I'm a blogging slacker!

Ok, well, maybe I'm a blogging slacker, but I've been really busy the last couple weeks. I don't have time to post a huge update, but I wanted to add some pictures I've taken recently. I did a senior shoot, a mother/daughter shoot, a birthday party and lots and lots of editing. Then there's my real job....taking care of my 19 month old and my 3 1/2 year old and cleaning my house. Anyway....here are some of my favorite shots (that I have had time to edit) so far. I have yet to shoot pictures for someone who is not family or does not go to church with me. To date I have shot 7 birthday parties and 7 portrait shoots (since October). I have about a dozen lined up for sometime this summer and I'm sure I'll work in a couple more birthday parties too. Again, all of these people are family or go to my church, so I still haven't had my first stranger client.

I Heart Faces Week 18 "Laughter" ~ Adults entry

This week at I Heart Faces the theme is "Laughter". For the adult category, I am entering this picture of my husband and son. I totally love this image because it captures the relationship my two favorite guys have. This photo is also special to me because this was one of the first pictures ever taken with my Nikon D80. I was shooting fully automatic and I knew nothing about using Photoshop, but I love this photo!!! To see more photos of great laughs or enter one of your own, head over to I Heart Faces.

Playing in the Rain

It has rained for so many consecutive days that I'm beginning to feel like I live in Seattle....no offense meant to anyone from Seattle. I mean Seattle is gorgeous and all, but I'm used to serious amounts of sunshine...MIXED with rain....in May. I am very thankful for the rain, and it does make colors extra vibrant for taking pictures, but I am so looking forward to a couple days with only sunshine. The weather people have predicted such days for Tuesday and Wednesday!

Well, I've been wanting to do some rain/puddle shots anyway, so the kids and I ventured out to the yard today. I would love to have caught it actually raining, but I didn't quite get there. It rained both before and after we went out. Here are some of my favorite shots from today. Sorry I always load a gazillion, but I love photos!! Thanks for looking at them!

I Heart Faces Constructive Feedback Friday

It's constructive feedback Friday at I Heart Faces and I am submitting this family portrait I took for a cousin of mine. Don't mind the boy...he didn't want to participate. Anyway, I like the pose, I like the background, I like most of the photo, but the coloring just seems a bit off to me. Also, I am having problems getting all four people sharply focused. It may be because I used my kit lens with my Nikon D80, or that my aperture was too high (set at 5). I thought I was using an f/8 or so, but I must have changed it and didn't notice. Anyway, those are my main complaints with this photo and I don't know why the coloring looks off. I shot this photo in RAW and JPEG fine, so the edited version has had adjustments through the RAW editor and processing in Photoshop Elements 6. The SOOC is the JPEG version.
The data for this photo is as follows: f/5, 1/100 sec, ISO-100, focal length 52mm no flash. ***I think I may have accidentally added a picture that is different, but they were shot with the same specs. You can click on the pictures for larger views. Thanks so much for any feedback!

I Heart Faces week 17 "Hats" ~ Kids Entry

Oh my goodness!!!!!!!!!!!! I actually made the top ten this week!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't even believe it!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited!!!!!!!!!! Thanks Amy and Angie and of course Jodi!!!!!!! Wow, with all those fantastic entries, I am humbled and honored that mine made the top ten!!!! Thanks!!!




























This week at I Heart Faces the theme is "Hats". I've been so busy with paperwork for my husband's business that I didn't have time to go out and shoot a new picture for this week, but I found one of my little girl that I love from last year. She was 9 months old and I made the hat to take the flower in the pot style pictures. Some of you viewing this post may remember my entry for the theme of "pouting" where my baby was inside the pot with the same hat on crying. This was one of the happier poses and I love her little face!! I had given up on the pot by this point and she liked it much better! My little girl ended up wearing this hat, a green body suit, green tutu, and brown leggings for Halloween.......she was a hydrangea plant. This photo was shot in manual mode (jpeg). This was one of my first times shooting in manual mode. I edited this photo in Photoshop Elements 6. The specs are: f/6.3 1/60 second ISO-800 Focal length 52mm (shot with the kit lens). To view other adorable and fun hat photos head over to I Heart Faces and look around. While you're there, enter one of your own!