My frustrations with the blogging world

I've recently got my blogging mojo back and have been posting fairly regularly over the last few months. However, the general blogging world seems to be much more difficult to crack than it used to be when I first started out a few years ago.

Although I never write particularly personal posts as I don't have the confidence to publish and share them, I thought I'd go halfway there by sharing some of my blogging frustrations. Apologies in advance for the self-indulgent post, but I'm sure I won't be alone in some of these thoughts!

1. When you spend hours on a post and no one reads it

I know blogging isn't supposed to be about the numbers, but... let's be honest, the numbers are important. I blog as a way of keeping a digital scrapbook of what I've been up to and to focus on those things which interest me most, and I do obviously like it when lots of people read my posts. Who doesn't? I'm always keen to gather more views on posts I've spent a significant amount of time on just to see some return on my investment, but these are often the ones with the most disappointing take-up. For example, I literally spent hours on my recent Disney A-Z posts (here and here) and had low views for both even though people who have written similar posts have had lots of interest. It's difficult not to take it personally when you write at length about something you find interesting and are passionate about and no one takes a look!



2. When you try to take part in blogger chats but can't penetrate the clique 

This is something I've always struggled with, both in the blogging world and in real life. I've never been any good at becoming part of the 'clique' in my everyday life and it seems that it's no different when it comes to online interaction. How does one become part of that esteemed blogging circle? Everyone already seems to know each other and there often isn't room for someone who sits on the sidelines and isn't part of the 'in' crowd. I know engagement is the key to growing your following, but it's discouraging when you do try to engage and don't get acknowledged.

I gave up on the #lbloggers chats a long time ago for this very reason. I was hoping the more recent #disneybloggerschat would be different as the topic is right up my street and it's a bit smaller and more contained than the #lbloggers chat. Unfortunately not... it's exactly the same. When you feel as if you're standing on your tiptoes knocking on the window and no one's taking any notice of you, it gets a bit tiring and it's just easier not to take part. I used to contemplate attending a blogger meet-up but the thought of the same thing happening in real life where I can't escape or ignore it strikes fear into my very core!



3. When you can't get good lighting for your photos

This is a more light-hearted gripe, but how irritating is it when you've got lots of blog posts lined up which require a decent amount of photography and the weather is dull and grey for two weeks? Living in Wales, this is a frequent annoyance! There's only so much editing you can do to pretend you've had the perfect lighting, and I don't like using heavily edited photos on my blog.



4. When you proofread all your posts within an inch of their life and yet the badly written ones are still more popular

Those of you who know me in real life will be painfully aware that I'm a stickler for accuracy. I constantly and compulsively proofread everything from signage to labels to menus to my favourite books.. It goes without saying that I proofread all my blog posts dozens of times as they form an important part of my personal online 'brand', and I don't want any inaccuracies associated with anything I've written. However, I frequently read posts from all corners of the blogging world which are badly written and have been read and commented on tens of times. Doesn't good writing count for anything any more? I realise I sound as if I'm throwing my toys out of my pram here but it's something I feel very strongly about!



So... is there anything I can do about it? I could certainly improve on reading and commenting on other people's blogs which is something I'm determined to do more of. I read lots of blogs but hardly ever comment, and I'm also quite forgetful when it comes to replying to the few comments I get on my own blog. I also need to get better at reading through my Bloglovin feed - I often click on blog posts promoted on Twitter but haven't been very good at actively seeking out the posts from my favourite blogs in recent years. However, part of me feels that no amount of interaction will help with some of the issues above as it's just the way things are.

Does anyone else feel the same? Do you have any blogging gripes you'd like to share? Let me know!

As an aside... wouldn't it be ironic if this post wasn't well read?!

Reminiscing about our honeymoon...

I always take part in the Instagram 'Throwback Thursday' hashtag as I love looking through old photographs. Last Thursday, I used a photo from our honeymoon which I hadn't shared on Instagram yet. This led to me looking nostalgically through all my honeymoon albums to remind myself what an amazing holiday it was.

As I take photographs with my digital camera when I'm on holiday rather than with my phone, I realised that there were loads of honeymoon photos I hadn't put on Instagram yet. I consequently decided to spend the bank holiday weekend reminiscing about our three beautiful honeymoon locations (Rome, Malcesine and Venice) through sharing new photographs.

I posted nine photos from each location on Instagram as I liked the symmetry of it... I'm a bit pedantic like that. Here's what the end result looked like:

Rome

Malcesine

Venice 

Have you been to any of these locations? Or have you written any posts about your Instagram activities? Please leave your links below if so, I love seeing other people's photographs! 

Who doesn't love a good sunset?

I've mentioned in a previous blog post that I live a two minute walk away from Cosmeston Country Park. I definitely haven't made the most of its close proximity yet so I decided to go for an evening walk a few weeks ago to see the sun setting over the lake.

I took about 30 photographs in half an hour so I thought I'd share a few of my favourites here. You'll already have seen some of these if you follow me on Instagram, but I think they're worth seeing twice. I might be biased of course, but we'll pretend that they actually are worth seeing twice.

Although I was only out for half an hour, the sun was in a very different position when I left to where it was when I arrived. This gave me the opportunity to take lots of different photographs of the varying sky (and to hide from lots of swans).

Enjoy!

Have you ever been to Cosmeston? Or do you have any sunset photos to share? Let me know! 

Favourite wedding suppliers #4 - Shelley Daniel Wedding and Portrait Photography

Whenever anyone visits our house for the first time, they get given something special to look at as soon as they've taken off their coat and sat down... our beautiful wedding photo book. 

We had some friends around last night which reminded me that I still had one wedding supplier to add to my Favourite Wedding Suppliers series. You can read my previous posts in the series on the following links: Issy Boo Cakes, Cardiff Invitations and Flowers with a Twist. I got married nearly 9 months ago so this post is long overdue! 

A photographer is a vital part of every wedding day as they provide the memories you look back on in years to come. With this in mind, I started doing research on photographers very early on in the wedding planning process. While frantically googling 'reasonable wedding photographers', I came across Shelley Daniel's website. Shelley's prices were very affordable compared to some of the extortionate prices I'd seen on the internet and in wedding fayres, and I also discovered that she lived around the corner from the flat I lived in at the time. I sent Shelley a quick email and she suggested that she should come to my flat to have an initial meeting and discussion.

As soon as I met Shelley and saw her beautiful photo books, I knew I wanted her to be our wedding photographer. She was so friendly and efficient, and I was really impressed that the intricate photo books were all part of the package. It was also immediately obvious that there were no sneaky financial add-ons. Shelley's arrangement meant that she'd be with me from 11am on the morning of the wedding until around 8:30pm (after the first dance). She would also provide a CD with all our photos and a 42 page 30x30cm photo book, all for £750. 

Shelley was so organised right from the beginning of the process. She arranged to meet us a few weeks before the wedding at the church then at the Copthorne Hotel to go through what particular photos we wanted, where the best photographic locations were, how many group shots we wanted and so on. This meeting was also included in the £750 price. Shelley gave me a form to fill in with times, venue addresses, exact photo groups and so on... she really made me feel as if I could relinquish all control over to her. This is exactly what a stressed bride needs just weeks before her wedding! 

On the big day, Shelley came to the house at 11am to take a few photos of me getting ready with my bridesmaids. She also meticulously took photographs of my flowers, wedding shoes and jewellery as a nice keepsake and to form the background for some of the pages in our photo book. 

Shelley then left for the church an hour before the service to take photographs of the groom, the best man, the ushers and the guests as they arrived, as well as making sure she was there to capture the moment when my father and I arrived in our car. 

Shelley stayed with me, my father and the bridesmaids in the church entrance for a few minutes to take some more photographs then disappeared into the church ready for our grand entrance. I have no idea where Shelley was standing when she took all the photographs inside the church... she was definitely very discreet as I didn't actually see her at all. She must have been flitting around all over the place as there are some lovely photos of the service itself. 

After the service, we all went outside for masses of group photos. I'd emailed Shelley a detailed list of which groups I wanted, what everyone's names were and so on, and she took charge from there. There were a LOT of groups so Shelley needed to be very patient as well as authoritative! We had a lovely mix of posed shots and 'chatty' photographs which all looked very natural. 

After finishing all the group shots and taking lots of photos of me and Neil on our own, Shelley then followed us to the Copthorne Hotel ready for the wedding breakfast and evening reception. There were lots more photos at the hotel including some with our wedding car, some on the balcony of the hotel, photos of the guests relaxing before the wedding breakfast, then plenty of photos during the wedding speeches. 

Shelley was so patient during the evening reception... she was an absolute star. The timings slipped quite a bit so the first dance ended up being about an hour later than planned. In spite of the delay, Shelley still stayed to take photographs during the first dance as promised.

Lots of the guests commented on how efficient Shelley was and how hard she worked throughout the day. She somehow managed to be everywhere at once and kept smiling throughout the day. I had total confidence that she was capturing all the moments we wanted to cherish. She also photographed all the little details such as our table plan, table centrepieces and welshcake favours... these were all things that were very important to me but I would never had time to get my phone out and photograph them myself. 

A few weeks after our wedding day, Shelley came around to our house to drop off our photo disk. I was so excited... 701 wedding photos! We proceeded to look eagerly through the photos and chose 100 for our photo book as instructed. I think it's safe to say that Neil got bored of looking through the photos quicker than I did. 

I went to collect the photo book from Shelley a few weeks later and I was so pleased with the final result. The book is of such a high quality and the design of each individual page is just exquisite. I could never have produced something this beautiful myself. We also ordered two smaller photo books for both sets of parents for Christmas as our parents were such an important part of our wedding day. We couldn't even have had such a lovely wedding day without their support. I think the photo book is such a nice and emotive thing to show people rather than handing them a bunch of printed photographs or dragging the laptop out. The photo book tells the story of the day so well and I love going back to look through it time and time again. 

I'm so impressed with the vibrancy of the photos and the way everything has been laid out. The colours all work so well together and I love it that all the family photos, photos of friends, photos of just me and Neil, all our pretty locations and the little accessories that made the day so visually pleasing have been included in such an accessible format. 

Here are a few of my favourite pages from the book... 

I think you'll agree that this is a beautiful keepsake from our special day. I can't thank Shelley enough for all the effort she put in before our big day, on the day itself and afterwards to edit our photos and put the book together. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend her fantastic services. I've linked to Shelley's website at the beginning of the post and you can also view her Facebook page here. 

I still maintain that Shelley's biggest achievement was making me look decent in my wedding photographs as I'm the most unphotogenic person in the world... I think she rose to the challenge very well! 

Isn't the sky beautiful?

If you follow me on Instagram, you'll already be aware that I'm a bit obsessed with the sky. I've taken some lovely photos of the sky during the last few weeks so I thought I'd share them on my blog.

These photos were all taken on various days at around 5pm when I got to the gym (apart from the last one)... I'm sure fellow gym goers must think I'm crazy when I stand in the middle of the car park and photograph the sky. However, these photographic opportunities were too good to miss and I never cared much about my street cred.

I just love all the different hues and the vast differences in the sky from one day to the next. In my (non expert) opinion, sunset is probably the prettiest time of day. I also think clouds enhance the sky rather than blotting it. We all love a pure blue sky, but it looks pretty boring without a few clouds artistically dotted around to add a splash of contrast.

Do you also love taking photos of the sky? Please reassure me that I'm not alone in this! 

Pinterest and Instagram... aren't they just for wedding planners and coffee lovers?

I recently wrote a blog post on using Pinterest and Instagram in your marketing strategies which has been published on the popular Comms2Point0 website for creative communicators. I'm very excited about this as it's my first ever professional published blog post. I'm passionate about using social media channels for business use and Pinterest and Instagram are particularly under rated in a professional context, possibly because of the generalisations floating around about the two platforms. You can read the original post here, but I thought I'd also feature it on my own blog!


Pinterest and Instagram are about so much more than these generalisations suggest… read on to find out why!

Remember the days when we used to laboriously take photographs on our disposable cameras, take them to the shop to develop, wait a few days, go back to collect them, sigh because half your auntie’s head has been cut off, put them in a box and never look at them again?

Now, with superior smartphone cameras and the ability to upload your images straight on to your chosen platform, there is an endless world of possibilities. I love sharing images on my personal social networking sites, and there are also countless opportunities for businesses to utilise this technology in their marketing plans to transform customer and stakeholder engagement.

Why are images so effective? Well, if I told you I ate a burger last night, you probably wouldn’t be particularly interested (while silently wishing that I’d talk about something else other than food). However, if I showed you a photo of the burger I ate last night, I’d get more of a reaction. If I tell you I’ve got a new dog, you’ll be more interested in seeing photos than hearing my ramblings. A photograph can transport you to a place or experience and helps you to identify with the topic discussed. I often look through my Florida photos when I need cheering up… it wouldn’t be quite the same if I sat down and read some enthralling text about Walt Disney World. It might be a cliché, but a photograph really is worth a thousand words.

My favourite visual social media sites are Pinterest and Instagram. Although Pinterest is a foodie, interior designer and wedding planner’s dream, it’s also useful for a multitude of different fields. Your Pinterest profile is made up of different ‘boards’, and each board has a topic chosen by you. You then ‘pin’ images to your boards, which link back to the website they’re hosted on. Wouldn’t it be useful if your local council used Pinterest to update you on schemes in your area? They could have a board for each village, or a board for each school with details on performances, parents’ evening and so on. And perhaps charities could use Pinterest to promote their past, present and future fundraising initiatives. Pinterest showcases your images and infographics as well as promoting your website, and you can arrange everything into categorised boards where people can quickly find out what they need to. Your business will grow when people ‘like’ and ‘re pin’ your images, and you’ll soon see a rewarding return on investment.

Instagram is another obsession of mine… a simple concept, but totally addictive. Take a photo, make it look pretty, add relevant hashtags, upload. Instagram has fantastic potential for businesses and the retail sector in particular has embraced these opportunities. Your business could run a monthly competition which involves asking customers to photograph themselves using one of your products or using one of your community hubs. Customers then upload this to Instagram, using a particular hashtag, and you’ll choose the best monthly photograph and offer a small prize. Or you could simply use Instagram to showcase a day in the office, to show off your latest development or to share snapshots from your events. Your most avid followers will ‘regram’ your photographs, building your followers and creating a buzz. Oh, and contrary to popular belief, it is not obligatory to post photos of your Starbucks takeaway coffee on Instagram every morning.

Photographs are the quickest, most visual and most effective way to communicate and they’ll get people talking about your brand. It only takes ten seconds to let customers know about your latest initiative, and a further two seconds for them to share with their networks. Why not give Pinterest and Instagram a try to see how they can revolutionise your customer and stakeholder engagement strategies? I promise you’ll soon be as addicted as I am!

You can follow me on Pinterest here: www.pinterest.com/pinkbeth86

And on Instagram here: www.instagram.com/pinkbeth86

Idyllic Images #33

More lovely photos from my parents' garden! 

Idyllic Images #32

Lovely evening walk around Cosmeston Country Park

Idyllic Images #31

Beautiful flowers from my parents' garden

Idyllic Images #30

Another sky photo... it's the sun! 

Walt Disney World Photo a Day Challenge

I know May seems like ages ago now (I ask again, where is this year going?), but I thought I'd write a quick blog post on the Walt Disney World Photo a Day challenge I took part in throughout the month of May on Instagram.

The challenge gave me a chance to relive my two amazing holidays to Walt Disney World and brought a bit of daily Disney magic to my Instagram profile. I love looking back at my photos from Florida so it was a great opportunity to search for specific themes and to reacquaint myself with some beautiful photos I'd forgotten about.

Here are my favourite five photos from the challenge:

Cinderella's Castle, just before the night show

Duffy and I met the real Duffy the Disney Bear!

Epcot's Flower and Garden Festival - Lady and the Tramp

Neil proposed to me in this little pavilion! Read all about it here

With Duffy in Downtown Disney, outside the biggest Disney Store in the world

Did anyone else take part in the Walt Disney World Photo a Day challenge? Please send me your Instagram links!