Shoey's Clicks & Picks

Rebecca Cates, Berkeley-based Acupuncturist, is both my client and my acupuncturist.  She’s great.  Rebecca uses Traditional Chinese Medicine and acupuncture, as well as lifestyle and nutritional guidance, to help people feel their best in the busy, modern world. Through her treatments, her patients find relief from a wide variety of complaints including insomnia, anxiety, digestive upset and muscular-skeletal aches and pains. She loves to help people manage their stress more effectively and enjoy life!  Rebecca also offers a fantastic acupuncture facial rejuvenation process where she uses needles micro-voltage to reduce wrinkles and improve facial skin texture.  It’s amazing…not that I have any wrinkles!

I recently created business portraits of Rebecca in her new beautiful office.  To my delight and surprise, she recommended my photography and referred me in her newsletter.

If you and your business need a photo rejuvenation, call me at 510-917-0659 to schedule a portrait session.

Hello! I hope you are all enjoying this beautiful Autumn we’re lucky enough to be having. It is easily my favorite season of the year, and I know from our conversations the same is true for many of you. Maybe it’s the combination of the crisp air and golden sunshine that invigorates so many of us, or the residual programing of that “back-to-school” excitement and productivity, but either way I appreciate the surge of energy this season brings. Of course, now, we are beginning to navigate the tricky waters of the approaching Holiday Season, when we tend to have more social opportunities and obligations than we have the time or energy to enjoy. So, I am going to be radical and suggest that you do less! Yes, that’s right, do less. Commit to fewer obligations……RSVP to that party with a resounding “Maybe”…..Leave space in your calendar to honor your mood and energy levels of the moment….Enjoy some quiet time to recharge your energy, calm your nervous system and rest your mind. If you would like that quiet time spent on my treatment table, you can always schedule online:Schedule with Rebecca. It’s amazing how restorative an acupuncture session can be! I look forward to seeing you. Enjoy the season! Rebecca www.rebeccacates.com ps. I also appreciate the cue this season provides to give Thanks and show Gratitude. I have a lot to be thankful for and that includes all of you who find value in the service I offer and support my business by letting me support your good health. Thank-you! Recipe of the Month Potato-Kale-Leek Soup 1 large yellow onion 3-4 cloves of garlic (or more!) 1 Tablespoon butter 2 – 3 big potatoes 1 large bunch of kale 1 large leek 5 cups hot water or stock 1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste black pepper Saute onion in butter, cooking and stirring until clear and slightly golden. About halfway, add chopped garlic. Add potatoes and 3 cups of water/stock. Simmer, covered, until potatoes start to soften around the edges. Meantime, wash the leek and kale ( remove stems ), chop and steam. When the potatoes are very well done, puree them with the remaining water/stock, adding the salt and pepper. Combine the pureed potatoes with the kale and leek, correcting the consistency if needed by adding hot water or milk. This recipe is adapted from The New Laurel’s Kitchen cookbook and is one of my favorite soups to make this time of year. It is filling and comforting and tastes even better the next day! Sometimes I include organic chicken sausage. Enjoy! Referral of the Month Just as I appreciate referrals, I also like to support local businesses and services in which I find value. This month I would like to feature Shoey Sindel Photography.  Shoey is a pleasure to work with and is an amazing artist. Check out her portfolio and you’ll see what I mean: www.shoeysindel.com. She recently took some photos of me in my Berkeley office (including the photos in this newsletter) that will be featured on my updated website, and the whole experience was relaxed and fun! She is equally skilled at business portraits and special events photography, but I especially like her pregnancy and family portraits. Holiday cards anyone?! If you know someone who may benefit from working with me, please feel free to forward this newsletter. My practice is built on referrals and I appreciate the compliment you give when you pass on my name! Easy online scheduling available.  ©2011 Rebecca Cates L.Ac. | 770 Page St. Berkeley, CA 94710

Business portraits, including head-shots, are very important in our image-driven, social-media hungry society.  Business owners use images of themselves on Linkedin, Face Book, blogs, printed brochures, business cards and other media.  Because business owners ARE the face of their businesses, looking great is essential for self and business promotion.  How many times have you looked at someone’s photo and seen that they took it with it at arm’s length with their phone?  Not a professional look.

Distinguish your self and your business from the competition–showing your creativity, your passions and your self in the best possible light.   If you want to WOW your potential clients and have them notice you, consider my new Business Portrait Package, “The Whole Shebang.“

The Whole Shebang package is all-inclusive and comes with everything you need to make a visual impact AND feel like a rock star in the process.  Prior to our shoot, I consult with you and your design and web team to make sure your images fit beautifully with your graphic design.  You and I explore the keywords that describe you and your business and we discuss how your images will convey that message including location, posing, lighting, props, clothing, color, etc.   The photo day starts with makeup and hair by a professional makeup artist.  Now that you look like a star, you and I go out on a photo adventure photographing you in various locations with as many wardrobe changes as you like.  We might go to a park, an urban setting, your place of business or some other pre-arranged locations.  Posing as a model takes a lot of effort so I will treat you to lunch as well.  Following our photo day, we will review your portfolio and you will select your favorite twelve images so that you can rotate your Face Book and Linkedin portraits once a month for a year and you’ll have plenty of variety to use in all your promotional material.

To complete the package, I will write about you on my blog and link to your web site.  You get it all which is why it’s called The Whole Shebang!  Contact me at to arrange your own session.

Lisa Tilton, of Lisa Tilton Design, is featured below.  Lisa is an extraordinarily talented graphic designer who specializes in invitations, CD jackets, logo design, business cards and printed materials.  Her work is clean, concept-driven and sophisticated.  She is also a dancer, sews and makes art pieces.  In addition, Lisa is fun and creative and willing to pose in weed-filled streets or next to junked cars in the quest of capturing unique, artistic images that describe her and her work.  We finished off our day at Oakland’s Lake Merritt Chalet with some snacks and drinks and a final set of images.