Breaking News! New Heidi's owner wants my photos back up, displayed at two additional eateries

This morning while walking into the Denver Post building downtown, a security guard stopped me in my tracks when she told me this: "The new owner of the Heidi's Deli said she loved your photos and wants them back up ASAP! She wants to meet you and talk to you about your work right now."

I was so shocked you could have knocked me over with a feather. But the news only gets better. Rosa, who not only now owns the downtown Heidi's location, but two others in the metro area, wants me to hang up my photos in ALL THREE LOCATIONS!

The first thing Rosa said she noticed yesterday when she took over business at the downtown deli was my photos missing from the walls. When the previous owners told me they were leaving (all of the workers walked out yesterday), I was told it would be prudent if I took my photo display down as well because they weren't sure if the space would be maintained as a deli or permanently closed. But Rosa said the deli will remain and she thought the photos gave the deli "extra life, color and beauty."

"It's why I brought flowers in today to brighten everything up! My husband was asking everybody before they left who the photographer was who had taken all the photos so he could convince them to put them back up again!"

Rosa explained her love of photography to me, adding that her father was a photographer for 30 years before he passed away. She misses having photography in her life. Plus, the other stores she owns in Brighton and Broomfield, have even more display space and are in desperate need of livening up.

Rosa told me I could hang up whatever I wanted, including portraits and landscapes, to help gain more exposure for my business! That's a good thing too, since I don't have very many landscapes and my business specializes in portraiture! She wants to put a larger advertisement in front of each store letting people know the art is available for sale, as well as information and details about each shot. And she wants to do it all for free -- meaning no commission fees and I get 100 percent of the profits.

This is an amazing opportunity! I could do different monthy displays to hold customer interest and ask my photography colleagues to showcase some of their work too! I can't wait to put up new images in the downtown Denver Heidi's since those clients have probably gotten tired of seeing the same thing since last August.

What a great day and a great blessing for Picture Your World Photography.

An Aside: Heidi's Deli photo display comes down

Today, I'm mourning the imminent loss of friendship gained at a Heidi's Deli where several of my photos have been on display since August.



A lot of changes have taken place at the deli, and not all of them happy ones. Marty, the store owner, is fighting cancer for the second time. Marty requested I hang landscape photos in the deli to get exposure for my business and add life to the shop. Oddly enough though, the only sales I made was of my top portrait seller, "Teri's Rose." If you remember, a Heidi's crew member bought a print as a present for her husband who couldn't stop drooling over it every time he came into shop. Then, the editor of the Denver Post surprised me when he purchased a framed print as well and hung it up in his office in the newsroom. When Marty became ill, I donated one of my framed images to a charitable event to help raise money for Marty and his family. Sadly, the Heidi's deli is being sold to new owners, and new managers will be taking over on Friday.



I can't thank Marty enough for his kindness and faith in my abilities. He took a big risk to display my work, even to the extent of possibly angering his higher ups. Over the months, I noticed that many other artists asked Marty to allow them to do the same (and I even tried to hang up several photos shot by friends and members of my Mile High DPS social group!) but Marty always shied away from those offers, saying that he was doing this for me and my business. The experience and confidence gained is immeasurable. Hearing customers comment about my photos, watching all of my business cards disappear, getting accolades from my colleagues at the Denver Post and just having my work out there for people to see and know about was fabulous! Many of the deli staff are going to be leaving on Friday, and I'm so sad to see them go. They've become like family too me, constantly offering support and encouragement.



I pray that Marty and his family are strengthened during this time of need and that the staff will find work and new direction. Thank you to all of you for what you've given to me!

Get Out There: My Images on Display at a Local Deli

Several of my images are finally on display and available for sale at a Heidi's Deli in downtown Denver! Store owner Marty says he's already had people asking questions about the images and the photographer (I still can't believe that's ME they are asking about!) and picking up my business cards at the register before they leave the deli. Even if I don't sell a single image, the exposure alone could be infinitely beneficial for my burgeoning business. Potential customers might not need my services now, but my business card and postcards will hopefully help them remember me when they do need a photographer.

Many people are wondering how often Marty will display local artists work, too. I don't think he expected to get that kind of a reaction, and he might even consider having a permanent display of some kind always running in the deli. A few of my photography buddies are meeting me for lunch at the deli tomorrow, and I advised all of them to bring their business cards so Marty could have a look at their photos too. All of my friends are extremely talented and much better at landscape photography than I am, since I specialize in people and events. Marty is bound to love their work, too!

It was difficult, as always, trying to figure out how to price my photos. So I just took into account how much it cost for printing the image, and framing and matting it -- then doubled the price. They range from $75 to $125 for images that have already proven to be hot sellers. I had no idea that frames cost so much, ranging from $25 to more than $50 for real wood, and archival mats can run you another $6 to $10 on top of that. No wonder art is so expensive!

If you have a local eatery, coffee shop or bar you frequent, ask the owner if they might be willing to display some of your work. They just might say "Yes!" like Marty did for me. I printed out the waterfall image from Rifle as my "thank you gift" to Marty, but turns out he has been eyeing another shot instead....the close-up of the dandelion clock above. I will just have to give both of them to him!

Get the Job Done: Photos On Display in Denver Deli

Before the end of the week, at least half a dozen of my images will be on display and available for purchase at the Heidi's Deli in downtown Denver! The wedding kept me pretty busy. But as soon as it was over, I turned my attention back to getting some images up before the Democratic National Convention converges in Denver at the end of August. Read this announcement post and the follow-up post as well to catch up on how I came about this very cool way to get exposure for my fledgling business.



Five of my photos are already hanging up, all in black frames and white matting. I've included some of the ones I will be hanging in the shop in this blog. My buddies who work at the store said people have already been gathering around the images and asking questions about them. I will have prices and my business cards up as well as information about the other services I provide, since deli owner Marty requested primarily landscapes and Denver cityscape images.

The idea is this: With so many people coming to town for the DNC, Marty thinks people will be looking for Denver/Colorado souvenirs to take home with them. So Marty specifically asked for tourist oriented shots of the city and mountain area. But I will be featuring one portrait, "Teri's Rose" since Marty loves that shot and thinks it will also let people know that I take portraits and studio shots.



Oddly enough, I couldn't get Marty to agree to take a commission from any of these sales. But I'm going to give him his favorite image of the triple waterfalls from Rifle Falls State Park as a gift and thank you for allowing me this opportunity to show my work. Shhh! Don't tell him! It's a secret!

Get Out There: Almost Ready to Display My Photos At Heidi's Deli

The owner of a Heidi's Brooklyn Deli in downtown Denver has given his final blessing for me to hang 8 to 10 of my images in his restaurant, since we now know that I can do so without destroying his store walls. Marty was concerned about nail holes, plaster and paint damage. So he asked if I could try using those popular 3M™ Command™ Adhesive Products which guarantee an easy, clean removal.



To test this plan, I hung up one of my 11x14 images in a glass frame with a mat and wire at home. The first time, I only used one large hook, and I didn't give the adhesive the full hour it needed to adhere firmly to the wall. So of course the picture and the mount slid down the wall and hit the carpeted floor with a sickening thud. Once I made sure nothing was broken, I tried it again, this time using two large hooks and waiting at least an hour, if not longer, for the adhesive strip to stick before hanging the picture. This time it worked, and it was very easy to slide the hook cover up, grab the tab and stretch the adhesive off the wall without removing the paint or plaster. I bought about 16 of those tabs and tested the plan again hanging up one image at Heidi's.

So far so good! The image hasn't taken a swan dive, yet. And I think the 11x14 size is large enough for a potential customer to buy the image right off the wall that same day. Marty has agreed to accept payment from customers. I would love to work out some kind of agreement where he could get some profit from a sale too, but he keeps saying he doesn't want payment. Maybe I could just have all of my friends have lunch at the Heidi's in honor of the showing so he can make some extra sales that way.