stuff written into press releases and sitting out there on the interwebs for all to see.  if anyone thinks jenn agreed to this lightly, please be assured that she did not.  she really, really did not.  this is a show that her friends wanted to do for her to show her that they care, and that they appreciate what she has done for them and their various art forms.

if you can get behind the concept of artists supporting each other to get through difficult times, then please show it by coming to the Jennefit tonight, or by spreading the word about it.

come to the turf club tonight, be there at 9 pm so you don’t miss any of the great lineup.  most details here, but we also have some surprises in store for you.

Posted in music, news | Tagged | 2 Comments

americana showcase: not to be missed. srsly.

Posted on February 23, 2010 by elli

if you’ve ever talked to me for three minutes or longer, there’s a decent chance you’ve discovered my deep appreciation and support of music, particularly if it’s local.  my favorite kind of show is live rounds, where the musicians get on stage and just join in on each other’s songs without having practiced.  i love it when they’ve never even played together, or met before.  that’s the kind of show that is a one of a kind experience and if it isn’t recorded or photographed, it’s the kind of show that haunts your memory in the best way.

i book a small listening room in excelsior called the 318 cafe.  we’ve got an ongoing series there called excelsior city limits that, even if i didn’t book it myself, would be one of my favorite things going on.  for most of them, i’ve gone in and introduced the musicians to each other as they were setting up their gear.  i have two strict rules for the series:  you can’t play any covers, and everyone plays on every song.  i’ve seen them all play with their usual bands, or solo – and it’s SO cool to see them playing a song they’ve played hundreds of times and suddenly be surprised, excited and amazed by the direction it’s taking because they’ve got two complete strangers adding their thoughts and interpretations of it as it unfolds live in front of a room full of people.  moments like that are why i am so involved with music.

my friend brandon sampson shares this view.  he fronts a great band called Six Mile Grove that’s based down in rochester.  he started his own rounds series down there called the americana showcase and has had the best of the best in his lineups.  in november i drove down to see him, jeremy messersmith, molly maher, darren jackson, and adam levy play together at this show.  people!  omg!  you *have* to get to one of these, it’s the real deal.  brandon has been working on the lineups to bring the showcase up to the twin cities this um – well, let’s call it spring.  it’s going to be wicked good, check it out:

  • March 7th – Martin Zellar/Adam Levy (Honeydogs)/Ben Kyle (Romantica)/Brandon Sampson
  • March 27th – Sally Barris/Brandon Sampson/Molly Maher/Erik Koskinen
  • April 9th – Martin Devaney and Jake Hyer/Bethany Larson/Asheligh Still and Adam Levy/Brandon and Barry of SMG
  • April 30th – Dana Cooper/Dan Israel/David Stoddard/Brandon Sampson
  • May 16th – (Grand Finale – Line up Announced Soon)

here’s the scoop – but email me if you want any more info.

photo by david c. weber

on sunday march 7, the james j. hill library in st. paul will inaugurate a unique celebration of american heritage, combining the extraordinary photographic exhibit america the beautiful: the monumental landscape of dedicated environmentalist clyde butcher, with the americana showcase, a southern minnesota-based music series that honors the rich musical heritage of the american midwest. this celebration will include a series of five music concerts which will be performed in the midst of 50 of butcher’s epic photographic images echoing his love of the american landscape.

a five-concert season pass can be purchased for $75; individual tickets are $20 in advance, or $22 at the door. purchase tickets at www.americanashowcase.com. season ticket holders will also receive a discount on tickets to the exclusive after-show meet-and-greets with performers hosted by the saint paul hotel at $40 for all five. individual ticket holders can join the after-party for $10 per show.

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the story of CreepyHouse

Posted on February 20, 2010 by elli

my friend joseph recently purchased this print of mine, and i keep telling him he needs to hear the story of how it came to be, because i think he will enjoy it.  and then every time we hang out, i forget to tell him because we have so many other things to talk about.  but he needs to know!  and so, if you are here, you need to know too.  you should know that i tell it *much* better in person when i can make wild hand gestures.

august 9th of 2008 was a beautiful day.  i set out with friend/musician ryan paul to do a photo shoot after having waited for the perfect time of day, when the light was exactly just the way i hoped it would be . . . the sun setting and making that super pretty gentle light sideways across a hill down the road from my house, at the end of which was a completely hideous and ghastly abandoned house.

i had passed the house hundreds of times and the plan for this day was to take photos on the porch of it–where there were no less than 3 stoves, many unidentifiable tools and several other large appliances carelessly stashed.  the house is located on a farm, and there is a fully functional regular house on the property.  it seemed appropriate at the time to ask permission to be wandering around taking photos, so we parked and i approached the front door.  couldn’t get to it.  the only way in was through the open garage, the backyard, and on the porch.  i cautiously went through the garage and out into the backyard and found several dozen diseased, dying, bleeding, crying and otherwise heartbreaking cats and kittens.  fighting back tears, i stepped through the terrible kitty yard and up onto the porch.  i was terrified as i pulled open the screen door and knocked on the kitchen door. after a few minutes the door swung open loudly and cigarette smoke billowed out in a huge cloud onto me.  the creepiest of creepy old dudes appeared through the smoke and stared at me until i started to stutter. . .

“uuuuum….i.   i am a photographer?  annnnnnd……wondering if.    could i?  the house over there.  the broken-y one?  i can take pictures on the porch for a few minutes, please?  friend.  band.  needs pictures.”

and his answer:  ”THAT HOUSE?!? that house ain’t mine.  that old guy in, well he lives in CHANhassen.  he don’ care. whatever.  grunt.”

so i ran!!! back through the bad kitty place and ran!!! out the garage and leaped into the car, breathing so fast, and looked at ryan with sheer terror, and said, “it’s ok.”  and he didn’t believe me.  and i said, “no.  it’s fine.  tell you later.  oh my god.”

so we went over to the house and started poking around on the porch, taking some shots.  i didn’t know ryan well enough yet to know he would do this, but he immediately went over to the garage attached to the back of the house and shimmied his skinny ass under the 1.5 foot opening and started climbing through the house.  i’m thinking, “NOPE.  unh-uh.  i am NOT going in there.  no way, not gonna happen.  gross!!  who IS this guy?”  but all that comes out of my mouth is, “um, are you okay?  what was that noise?”  and what i hear from inside is:

“OH MY GOD!! HOLY SHIT!”  …crash….thud….”DEAD ANIMAL! you HAVE to come in here! climb under the….the door, climb und—-” CRASH.

nope.  not gonna.  not climbing under that door and going in there.  i followed along the side of the house, taking pictures in through the window so i could see what was going on.  (window height is above my head.)  i heard him smashing through the house, swearing, and then finally appearing out on the front porch.  ”oh!  hey.  the front door was unlocked.”

sigh.

needless to say, he convinced me to go inside and we spent a few awesome hours exploring the nasty house, taking photos, and admiring the sound of his new guitar in an abandoned house.

and there you have it, joseph.  the story of where your photo came from.

Posted in good locations, photography | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments