Mitzvah MailDecember 2012 Happy Holidays! It's been a few months since my last issue of Mitzvah Mail, and what better time to start up again than t

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Mitzvah Mail

December 2012

Happy Holidays!

It's been a few months since my last issue of Mitzvah Mail, and what better time to start up again than the holidays!

Hannukah has come and gone way before Christmas this year, and I hope all of you who celebrated enjoyed the Festival of Lights with your loved ones. In my family, annual dreidel games are a favorite tradition (and eating the chocolate gelt winnings of course). My daughter even got her friends at school hooked this year!

For those of you who also celebrate Christmas or Kwanzaa, I wish you a joyous holiday season and to all a very Happy New Year!

Enjoy this holiday edition of Mitzvah Mail!

Cheryl

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The "Other" Candle-Lighting

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Soccer Theme

Lighting the menorah at Hannukah is a lovely family tradition. At B'nai Mitzvah celebrations, a different kind of candle-lighting ceremony has become extremely popular as a way of honoring those who are most important in your child's life. One candle is lit for each person or group of people. Many times the Bar/Bat Mitzvah will prepare a witty poem or heartfelt thank you for each honoree.

The candle-lighting is a great time to get creative, both in designing the display and photographing the ceremony. I've seen just about every imaginable twist on this tradition, and love trying to capture each one in a different way.

Side note: A candle-lighting ceremony is also a great way to get formal pictures of extended family and friends who you did not take formal pictures with before the service.

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Lit only by candles, a moment in-between

 
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A different point of view

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Floating candles

 
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Beautiful floral candle display

 
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Floor-standing candelabra

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Shaina's music-themed combo candle-lighting on the 1st night of Hannukah

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A Big "Thank You"

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As 2012 draws to a close, I have to say a big "Thank You" to all of you. Cheryl Bigman Photography was voted "Best Photographer in the East Bay" in the 2012 J Weekly Readers' Choice Awards! I can't even begin to tell you how excited I was to get that call! Couldn't have done it without your support. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

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ChineseFood

Humor Me - What does a nice Jewish girl do on Christmas Day?

The holidays always bring a mixed bag of emotions for me and I'm sure a lot of you. As a photographer, the months leading up to Christmas are some of the busiest months of the year. So after hours and hours of editing, designing holiday cards, creating custom albums, etc..., what do I do when Christmas Day finally arrives? Take the day off? Sit home and watch holiday classics on TV? Seriously, this could be a real let-down! What is a Jewish girl to do?

This year, I found the perfect answer - call my Jewish clients! After all, they're probably not busy on Christmas Day either, right? So this year, first up is a family portrait session for one of my upcoming Bat Mitzvah families. So excited as I get to try out a beautiful new location in Atherton! Then, a Red Carpet Preview at the home of another Bat Mitzvah family Christmas night where we'll project all the pictures up on a big screen. And yes, I think we'll be dining together on what else - Chinese food!

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Reminder to Book Early!

I am so blessed that 2012 has been a very busy year for photographing B'nai Mitzvahs! I can't thank you enough for all your referrals. I've loved traveling all over the SF Bay Area and having the opportunity to photograph so many of our beautiful synogogues and party venues. But best of all, I've loved getting to know and work with all of you!

2013 is booking fast, and I'm already getting calls for 2014 & 2015! Believe it or not, some of the larger synogogues are assigning their B'nai Mitzvah dates into 2016! So just a reminder, it's never too early to book.

Contact me at cheryl@cherylbigmanphoto.com or give me a call at 925.963.8744.
You can also refer people to my Website or Blog where they can reach me through the Contact page, or Facebook where they can "Like" the Cheryl Bigman Photography page to see my latest work.

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A Note from Cheryl...

I created this newsletter to provide all of us "Mitzvah-planning Mommas" (and Dads too) with a little inspiration and hopefully useful information to help us along the way.

Feel free to email me with your comments and suggestions for future issues. Please share Mitzvah Mail with anyone you know who could use a little support in their planning process. Just forward this email using the "forward to a friend" link below and tell them to "subscribe" at the bottom of the page. Thanks for spreading the word!

Happy Planning!
Cheryl

To see previous issues of Mitzvah Mail, click on these links:
Issue 4 - September 2012
Issue 3 - June 2012
Issue 2 - May 2012
Issue 1 - March 2012

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