We love to play on the deck in the morning, after breakfast. The morning sun is incredible, and won't be around much longer as winter is sneaking up on us...These pics reminded me of "Here comes the Sun" by the Beatles, one of my favorites. I always sang it to Jillian while she was in my belly, and still do. She smiles every time.
I feel like I've loved these two my entire life.
Well, I'm deep into lesson one with Amber Ludlow. This week is all about my basics... ISO, shutterspeed and aperature. And finally, we get some sunshine here in Michigan, so I can get going on this week's assignment! I really wanted to have good natural light, and it was almost dark when I got home from work, arrrgh. I thought about pulling out my seamless white backdrop, and I may still do so...stay tuned
Finally, done...doesn't call for a drumroll, that's for sure. So the assignment was one subject, (not a person) different settings. These were shot in Manual Mode (yay for me!) with my 50 mm 1.4 lens. Yeah, I know, I'm so fantastically creative. Bottles of wine. It's been a long week. And yes, I cracked one open when I was done!
I've been tagged by Tesa, a friend I met at ILP. Go check out her blog at http://tjleeder.blogspot.com/. Doesn't her georgous images make you antsy for fall?
Anyways, being tagged means that I have to come up with 8 things about me, and then "tag" 8 more friends to do the same. So here goes...
1. I'm a car girl. I grew up around classic cars, was helping my dad when I was three years old, and go figure, I've settled in the Motor City with a man who also loves classic cars. I can name about 99% of cars and give you their make, model and year. I'm a car nerd! And as of yesterday, I'm the proud owner of a 1967 Mustang Coupe in Wimbledon White. A 35th birthday present from my amazing hubby. I'm in love!
2. My daughter's middle name is "Cruz" and it means Cross in Spanish. I fought tooth and nail for that name, and if we had a boy it would have been his first name.
3. I have 3 tatoos. A butterfly, a flower, and an Om.
4. I'm 35 years old and I still get laugh-attacks. You know, the ones you used to get when you were 7 years old and almost pee your pants? Yeah, those. All the time. Especially with my family.
5. I lived in Panama, Central America when I was 8-12 years old. I've seen poverty like we'll never see here in the United States. I had a taxi driver who drove me to elementary school everyday. We had a live-in maid, and my mom didn't speak a lick of Spanish. My sister was born there. Noriega was in power. What an amazing experience.
6. I'm gearing up for my first photography class in 15 years. And boy do I need it. Remember, before digital? Nothing like processing film in a 6x6 closet! I'm not sure why I waited sooo long!?
7. I'm horrible at remembering names. Really bad. That's not good considering my "real" job is in sales!
8. Running out of interesting things about me... ok, I LOVE the color grey. I know, strange color to love, but I do.
Ok, now the fun part, I get to tag 8 more friends. So here goes... Tagging...
1. Nicole Fields http://www.nicolefieldsphotography.com/blog/
2. Meegan Littlefield http://meeganlittlefield.blogspot.com/
3. Tagging my idol, Erin Drallos
http://www.footprintsphotography.blogspot.com/
4. Amber Ludlow flickr.com/photos/8645758@N06/530998101
5. Sarah Quiara http://roxyandkaiphotography.blogspot.com/
6. Chris from ILP http://www.justusplainandsimple.blogspot.com/
7. AmberJo from ILPhttp://amberjohanson.blogspot.com/
and finally...
8. Nicholette! http://onedayatatime365.blogspot.com/
Thanks guys, have fun :)
Yesterday, I found out that starting on the 24th of this month, I'll be working under an amazing photographer in the industry...Amber Ludlow! I'm excited and nervous all wrapped up into one, and thrilled that she's including me in her next class, "Photographing the Everyday". I haven't had a photography class in 15+years! After searching high and low, and weighing my options, I knew that I wanted to start out with a mentorship-like setting with a well-established photographer vs. taking a generic class online or at a college. Amber has amazing vision through her work. More importantly, we share similar philosophies... "There have been so many times in my life where I wish that I could freeze time. Whether it was a vacation that I was really enjoying, or the first time we brought Jackson home from the hospital. In a sense with my camera I am allowed to do just that. I can freeze a single moment in time. Wow, what a powerful concept that is! There are many big events in our lives that we want to remember, like past Holidays or sending your first child off to kindergarten. But the in between moments are what makes our lives ours. Those moments are what I set out to capture. Those moments tell our story"
I couldn't have said it any better myself. Thanks Amber, and I can't wait to get started!
My baby brother's home from Atlanta for the first time in 4 months. These two were inseperable. We all miss him so much, and can't wait 'til Turkey day!
A few shots from an impromptu session with my neice. Had to try the lollipop thing.
How lucky am I to have these guys as my muse? Yep. This is my very best friend, Sara and her hubby Jason. Two of my favorite people in the whole world. What a fantastic time we had! Jason was a trooper, and Sara is the location queen, having picked out all the right places for us. They were so much fun, touching, goofy and spontaneous all wrapped up into one. No wonder they've been happily married for 6 years, and have 2 beautiful children, to boot. See their munchkins in post below titled "Picture Day". You guys rock! I am forever grateful, and can't wait for the next time with the whole family. These were a few of my favorites.
One of my new favorite backdrops is this great little cabin in the park by our house. I've shot here before, and I keep going back to it. Ms.Jillian is fascinated with the bricks. Here's a few shots.
So sweet, so sweet. And she got het first tooth today! Taking advantage of the back yard while the weather's still nice and sunny. Her Nuby makes a cute prop, nice color on camera. Who knew.
Whew! We're back from a long weekend "up North". By the way, if you haven't been "up North" in Michigan, you're simply missing out. It's a refreshing change of pace this time of year. This was also our very first vacation together as a family. We had a blast! We bounced around from Houghton Lake to Ludington and a couple places in between. Lake Michigan is as beautiful as ever, and I haven't been over there in awhile *sniff*.
So we're home...check my e-mail...to my surprise, a message from Erin Drallos - an inspiring local photographer. Her link would be the one titled "my all time favorite". I was floored and flattered that she took the time to contact me and offer some encouraging words. Her work is amazing. Also, some encouraging words from Meegan Littlefield, another inspiring photographer whose work I just adore. Just what I needed after a long weekend.
Ok, so of course, we took a billion pictures. We had a chance to catch a sunset, have a picnic, and dig our little toes in the shores of Lake Michigan. We had a great time, but there's no place like home!
