Tracy Bookman Photography

Business portraits can make that great first impression!

If you’ve never thought of having a portrait done for yourself for your business needs, check out this article here from SuccessNet Online to see why you may want to consider one. Following is an excerpt from the article.

“Humans are wired to memorize, identify, and sort the faces we encounter. Equipped to read subtle nuances of expression, we can judge a person’s emotional state-and even their motives.   That’s why portraits are so valuable: they communicate our personality, motives, and character.”

Now, if you are in the Colorado Springs area, and need photography for your business or commercial purposes, we can help you. Our business clients include:

1. Nationally-published Wood Magazine’s “America’s Best Home Workshops”
2. Ohio State University’s School of Medicine
3. Several area realtors including Barry Cavanaugh and Rob Henderson (ERA Shields) and Ron & Marsha Curry (Rusinak)

In fact, we have a great special offer for realtors right now. If you have us create your business portrait, we will do a standard home photo session for one of your listings for only $25!

Thanks for reading.

-Tracy
The Colorado Springs Photographer

For our current clients, we have a brand new Rewards Program.

If you have friends, family, or co-workers who have expressed to you how much they like the photography we have created for you, we would like to give you a reward for referring those people to us.

For every new client you refer to us, who schedules a session with us, we will send you a card entitling you to a free 8×10 or smaller size enlargement. This is worth up to $75 for you, just for telling your friends about us.

You can collect and use as many of these Rewards cards as you can. Would we cringe if we saw someone come to us wanting to redeem 10 or 12 cards? No way!

We hope that those of you who have loved what we have created for you will feel the appreciation we have for you and your business, and your referrals by this. Our current clients truly are our lifeblood, and we hope that we have always treated you with respect, courtesy, and tremendous value!

Thanks for reading!

-Tracy
The Colorado Springs Photographer

Here are some guidelines on how the cards may be used.

• Your Rewards cards may be redeemed for ONE 8×10 or smaller enlargement
• Your Rewards cards may be used on new sessions only
• Your Rewards cards expire one year from the postmarked date from the Postal Service
• Clients who refer wedding customers to us will receive TWO Rewards cards for those referrals
• The cards have no cash value
• Minimum purchase may apply from the session in which the Rewards cards are redeemed

Again, this is not a post about photography, but honestly, we’ve got a growing colony of kefir culture that we would like to give to some of you…

You’ve probably heard about kefir, but may not be sure what it is. Kefir is a cultured or fermented milk drink. It’s kind of like yogurt, but not as thick. If you’ve had plain yogurt, you’ll know what to expect from the taste of kefir. If you don’t like the taste of plain yogurt, don’t be afraid to try kefir. You can use it in other food, and there are lots of benefits of doing so, far more than yogurt, and it’s free to get started making kefir.

How do you make it?

You need to start with an active kefir culture. These are generally housed in a starter grain mixture. When you introduce kefir grains to milk, they immediately go to work colonizing it. After only 24 hours, you should have a thick, slightly sour-tasting, kind of effervescent drink. You can drink this on its own, or use it to make other things. I use it exclusively to make breakfast shakes.

Again, the benefit of kefir is that it is an source of abundant beneficial bacteria. We have heard recently that illnesses and diseases could be circumvented if the gut was healthy since up to 80% of your immune system resides there.

If you would like to give kefir a try, we have kefir grains we will gladly give you to get you started.

Now, this post isn’t so much about photography, but I thought I’d let you know a little bit more about who we are. We’re very much into using natural means to preserve our health, and to that end we have discovered a couple of drinks which we enjoy using. The best part about these drinks is that to get started on them is completely free!

Many of you know that we brew a tea called Kombucha. Well, the somewhat disgusting organism in the photo to the left is a Kombucha mushroom, which I got from one of our clients - a local chiropractor. My friend Tim, whose daughter also makes Kombucha, jokingly calls this stuff Mushroom Moonshine.

What, exactly is a Kombucha mushroom? I’m not really sure. But, I know that it produces a drink that is really becoming the rage right now. I have found at least 4 other families that have Kombucha brewing in some dark recess in their homes presently.

Here’s the concept: You make a batch of caffeinated green or black tea - about 1/2 gallon to one gallon - and add a bunch of sugar while it’s boiling. Then, you remove it from the heat and let it cool sufficiently and then add it to your jar with this mushroom in it. Then, leave it in a dark, warm place for 4 to 10 days before drinking it. The yeasts which are naturally present and which are in the mushroom, colonize the tea and eat the sugars, fermenting the whole drink. The result is a slightly fizzy, tangy drink that’s full of beneficial probiotics and enzymes.

What does it taste like?

I think it tastes kind of like Ginger Ale mixed with apple juice with, depending on how long it ages, a hint of apple cider vinegar.

As for it being “moonshine,” at its strongest, it will only contain .5 - 1% alcohol. That’s considerably less than the amount in pure vanilla.

INTERESTED IN STARTING A BATCH OF YOUR OWN?

The great thing about this mushroom is that you never need to buy one. Once you begin making the tea, the mushroom reproduces itself very rapidly, by growing new layers, called scobies. In no time, you have many more layers on your mushroom which you can simply peel off and start a new batch.

We have 3 batches going right now, and have plenty of starter scobies for anyone who wants to give it a try. Just let us know if you want one and we’ll give you what you need to get going.

Thanks for reading.

-Tracy
The Colorado Springs Photographer