Sand and Sunsets

April 20, 2012 in Uncategorized

Edit Me

I recently discovered the Edit Me Challenge through another blog I was visiting. Each week they have offer an image for you to edit and the following week they pick the favorite three and an overall winner.

This week I thought I would try it for fun. I also used it as an opportunity to play with different techniques and go further than I would normally do on a traditional edit.

Here is the original for the Edit Me Challenge.

Here is my edit:

I created several layers, one with the background, one with the cutie girl, and another with the canvas texture. I adjusted the opacity on the canvas layer for a subtle look and texture. I added some saturation and contrast and played with the color. I wanted the finished product to be soft.

The following pictures were taken from the car on the way to Cincinnati. I decided to go bold with one and subtle with the other.

I had to take these with a higher ISO and shutter speed, so I did have some noise and graininess. The clouds were irresistible, so it was either shoot from the passenger seat or miss them.…

Shooting the Farm

April 3, 2012 in Uncategorized

Jer and I both grew up on farms. When I realized that we were going to be traveling to his grandparents farm this weekend, I knew I’d want to take my camera and get some shots while I am there. Then I remembered that I had taken some shots awhile ago that I had never edited or shared.

I love the color of this lantern so I did a basic edit, adjusting the contrast and boosting the clarity.

For this chair I did a basic edit, then added some warmth to it, and added some vibrance to make that yellow pain pop.

For this dusky shot of their pond, I added some warmth and cropped it to bring the sun into the corner a bit more, which seems to help the composition.

DeanO was also taking some shots that day. We walked around the house, the barns and the pond looking for interesting photos and enjoying the weather. He loves having my old camera and looks for good shots. Here is one of his photos from that day. He has a pretty good eye for an 8 year old!

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Wordful Wednesday: The Importance of Practice

March 13, 2012 in Wordful Wednesday

This past weekend, I got the opportunity to shoot some pictures at a nearby park. My friend and her girls ended up going with us. Her daughter .J. proved to be a very willing poser and I got some great shots of her on a spontaneous photo shoot. I used the one above for the natural light challenge.

You can see more shots from this “session” by clicking here.

This spontaneous shoot was so fun and relaxing. It was also a great learning experience as I practiced using my camera to photograph people.

It’s easy to forget the benefits of practice. What lost skill or talent would you be able to revive with a little practice?

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