Fotography Friday

I say that title like this will be a regular thing, blogging about photography on Fridays. Don't get too excited, haha. I have been playing with my camera a bit today, though, and wanted to document my findings. (Like this is some sort of scientific experiment, ha!)

For Christmas, I got a bunch of Amazon gift cards, as requested (yay family!). I used them all to get some cool new camera stuff - a speedlight (external flash), new battery, backpack for all my gear, and a frame to set up backgrounds. The battery was absolutely necessary, as my 2.5 year old battery bit the dust over Christmas. It won't hold a charge anymore. Of course, my brand new battery wouldn't charge either, which lead me to realize that my battery charger was also dead. Bummer. Luckily, the local Batteries Plus! had a charger I could use, and last night I got my new battery completely charged - whew. I'm shooting my aunt's wedding this weekend so this was essential.

So far, I'm really liking the backpack I got. Its just an Amazon Basics thing, not fancy at all. But its big and has lots of padded, removable compartments inside that perfectly hold my camera body, lenses, new speedlight, and other random things like the battery charger. And there are tons of zippered pockets for storing papers. I think I'll like having a backpack as opposed to a traditional shoulder bag for my camera gear.

I haven't had a chance to use my backdrop stand yet, though I did set it up to see how big it gets. It is huge. I was worried that with it I'd only be able to shoot kids or adults sitting down, but it goes way over my head, so there will be no problems with adults standing. Now I just need some backdrops! For the time being I'm just gonna use sheets or other fabrics I have at home, but eventually I want to get some real muslin stuff.

What I experimented with today was my new speedlight. Its a Newer TT560. Not expensive at all. It was less than $50 on Amazon. That being the case, I really wasn't expecting it to be all that great. Nikon speedlights are several hundred dollars, but who can afford that? Not this chick. I think this Newer speedlight will do just fine for me (unless I go pro in the future, haha). The reviews for this one were great for the most part. I've been wanting an external flash for a while now, because I HATE the one that is built into the camera. Like I wish I didn't have one on my camera body. It sucks. I rarely use it, and never if I'm doing "professional" shots for other people.

When my aunt got engaged a few months ago and asked me to shoot her wedding, I knew I HAD to get a speedlight ASAP. Ideally, shooting an indoor wedding I'd have a much more professional setup with light boxes and umbrellas...but that ain't happenin, either. The church she's getting married in has high ceilings (like most churches do), so I'm anxious to see how I'll bounce the light of the flash in there. I had planned on making everyone tough out the weather (its really not that cold here in NC right now, though it was frigid earlier this week), but now the weatherpeople are saying its supposed to be strong storms with lots of rain tomorrow evening, so we'll most likely be completely inside for photos. Challenging! Luckily, I love a challenge.

Tonight is the rehearsal and dinner, so I'll have an opportunity to practice in the church with my new setup. I'm sure my first few shots will be interesting. ( ;

So I brought my gear to work today so I could play around with the speedlight. I wasn't even sure how to attach it, but it turns out its super easy. And self-explanatory. So I just went to the patient room in the back and took some photos of our little stuffed giraffe.

This was with the speedlight pointed directly at the giraffe. Very stark and bright. Oh, and with a 55-200mm 1.4 lens. (ONE DAY I will have nicer lenses!!) I had the settings on 1/20 and f1.4 with ISO 640. I used the same setting on all the shots; the only thing changed was the angle of the flash.

This was with the flash pointed to the right side of the frame. Much softer, but not ideal.

Flash pointed to the left. I just wanted to see if the shadows moved much. They did a bit.

This turned out to be the ideal setting. Flash pointed behind me, with the diffuser on. It got rid of the shadows and its not too bright. The most natural looking light, I think. (Oh, I had the overhead light off in the room I was in, with the blinds on the window open.)

And since I didn't have any human models around today, I set the timer and took a few shots of myself for comparison. This first shot is with the same camera settings but using the built in flash on the camera:

Very harsh, flat, and unflattering.

Now compare that to this shot, taken with the speedlight pointed behind the camera and with the diffuser on:

Better, huh? Still well lit, but much softer and pleasing to the eye. With richer colors, too. Score!

Needless to say, I am beyond tickled with my new purchases. And I can't wait to keep playing with my new speedlight! ( :

Newborn Photo Shoot

Well, in November I created a facebook page for my photography "business." I didn't share it with anyone; I didn't even add any information to the page. I just created it. And then let it sit there for a few weeks. Earlier this week I decided to work on the page some and share it with my friends. I got over 60 "likes" in the first day! That doesn't seem like a lot, I know, but it was huge to me. It showed me how many of my friends support me. I even got some likes from people I don't know! My hope is that facebook will help grow my little business and get me some real clients. I did have one person contact me about a family session, so we'll see what happens there.

Over Thanksgiving weekend, I did a photo shoot for my great nephew. The conditions weren't ideal, and I struggled to get just a few shots that I could be proud of. But I did get some!

This little guy was hungry and tired when he got to my house, but a bottle and a snuggle didn't do much for him. He was not going to sleep, no matter what we did. All my visions of gorgeous and peaceful newborn poses went out the window. And then he wouldn't be STILL! That youngin flailed his arms around constantly, haha.

For me, it was a stressful first newborn session. Luckily, my niece didn't seem to mind, and since she's not a paying client anyway, I didn't have that added stress.

See the awkward left arm? Sigh. Oh well, its still a cute shot, I think!

This was actually one of my favorites. I think it would have looked even more precious if he had been asleep, but I like his expression.

So, I did learn a few things for future newborn sessions. Well, some things I already knew, but this experience was a good reminder.

1 - Make sure the newborn is actually a newborn. Babies older than about 2 weeks are harder to get to stay asleep while you're posing them. And after 2 weeks I think they're harder to get to sleep in general, especially in new environments. Before 2 weeks, babies will sleep practically anywhere, and since they sleep a LOT, its easier to catch them sleeping so you can pose them. My nephew was just over 2 weeks when I took these photos, and I think he was just past that magical newborn phase.

2 - Make sure the day leading up to the photo shoot is stress-free for the newborn. Meaning, don't have him out all day and then try to take his picture. Chances are, he'll be wired and wanting to just be home and relaxed, not having bright lights all around him and a camera in his face. This probably works for older kids, too. In fact, earlier in the day sessions are probably best!

3 - Remember to really swaddle a fussy baby. We didn't try that with my nephew, but I wish we had. I wonder if it would have calmed him down and at least kept him from moving.

4 - Don't rush yourself. Take your time in setting everything just right and really thinking about the camera settings, the background, your angle, etc. This is something I struggle with all the time. When I'm taking pictures for someone else, I feel like I need to rush so that I don't take all day to get a good shot. I inevitably forget to do something or don't have something exactly right.

5 - This is one thing that I did right, because I learned from C's newborn portrait experience! Make sure the room where you'll be shooting a newborn is WARM! When we had C's newborn pictures done, my photographer had a new studio and it was absolutely freezing in there. Poor C just wasn't happy, and I know it was because she was cold. So I learned that you really need to crank up the heat, especially since most likely the newborn will be naked for at least some of the shots. So for my nephew's session, I cranked the gas logs up so that it was nice and toasty in my living room. I was sweating, but he was totally warm. ( :

Hopefully I'll get more opportunities to do newborn sessions in the future!

Practicing A New Technique

On the camera, that is. I've really been delving into my photography lately. I love it! Last month, I shot a maternity session for my niece and her boyfriend and I was really pleased with the results of that. Well, she had her baby Friday night (I'm a great aunt!!), and sometime soon I'll be doing my great nephew's newborn session. I'm excited about that one, since I've never done a newborn session before. Actually, all of these sessions I've been doing lately have been new for me!

When C was born, I didn't have my fancy Nikon camera. I had a point-and-shoot that looked like a fancy camera, and it took great pictures, but it was pretty old and just not the best quality. But I loved taking pictures, so I was constantly doing just that. We brought C home from the hospital on Christmas Eve, and the day after Christmas we had a blizzard (which is pretty rare for eastern NC). She was almost a week old by that point (she had to stay in the hospital an extra couple of days due to jaundice), and I felt like her newborn period was slipping by. With all the snow outside, I was worried that we wouldn't ever make it to a photographer before she started changing too much. So, I decided to have a little photo shoot with her at home. I had no idea what I was doing, but I had studied tons of newborn pictures that I loved, and tried my best to recreate those images.

I set our Boppy up by the Christmas tree and draped a silky white blanket over it. Thankfully, C slept the whole time, and I was able to move her around and "pose" her with no trouble. I think I did pretty well, and I know if I had had my Nikon back then, I would have gotten some awesome shots.

But that's the extent of my newborn photography experience. I mean, I took photos of C basically every day for months and months, but most of those were quick snapshots using Auto. After I got my Nikon, every once in a while I'd do a "shoot" and actually try to get good quality pictures of her. But most of the time she's not cooperative, and I am always alone trying to do this, so I don't get many good shots. Which is why I still take her to a professional photographer at least once a year!

Anyway, since I've had quite a few people asking for sessions with me lately, I've been really getting into it. I only shoot in manual mode (unless I'm just snapping a quick shot of C or something), and I've really been trying to get out of my comfort zone and get some artistic shots. I can tell I'm getting better, though I definitely wouldn't call myself a pro! I really love taking pictures, though. And for the first time in my life, I'm starting to think maybe this hobby could turn into a source of income for me. In time. I would love that!

But back to the point of this post. I've been studying professional newborn photos and getting ideas for my great nephew's session. Last week, I came across a technique that I thought was awesome - bokeh. Now, bokeh basically just means that something is out of focus, so that it creates a pleasing blurry effect in the picture. Normally, the background is bokeh, but I've seen shots where some of the foreground is blurred. I achieve this effect all the time in my shots. I love for the subject to be crisp and completely in focus, but the background to be nice and blurred. I had no idea the term was "bokeh," though.

I kept seeing bokeh shots with pretty Christmas lights in the background, blurred. Well, its actually pretty simple to achieve that effect, but it does take some practice. I studied up on it last week and then went to the dollar store to get my supplies - Christmas lights (with white strands) and a white sheet for a backdrop. Saturday morning, I set up my "studio" spot and got to work. After a few tries, I got it!

Can you tell that's actually a white shower curtain? The store I went to had plenty of sheets, but none plain white like I wanted. I was about to give up and head to WalMart when I noticed the shower curtains. For the baby's session, obviously we'll have a basket or something with soft blankets to lay him on, but the shower curtain will give a nice white background. I actually bought two, so I can use one on the floor if needed. Plus, it helps bounce light back onto my subject.

I tried to get C to sit still for a few test shots, but that was easier said than done! She was snackin on Cheetos and just wouldn't be still, haha.

I wouldn't say I've "mastered" this technique just yet, but I feel confident that I can get some good shots with this backdrop. My niece loves the idea, so she'll be game to try it, at least. Of course, we'll do some "normal" backgrounds, too.

Nemo had to get in on the bokeh action, too! His shots didn't turn out quite like I wanted, but by that point C was getting antsy with me ignoring her. ( ;

So here's a wide shot of my setup. I took this to help myself remember what I did.

Nice, huh? Haha. Clearly, I need to get more lights. That's on my agenda for today. I want to have a wider area with lights. When I bought these, I had no idea how this would all work, so I wasn't sure how many to buy. And I bought mini strands. I think I'll try to find regular length strands today. DH even suggested icicle lights. We actually have a bunch of those, but I'm hoping he'll put those on the house in the next few weeks, so I want to have a special set just for this purpose.

I've been brainstorming ideas of how to hang the backdrop for indoor sessions like this. Here, I just draped the shower curtain over our china hutch, and then taped the light strands to it. But at other people's houses, I might not have that option. Plus, I need a way to drape the lights so that they are higher. And maybe put a table in front so the subject is elevated...hmmm, now there's an idea! (I had the tractor and Nemo on a stool, and C was in a chair, but obviously I can't do either with a newborn.) Either way, I definitely need more lights to make it wider.

I'm really having fun learning more about photography. I thought it might be hard to admit that I'm not as good as I think I am, and that I have more to learn, but honestly, its not been hard at all, and I've been enjoying the process. I like seeing my photos improve over time. Photography has been something that's interested me for a long time, and for as long as I can remember I've wanted to take a class. So in a way, I'm kinda living my dream by pursuing this. I hope to take a real class next year. And get more equipment (like an external flash!). And gain some actual paying clients. I did have someone contact me last week about doing a (paid!) session, so hopefully that will happen soon.

I'm in the process of creating a facebook page for my photography "business," and seeing where it takes me. Eventually, if things go well, I'll do a separate blog and website, too. Who knows? Maybe this will make me some money one day. Wouldn't that be nice? My sister is always telling me about a woman she knows who started out just like me and learned as she went. Now she has a successful photography business and that's her full-time job. That would be awesome, cause then I could be with my child more. I tend to get really caught up in my dreams, so I'm trying really hard not to let myself get my hopes too high with this one!

Last weekend, I shot a session for my friend's 2 year old son. I was happy with that session, too.

This was in the field behind my house. I was pretty nervous about this session, since I know from experience how 2 year olds can be! But he did really well and let me get some super cute shots of his adorable smile.

My aunt is getting married in January, and she's asked me to be the official photographer. That makes me nervous, even though I've done two weddings before (two of my cousins couldn't afford a photographer, so I shot their weddings, and was actually pretty proud of my work, even though that was pre-Nikon for me). It makes me nervous because this time I'll expect much more of myself, since I have a fancier camera and I know more now than I did. Plus, it'll be indoor, and indoor shots always make me nervous. I'll be studying up a lot between now and then!

After my niece had the baby on Friday, my sister told me that I better be preparing myself to be the photographer at her wedding, as well. So I guess that's two weddings I'll shoot next year. Yikes. Unfortunately, I won't make money at either of those events, but hopefully they'll help me build my portfolio and get some paying clients one day.

Next up, I gotta figure out how to put a "watermark" with my logo on my photos! I did it once, but it took forever. There's gotta be a simple way to add a watermark to multiple photos, right? I mean, if I'm gonna start advertising on facebook, I need my name on my shots so people will know its my work! Whether this venture actually works out or not remains to be seen, but even if it doesn't I'm gonna have fun learning, and if nothing else, I'll get some cool shots of my family along the way! ( :

Playing Pro

Once we made it through VBS last week, I expected the weekend to be relaxed and carefree. Well, now that its over I can't quite say that was the case, but it was fun nevertheless!

I got up early Saturday morning and did a ton of cleaning. My house had been basically neglected all week last week, so I had a lot of catching up to do. C helped me (or kept me company, haha) with most of the chores, but thank goodness for Sesame Street on Netflix when it was time for me to vacuum and mop!

We ate an early lunch and played outside some more. C had been acting tired all morning, so I decided to put her down for a nap early. By 1:15 she was out on my bed, and I was able to get up and leave her there! This is such a big deal to me. Remember for months now she has to be held for the entire nap. I prefer her to nap in her crib (so I can change my sheets if need be), but I'll take what I can get at this point. While C napped, I scrubbed the bathrooms and finished up the laundry, then I settled down on the couch to transfer videos from the Flip camera to the computer and flash drive. Of course, then I got wrapped up watching old videos, like C's birth and some of her "firsts" moments. Bittersweet!!

After C had been asleep about 2 hours, she woke up and called me. I told her I was on the couch, so she walked in there and climbed up into my lap and laid her head against my chest. I thought she was watching videos with me, but when I looked at her again, she was sound asleep! I held her until I was done transferring the videos, then I eased her down onto the couch, and she did not wake up. It was amazing (lol). She slept about another hour there. I wasn't being quiet at all, but I didn't want to wake her up because I knew she'd be ill if I did that. So she slept a total of 3 hours Saturday! Which of course meant she stayed up way too late that night.

Saturday evening, I left C with her daddy and I headed to the local college to take my niece's senior pictures. That was so much fun! I shot almost entirely in Manual mode, and I was so proud of myself. My sister helped me with poses and props, and she did a great job. My niece was crowned homecoming queen and prom queen, plus she's a very talented soccer player (she got a scholarship to play soccer this fall!), so we had an interesting array of props to work with. I was absolutely exhausted when I got home, but it was worth it. I haven't had a chance to edit any of the pictures yet. Most of them I will be able to leave as-is, but some need some lighting work. If I had one of those light bouncer things or an external flash, things would have been a little easier...! But I'll save up for photography accessories. ( :

is she beautiful or what??

I was also having a weird problem with my camera that was really slowing me down. I'd get the exposure settings just right, take a gorgeous picture, and then the settings would get out of wack. There has got to be a way to lock the settings until I move them again, but I haven't been able to figure it out yet. :/ And I've asked 2 professional photographers that I know, and neither one knew how to fix my problem. So the quest continues.

Anyway, late that night, I posted some sneak peaks of the session to facebook and got a lot of compliments. My sister and niece were really happy with what they saw. I just hope they like the rest of the shots as much!


Yesterday was of course Father's Day. I gave DH his present Saturday nice since I knew Sunday would be busy. We gave him a nice electric razor and he loved it. Men are so hard to buy for, so I am thrilled when I actually get him something he likes! haha

We went to Sunday School, and C went to the nursery class by herself for the first time. It was weird (but nice) not to have her in our class, distracting us. She enjoyed her class and the teacher said she was very well-behaved. We left after that because we had a family reunion to attend. The reunion was fun and we ate some really good food there. And C made friends with one of her cousins, who she nicknamed Pecan for some reason. It was hilarious! (By the way, around here, we say "Pecan" like PEE-can, not pe-CAHN.)

C's inner demon escaped when we got home, haha. She napped part of the way home, and I had hoped she'd go back to sleep on my bed, but that didn't happen. She was wide awake, and of course DH and I were exhausted and just wanted a quick nap. C was overtired so she was being kinda bad and driving us insane. We can laugh about it now, but yesterday afternoon we definitely were not laughing!!

Finally, I decided to play Just Dace on the Wii with C. That made her stop whining and she had fun. Plus I got in a good workout. ( :  After that, we headed to my other sister's house for a Father's Day cookout. We don't see my sisters and their kids often, but I always enjoy spending time with them. My other niece is pregnant with her first child, so its an exciting time. And I'll be doing her maternity pictures and her newborn session, so I'm looking forward to those challenges!

We got home after 8 and we had to feed the animals, so it was close to 9 by the time we were getting our baths and getting ready for bed. I could tell C was exhausted but she was holding up well. She was out in her crib before 10, which was wonderful. Then DH went to bed because he had a headache. I should have gone to bed, too, but I stayed up doing research for our upcoming trip to the Outer Banks of NC. By the time I decided to call it quits for the night, I still had to wash my face and all, and after that I was wide awake, so I read for a while in bed. Like until 1am. (Bad Nikki!!) Not long after I finally drifted off to sleep, C woke up crying. I brought her to bed with us and she kept us up pretty much the rest of the night. I think she was just overtired and couldn't sleep well because of that. Toddlers are so finicky!! So I feel like I've been hit by a truck this morning. Hopefully tonight I can get to bed earlier. And hopefully C will sleep better, in her own bed!

DH's cousin is bringing her newborn baby down to visit everyone today, so I'll finally get to meet that baby. I'm excited about that, even though I know its gonna send my baby fever into overdrive, haha. Everyone keeps asking me and DH when we're gonna have #2, and its hard to know what to say. We want another child, but we're not sure when. Both of us are pretty much just open to God's timing, though. That's how we were when we conceived C. We were cool with having a baby right away or having to wait a while. We'll see what happens. ( :


This is random, but I don't want to forget: Saturday morning me and C had been in and out of the house a lot. I was hanging out clothes on the line and she'd go with me, then we'd play on the swing set for a while before coming back in so I could get more cleaning done. At point point she asked me if we could go back outside, and I told her we could in a little while. She said, "but Jesus is outside!" I love that kid. <3

Weekend Recap

We have been having some seriously great weekends lately! We've had places to be and things to do but nothing too stressful. Mostly I've just tried to really enjoy spending time with C. I've really loosened up on my house cleaning obsession, haha. Not that I've ever had a spic-n-span house, but I have finally learned that a little dust on the furniture is okay. As long as the bathrooms are cleaned, floors are swept, dishes are washed, and we have clean clothes, I'm good.

The floors being swept are kinda my issue, though. I'm a little obsessed with it! Well, my husband would probably say I'm extremely obsessed, lol. I sweep at least 2 times a day. I hate dirt on my floor!!! Luckily our house is not very big so sweeping doesn't take long at all. ( :

Anyway! Like I said, this weekend was pretty great. Very relaxing, and I didn't get anything done that I planned. But that's okay. Me and C had some fun!

Saturday morning we went to my brother's house. His girlfriend has a 3 year old boy (K), and C likes playing with him. They played inside for a while, then jumped on the trampoline outside. C loved that. We may have to purchase one in the near future...haha. After that, we headed to the jewelry store. I am finally having my ring sized down. Turns out my finger is a lot smaller than I thought! I'm only getting my engagement band sized down. The wedding band will still be loose, but it'll be held in place by the other ring. I wanted to make sure I could at least wear one of my rings if I go through another pregnancy! We also dropped off a bracelet that my husband bought for C on her birthday last year. Yes, it was in December, and yes, its taken me 6 months to get it sized. Whoops. Its a silver charm bracelet and he got her a beautiful charm with a "C" on it to start.

After lunch (which we ate on a beach towel in the living room - C thought that idea was genius!), me, C, and my mama headed to my sister's house for my niece's graduation party. We got there before most of the younger people, so we went swimming in the pool. C had a blast! She has absolutely no fear of the water. I can't decide if that's good or bad! I didn't have a float for her, so I was just holding her while she kicked her little feet (so cute!), and she kept sayin "let me go, Mama!" Uh, yeah, that didn't happen! Then she wanted to climb up the ladder and jump into the pool. She was having so much fun but it was kinda stressful for me. I was so worried that she'd slip through my hands or something. I am definitely getting her some of those little arm floats. I can see a lot of pool time in our future this summer!

Yesterday was my husband's family reunion. He and his dad were in charge of cooking the pig this year, so DH was out of the house by 3am to get it started. So C and I went to Sunday School alone. Before it started, C told one of the women in our church that I wouldn't give her any Cheerios (she has turned into a tattler lately, lol), and the woman said "well, if you come to our class today you can have Goldfish!" That was all it took for C to want to go, haha. She normally comes to our class during Sunday School. She eats Cheerios and is actually very good about being quiet, so we've never taken her to the toddler class. But she liked it! I stayed the whole time just to make sure she'd be okay. Hopefully next week I can just leave her in there and go on up to my class.

(This reminds me: last Sunday during church, C walked down the aisle to the front all by herself for Children's Moment! She is growing up way too fast!!!)

The reunion went well. We had it in the church fellowship hall this year, which was wonderful because of the A/C! (We normally have it outside at my in-laws' house.) The food was delicious, C went to the potty several times (yay!!), and everyone had a good time. It made my baby fever intensify, though! There were a few pregnant women there (one of which went into labor last night and had her baby earlier today!), and a few new babies. Made my uterus ache, lol.

After the reunion, C passed out on our bed. And for the first time in months, she napped without being held!!! It was glorious to be able to get up while she was sleeping and do stuff. I did cheat, though: I nursed her to sleep, then eased off the bed. Hey, whatever works, right? This was huge. I can't remember the last time she took a nap without being held. If you try to lay her down for a nap she wakes up screaming. So we've all just been going with it. Its hard to complain when she sleeps so well at night.

During her nap, DH and I actually had whole conversations. Doesn't sound impressive, I know, but it is hard to have a real conversation with him when C is around! She's good as gold when we go out, but at home she likes the spotlight to be on her, haha. (She comes by it naturally, me and DH are both kinda like that!) And she's so stinkin cute its hard not to let her have the spotlight! I'm hoping that this nap-by-herself thing is gonna become the norm.

I also made her shirts for Bible School while she was asleep yesterday. Bible School starts tonight, and I am so excited! This will be C's first one, and I think she'll love it. I'll be staying with her, but it'll give me a chance to hang out with one of my friends, since her little boy will be in C's class. It'll be a fun week, but a rushed one. Bible School starts at 6:30. I usually get home between 5:30-5:45, so that doesn't give us much time to get cleaned up and get some supper in us. I told DH we'd probably be eating a lot of sandwiches and microwave dinners this week. (I should have prepared by making some freezer meals for this week. Hindsight is 20/20!) I'm going to the grocery store later to stock up on things that are super quick to cook/prepare.

Wish us luck this week as we rush around to get to church every night! It will be a busy week all around for me. I've got an eye doctor appointment later this week, and I'm curious to see what he says about my eyes. I've been having a lot of pain in them for a while now, and I can no longer wear my contacts, which makes me super sad. I despise wearing glasses. I'm also going back to the chiropractor again this week. He's been working on my TMJ, and he thinks that's what caused my trigeminal neuralgia a few weeks ago (did I blog about that? I can't remember!).

This coming Saturday I'm shooting my niece's senior pictures. That should be fun. I've got a ton of ideas for her. Oh, and that reminds me! Last week I purchased a tripod for my camera! I'm super excited about that. I've been wanting one for a while now. This baby goes up to 5', maybe a little more. I didn't use it much this weekend, but I did snap a quick picture of me and C with it...

Sunday is Father's Day, which will be another busy day. After that, our weekends should calm down a little. Let's hope so, cause I need a beach day STAT!! ( :

Dream Big

You know what I think would be the coolest job ever? Being a photographer. You get to play with your camera and be creative every day, and capture special moments in people's lives. But then you are in charge of capturing special moments in people's lives! Which means if you screw up, those people hate you. Yeah, that would be pretty stressful. And I have seen first-hand how challenging being a photographer is. Picture a whiny 2 year old who does not feel like having her picture made that day. Or the newborn who does nothing but scream because he doesn't want to be naked right then. Or the bratty 5 year old who decides she won't be smiling for any reason that day. Yeah, stressful...

So maybe being a photographer wouldn't be the best job ever. I bet if it wasn't your full-time job, your man gig that pays the bills, it would stay enjoyable. If it was just a paying hobby, you could be selective of your clients and your appointments. Plus, you wouldn't have to do weddings every Saturday just to keep your lights on.

Why do I bring this up? Because I love taking pictures and learning new photography techniques, and I have a cool camera (Nikon d5100). I got it last May, and its the best thing I ever bought myself (well, I had help from my family - hello, birthday money!). Before I got this camera, I was shooting with my husband's little point-and-shoot Nikon, which was fine but didn't allow me to be very creative. I had to use that camera because my last nice camera died. I can't even remember now what it was, a Kodak I think. It was a point-and-shooter, but it looked like a DSLR, which I loved. And it took great pictures until it died. In fact, I took C's newborn pics myself using that camera.

Considering the camera I was working with, I think these turned out awesomely. (And considering how this was 2 days after we got home from the hospital and I was exhausted and still fat and all that, haha.) I would love to see what I could do now with my fancy camera.

Anyway, I've always thought it would be awesome to have a photography business on the side. No, I'm not sure I'm good enough to do that. Yes, I know there are a ton of really talented photographers out there. And yes, I know that just having a nice camera doesn't make me a professional. However, I think I have a good eye and with some more education and practice I could consistently produce wonderful images. Besides, I have shot for other people before: I was the sole photographer for both of my cousins weddings (which I swore I would never do again for free, lol), and I've done a few sessions for special occasions like my sister-in-law's college graduation and portraits of my friend and her baby. I've had people ask me to do sessions for them later this year, too.

Of course, so far I haven't been paid for any of this, and mostly its been for my family. But I figure its good to build my portfolio before I start trying to attract paying clients, right?

I've been toying with this idea for a while now. I have a lot to learn, and I'd love to take a photography class, but its hard to find one locally (and that I can afford). In the meantime, I'm reading all I can and practicing whenever I can (mostly taking pictures of C and the animals on our farm). And hopefully I'll get some more people interested to help me build my portfolio and eventually grow a business. Maybe it'll work out.

Or maybe I'm dreaming dreams that are too big. Maybe I'm too confident in myself. I don't know. The way I see it, you have to have dreams. Even if those dreams don't become reality. This morning I was going through some pics I took yesterday evening of C (I let her jump in mud puddles!), and one stuck out to me and I just had to add a caption to it. And then I decided to take my own advice. We'll see what happens. ( :