Last night the supermoon was here and I thought for awhile that I would miss it like the lunar eclipse due to visibility but I did get to see it after all! I wish I'd been out when it was rising but I only got pictures of it in the night sky.
Photographing the supermoon was a bit easier than a 'normal' moon as I felt like I didn't have to zoom as much and it was bright and well lit.
My kids LOVE doing arts & crafts, especially Bea! I've always been of the mind to expose them to many different things and let them explore being creative, which is all great, but it does create quite a few messes ;p
Yesterday I decided to take Bea & Bubby to Michaels to pick out some things to work on this week during Spring break. Yes, we have enough supplies to make arts and crafts for years ;) but I figured something new would be fun too!
So we got several items and sure enough they had to dabble with each and everyone in a single day, LOL! And this morning I woke up to a freshly painted project by Bea. While I'm enjoying spring break and the break from the 'normal routine' I'm also reminded how much 'cleaning up' is to be done over the break, LOL!
Here's a few of the projects they've been experimenting with:
The bouncy balls have been surprisingly easy! The frog was only $1 and is still in the works. The A is completed. The captapult was only $1 and needs to be painted still. We also got several other things but I did not feel like hunting them all down for the picture. And yes in the background that is acrylic paint on the countertop, hoping it'll come off, LOL!
Bea's painted project. The example at the store was light pink with dark pink polka dots, to her this translated into a 2 toned with contradicting dots and bewjeweled with shapes, she's an outside the box thinker, LOL
This was a fun assignment! I was to used framing to focus attention on my subject.
Truthfully I was stumped about this for awhile, then I happened to be out taking a picture for another assingment and happend to be in the right place at the rigth time for the idea to pop in my brain :)
Here is what I used:
Bea & her balloon
My instructor enjoyed this photo, as do I :) I figured that it may be unique and a change of pace from the 'normal' stuff that people think about doing for framing photos.
Really this was a opportunity by chance, luckily she had a balloon with her (and it even matches her outfit, my friends will crack up about that!!) and thankfully we had just enough of a breeze to have it blowing over to the right. Like I said, right time, right place, rigth cirumstances :)
Some others I considered:
I love the shadow in this one!
While I like this one, I thought it made the balloon the subject of the picture and I wasn't too sure about that
And some framing photos from the past:
One of my favorite photos from Japan, taken along the Tanahasi Coastline, from the window of an old fortress
When is the last time you've imported the pics on your cell phone to your computer? It's been quite awhile for me, I got a kick out a few of the pics on there! Sure the quality on a cell phone is not nearly as good as a camera but it's great for capturing those hilarious moments on the go!
Bea entertaining herself while waiting for one of Boo's basketball games to start
She loved these over sized decorations and had to have a photo with them
Giant lollipop!
And a few videos of Boo and his current obsession...dunking
One of my biggest desires in taking this photography course is that I will be able to offer newborn photography services sometime in the future. So far I've had 2 sessions to practice, the first was a HUGE learning curve and the second went a bit better...I feel like I'm making slow, yet steady progress :)
My friend lent me her 50mm lens this past week for my 2nd newborn shoot and I LOVED it! I'll be getting one very soon! I was able to use natural lighting (the day was a bit overcast) and a reflector with no artificial lighting.
Here are a few of my favorite pictures:
Teacup Baby
I have to say that I LOVE this photo! I had just gotten this prop and was so excited to try it out! The first time we tried to use it the baby was not having it so we moved on and came back to it at the end. Thankfully after a few minutes of finagling with her to get her situated she fell back asleep and I got the photo!
I had originally wanted her on her belly up on her knees, she did NOT want to lay like that so I adapted and got these cute shots!
I love the way this turned out! I had never used this lens before and am so thankful that I didn't mess up all the pictures ;)
This morning I woke to the news of an 8.9 earthquake in Japan that has caused a major tsunami that has devastating effects on the country. This is so near to my heart because we lived in Japan for 3 years and we loved it! Thankfully the US bases and personnel have been accounted for and all our friends are safe and sound. Praying for Japan as there is going to be a major time of rebuilding for the hard hit areas.
As I hear of this giant 30 ft wave sweeping through farmlands and taking out homes I can recall the beauty of the scencic countryside with it's rich, black soil and lushious crops. Here are some photos:
Photography - Creating Distance with Depth of Field
For this assignment I had to use a great depth of field to create a feeling of distance. I really struggled with what subject to use for this assignment, and finally decided upon using the museum items that is literally across from my backyard.
While probably not super 'exciting' I felt confident that it would be 'unique' from the normal stuff my instructor gets :)
This was the photo I chose to send:
The idea was to have something in the foreground to help emphasize the depth of field.
While my instructor enjoyed this photo her suggestion was that I could've added a person in the photo to and an extra element, had I actually thought about that during the shoot I could've sent Mr. B up to read the plaque by the plate. Unfortunately I was much too focused on getting the shot 'done' and sent in to move forward with the next unit.
The others I considered:
I didn't like the large shadow across the front of this photo
Again shadow issue and the car in the background annoys me, LOL!
And some previous photos from before:
Japan's replica of the Statue of Liberty
Seagull Island
Yes, indeed this is an 'adventureous' trek. Omah had to use an umbrella for good measure and Poppie his hood! The rest of us ran and made it through successfully without getting hit with a 'surprise'
This assignment I was to use the shutter speed to express a sense of motion or speed, either by blurring or freezing, or somewhere in between.
I ended up choosing a 'frozen' shot and this time got a unique subject, a juggler from Frontier days! The funny part was when he kept messing up and dropping them he would apologize to me, I mean I wasn't expecting him to be perfect or anything, LOL, so I have no idea why he kept apologizing.
Here is the photo I submitted for my assignment:
Frontier Juggler
The only suggestion from my teacher was possibly not having the tents in the background, I personally rather like them there, see like I said it's VERY subjective
Here are some of the other juggler shots:
As you can see I was having some glare issues from this angle
Blurring motion
And even before I started 'formal' training I was using the DIY method of teaching myself how to use this method:
Waterfall in Iceland
The above photo was taken long before I got my 'good' camera and was taken with a point and shoot camera
As many of you know I'm currently taking a Photography course (and starting a Photoshop one soon, I have the materials now, I just need to start it!) so I thought I'd do some posts about my assignments and such. Of course I had to wait and make sure that I actually passed the assignments before considering blogging about it, LOL!
The one problem I had when trying to figure out what idea to use for each assignment is that photography can be so subjective and that I didn't want to do the same old, same old idea that everyone else had used. Not that I managed to succeed with that theory on each assignment :)
The other thing I learned is that it is TOO easy to start over thinking everything! So I try to not do that and keep it simple and not over analyze everything.
One of my first assignments was using selective focus to make the subject stand out. This was the photo that I chose to submit:
The Beauty of Fall
Yes, I realize that close up of leaves have been done many times BUT you have to give a break as this was my first assignment :)
Not only do I LOVE the colors of this leaf but I love the shape as well
Thankfully my teacher enjoyed it as well!
Some other photos that I considered:
While I like the leaf here too, I like it much better in the close up photo
Again I was drawn to the shape and color, but the ones around it I wasn't too happy with
A close up of the star shaped leave, the pockmarks on the leaf bothered me, those who know me know my 'issues' can make things interesting and harder than it should be
I also love this one of the goose head but I wasn't sure if the teacher would like it, so I stuck with the classic leaf, I know sometimes I can be my own worst enemy
Even back in Japan when I first got my Canon Rebel Xti I was experimenting with selective focus:
Looking at photos from Japan is bittersweet as I LOVED living there but I desperately miss it even to this day, over 2 years later! Praying that an overseas assignment will be in our near future
I am married to my wonderful husband, Mr. B, who is in the US Air Force, currently at 17 years of service.
We have three great kids: Boo 16, Bubby 12, and Bea 10.
We are currently stationed in Montgomery, AL and will be moving back overseas to Spangdahlem, Germany in Nov. 2013!
We have lived in Keflavik, Iceland and Misawa, Japan and met some amazing friends along the way! I love posting about our wild traveling adventures. We are excited to see what God has in store for us ahead!
I am a DONA certified labor doula and LOVE helping moms have a great birth experience. Also a certified professional photographer and look forward to working on and developing my skills. I'm also crazy busy working on endless projects inspired by endless craft ideas found on the Internet :)
