Seeing as so many of you enjoyed last week’s Friday Freebie, i’m going to try to make them a weekly event! This week’s prizes come from Crafty Staci’s Etsy store. Don’t you think they’d make the most amazing Christmas gifts? She also takes custom orders and has about 160 different fabrics to choose from!  I have 2 sets to give away. A “Nikon” set for SD cards and a “Canon” set for CF cards (or for SD cards if you store them in those little plastic boxes). Just write either “Nikon” or “Canon” in the comment box to take part in the draw. I’ll announce the winners here and on Facebook on Monday the 7th November (entries close at midnight, PST on 11/06/2011).

"Canon" set

"Nikon" set

This is one of my favourite sites! I’m a huge fan of their weekly photo challenges, the quality of the entries is impressive… actually it’s intimidating, i’m too shy to upload any of my own photos but one day I hope to be good enough or brave enough to join in the fun!

There’s still time to vote in this week’s competition. Click here to vote and if you have time to spare, go through previous week’s challenges and gather inspiration for your own photography projects!

Today you get to meet André who a lot of you will already know from our Facebook fan page.  

André in NYC

Christian, André and Daniel

Me: Where were these pics taken?

André: They were taken in NYC on a guys weekend with Christian and Daniel who you might recognize from the Sample Books pages on the SmileBooks web site. It was Christian’s first trip to the States so Daniel and I had to show him NYC before he got married this fall.

Me: You’ve spent a lot of time on Facebook lately. What’s been the most fun aspect of communicating directly with our fans?

André: Talking directly to our customers and getting to know them. It’s also great knowing you’ve helped someone and i’ve especially enjoyed watching our fan base grow.

Me: What type of camera do you use? Most of us are huge photography freaks. I’m assuming you are too.

André: Of course I am. I got my first camera when I was 6 years old! At the moment though I only have the camera on my mobile because mine broke. Luckily it’s Christmas soon so i’m sure there will be a new one under the tree for me!

Me: You studied International Economics & Business in the Netherlands. Was that a huge culture shock?

André: Not really because I spent my childhood in the US and in Germany so I was pretty much used to European culture in general. And I also already knew how to ride a bicylce so I did fit right in!

Me: You’re really into sports. What sports do you play and which teams do you support?

André: I play soccer and I used to play volleyball. My favorite soccer team is Werder Bremen (German Bundesliga) and my US teams are the Pittsburgh Steelers & Penguins and the Chicago Bulls.

Long in the making but worth the wait! We’re busy putting the finishing touches to the new SmileBooks software. Not only do we have a new 8×6 Compact SmileBook but we’ll also be introducing SmileBooks Greeting Cards and SmileBooks Calendars!

Today’s the first in a series of employee interviews. On the 1st of each month i’ll ask one of the SmileBooks team to answer 5 questions posed by me and to submit their favourite photo of themselves!

First off is our Intern Carl:

Me: Where was that photo taken?
Carl: On my uncle’s boat. We were sailing from Denmark to Germany.

Me: When did you start sailing?
Carl: I think I was 5 or 6. My Dad took me sailing around the harbour at Kiel in Northern Germany.

Me: Do you have any other hobbies?
Carl: Yes, playing golf and soccer with my friends. I also love travelling and taking photos of my trips.

Me: Where will your next trip be to?
Carl: I’m going to Spain with my girlfriend in December.

Me: If you were in charge of SmileBooks, what’s the first thing you’d change?
Carl: I would hire a specialist for getting the coffee.

Me: Was that 5 questions?
Carl: Yes. Can I go and get you some coffee now Ma’am?

I can, and do, spend hours at www.life.com going through all their online photo archives and if you’re having a rainy weekend where you are, please go and take a look at the site.

If you’ve not got hours to spare, here’s a slide show of this week’s best photos:

You take great photos. Now is your moment to share them with the world.

You are invited to participate in the One Life Photography Project, building a yearly international record of photography to be immortalized online and in a bound archive submitted to the Library of Congress. The top participating photographer, as decided by our esteemed judging panel, will be awarded a $25,000 award and a feature in PDN Magazine.

I found this interesting article in the latest Vanity Fair magazine: 47% of us would opt to take our photo albums with us into the afterlife if we had the chance!

Last Thursday I attended the BlogHer Business 2010 conference in New York and it was amazing. I spent the whole day taking notes and trying to asbsorb as much information as possible.

How do you get to Manhattan from our office in Farmingdale? You take the Long Island Railroad to Penn Station. And, if you have a “thing” about being late, you take the 5:26 am train. Notice how the humidity fogged up the lens of my camera!

Farmingdale station

The BlogHer conference was held at the Hilton hotel and of course I was the first to arrive.

Hilton hotel where the BlogHer conference was held

Which gave me plenty of time to explore!

First in line!

Once the conference started, I was so busy trying absorb information, I didn’t have time for more photos.  BlogHer Business 2010 was the best conference i’ve ever attended! Awesome speakers and the BlogHer staff couldn’t have been more gracious!