The Right Moment

Keeping our minds open and watching for the right moment can result in some fun photos like this one I took of my grandson playing at Lake Sheridan.

And this one my granddaughter took of her friends leg as she played in the sand at the waters edge.

Playing With a Dolphin

My ten year old granddaughter wanted to practice with her camera the other day so I suggested she grab a few figurines and we head out side to find places to pose them. 

Here is what we came up with

Someone had dropped a fuzzy blue scarf which we thought was perfect for photos of her small pink dolphin.

I decided to play around a bit with the two dolphin shots.

Then I saw the drain spout and decided to snap a reflection shot with the dolphin.

Join the reflection fun at Jame's

When boredom strikes I often find myself photographing silly things, how about you, do you ever photography silly things?

Daniele and Son: Sneak Peek

A few weekends ago I had the honor of capturing some fun photos of this Mother and her sweet son. Here are a few of my favorite portraits.

weekend reflection

Linking up with Jame's Weekend Reflection.

Comphy Techy

Shhhh... I'm sleeping ... or computing?
Between 5 and 6am every morning this is where we find my grandson.

Happy Wednesday!

Birthday Party Sneak Peek

This last weekend I had the opportunity to photograph the birthday party of one of my grandson's friends. Here are a few shots of the fun day.

It was the cutest thing ever, this birthday boy really dislikes the birthday song.

Portraits Using Shop Light for Lighting

Here is a peek at some shots I took last Sunday using shop light for lighting. I wired the shop light with dimmer switches but without a soft box or beauty dish the light is still too harsh. I thought about covering the light with white sheeting to create a make shift diffuser but was worried it would catch on fire.

Now if only I had two shop lights I could have lit the backdrop so they stood out better and didn't blend into the background.

There is a lot wrong with the above shot but the grandmother in me loves it. Bubba kept saying he didn't want his picture taken, then all of a sudden he plopped down in front of the girls and I snapped a few shot, this being my favorite. Then he was gone again.

 Now for the really weird shot. My granddaughter Sissy set up this shot. When I asked her to step forward she said "I need to lean against the wall for the picture I want." Curious I asked what type of picture was she wanting. Her reply was that "I want a picture of me like I am a vampire standing up asleep." Well, I figured we needed it a bit darker for that shot and so I dimmed the shop light a bit and turned it to face against the wall behind me and here is what we got.

It may be a bit on the morbid side but I really like the way it turned out.

After the model shoot a few weeks ago and playing with the shop light on Sunday, I have decided that the number one thing on my must buy list is some good photography lights with soft box and beauty dish.

 

Anticipating Spring

Rarely has winter kept me from exploring and capturing the world around me with my camera. However, I do think my granddaughter's antics in this photo capture my own emotions regarding this winter.  Making an attempt to shake off the winter blues, I headed out for a walk during a break in the rain. It appears the whole of nature is also anticipating spring.

Sissy at Japanese Gardens

Have you ever had an off day when you decide on the spur of the moment to do a photo shoot and wind up forgetting important things? Well, I did. I wasn't going to post these as they are certainly not the quality I would expect from myself, but I thought it might be a good way to show what not to forget. Can you tell what I forgot?

 Although they are not the quality I would prefer I did get some cute shots of the kids.

So as you have probably already figured out not only did I forget to bring my reflectors and use flash for fill light I also was not making the proper aperture adjustments. Do you see anything else that I may have forgotten?
What I learned: Make myself a check list so next time I don't forget important things like fill lighting and reflectors.

Flyin' High: Skywatch

Have you ever taken photos from a ride like this?

I tried to convince the grand kids to go on this with me so I could get a few fun shots, but they thought I was crazy. Years ago I took some really fun perspective shots while riding on a roller coaster, so I am sure this would be a great place to get a different perspective on the beach scene.

Bubble Girl

Linking up for Wordless Wednesday.

Horse Rides

Of the many things for children to do at yesterday's pick nick the horse back riding was one of my granddaughters favorite things. Which is amazing considering prior to this she was terrified of horses.

Horses are such fabulous creatures. This one even seemed to smile when I took his photo.

This lovely horse and his guide caught my eye while they were resting between rides.

 

Neglected Camera

That's right, this week my poor camera feels very neglected. Between the heat, rain and preserving peaches my camera spent most of the week sitting on my desk. I was lucky enough to make a few minutes to get away from the peaches late one afternoon once it had cooled down slightly get some fresh air and take a few photos of my grandchildren at a nearby park.

Sunday Best Submission

There are only two of the 14 plus bags of peaches left to preserve and the weatherman says it should cool down by mid week so hopefully my camera wont feel so neglected this next week.

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