New Photo Editing Station

Sorry for the extreme lack of posts lately. I've been super busy with this wedding photography giveaway and setting up my all new photo editing workstation. Every time I get a new computer it just amazes me how much stuff there is to setup. Programs to install, screens to calibrate, bookmarks to bring over, files to transfer... it seems it never ends!

I've never had a totally dedicated photo computer before but so far I'm really liking it so far. Not having all the clutter of a normal computer lets me concentrate on getting more photos pumped out, and at a higher quality. It's also right in the middle of my new client meeting room so I'll be able to play some cool screen savers on it when guests come over! Anyways here's a picture of the setup so far!

New Quad-Core Photo Editing Workstation

Wedding Photography Giveaway Article

Here is the article that ran today on the front page of the lifestyle section of the Greenville News!

"It’s hard to pinpoint holiday spirit, even for those who feel it. Josh Jones has always considered himself an aware person, volunteering through church or donating to local non-profits. But this year he wanted to do something more, something more tangible than signing a check.

So the professional photographer and owner of J. Jones Photography is giving away a wedding photography package to a couple in need. The package, requiring 40-50 hours of work by Jones and valued at $2,500, will include a one-hour engagement session, full wedding photography, a hard-cover album of photos and digital rights.

It’s all about paying it forward, says Jones, a New York native who moved his business to South Carolina earlier this year.

“There’s a lot of people who can’t afford these types of things,” Jones says. “And especially with the economy, I thought it’d be really good, kind of spreading the Christmas cheer. Instead of donating money to a charity I decided I would give this away instead.”

Full article: http://www.greenvilleonline.com/article/20091210/LIFE/912100301/1005/Spirit-of-the-season-prevails-

Featured: Greenville News Article

If your in Greenville tomorrow check out the lifestyle section of the Greenville news. They are going to run a story on our Free South Carolina Wedding Photography Giveaway, as well as include some pictures from recent weddings! Don't worry if you can't get to the local paper, I'll post the online version up on here in a few days.

Blue Ridge Mountain Sunset Panoramic

I remember taking pictures of sunsets back when I first started getting into photography. Well, I returned to my roots the other night and got this awesome panoramic shot of the blue ridge mountains during a gorgeous sunset. This tiny size doesn't even do the scene justice, but I'll post it anyways. Lots more to come soon! Enjoy!

FREE Greenville Wedding Photography Giveaway!

In the spirit of Christmas and the season of giving, I am going to step out of my own little world and hopefully touch the lives of someone else’s. I am going to give away a FREE wedding package this year.

That's right, I am giving away an entire wedding photography package to one needy couple! I figure since the economy is in the dumps this year, people are losing their jobs left and right, and times are tough for just about everyone, it would be especially helpful to give something away that can benefit someone for the rest of their life. Not everyone can afford to hire a quality wedding photographer for their wedding, but this giveaway is the perfect chance to change that.

Couples can enter for the giveaway themselves, or friends and family can nominate deserving couples. To be considered for the free wedding giveaway, please send an email to: josh@joshjonesphoto.com with the following information:

• A picture of the couple
• The story of how they met and have overcome tough times in the past
• The wedding date and location (sorry if I'm already booked that day!)
• The couple's contact information
• Why having a professional wedding photographer is important
• Why the couple deserves to have this service provided for free

This email should explain to me the essence of the people that will be considered for the giveaway. I am looking for honesty, sincerity, and hope in your emails. The giveaway is intended for needy couples all over Upstate, SC, including Greenville, Spartanburg, Clemson, and anywhere in between.

Here is a list of things we are NOT looking for:

• People that can afford to hire a quality wedding photographer but just want to save some money
• Unappreciative or ungrateful couples
• Weddings taking place more than 75 miles outside of Greenville, SC
• People that do not want a lot of candid wedding photography
• Weddings that do not have a set date in 2010
• Couples that will not allow their images, story, or experiences to be posted online

The applicants will be narrowed down to 3 finalists who will be announced no later than January 22, 2010. After this I will meet with the finalists personally and choose the winner. The winning couple will be announced no later than January 31, 2010.

Here is what they will win:

• A one hour engagement session
• Wedding Photography throughout their entire wedding day (8 Hours Max)
• DVD of all the high resolution images
• Full digital retouching of all images taken
• Travel within a 75 mile radius of Greenville, SC
• A 10x10" Hardbound premium album

This package is valued at over $2500 and will be given away absolutely FREE to the winning couple.

As a way of saying thanks, I hope this giveaway can truly benefit someone in need this holiday season. To get more information check out our Greenville Wedding Photographer Website!

BIG Announcement Coming Soon

Stay tuned...

Something big will be announced tomorrow!

Fan us on Facebook

J. Jones Photography now has a fan page on facebook! In under a day its already up to over 140 fans! You guys are awesome! Join in the fun if you haven't already!

Turkey Day 2009

I had one of the best Thanksgiving's ever this year. I had my awesome cousin and his equally sweet wife over for some slammin' turkey that Deb cooked up. If she keeps it up I think she may end up being on the food network someday. We had some awesome citrus turkey, homemade wine, sweet potato crunch, misc. veggies, cranberry sauce, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. Here are a few pictures!

Deb about to show this turkey who the boss is!



Everyone has to have inspiration


The finished product, I had to take it outside because the lighting wasn't as great inside

Cheers!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wow what an awesome year. I have a TON to be thankful so I'll just touch on the highlights.

• An awesome God that loves me
• Incredible family that supports me and encourages me
• A great job in an awesome part of the world
• A house that isn't falling apart
• Sweet red BMW (that lovingly gives speeding tickets to me)
• Lots of great friends
• A beautiful girlfriend that loves me
• Photography skills that allow me to capture important moments in peoples lives
• People that allow me to capture important moments in their lives

I'm really looking forward to Thanksgiving this year. Not only will it not be snowing, my cousin and his wife will be coming down from NY to visit. Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!

Midnight in suburbia

I don't know what it is. Every once in awhile I just get that urge to go out and take photos in the middle of the night. My neighbors must think I'm crazy running around the yard at 1am taking pictures of strange things, but oh well.

I just love the color in these images; straight off the camera, with no tweaks or weird Photoshop editing applied. Enjoy!

Featured: Image published in Rochester, NY photobook

Last year I had several images published in Capture Rochester, the premier book of Rochester, NY photography. This year, although I haven't been up there too much, I also had an image published. If your in Rochester, head down to your local bookstore and pick up a copy, it just hit shelves this past week! Here is the winning image, taken underground University of Rochester Campus.

Caesar's Head State Park | Dismal Trail & Raven Cliff Falls Trail

I just love living near Caesar's Head State Park. Not only is it home to lots of fantastic hiking trails like the Raven Cliff Falls Trail, Naturaland Trust Trail, Dismal Trail, and Gum Gap Foothills Trail, it provides for some of the most scenic landscapes I've ever seen. After a fun (really fun!) drive up 276 to the top of Caesar's Head lookout, Debra and I spent just over six hours hiking all over.

After hiking the BoogerMan Trail in Great Smoky Mountain National Park last year we decided to step it up a few miles and take the big loop (Raven Cliff Falls Trail, Naturaland Trust Trail, Dismal Trail, and Gum Gap Foothills Trail) through Caesar's Head. I love capturing all the fall colors ever year and God definitely didn't disappoint this year. Here are some of my favorites from our hike last weekend!

See what I mean about the fun on the way up!



Caesars Head Trail Map












Me crossing the river in the Naturaland Trust Trail (thanks for taking this one deb!)



Raven Cliffs












Debra hurt her ankle on the dismal trail, she's a trooper though so we kept going






The suspension bridge over Raven Cliff Falls



Doesn't get much more beautiful than that!






The gorgeous view from Caesar's Head overlook







Thanks for looking!

Josh Jones Photography | Now In HD

After converting my Greenville Wedding Photographer Website and my Photo Blog to HD, it was a natural step that I convert my main Josh Jones Photography Website to HD as well!

It took a whole lot more time to do, mainly because there are a LOT more photos divided in a lot more categories. I've concentrated on Wedding, Portrait, Automotive, Nature, and Architecture. I've finally completed it and now it's uploaded (for your viewing pleasure) in new levels of clarity for you to look at. Check it out, lots of new photos, and lots more detail. J. Jones Photography | Greenville, SC

Old Site:

New Site in HD:

Planted Tank Picture Update

I first posted up my fish/plant tank about a month ago. Well it's looking quite a bit different these days. Its stocked with a gold gourmi, 13 neon tetras, 4 ghost shrimp, and a whole ton of different plants. I got some cool looking african driftwood for it too! Check it out!

It's awesome to come home and see how much the plants grew overnight. I've had to to 2-3 trimmings already because the plants were growing out of the tank! For more info on how I set this up and a TON more photos check out my tank journal here

Greenville Automotive Photographer Photos | Civic Si Shoot

I really love taking photos of cars here in Greenville. Not only are there some really beautiful cars around (maybe the warm weather has something to do with that?), there are some stunning backdrops for the photography as well. Joel decided to hire me to do a little automotive photography with his new Civic Si. He's still in high school and got an awesome deal on this beautiful car. I'm pretty sure if his classmates aren't already jealous, they will be as soon as they see these pictures. Enjoy!