Dates:

Oahu: June 4 – July 7

Maui: July 9-13

Details:

tracyalchayeb.com only has space for just a few more photo sessions. I would LOVE for one of those sessions to be YOU.

Sessions are booked FIRST COME, FIRST SERVED! In fairness to all, no sessions will be held on good faith. A 50% non refundable retainer is required to reserve your space.

Shutterstock (become a Shutterstock’s contributor by signing up on this page) has been the most popular microstock agency by photographers for about ten years, because:

  • It was selling more than its competitors
  • it paid producers an honest share of royalties

I said “for about ten years”, despite the fact that microstock has been in business since the early 2000s.

Throughout the first period, in fact, the best agency for contributors was Istockphoto which helped us earn good money and had a fair royalty policy.

At a certain point, however, more or less in 2011-2012, Istockphoto, as happens to many digital companies, made two mistakes:

  • raising prices too much
  • creating an unfair royalty structure

Email me at aloha{at}natalienortonblog{dot}com (or just fill out the contact form above) for pricing/package information and to reserve your date!

Can’t wait to make magic together in June/July . . . because this should be YOU!

Winner is Jana Neser!
Congratulations, Jana!

That’s right! I’m headed to Hawaii! And what better way to celebrate than a giveaway from the AMAZING Etsy shop, Everything’s Jake!? (Yes, I will be available for a limited number of photo sessions; information available at the bottom of this post.)

Enter to win this Retro Hawaii Map (27×19)! I bought one for Richie for Valentine’s day and it’s even better in person. Slap a frame around it and you’ll die. LOVE.

PS. My family’s Hawaii roots run deep: Here‘s what I gave my mother in law for her birthday, and here‘s what I gave my sister in law for hers. I guess you could say I’m a BIG fan.

To Enter:

1. Leave a comment below, any comment will do.
2. Like this post on Facebook (using the button on the bottom of this post) and then COMMENT to that effect, and you’re entered again!
3. Tweet or Facebook the link to this post with the following text “Enter to win a retro Hawaiian map from Natalie Norton and Everything’s Jake.” And BAM, you’re entered again (be sure to come back and comment again, so I know you’ve posted).
4. Be awesome.
5. Share some aloha today!!!

Winner will be announced Friday, April 20th (on this post, so be sure to scroll down to see if you won)!  Good luck!

Hawaii Session Information:

Like I mentioned! I’m coming to Hawaii!!

June 4-July 17th! I’ll be available for A VERY LIMITED NUMBER of sessions on Maui the second week of July and Oahu the rest of the trip. Again, only very limited availability so I can snuggle up my babies (and my besties) and soak up some sun (and some RAIN). Contact me for session information. First come, first served.

Alooooooooha!

Will you regret it when you’re 80?

My husband, Richie, is a thousand times smarter than I am. When I’m up against a big decision and go to him seeking advice, he always turns things right back around on my own sense of intuition. He maintains that NO ONE knows what’s best for me better than I do. (PS. The same is true of each of you).  “Natalie, will you regret it when you’re 80?” he asks (with a wickedly obnoxious little grin).

Allow me to explain.

I recently found myself on a chartered boat in the middle of the Carribbean Sea. Knowing I might never be in this place again, knowing that this opportunity was likely once in a lifetime for me, knowing that were I NOT to jump, I WOULD look back and regret it when I was 80, I stood up, and I dove in.

Are you on the edge of the boat? Is opportunity knocking but you can’t seem to bring yourself to jump? Afraid the water’s cold? Afraid of what might be lurking beneath the surface? Afraid you might drown?!

I get it.

Jump anyway. Or. . .  be prepared to regret it when you’re 80.

I love the opportunity to look into people’s lives and provide heartfelt feedback and loving direction. I don’t have all the answers—not even close—but as I respond to your questions, I get the tremendous blessing of watching you soar, not to mention the treasured gift of self reflection and the beautiful byproduct of personal development. Because of this, I’m genuinely falling in love with Formspring. Here’s an example from today’s feed that illustrates this fear to JUMP. (Nope, you’re not alone. Not by a long shot.)

Question:

Ok, so WHY am I scared of success? Why am I nervous to be as awesome as I know I can be??? Why do people sabatoge amazing opportunities?? I have the potential to be great. Things are all lined up for awesomeness… I’m just afraid to take that step.

My response:

Not knowing your specific goals or challenges, I think it’s best for me to simply answer from my realm of experience.

I personally get really afraid of success because I know the amount of work it’s going to require. I crave simplicity, I crave clarity, I crave a calm, uneventful life. . . and I KNOW that the kind of success that is available to me (and to each of us) requires a lot of STINKING.HARD.WORK. Stretching, growing, risking: all things that success requires, come along with a fair amount of chaos, unpredictability, and confusion. It’s hard for me emotionally to knowingly opt in to all that is required for big change— big success.

I also fear failure. I really fear getting lazy and not being willing to consistently put in the hard work required to make big things happen in my life. It is possible to do and become ANYTHING. Even as a mother, I can have balance and success between my work and family life, but it takes A LOT of commitment, A LOT of consistency, and A.LOT.OF.EFFORT. The reality of everything can be vastly overwhelming to me (often to the point of damming me up completely).

A good way I’ve found to combat these feelings is to say to myself: “Will I regret it when I’m 80?” This material is 100% Richie’s. He’s so much smarter than I am. If I look at my goals and I say, “When I’m 80, looking back on my life, will I regret not putting in the hard work to achieve a, b or c?” If the answer is “yes” then I put on my hard hat and I get to work, no matter the cost. If the answer is “no,” then I reevaluate my goals.

The reality is, you have EVERYTHING you need to be successful. You have every resource, every ounce of strength, every minute of time you need. Each of us has EVERYTHING we need—right in this very moment. I really do believe that. We just have to have the complete confidence that we are on the right path. Once you’re sure, take courage, put on your hard hat, and have faith in yourself. You’re SO much greater, SO much more capable than you know!

Now, let me ask YOU:

Will YOU regret it when you’re 80?

Will you regret not following through on that nagging hunch? Will you regret not getting in touch with your authentic self? Will you regret not risking it all to go for that amazing dream? Will you regret spending your life in a job that doesn’t play to your unique strengths (a job you hate)? Will you regret not fighting hard for the success of the most important relationships in your life? Will you regret not giving your all to be genuinely HAPPY?

Will you regret not embracing your fears and jumping anyway?

JUMP! Your life is waiting.

click here to open post Jan 29, 2012 | posted in on the agenda | 2 comments

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By the time you see this beautiful image from Michael and Jessica’s Scottsdale engagement session, I’ll be on a plane to the Dominican Republic.

Beautiful wedding, sun, sand, beach and . . .  what’s looking like RAIN, here I come.

Every now and then you just need to push pause and recharge. Hand me the remote; I’m totally ready.

xo,

Me

PS- My plan is to keep blogging, posting on Instagram (NatalieNorton-FIND ME!) and etc. We’ll see what the internet connection is like (and just how sunny it turns out to be). No promises.