As Neo Anderson said in The Matrix, “Hmmm, upgrades.” Indeed Neo, I’ve upgraded :). Let the good times roll in 2009.

Slideshow of my favorite e-session images from this year. Please click on the image below or here to view it. Enjoy!

Happy holidays everyone, ‘Tis the season to give and whom better to give back to then the incredible folks that have visited this blog the last year. I’m just so grateful for all the couples, photographers, friends, family, and everyone else that took some time to check out my work and personal life here. To celebrate the 100,000th+ visit to my blog and the holiday season, Henry Chen Photography is excited to present the very first (of many) “Blogstalkers E-Session Contest” to all you lovely people out in the cyber world :). To get a sample of the wonderful couples I’ve gotten to work with this year, please check out my 2008 E-Session Favorites slideshow. So here’s the 4-1-1!

THE WHAT

Starting right now, everyone who follows this blog will have the chance to win an engagement session package from me, which includes the following:

- 3 to 4-hour engagement session at the location(s) of your choice.

- Online proof and print gallery of all your images for up to 6 months.

- Either a 9×12” or 10×10” digital or matted custom-designed album with your favorite images.

- DVD of all the high-resolution images, including the fully-retouched ones from the album.

This package is normally valued at about $2,800. Since the reasoning behind this contest is on giving back and just helping a lending hand to two individuals who may have not had their engagement/day-after/anniversary photos taken for various reasons, the winner will be chosen based on the following: have gone out of their way to do something remarkable for someone or something :).

THE RULES

You or someone you know can enter this contest. Perhaps a fellow friend, co-worker, or family member whom you’d like to recognize for their good deeds? In order to participate, please submit the following to me by midnight of January 31st, 2009: an e-mail to henry@henrychenphotography.com with your full name, your location, contact info, a photo of you and your significant other or the couple that you’re nominating, and a 2-3 paragraph on why you/they deserve this prize :).

The winning couple will be selected in early February and notified immediately. Their portrait session will hopefully be set up shortly afterwards, and of course I’ll be sharing their story and their photos here on the blog. Oh yeah, although I’m based in Los Angeles, you don’t have to be :). However, if you’re the winner and choose to have your session outside of Southern California, then some travel fees may apply. Questions? Comments? Let me have them below in the comment section :). Remember, the deadline is midnight of January 31st, 2009. Good luck!

Check out what I got in the mail today! Almost all my awesome couples send me an invitation to their wedding day, even though I’m already going to be there as their photographer :). But one really, really wonderful and simply sweet couple Alicia and Austin sent me a little extra something else this past week! Being that it was Chinese New Year this past Monday and it’s a tradition for married couples to give money to younger/single kids, Alicia and Austin thought they’d get a head start and send me some moolah before they actually tie the knot this May. Now this is a first on so many levels! Thank you guys so much and Happy Birthday once again to Alicia. Kudos to Austin for being extra sneaky last weekend and surprising Alicia with a yummy sushi dinner with their closest friends.

On a more serious note, I can’t tell you enough how lucky I feel to have met Alicia and Austin last year; to not only have them as clients but also friends. I’ve been waiting for their very unique e-session (shhh can’t say more than that!) since I met them. That special day will be here in just a little over two weeks :). Thank you guys so much for supporting me in everything I’ve done: from the bridal show and basketball games (what’s up Austin’s brother Lawson who shoots the Duke college games!) to the Europe well wishes and just saying “hello”. If anyone asks me why I absolutely love wedding photography, they can look no further than Alicia and Austin: you guys just ROCK!

For past visitors, do you guys notice anything different about the blog? I’m excited to announce the release of my “newly” designed blog by Flosites. Ross and his team did an amazing job a year ago designing the old version. For v2, they were able to incorporate the design and color scheme of my website while carrying over all the old posts into a new and better backend content management system, all within a few days!

If you’re ever looking for a kick arse blog design company with great customer service, then I highly recommend you check out Flosites. They also have a myriad of other services and products, like websites, branding, logo design, etc. that will help your business get to that next level. If you’re curious, Ross designed my photography logo about a year ago.

So what do you think of the new look? Hopefully the difference is more subtle than dramatic and fits well with my photography :). Look for a bunch of new posts in the next few days, including two weddings I shot recently and part deux of Ann and Vince’s e-session in Paris. Thanks for stopping by!