Josh Barry Photography’s Blog

…to the men and women in our armed forces. They risk their lives every day. They leave their families behind to do what is necessary to keep our enemies back on their heels.

I used to travel a lot and found myself in airports frequently for about a year straight. I would always see men and women coming home from overseas dressed in their uniform. I always felt like people in their airport should be going up to them and thanking them for their efforts, their risks and their sacrifices. I wanted to walk up to each and every one of them and shake their hand. I felt they deserved recognition rather than demoralizing banter from non supportive individuals who aren't truly appreciative of their efforts.

I thought about what I COULD do to show appreciation. Send stuff in care packages? Adopt a soldier? All good ideas. However, I remember being away from home and really taking comfort in the photos I had to help remind me of home. I think these men and women deserve the same thing. Something professional and perfect. Something better than the chain studios who only treat you like cattle with checkbook.

If you are a service member and would like a photo session with your family please keep reading. Whether you are single and would like a photo session with your parents or you have a family of your own and want the session to be with your children and your husband or wife. As long as one of you in the immediate family (son, daughter, father, mother, husband, or wife) is an ACTIVE service member this offer applies to you.

You have earned a free in-studio or on-location ($200 value) family photo session. Also included with your free session is a free no strings attached $100 reprint credit for you to use towards any reprints.

Call 717-541-0681 to book your session. I am not sure I can create family portraits for every family that calls due to filling up on my bookings. I may decide to end it once I get too many requests that I cannot handle. So please book sooner than later to ensure you have something special and unique to take back overseas with you on your next deployment.

I am based out of Harrisburg, Pa and will go on location to most of my surrounding areas. If you are reading this and you are in Maryland (which is an area I cover) I welcome you to come up to my studio for your family session. Call 888-517-6374 if you are out of state.

*****Offer limited to active personnel only. Must have valid military ID present on day of session. Session only good for service members and their immediate family. Soldier must be present and in the photos. Session will be done in a family style only, sorry no substitutions. Cannot be combined with any other offer. No hidden fees or charges. This is the real deal.*****

P.S. I would also like it if you would take a photo or two with me in it =)

What do you get when you mix lots of sun and forgetting to put sunscreen on your back?

LOTS OF COLD SHOWERS!!!!!!!!

Other than that major mistake my family and I had a great time! The first couple of days were rough because I injured the muscles in my back the week before but after doing some exercises to strengthen the muscles I was back to about 90%. Good enough to do some activities like going to the beach, 4 wheeling, jet-skis and a charter boat fishing trip.

The weather was a little rainy but when it rained it only rained for less than an hour which was good. LOTS OF PUDDLES TO DRIVE THROUGH!! Yippee!!!! ASk anyone who knows me. If I see a puddle while driving you'll usually hear VROOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM SWOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!! AFter the rain there were planty of puddles to go around especially in the 4 wheel drive access area behind the beach up in Corova.

I highly recommend going up to the 4 wheel drive access area because you can take your SUV or truck right on the beach and park where ever you like and just get out and set up your beach stuff. Beats walking and carrying everything to the beach from the parking areas. But be careful, if you get stuck it'll cost you $125 to get towed out. There is a guy who drives up and down the beach all day looking for people who are stuck. I bet he makes 1500 to 2000 smackaroonies a day doing that because right in front of us there were about 4 or 5 people who got stuck.

Make sure you have a good 4 wheel drive vehicle and if you do get stuck don't use plastic shovels to dig yourself out like I saw this one group of people doing.

We also went crabbing on the sound between the outer banks and the mainland. I was quickly reminded why I like snow crab and king crag much better. Eating those small blue crab are a lot of work for very little meat. Amanda and I abandoned our cooked and uneaten crab and went straight to the nearest crabhouse for an all you can eat snow-crab leg extravaganza. Plate after plate they would bring them out to do. Hot and full of good crab meat. Yum!!!

Below are some photographs that were taken while on vacation. Enjoy!!!

UPDATE FOR MY CLIENTS:

I am hitting the ground running and have loads of editing to do so I am tackling everything with full force.

Lipka, Ehrlich, Brody, Katz, Vanderau, Heiserman, Turkheimer, Kandel Smoliga. If any of those names match yours than that means you are all at the front of my mind and am feverishly YET CAREFULLY working on your portraits so don't anyone worry that good ole Josh got amnesia due to too much sun. The sun may burn my back but not my brain =). That was the beer's job LOL.

Thanks for reading and if anyone has any questions please call me. 888-517-6374 or e-mail me at Josh@JoshBarry.Com

After 12 days of running in the woods she was finally spotted and tracked down.

The same people that spotted her about 10 days ago are the same ones that caught her. I had put Penny's kennel in their back yard after they saw her the first time hoping she would be smart enough to stay around houses and water since there is a big pond and plenty of fresh water running in streams around that neighborhood. My theory proved right thankfully.

There is a side story to this though which is equally impressive. The nice people who saw Penny the first time, Cindy Lashinsky and Ben Fiereer saw her again yesterday. Ben said he spotted her way up on the hill moving around and decided (with some help from Cindy) to go running after her up the hill and through the woods.

Ben gave chase and Penny ran from him but eventually after realizing that Ben wasn't a threat AND seeing their yellow lab nearby decided to turn aruond and headed right for their dog.

They were so nice guys. Really. I came to see penny and they had already removed several ticks from Penny and gave me the rundown of all the things I'll need to do to get her healthy again and up to speed health-wise. She handed me shampoo, phone numbers for vets, a tick removing kit (which I am still using ) and a new collar for Penny. I think Cindy said she is an animal trainer so her knowledge on veterinary medicine seemed to be really extensive.

It was meant to be. They took such good care of her in such a short amount of time. I'm glad they found her.

Here is Penny with her welcome home present after her much needed bath.

My good friend Rob Oresteen will be in the Venice/Sarasota FL area June 10th - 21st and then again towards the 25th - 30th to do beach photography. He’ll be photographing models, couples and a couple of family sessions on Englewood Beach, Sharkey’s Pier, & downtown Venice.

If you have a business in Sarasota/Venice area and want to take advantage of a new head shot at a good price, be sure to email or call him to set it up. Everything is done on location - all we need is 15 minutes and a nice smile!

For more information about Rob or to schedule a session please visit http://rmo-photography.com/blog/venice-sarasota-family-beach-photography

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Ok I know this is supposed to be a "PHOTOGRAPHY BLOG" buuuuuuuuuuuuuut I feel I need to make mention of another missing animal in our neighborhood. Nadia is her name and her owner is Scott Sears.SSears05@hotmail.com is his e-mail. He also lives in the Blue Meadows Farm area.

Nadia's disappearance is also mysterious.

Below is a photograph Scott sent to me so I can post it on my blog.

#############PENNY UPDATE############
Penny was seen the night before last in the area of HIdden Valley Lane off of Fishing Creek Valley Road. If anyone lives in that area please keep your eyes peeled.

Yup…Today I am on a rant. Sorry if I break character for a moment but get this:

Yesterday I left to go to an engagement session down in Frederick Maryland around 1:15. I locked Penny (My Dog) i nher kennel in the basement when I left. There is a sliding glass door to enter my basement but it was locked. I am 150% sure of that because earlier I tried to enter the house through that door but couldn't because it was locked, so I went around front instead. No one was home other than myself when I left at 1:15.

My wife got home at 3:15. When she went downstairs she saw the kennel was open and the sliding glass door was wide open. Penny was no where in sight.

Penny is not the type of dog to run away either assuming that Penny opened her kennel by herself and the sliding glass door as well (CHYEAH RIGHT). When she is outside without a leash she won't go further than 50 yards from the house and will come back to the front door with-in 15 minutes of being outside.

Something is odd about this whole thing. All of my photography equipment was upstairs so there were 1k's of dollars worth of equipment to just take and the ONLY thing missing was my dog. She is a MUT so she has no value other than sentimental value to me.

This was taken by someone close to me. Either in proximity or relation. This stinks through and through.

There were contractors out back and they didn't see anything or anyone leaving through the back basement door.

Just dropping a notice to anyone who might be thinking of using me for their Wedding or Bar/Bat Mitzvah.

I will be in the area meeting with some new friends/clients on Friday of this week. I will have some time slots open to meet with you and to get to know each other. Please e-mail (josh@joshbarry.com) or call me toll free at 888-517-5374 by Thursday evening to set up your time.

If you are reading this and have missed this opportunity please call to find out when the next time I will be down in the Maryland area.

Grins,

Josh Barry

Dear Josh,

We want to thank you for the wonderful Bat Mitzvah pictures and album you put together for us. The pictures of Gabrielle and the entire family are nothing short of beautiful! We appreciated your professionalism and enthusiasm during the photo session at the synagogue. You made everyone feel very comfortable.
We would highly recommend your services and look forward to working with you again in the future.

Sincerely,

Linda & Rick Weiner

Below is a story. Not just a story, a horror story of someone who threw away a 30 year reputation in photography. Speaking without boundaries I hope someone cuts my hands off if I ever do anything this stupid. Photographer horror stories are usually the type thing that centers around the more common "I paid the photographer, he came and took the photos and then I never heard from him again and it's been 2 years!"

The story below sickens me. Seriously. I never say anything about other photographers. Any of my clients know this. It is not anywhere near professional. But I would be doing a disservice to my clients if I didn't share this.

Oy vey! Bat mitzvah photographer accused of stealing guest's purse

By REGINA MEDINA
Philadelphia Daily News

medinar@phillynews.com 215-854-5985
Sometime between the DJ playing "Hava Nagila" and "Last Dance" at a recent bat mitzvah party, the professional photographer allegedly stopped snapping pictures and got sticky fingers.

Steve Raab, 60, of Huntingdon Valley, allegedly stole a guest's black felt purse and apparently used a credit card it contained to pay for gas and dog food, Montgomery County authorities say.

Now, county prosecutors want to know if Raab, who specializes in weddings, bar/bat mitzvahs and other festivities, has stolen other items while at work.

So far, there are no indications that Raab has stolen before, said Assistant District Attorney Steven Latzer.

Raab and his wife, Susan, 63, were arrested Friday and charged with theft, criminal conspiracy and other charges. The couple, who have run Creative Photography and Video for more than 30 years in Newtown, Bucks County, and in Northeast Philadelphia, are out of jail on bail until a March 26 preliminary hearing.

"It's obviously distressing," Latzer said. "You place your trust in them [photographers], you have a good time. You don't consider the fact that the photographer is going into your things and stealing them.

"In situations such as this, not only did he steal a purse, but he also stole the trust of the people that hired him," he said.

Steve Raab was hired to videotape and snap photos of a bat mitzvah at the Philmont Country Club in Lower Moreland Feb. 2, according to the affidavit of probable cause.

The purse belonging to an out-of-town guest went MIA between midnight and 1 a.m. on Feb. 3, the police criminal complaint said.

The purse reportedly contained an American Express credit card, an iPhone, makeup and other items.

The victim canceled the card, but not before the Raabs used it to purchase $60 in gasoline at a Philly Amoco BP and for a large bag of dog food, valued at $66.32, on the same day, according to the complaint.

Susan Raab was not at the party.

The couple allegedly attempted to buy a global-positioning system and a man's shirt at a Wal-Mart in the Northeast, but the transaction was declined. The Raabs allegedly tried once again - and failed - to get the GPS at a Target store in the Northeast. The transactions at Target and Wal-Mart were recorded on surveillance video.

The investigation led cops to Raab's studio at 120 S. State St. in Newtown, where Lower Moreland Township Detective Rick Small showed the surveillance photos to Raab. The photographer said he had found the credit card "laying in the parking lot" outside the Philmont Country Club, according to the police complaint.

When Small asked where the card was, "Raab, without hesitation, pulled the card from a left jacket pocket that he was wearing and gave it" to the detective, according to the complaint.

Eventually, the couple hired a lawyer who helped facilitate the return of the black purse including all missing items, prosecutors said.

Small asks anyone who believes he or she was the victim of a theft at a wedding, bar/bat mitzvah or other private party at which Raab was the photographer to call him at 215-947-3132, extension 223. *

Here is the link to the original story: http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/16017157.html

harrisburg photographer
maryland photographer

Dear friends of Josh Barry Photography,

Recently the regular issue of the Baltimore Jewish Times released another Simcha edition featuring articles, ads, tips, how-to’s and guides concerning planning and source-finding for Weddings and Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. I had the pleasure and honor of being interviewed and featured in their article “Camera Ready”.

In the article are some very interesting and IMPORTANT tips on choosing your photographer. Although this is largely geared towards the wedding couple searching for a photographer they can easily be applied to Bar/Bat Mitzvahs as well. Click here to read Page 1 and here for page 2 of the article. You will need a PDF viewer to read these. Most computers have them already.

The album pages featured throughout the article are from a recent Wedding client, Patty Hans. Below is a testimonial received from her about her wedding.

“My husband and I used Josh Barry Photography for our wedding in September 2007. He is an outstanding photographer. He not only takes beautiful pictures using a variety of techniques, his approach to photography is very lively and fun while still very professional. He has the creativity and intuition to see something and to envision using it as a prop in his picture and is very comfortable doing so. He makes everyone feel comfortable and relaxed while he is taking pictures. Josh takes beautifully posed pictures as well as pictures where he is capturing the moment. He is able to catch moments so subtly that the subject isn’t even aware of the fact that he’s photographing them at that moment. As a bride, Josh made me feel special while ensuring that I was comfortable and relaxed. He makes every one of the guests feel comfortable too. Our wedding guests all commented on how great the photographer was and how much fun he was. Josh got fantastic shots without being intrusive. The pictures Josh took for us are absolutely beautiful and everyone that has seen them were equally impressed. I highly recommend using Josh Barry Photography for any of your photography needs. He is extremely talented and creative, very personable and also very accommodating. Again, we highly recommend Josh!

Patty & Jim Hollister
Parkville, MD”

So there I was just minding my own business when my wife decided that I was going to do a photo session with her and her friend for fun.

I, being the type of photographer that I am, decided that I needed time to plan better and think up creative things to do.

My wife, being the motivational, positive minded individual that she is, said "You'll be fine, your creative enough. You'll think of something!"

Well we all ended up having a four hour photo session that was a lot of fun!

As well as they turned out I am offering this fun unique style to my bag of tricks. If you are interested I have designed unique packages for just these types of sessions. Call me at 888-517-6374 to set up your time to come in. A great idea for valentines day or a special gift for your husband's birthday…or even just because

More to come!!