Spreading The Love

Just wanted to spread the love with Queensberry’s blessing, to extend their promotion from our tour to all those visiting our blog. If you are interested in trying out the most beautiful albums in the industry, just shoot them an email, mention Michael + Anna Costa, and they’ll automatically hook you up with 20% off their starter kit! If you haven’t got a chance in person to see and touch the quality of a Queensberry album, just ask any of your friends that already use them or were able to make it to one of our tour dates. Otherwise you can check them out when we speak at Imaging USA, the Professional Photographers of America convention in Phoenix, Arizona where we’re speaking for Fujifilm as well. Also speaking at Imaging USA are Anne Geddes, Jesh DeRox, & Joe Bussink just to name a few. Fujifilm & Queensberry are two products that have really made a difference in taking our branding and image to the next level. We’re always so happy and feel so blessed to share them with others. I can use a thousand words to try and describe why I shoot film, but to me, the image below from my series “faces” says it all.

Feelings...Nothing more than Feelings...

What is the lyric from? Anyway, I know it sounds totally lame but lately I've had a ton of emotions going through me 24/7 and thought it would be good to release some of them. I was watching a snippet of Bravo's interview with James Lipton which was hosted by Dave Chappelle. Anyway, Dave Chappelle was saying how he's never done manual labor in his life. The hard labor that he's done has all been emotional and psychological. He's like, "If you could look at my brain it would look like Denzel Washingtons back!" I thought that was really hilarious but also comforting because Dave Chappelle is super successful for a reason - and its not luck. He was obviously able to fight through the emotional rollercoasters of acheiving his dreams and he did. I was also reading in a magazine the other day a quote by Will Smith that was along the lines of: The most successful people are the ones that work the hardest. Its seems obvious, but its so true. I constantly hear people make comments about why things didn't work out for them or why they are destined to be a certain way. I strongly dislike those kinds of statements! Our brains are so unbelievable powerful and its a total slap in the face to our creator to even suggest that we are less than totally amazing. Michael and I have BIG dreams. I mean, really big. We were in a meeting the other day with our insurance agent who asked us how much money we'd like to be making in a few years. He was trying to calculate how much we should save for retirement and such. Anyway, we told him - and he entered in the numbers. It turned out that the calculator software that he was working off of didn't calculate that high! Now, am I saying that money is the most important thing to us? Of course not. But if something goes down in our family that sucks (death, disabilities who knows) we want to be prepared to be able to help whoever it is that stands in need. I also feel like, dream big. The worst thing that can happen is that it won't work out the way you planned. But most likely you'll have gotten farther than if you never dreamed. There is also a great saying among the Amish. "If your praying for pototoes, you better pick up a hoe"I love this saying because its always annoyed me when people have dreams but don't ever seem to actually WORK towards them. I just feel bad because I want everyone to achieve what they want in life. But it will never happen unless you do something! So emotionally, all these thoughts have been going through my head lately. Its easy to get comfortable in life. I try to stay uncomfortable a lot because its a signal that I'm on the right track. Carving out new neural pathways in the brain is a good thing! I remember when Michael and I started our business almost 4 years ago and my Mom was all worried that it wasn't going to work out. I was like, "Mom, if the business fails - Michael and I both have college degrees! We'll be fine. Stop worrying!" Now that we have some new projects and some uncharted territory ahead of us, it feels like we're back to those days again. Which is great! Life is an adventure, right? Okay, I feel like I'm totally rambling at this point and that most of this makes no sense. Sorry for the people that made it to the end here! Thanks for listening! :)

Lisa + Nick

Lisa and Nick's wedding, was much like Lisa and Nick. Easy going, beautiful, relaxing and precious. What an honor it was for us to be apart of this day. One of our favorite churches to photograph is Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Montecito. The adobe inspired architecture gives a texture and feel to our images that we love. And of course, our subjects looking like models didn't hurt either! Debbie Hews (Chic Events) did an amazing job planning the perfect day. The gorgeous flowers were designed by Mindy Rice with the reception held at Casa Paz del Mar in Montecito. Make-Up by: Cathryn VanBreene of The Studio Agency Classic Car from: Classic Motoring Car Rentals _____

Jen Hulmes Surprise Birthday!

Michael and I sporting our "Blue Steel" poses! My good friend and accountant, Jen Hulme had a birthday last week! Here amazing husband totally went over the top (in a good way!) for her party. He hired out a hummer limousine to pick us all up and go over to Beachside Grill (where he and Jen were having appetizers). She was SO surprised! Then the hummer took the girls to get manicures and pedicures! The boys went to play pool downtown in the meantime. Then we all met back up and went to dinner at Milk and Honey which was delicious! I've always wanted to go to a Tapas Restaurant and so this was a really fun treat! Strawberry and Mint Chip Ice Cream Cakes were for dessert! (Yum) Chris is one of those all around good guys that definitely knows how to take care of his wife! Way to go Chris!

Halloween! Am I behind on this or what??

Halloween was super fun this year! Zohe Felici of Events of Santa Barbara invited us to her annual Halloween party and we had a blast. Also, I just want to mention that we LOVE Zohe. She is not only an amazing coordinator but a great friend. And she was absolutely adorable in her Swan Costume. Also, Nico Cervantes of Nico Designs was there and we totally monopolized him all night! We had such a fun time connecting with him - he is such a great guy! Thanks Zohe for an great night!! (Oh, and P.S - I am "Santa's Little Helper" Michael is "Donnie Darko" Zohe is a Swan and Nico is Ricky Ricardo!) I figured I could use that Santa's Little Helper outfit for Christmas too! I can't wait to put it back on!

Dreams

Lately, I have been investing a lot of time into our dreams. I say "Our" because for some reason Michael and I have always been really in sync with what we want to do in life. And its been convenient because two heads are better than one! But lately, its become more and more apparent that our dreams are SO doable. And we don't have small dreams. I posted before about a movie called, "The Secret" and got a lot of response from people who have watched it and its help them change the way that look at life. After watching "The Secret" I was recommended to read the book, "The Answer" This book is SO fun to read because it goes into the details and science of WHY The Secret works. And its helped me realize that I am just as capable and anyone out there that has already accomplished the things that we want to accomplish! We've all had dreams in the past that we put aside and let fizzle. And I think that's okay if the dream fizzles because you changed and didn't want to achieve it anymore. But if you have dreams, don't give up on them! And don't stop working hard towards them! I always say that I only have one life to live and I'm not going to waste time. Anyone out there with an inspirational story about not giving up on your dreams? Anyone out there that needs to bee inspired to stay focused on your dreams? I also think that sometimes we are so busy working day to day that sometimes we don't stop and think, "What are my dreams? What do I want to accomplish, learn and acheive in this life?" If you haven't asked yourself that question in a long time, maybe its time to!

New Blog; The Co-Brainchild Has Begun!

Chris Orwig on CS4: Anna & I have worked out the kinks in our blog philosophies and come together to offer the best of what's in both our brains. Our new combined blog is really the blog Anna has been using all along accept is now highly customized (& still in progress) by the amazing Chris Orwig. There's a sweet photo of Jack Johnson on the opening of his site. Definitely check out his gallery "wave riders I, II, & inspiration" for a lesson in consistency of style and the ability to capture ones character. Chris also co-designed with me & built the first version of michaelandannacosta.com back in 2006. He's the author of Adobe Photoshop & Lightroom How-Tos: 100 Essential Techniques: here on amazon.com just to name a few, is sponsored by Adobe, nikMultimedia, & Epson, is one of the top instructors at Brooks Institute of Photography, and I just can't say enough good about him! On top of that, he's one of the coolest people I know. So all that being said, our blog is no longer fractured and your one stop fix will all be right here in one convenient stop! Much love, & don't forget to vote!

We want YOUR opinion! Please comment!

Michael and I have decided to finally combine our blogs. The reason that this hasn't occurred until now is that we are a smart married couple that knows when to draw boundary lines. For instance, Michael is in charge of any technical, computer, or design related activities in our business.  I am in charge of operations.  We don't cross into each others territories so that we can both do our individual duties unfettered. 

So, we had separate blogs for this very reason. I wanted to write whatever the heck popped into my mind and have the liberty of uploading iphone pictures if I wanted to. (A despicable practice as far as Michael is concerned). And Michael likes to spend days on one blog post, (not really but almost!) making sure that it is perfect in every way possible.  Thus, separate blogs have been a necessity. Until now...

I think that we have come to the conclusion that having both our blog posts on ONE blog would be easier and more convenient for our readers.  It's also great to have double the posts and therefore a more interesting blog. 

What do you think? Do you normally JUST check Anna's blog or Michael's blog?  When you surf past our blog(s) do you take the time to check both?  Any feedback is extremely helpful as we want to make sure we are making the right choice in combining!  Thanks for reading! 

Front Cover of Las Vegas Bride

The Fall Issue of Las Vegas Bride is here & as previously mentioned we were blessed enough to score the front cover. Michael took this image in MTV's - The Real World Suite on top of the pool table overlooking the strip. It was so fun to work this shoot as Teresa was up for anything. We have to give a big shout out to Michelle Buckley of Mint Julep Inc. for telling Teresa & Daniel about us & being the fastest rising star in the industry! Next Saturday we're going to do our second wedding with her that's going to receive TV air time. More details on that later..... Also check out this wedding featured on L.A. Rag Mag & The Insider

San Francisco & San Jose PUGs!!

Okay, I feel extremely lame because when we got home from our East Coast tour we crashed and I never blogged about Hartford CT, Boston or NYC! And those were some of the absolute best PUGs we've done. I can even believe how silly I am!! Anyway, there will be a belated blog about those cities since they were so awesome. But in the meantime I just wanted to make mention that we are up in the Bay area and just got done presenting for the San Francisco and San Jose crowd! Both these groups were great. The San Jose PUG was extremely warm and inviting and laughed at ALL of our jokes!! :) And the San Francisco PUG was great and we were able to reconnect with some great friends at both. I have to say that I feel extremely happy/sad at the same time. We are basically done with our tour for the rest of this year. We decided to postpone the Seattle, Portland & Tacoma trip due to some scheduling difficulties. We'll probably hit up that area in the spring which will be great! Its been a really crazy ride! What an amazing experience this has all been. What I really love is that it seems that we are actually providing people with information that is helping their businesses. Last year at the WPPI convention we had this amazing couple bid on us for a mentor ship during the Thirst Relief Auction and we were able to reconnect with them yesterday in San Francisco. Their studio is Lilia Photography and Lilia and Raymond are the owners. Anyway, they let us know last night that many of the things that we had discussed with them really helped their business. That was SO great to hear! I love it!! This experience has confirmed my feelings that I have a passion for helping others. I know that I'm so grateful to SO many people that provided insight to Michael and I when we were first starting out. What a great community we have!

"The Secret" - Changed my life!

Who has watched the DVD, "The Secret" ? If you have, will you post a comment and give a little insight into how its changed your life? This DVD is SO amazing and only takes a hour and a half to watch. You can buy it at any Barnes & Nobles or Borders and probably a ton of other places too.

I really feel that no matter what walk of life you are at, watching this DVD will open your eyes to the amazing potential that you possess. And ultimately, it will make you aware of how to accomplish your dreams. I was hanging out last night with some of Michael and my photographer BFF's. Tim & Cheryl Halberg, Barnaby Draper and Nicole Steakley, Chris & Katie Humphrey's, Kristen Renee and Andrew Van Gundy. We were out to dinner and I was chatting with Nicole about various things. And one thing that we touched upon was that in life, achieving your dream is very simple. It only takes 1. Time and 2. Pressure. Its the exact same principle that I learned by watching "The Shawshank Redemption" where at the end, you find that the principles of geology are the same. It takes and time and pressure. It took time and pressure to create the Grand Canyon - just like it will only take time and pressure to acheive your dreams. But if you don't put in consistent time or pressure then it will never happen. Its a simple principle! Anyway, I heard about "The Secret" from a new friend David Berck - so thanks David! I love hanging out with forward thinking people who are a wealth of knowledge and have so many golden nuggets to share! (and now I'm sharing it with you, hint hint!) For those of you who haven't seen this DVD - go out and buy it immediately! And THEN post on the the blog about what you think! Can't wait to hear what you have to say!

We're Home! (But I still need to blog about Boston, Hartford & NYC!!

Ohmygosh - it feels SO good to finally be home! 3 weeks is a really long time to be on the road! The last few days of our tour were so hectic I didn't get a chance to blog about Boston, Hartford or NYC. We literally didn't have a minute to spare! But we had a fabulous time and I'll definitely do a recap on those cities because they were some of the best of the entire trip! Its funny, because we have been blessed to be able to see SO many great sites and meet so many awesome people - but there is just something about being home that is like no other. My grandpa who is 92 years old picked us up from the airport and then took us to lunch. (Its really amazing how healthy he is!) And I was talking to him about how good it was to be home, and he was like, "Its like in the movie the Wizard of Oz - Be is pleasures and palaces wherever you may roam, be it ever so humble there's no place like home." That's so true, isn't it!? So I'm thrilled to be home, but also feel so blessed and happy about everyone that I was privileged to meet. Thanks everyone for your amazing hospitality! Can't wait to see a lot of you at Imaging USA and WPPI!!! xoxo

Maine is such a beautiful state!

(This last picture was taken from a restaurant window on a floating boat we were having dinner on. The light was like that for a bout 4 minutes!) Michael and I were blown away with the beauty of Maine. It was everything that I hoped for and more! We were told that we the best place to visit in Maine is Cape Porpoise but we didn't have time to stop in unfortunately. But we did visit the light house in Portland ME as well as their harbor area. Also the leaves are turning right now so it was such a beautiful drive in! The Portland ME PUG was great! Evidently, this was the biggest PUG meeting yet! Yay! Stacey Kane is the PUG leader and did a great job. She is really down to earth and fun to hang out with! We also connected with people that we normally see at events but haven't necessarily connected with - so that was great too! After the PUG a few of us went out from some dinner/dessert. Its so fun to have the time to really get to know everyone. I think that Michael and I will definitely have to vacation in Maine (Cape Porpoise!) in the future. SO beautiful!

Niagara Falls and beautiful NY State...

First of all, Michael and I have been running around like chickens with our heads cut off! Once we left the safe haven of our cousin (Scott & Kaye's) home in Pittsburgh we feel like we've really been through the ringer. But is all been good! I wanted to blog about our last two days of seeing sights in NY State. We are actually in Boston right now, and just drove here from Maine (where we had an awesome PUG meeting). But I wanted to blog about Niagara and NY State first! So this is what was cool about Niagara falls. We went on the "Maid of the Mist" tour and which basically drives right into the falls and you can't see anything and it feels like your in a rain storm! Of course they give you little plastic poncho's so that you don't get too wet. But my favorite thing at Niagara Falls was the "Cave of the Wind" tour. Basically they built these stairs that go right underneath the American Falls so you can actually stand underneath part of the waterfall as it completely drenches you! It was SO fun! Its was quite the adventure! The next day we were able to go to Palmyra NY and saw a lot of amazing historical sites. This time of year the fall leaves are coming out, so it was a really picturesque! We were able to see the Hill Cumorah, The Smith Farm and the Sacred Grove. It was great! Very inspiring. So, like I said we are in Boston right now! But I'll update on the Maine PUG tomorrow. :)

Pittsburgh - Great City!

When Michael and I turned a bend on the freeway and got our first glimpse of Pittsburgh we were very surprised and in awe of its beauty. Pittsburgh looks a lot like Portland Oregon with its bridges and beautiful rivers and lush trees. We had heard that Pittsburgh used to be a town that had a cloud of haze over it from all the factories. But those factories have long since left, and now its beautiful and pristine! Joanne Bartone is the amazing PUG leader in Pittsburgh. We had the privilege of meeting Joanne in Chicago at the Pictage Partner Conference there in 2007. So it was great reunion! The Pittsburgh Puggers were great and we really had fabulous time. David Burke hosted the event at his awesome studio - thanks David! After the PUG a few of us went to this restaurant on the very top of the hill overlooking Pittsburgh and enjoyed the amazing view! It was the perfect end to a great day!

Baltimore & Washington DC PUG's - RADICAL!

(Above images are courtesy of Geoff of MBK Photography!) (Image of Michael courtesy of my trusty iphone!) Baltimore and the DC PUG came together for this months meeting and we had the privilege of presenting for both groups last night. Geoff and Michael of MBK Photography hosted the event in their amazing studio. The first thing that I loved about this PUG is that a totally cute girl named Deborah walked into the meeting and was wearing almost the exact same shirt that I was wearing! It was hot pink and totally cute! At that point, I knew I'd love this group! (I'm only half kidding! :) There were tons of great questions and I'm super stoked to connect with everyone again at the next Pictage Partner Conference and WPPI! Also, it was great to see our friend and AMAZING photographer Armin De Fiesta who we met last year at WPPI and is an avid member of photoforthepeople.com! Today, Michael and I went into DC and saw all the sites. We took one of those touristy trolleys that takes you around the city and tells you all the history. It was way fun, and we got off to see the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam Memorial. I feel so blessed that Michael and I have been able to see so much of our country lately! Its been a really amazing experience!! Thanks to Pictage, Fuji Film & Queensberry for making this happen!

We Soaked Up Philly Like a Sponge

Above photo's taken by Ole Hongvanthong. Thanks Ole! (Picture inside Independance Hall where the Declaration of Independance was signed. The tour guide was very interesting!) Philadelphia is an awesome city. The people are great and the history and old world charm is very enticing! The Philly Pug meets during the day which was great for a change. Our friend Jason Groupp came all the way from NYC (okay, its only like an hour away, but still...) and we met a ton new friends! That is what I absolutely love about doing this tour - we get to personally meet so many people that we wouldn't have otherwise. And we normally go out afterwards for dinner (in this case, lunch) where we get to get to know everyone that much better! Philly was great, although I should have known not to wear heels! The sidewalks are really old and uneven - and half of it is cobblestone so I was hurting after walking to the restaurant! But it was tons of fun and thanks to Laura Eaton and Sophia Negron for hosting the PUG. Some important sites we were able to see was Independance Hall, where the Declaration of Independance was written & signed. Also we saw the Liberty Bell which was cool. And we took a horse drawn carriage tour around the city and got a lot of history from the driver. (We are finding this a great way to get information about the city without spending a ton of time!) Since we are vegetarians we obviously didn't get a philly cheesesteak sandwich, but I did get a philly CHEESE sandwhich from a cart on the street. It tasted like Subway sandwhich on a little better of a roll....I guess the "steak" part is intrical to the sandwich!! In other news, my sister had her baby!! They named her Elliot Dee Walker. I can't WAIT to her in November when we go up to WA to see them!! Yay!!

Pictage Partner Conference 2008!

Michael and I were able to go to the Pictage Partner Conference in Los Angeles this year. It was SO fun to reconnect with friends and see friends that we recently met on our PUG tour! There were also some really amazing presenters like Chris & Katie Humphreys as well as Millie Holloman and Davina Fear to name a few! It was also really fun to connect with Mike Colon over dinner along with Sara France, Lauren Hillary and Jim Hicks (CEO of the amazing charity Thirst Relief). Such cool photographers!! What I love most about the photography industry is the people. I feel that we have SO many friends all over the country because photographers are generally nice, giving people. It was so great to see Amber Holritz in Chattanooga TN two weeks ago - and then see her again two days ago in LA! Same goes for many other photographers! I love it!

crazy busy!!

(Thought the above cartoon was cute!) Who isn't, right? What are your de-stressing techniques? I love to take long baths and read (okay, I'll confess!) "Breaking Dawn" the sequel to the Young Adult Ficiton "Twilight." Okay, I know that's totally embarrassing, but I can't read business books when I'm trying to unwind otherwise I'll not sleep! And of course I've read all the Harry Potter books twice. Hmmmm....Let's see, I also like watching "Lost" but I'm cutting down on that lately since it can be quite addicting. I once asked my Mom what she did when we were growing up to de-stress since I have no doubt that she was stressed. (5 kids - Yikes!) She said she used to go into our guest bathroom, lay on the floor and listen to ceiling fan. Crazy, right? What are de-stressing tips??

6th 7th & 8th Stop in the South! Chattanooga, Nashville & Kentucky!!

(Kickin' with the Chattanooga crowd! above) (Laughing it up with the Nashville PUG!)

(iphone picture of us out to dinner with the Nashville PUG)

(Kentucky PUG!!)

The final 3! (for now at least!) Michael and I had such a blast visiting these last 3 cities on our PUG Tour South.

  Nathan & Amber Holritz are the amazing PUG leaders in Chattanooga. I remember going to see them speak at the Chicago Partner Conference in 2007, and they showed pictures of their home office and living room area. So it was really a surreal experience for me to actually go to it since at the time I never imagined I'd be visiting Chattanooga! I love Nathan and Amber. They are so fun and down to earth. It was so fun hanging out with them at the PUG and then afterwards everyone went out to dinner. I can't wait to hang out next week at Pictage Partner Conference in LA! 

I totally have to give it up the the Nashville PUG! They won the album competition that Pictage had and so Joe Buissink is coming to speak to their PUG! Wow! It probably had something to do with their awesome PUG leaders - Peter & Whitney Carlson... These guys were super organized and even had a blog specifically for their PUG! How cool is that? It was super fun to go out with everyone afterward and get some yummy Nashville food! We were sad because we didn't get any time at all to see Nashville... (I guess we'll have to come back!)

Louisville, Kentucky. Michael and I spent the entire time trying to figure out how to actually say "Louisville" correctly. There they pronounce it something like "Loo-vulle." We had fun practicing, but I don't think we ever got it right! The PUG leader in Louisville (Angela Anderson) has an amazing studio that we presented in! We projected our keynote onto this gigantic white backdrop so I literally felt like how actors must feel when they see their big mug on the silver screen. (Kind of embarrassing actually since we show a few videos of ourselves in our presentation!) Anyway, it was our last stop but we had a blast going to dinner afterward and getting a chance to hang out and chat ever more with the awesome photographers there. Angela is a super talented artist and so it was amazing to get to meet her and her PUG members! 

This tour has been really amazing so far. We can't believe what a great experience it has been and we can't wait for September when we are visiting the East Coast and Mid West!!