Ribbon cutting ceremony in Firestone, CO

A ribbon cutting ceremony is an act to signify the commencement of a new venture. There is a gathering to celebrate a new building, business or expansion of services. This event brings out the giant scissors and beautiful ribbon. Watch out, those scissors are sharp and heavy! 

Where did this event originate? Like many ceremonies, the ribbon cutting ceremony has its roots in ancient times. It was first used to symbolize a journey, a new beginning, or a grand opening.

In the United States, ribbon cutting ceremonies first became popular in the late 19th century. Today, these ceremonies are a popular way to mark the opening of a new business, store, or institution.

No one knows the exact date or circumstances of the first ribbon cutting. It’s known that the original ceremony took place in the 1800’s for a railroad.

Ribbon Cutting for Reamsnyder Media with the Carbon Valley Chamber of Commerce

In the United States, ribbon cutting ceremonies first became popular in the late 19th century. Today, these ceremonies are a popular way to mark the opening of a new business, store, or institution.

No one knows the exact date or circumstances of the first ribbon cutting. It’s known that the original ceremony took place in the 1800’s for a railroad.

 Why is ribbon cutting for a business important?

·        Publicity

·        Capture the moment (which can later be used for marketing/social media content/brand story)

·         Promote new services/space

·        Community involvement

One of the most important reasons to have a ribbon cutting is for the publicity. The event itself will make for great social media content and further your brands storytelling. Gather friends, family, and the community to celebrate with you. 

Check with your local Chamber to see what ribbon cutting services are available.

On Wednesday, April 26, 2023 in Firestone, CO the ribbon was cut by Chris Reamsnyder of Reamsnyder Media, to mark the occasion of new services and a name change. The crowd cheered and following the ceremony, guests were invited to look at our new services and enjoy refreshments/snacks.

Make it stand out

Here are some tips for planning a ribbon cutting ceremony:

·        Choose a date and time that is convenient for your guests.

·        Send out invitations in advance.

·        Have a plan for the ceremony, including who will speak and what refreshments will be served.

·        Make sure the ribbon is easily accessible and that there is enough room for people to gather around.

·        Take photos and videos of the ceremony to share on social media.

Ribbon cutting ceremonies are a great way to celebrate the opening of a new business or the achievement of a milestone. They are also a great way to get the word out about your business and to build relationships with your community.

Certificate of Membership for Reamsnyder Media to Carbon Valley Chamber of Commerce

How has technology changed your business?

Stormtroopers posed for a portrait at Canto Bight Casino Night.

Technology is continuously evolving, with that evolution comes new technology.  Photographers, videographers and other creatives should have their fingers on the pulse of AI-powered technology.

Technology has been a game changer for photography.  Most photographs are now digital.  The process to get to the best image can take some work even still today.  Now we are a far cry from film images, but its still work.  I’m not talking about the practice, lighting, and everything else pre-production.  What about during and after? 

The 2023 WPPI Convention in Las Vegas was an amazing immersive experience. We learned so much from the speakers, met some incredible people, and saw some of the most beautiful photography.  We also picked up a few tricks.  It turns out tricks are not just for kids!

One of the highlights of the convention was Jerry Ghionis' presentation on tethered capture with Capture One. Jerry's Ghionis’ presentation gave me some great new tips and tricks. I learned how to use tethered capture to improve my workflow, and I also learned how to use it to create more creative portrait and headshot images. The unique tethered capture feature enabled us to show clients in real time what their images would look like.  With the added benefit of editing, mask, merge and organize images.

Lightroom and Photoshop are two of the most popular photo editing software programs on the market. Both programs offer a wide range of features, but they have different strengths and weaknesses.  Most of us have some level of proficiency in Lightroom and/or Photoshop.  The biggest limitation being the ability to cull photos.  We were spending days, if not weeks going through hundreds of images.  For ONE photoshoot.  Stuck in an endless loop of culling and editing.  Our business was running us, we were not running the business.  Then we were introduced to Aftershoot and our world changed.

Lets talk workflow for a moment.  Before the introduction of the products Capture One and Aftershoot, we would come home and dump our photos into Lightroom, where the tedious process of deciding on an image begun.  Now, at a shoot we have individuals pick the image(s) to edit.  Depending on the size of the event we can have portraits out before anyone leaves the event.

Aftershoot took my workflow from an average of four days and reduced it to under two hours!  This program is outstanding for speeding up workflow.  Aftershoot gives the ability to the photographer to set how they want the images culled (i.e. blurred, no faces in focus, similar images, etc.).  We can now guarantee our clients’ images within 24 hours (and often less)! 

The technology integrations are phenomenal.  Aftershoot will send the images to Lightroom, Lightroom Classic, and Capture One.  Culling, editing, and exporting has never been faster.

The ability to post professional images during a live event really has been a game changer.  We recently had the opportunity to use all our new skills and toys at the Life Stories Canto Bight Casino Night.  We had event photos posted to social media while still at the event. 

Canto Bight Casino Night with Life Stories

Be on the lookout for the rise of artificial intelligence, more mirrorless cameras, increase in drones and the rise of 360-degree photography!

Chris & Sophia Reamsnyder, Canto Bight Casino Night with Life Stories

Time for an adventure!

As with many others our holiday plans were disrupted.  We made the best of the time that we had with my bonus daughter and twins.  We have ideas on how to incorporate my bonus sons into the family photo at a later date.

When the husband is over it! - Chris & Sophia Reamsnyder Officers Gulch

The perfect location for family photos was found at Officer’s Gulch just outside of Frisco.  Now it was time to plan the adventure!  It was going to be cold with snow hitting the area a few days before.  One of the best (and FREE) places to have fun near Frisco is Frisco Adventure Park!  There is a hill that has free access for sledding.

Our family has used this hill many times over the years.  It is a ton of fun!  Beware of the hill!  You will go flying and it will hurt.  Take a moment to watch everyone else first.  There are spots that are much safer to use.  After much trial and error, it seems like the best sled for this hill are tubs.  Which brings us to the next activity.

Right in the same area is the ability to go tubing.  I highly encourage this activity as well.  Tubing can be a blast.  Make sure to reserve your spot ahead of time, there is unfortunately a fee.  Well worth it in my opinion.  Don’t forget to stop in Old Town Frisco for a bite to eat.  There are restaurants for everyone.

So, lets go down the check list of the plan for the big day!

1.       Kids – 3 out of 5

2.       Clothes – Cream/white tops with black leggings and Uggs for the ladies.  Black bomber jackets with green collared undershirt, jeans and hiking boots for the guys.

3.       Location – Officer’s Gulch

4.       Food – Day of decision!

5.       Fun Activity – Sledding at Frisco Adventure Park

We decided to go on Friday morning to do photos to avoid the crowds.  Leaving much earlier would have been a good idea!  As with anytime you travel into the Colorado mountains, there was traffic.  Our two-hour drive quickly added two additional hours!  People + icy roads = crashes.  It would all be fine.  We would still get there before the clouds were to move in…..

Many hours later and finally at our location, it was FREEZING.  There was a mad dash to get the photos done and get back in the toasty truck.  We were not dressed appropriately to be out in below freezing temperatures long.  While the children and Chris lugged camera gear to the designated location, I began to cycle kids through individual images.   

Officer’s Gulch - Winter 2022

Let me say a little bit about these kids.  They are troopers.  There was minimal complaining during the photos, we just won’t talk about the car ride, haha. They were excited to get to sledding!

We quickly worked through my shot list.  Prior to a shoot we design a shot list to make sure we capture exactly what we want.  Example for our family shoot:

1.       Family photo 5/7 family members

2.       My twins and bonus daughter

3.       My twins

4.       Individual photos

5.       Chris and my bonus daughter

6.       Chris and I

7.       Twins and I

8.       Bonus daughter and I

Chris & his daughter - Officers Gulch

Officers Gulch

Officers Gulch

Now that we all are frozen like Audrey Griswold, it was time to thaw out and feed the hangry family!  My twins can be very picky eaters sometimes.  One could survive off cheeseburgers, French fires and pizza, the other chicken nuggets and salad. Naturally every suggestion was given a, “meh”.  Then tacos were mentioned.  This suggestion made my mouth water. 

My bonus daughter found this cute little restaurant in Old Town called Tocko.  Everyone found something to eat here.  We needed to be rolled out the door, five people walked out stuffed!  Delicious street tacos, loaded queso fries and so much more.  Although they are a little pricey and not the only option in Friso, I highly recommend giving Tocko a try.    

Tocko’s in Frisco

We were stuffed, warmed and ready to sled!

Did I mention it was cold?  On any adventure make sure you have proper supplies.  For this outing at Frisco Adventure Park we needed:

1.       Sled x2

2.       Warm weather gear

3.       If you think you packed enough warm things pack extra!

4.       Boots

5.       Snacks and drinks (you will thank me later!)

We trickled down in ones and twos, walking from a side gravel parking lot to the hill.  See my previous comment about leaving earlier in the morning.  By the time we arrived at Frisco Adventure Park there was no regular parking left, it was super busy!

Frisco Adventure Park

I did not partake in going down the hill, my body is just too fragile for those kinds of bumps and rolls.  I do mean bumps and rolls!  The first time I took the twins here when they hit the bump at the bottom of the hill, they flew like cartoon characters.  Take a moment to watch others sledding, this will reveal the spots better suited for your family’s ability.  The kids eventually talked Chris into taking a turn….he flew!  The next time we go sledding here different sleds are in order.

Now that we were all truly frozen and beat it was time to make the trek back to the truck.  The kids and I headed to the bathrooms while Chris took some items back to the truck.  I recommend using the bathrooms before leaving, traffic can get back up.  We all met back up at the truck, where the first of many “I’m hungries” were mentioned.  We had packed snacks and drinks.  We chowed down before the long journey home.  I say long as there was much traffic on the way back as well.

Even though this was not our exact plan and it went wrong in everyway possible, this was an amazing day.  Even when things began to get silly on the way home, it still was a great day! 

Location, Location, Location!

I remember the stressful days as a child going to get family photos at JcPenny's or someplace similar.  When we began our photography journey we decided immediately we didn't want to bring that stress to a family. Especially if the photos turned out like mine, not a smile in the room.  Instead of repeating the cycle for that type of family photos, we want to show families an adventure.

On the road to the mountains!

An adventure....but who to test this on? Why not our own family?  A message was sent to my bonus daughter to talk about outfits.  Matching pjs were quickly dismissed as an option, as was anything that was exactly matchy.  We shopped for outfits. I mean we really shopped.  So many stores (Target, Walmart, Kohls, etc..  Let me tell you that's no easy feat for our family. An older teen bonus daughter in the Army, two bonus teenage boys and 9-year-old twins.  I despise shopping with every fiber of my being, unless it’s for photoshoots.  It’s always too hot, too “peoply,” and nothing fits right.   Which brought our next problem, getting everyone together....

For us this was months of planning.  With blended families living in different states and one in the Army it takes some effort to pull off a family photo shoot.  The Southwest situation stole a beautiful family moment from us.  My bonus sons were unable to visit their dad or see their sister who is being deployed.  You left so many heartbroken.  I'm sorry SW but your 25,000 points to fly just isn’t going to cut it.  Those miles cannot replace what was taken away from our family and many others.

I digress, after we found outfits for all seven of us, we had to find a location.  I had a vision in mind as there often is when it comes to photography.  I wanted a snow-capped valley surrounding us.  Now this doesn’t sound like a tall order when it comes to Colorado….it somehow slipped my mind it would be the end of December when we took these photos. 

On Christmas Day we had made plans to check a few locations out.  By the end it felt like a Griswold Family Christmas!  Our first stop would be just outside of Frisco at Officer’s Gulch.  I had previously gone to this location in the summertime with the kids to go fishing and hiking with Auntie Kristin.  It was a much different world in the winter!  We really liked the location, but it wasn’t quite my vision. 

Officer’s Gulch

Chris and Sophia Reamsnyder - Officer’s Gulch 2022

We decided to keep driving and stopped at a few “scenic areas” before and after Hanging Lake.  Grizzly Creek Trailhead looked like it could be an interesting hike.  At the No Name scenic area there was a cat hanging out.  We even seriously considered Hanging Lake.  Until we found it cost $10 per hiker.  I was not sure of my capability to hike so soon after surgery.  That idea was quickly scrapped, and we continued our drive to Maroon Bells in Aspen.

Grizzly Creek Trailhead

Cat or familiar? - No Name scenic area

From our home Maroon Bells is a four-hour drive!  I mentioned adventure, right?  The glittering snow on the mountains was breathtaking.  I find myself in awe of the mountains every day.  A couple pit stops later we finally arrived, kind of.  The “parking lot” was a madhouse.  The road to the entrance for the hike to Maroon Bells was closed due to snow.  Families were skiing and dogsledding on the road!  It was an incredible sight.

Just outside of Aspen

We walked for so time just taking in nature.  It would be a two hour hike from the entrance, from the road much longer….We stopped to take a few pictures and came to the conclusion I was not ready for that kind of shenanigans.  Back in the truck we went! 

Closed road to Maroon Bells visitor center

Hiked the closed road for a bit!

At this point the sun was starting to drop.  We were ready to go home.  I was not ready for the black abyss that awaited us on the road.  I suppose the time I’ve spent in the mountains was always done before dark or not long after dark.  There were no streetlights.  It really was pitch black!   

Vail, Colorado - Christmas Day 2023

On the drive home we decided the best place to go would indeed be Officer’s Gulch.

Stay tuned for part two! 

I’ve gone too far! Over-editing my way through 2022.

This was the year. Not so officially, 2022 was the year we committed to professional photography. I like to consider myself the technical director and lead editor for all of our photo shoots. For a husband and wife photography team, such fancy titles really just give me direction and a lane to stay in as we continue to grow. That’s what 2022 really was for me within my lane, growth in editing photographs. It started as, “do good things, but faster.” It evolved into something more.

Collaboration with and portrait of Krista Smith, in Las Vegas, Nevada, February 2022. (Photo/Sophia Reamsnyder)

After dinner with friends, February 2022, this shot of Krista happened. First of all, dinner was fantastic. Fried chicken, strawberry cupcakes, and tequila. Second, I loved this photo straight out of camera, but regardless, I needed to go to work. Into Photoshop I went. It was my place in all this, to edit the amazing photos my wife captures.

After probably two hours of color adjustments, blemish removal, skin smoothing, various enhancements, and who knows what else, I ended with a final edit I was really happy with. But truth be told, after reviewing my year’s work, two hours left me with a photo that’s flat, a little too red, and lacks character. Back to work I went 10 months later with the same raw image.

Collaboration with and portrait of Krista Smith, in Las Vegas, Nevada, February 2022. (Photo/Sophia Reamsnyder)

More Lightroom, less Photoshop, and about half the time spent editing. More depth, more character, and a little less red.

My focus this year was on growth as a photographer, specifically in my edits. I’d “like” to declare, “victory!” But not exactly. This is a lifelong journey we’re really only a year into. Am I a better editor today than I was earlier this year? I have progressed, or evolved as an editor, developing more of a sense of who “I” am. And “I” want to show how unique and special people are, not hide them with filters and masks.

So now what? What’s next? Better edits for sure, whatever that means. I’ll have to get back to you on the specifics once I’ve finished better analyzing my work for the year. But beyond that, a deeper dive into video and blogging about our experiences at Reamsnyder Photography.

See more of Krista on Instagram at @xo_queenvibes_ox.