Annette Joseph's Photo Styling Workshop

Hey party people!
I’m constantly working on making this blog better, with higher quality content for you. I’m taking photography classes right now and last weekend, I attended Annette Joseph’s photo styling workshop. If you haven’t heard of Annette Joseph, I guarantee you’ve seen her work. With over 20 years experience, Annette has contributed her styling expertise to the Today Show, Better Homes & Gardens, Southern Living, HGTV, and more. On top of that, she recently released a party idea and cookbook called Picture Perfect Parties: Annette Joseph’s Stylish Solutions for Entertaining.
It is fabulous!

(This is not her book but does have a few pictures from it on here. This is a little notebook in our goody bag. Thanks to Staples & Minted)

I found out she does these styling workshops all over, and one would be happening in my hometown of Atlanta.
No one would normally refer to me as a nerd or geek…except when it comes to entertaining, party planning, and prop styling/photographing. Imagine a kid that ends up eating three cupcakes and downing a coke. That’s me. I get giddy and weird and it’s not pretty. That’s totally how I was during this workshop. Thanks Annette, Deborah, Rachel, & Justin for putting up with me.
I learned a lot, but I know your eyes would glaze over if I shared everything. Here’s one radical “behind the scenes” trick I learned while there.

Ever looked at a photo in a magazine or cookbook of a cup of coffee? Didn’t it look so dark and rich? Chances are that wasn’t coffee. Coffee ends up with oil spots in it, which can be tricky to photograph. Most food stylists use browning sauce instead. Is your mind blown? No. You probably have never thought of that before, huh? Well…if it happens to come up in random trivia…just keep it in your back pocket.

It truly does take a village to make great photos for magazines and books. Deborah Whitlaw Llewellyn, Lifestyle and Food photographer, was on hand to help us with photography tips and tricks. Rachael Daylong was our fabulous food stylist. Justin Williams was also on hand to help. He’s a talented interior designer and Annette’s right-hand man. Thank you all for helping make the workshop a fun and informative time.

After we spent half the day learning, the second half was spent playing.

 
We got to choose from a multitude of props (thanks West Elm Atlanta & Blue-Eyed Yonder) and had full use of Scott Lowden’s photography studio. I honestly felt the same feeling as when I was a kid and got to go to Six Flags. I never wanted it to end. See…total nerd.

I did end up getting a prop from a nearby flea market. We got to go with Annette to see what props she likes to use. I couldn’t pass this scale up and it is one of my favorite pictures.

Here are a few more I was able to play with…

Loved meeting everyone from the workshop that day and learned a great deal. So…now I just need to get my butt in gear creating some fun party recipes so I can put this into practice.
Can’t wait to share a fun kids party this Wednesday with you! Until then…Party On!