Medium Santa Head
Small Santa Head
A huge thank you once again to Luc for sharing his fabulous balloon art with us all!
Happy Ballooning!
Sue
Follow me on Instagram @suebowler
A huge thank you once again to Luc for sharing his fabulous balloon art with us all!
Happy Ballooning!
Sue
Follow me on Instagram @suebowler
How many times do we create a fabulous balloon design or décor only to find that the photographs that we take do not translate into that perfect shot... I am sure that we can all relate to that!
Photography is definitely an art, and professional photographers work hard for years to ensure that they get great results. For us, this is one of many of our roles as a balloon professional. Great photos are vital for our marketing and social media campaigns, so getting the perfect shot is very important.
Balloon Decor by Sue Bowler |
Here are some simple tips:
If you are taking iPhone photos for social media like Instagram, do not forget that most people will see your work on small mobile screens.
Paring your compositions down to a few key elements makes them easier to understand on a small screen.
Below are two photographs from the same event. The first one shows the whole room, capturing the decor and room en masse.
Balloon Decor by Sue Bowler & Team Photograph by Nicci Gibson |
The second photograph, shows the same decor but is highlighting the 3' confetti balloons and not the rest of the room, allowing the balloons to be the star of the show. I would choose the second photo to promote my event decor on social media and my website.
Balloon Decor by Sue Bowler & Team Photograph by Nicci Gibson |
Good photography is all about showing people the world and all it contains in an original and beautiful way. Shooting close up can make everyday objects look interesting, exciting and unexpected.
Look for interesting colours, textures, or patterns in your subject that might go unnoticed if viewed from afar. This close up method can also highlight exciting elements within your designs.
Balloon Design by Sue Bowler |
To emphasis this feature, I took a close-up shot of the 5" balloons to make it clearer to my customers.
Balloon Design by Sue Bowler |
When using an iPhone, if you have seen the yellow focus square, you have probably paid attention the icon right on its right-hand-side. This little icon along with the slider will help you adjust the exposure of your image.
If you need it to be darker and underexposed, simply drag your finger down on the screen. If you want it to be brighter and overexposed, then you just drag it up.
There are a number of reasons why you would want to sacrifice a perfectly exposed image for a darker or for a brighter one – it all depends on what mood you want to convey.
Most smartphones spend a very significant time of their lives in the hands of their owners and that means they’re covered in fingerprints.
Very often those fingerprints are found on the place where you want them the least: your lens!
A useful habit to develop is to get used to quickly cleaning your lens before taking a photo – that can ensure there will be no smudges, dust spots or blurry areas on your image.
It may sound like a really simple tip, but this one thing alone can have the biggest impact on getting a clear photos… and most people never bother wiping their phone’s lens (they usually wipe the screen!)
Balloon Design by Sue Bowler |
To bring my design to 'life', I have dropped my Reindeer image into a stock photo that was available on CANVA. This helps to give my design perspective and scale, enabling my customers to imagine what this design would look like in their home. The Christmas Tree photo was only available with the Pro version, so you would need this version to use this particular photograph. However, there are still many free photographs available.
There are many more apps and editing tools available, however, these are the tools that I personally use and recommend.
If you are unsure how to use CANVA, I have a number of blog posts that will help you!
This is the tutorial that helped me greatly when learning how to use CANVA -
There is nothing more iconic than a Christmas Tree! The tradition of bringing a tree indoors at Christmas time actually began in the 16th century. Today, however Christmas trees come in many forms, including those made from balloons!
In this post I would like to share with you a selection of inspiring styles of 'balloon trees' that could be used as part of a display or as decor at an event!
Let's start with a little bit, well actually a lot, of sparkle! What could be more spectacular than Chris Adamo's incredible gold confetti Christmas tree! Confetti-filled balloons are certainly a big hit with customers, and this tree looks simply F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!
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This organic Chrome Gold and Chrome Silver Christmas Tree is absolutely gorgeous and beautifully finished with greenery and berries! Zoe Adam-Jones, CBA, of JAZ Trading, Queensland, Australia |
Balloon Mosaic Frame by Sue Bowler, CBA in Henley On Thames, England |
QuickLink Christmas Trees made by Sue Bowler |
This Christmas tree entrance decor scene was created for a Qualatex Event in France, in 2017 by José Luthman CBA of Ballonrama in Mulhouse, France. |
Stunning White and Chrome Gold Tree by Rejoice Event Design, New Jersey, USA www.rejoiceeventdesign.com |
White Tree with Red and Chrome Silver accent details by Little Balloon Box in Bromley, England www.littleballoonbox.co.uk |
This pastel Christmas tree is so elegant. Design by The Balloon Crew in Barrie, ON, Canada https://theballoooncrew.wixsite.com/theballoooncrew-1 |
Design by Dream Higher Events in West Malling, England www.dreamhigher.co.uk |
Finding quick, easy and sellable designs is always a little challenging, especially when you are building your seasonal offerings! Today, I would like to share this cute and festive gnome design that I recently created and shared with the viewers of BMTV.
1 x Merry Christmas Gnome #19772 |
1 x 42" Gnome #20055 |
4 x 7" Gold Chrome Latex Balloons #85111 8 x 11" Gold Chrome Latex Balloons #58271 |
1 x 260Q Chrome Gold #58283 |
1 x 260Q Red #43958 |
Christmas Gnome Design By Sue Bowler CBA. |
And November is the perfect time to start marketing for Christmas:
Decorate your shopfront:
How fabulous is this display by Trish Robertson of Barossa Helium Balloons and Party Supplies in Tanunda, South Australia. Trish was inspired to re-create Luc Bertrand's beautiful QuickLinks Santa Mural which has taken centre-stage in her window! |
Deck out your website:
Your digital space is just as important as your brick-and-mortar location. So, if you have a website, make sure to decorate your digital "shopfront as well — whether it is through creating a curated gift shop page, adding a Christmas decor-inspired banner to your homepage, or changing your colour scheme to incorporate more festive colours.
Designer name: Eve Antonello, CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, KS, USA |
Designer name: Cam Woody, CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, KS, USA |
I love the Qualatex Taper balloon! I believe that it is a balloon that sadly goes unnoticed, as many people are often unsure what to do with it! This is probably why the colour range has been gradually discontinued over the years. Today, I am going to share with you some ideas featuring this versatile balloon that you will hopefully enjoy making, and that will look perfect at your Christmas and New Year's events!
This ingenious entrance decor was created by Luc Bertrand, CBA, of WaW Balloons in Vichte, Belgium for the Qualatex Event Germany a few years ago! It really created a sense of fun and excitement when you walked through it into the main party room!
Please be aware that some of the colours of Taper balloons that I am showing in this article are no longer available; however, all designs are easily adapted by simply changing the colours.
Let us start by looking at what is available in this range!
Rose Gold, Metallic Gold & Silver available in 13" 27" and 38" |
To create inspirational design like this, I have used Chris Adamo's Balloon Design Tools https://balloonpro.co |