Interaction

After all of the thousands of pictures I've taken of her over the last 17 months, she is finally starting to "interact" with the camera. I told her to smile for the camera... and this is the goofy, wide-eyed grin I got!

And, even though I'm so terribly tired of this winter weather, I actually have to admit that this snow is kinda pretty. Ok, it can go away now.

Sunset

We had a beautiful sunset last night. I tried to capture the beautiful colors and these are about as close as I could get. It's amazing what a difference under-exposing does! When I followed my camera's meter I got really dull, bright pics. The ISO is the only thing that I really wasn't sure about... I had it set to 1600.  Does anyone know if there is a "rule" or standard for this type of shot?

Manual. ss 1/80, f/7.1, ISO 1600

This last one was taken at 800 ISO, 1/50, f/5.1. It was one of the 1st I took, so the colors are a little more pink.

Fun in the Sun... and Snow

We decided to bundle up and go outside for a bit today, considering that the SUN finally decided to come out! Here are just a few of the many photos I took... loving that natural light! They may be a touch over-exposed, still getting used to shooting in direct sunlight.  Any cc is welcome!

This last one is a photo of our weeping cherry in our front yard! Can't wait for this baby to bloom!

All taken with Nikon 55-200mm... this was my 

1st time using it. 

Thanks for stopping in! =)

Sweet little shapes

Ten tiny toes...

Ok, so they aren't so tiny anymore. :( My baby is 17 months old today...so hard to believe!

And, as usual, she's playing with mommy's cell phone. It seems like I never get a photo of her without that cell phone anymore! Oh well, at least she sat still long enough for me to capture her sweet little feet!

Aperture Priority Mode. SS 1/80 (1st photo), 1/60 (2nd), F/5.6, ISO 400.

Also, a huge thank you to all of you who voted for my "what is love" photo below, and for all of your sweet comments! It's much appreciated!

And, lastly, for those who asked about the puzzle (see 2 posts down), it's a Melissa & Doug. They make a bunch of different ones and they are perfect for little hands!

Voters Needed!

I entered the photo below in a "what is love?" photo contest at The Polka Dot Daisy. The winning photo gets made into one of Amy's fabulous custom photo necklaces.  I was thrilled to find out that mine was picked as a top ten finalist. The public votes until Sunday evening for the winner. Well, at this point, we, unfortunately, are being blown out of the water! But, with the help of you lovely peas, maybe we can rally back for a triumphant, come from behind victory! Maybe not. But it will still be fun!

If you would like to vote, go here and click on #2!!  As a bonus, just for voting, you can also get 40% off one of her custom photo necklaces!

By the way, the photo is of my daughter and husband on our first family vaca this past summer! My hubby is beyond thrilled (*sarcasm*)that I entered a pic of him on the beach into a photo contest! hehe! What can I say, it's one of my faves!

Thanks for visiting & allowing me to campaign!!!

A Shape Puzzle

As I looked around for some "shapes" to photograph, I came to a seemingly obvious realization. 

For the past (almost) 17 months our home has become one full of shapes, colors, songs, tears and laughter.  It's amazing how such a little person can change the complete dynamic of a home... this one sure has, but we've loved every minute of it!

Playing with a shape puzzle on a bitterly cold February afternoon...

The Shapes of a Farm

Ok, so these photos may not be exactly on theme, but I wanted to share them anyway. 

I grew up on an 80 acre farm that my sister and her family now live in. I shot these this weekend, just playing around... I'm not much of a landscape/nature photographer, but it was fun nonetheless!

Some things she LOVES...

1. She loves loves loves her doggie! They are BFFs for sure! Doggie (well, "daw-ee) was actually her first word! They have so much fun together!

2. Loves playing & being silly with her daddy!

3. Loves mommy's cell phone! It looks like she is in an intense convo right now (the only problem is the phone is not facing the right way!)

4. This girl LOVES to read! She could read (or be read to) all day long! 

5. And she loves her blankie! She is cuddling with it here! She puts it in the crook of her neck and hugs it so tight!

A Tutu & A Lollipop

Happy Valentine's Day fellow bloggers! 

Shot in manual mode. SS 1/60, f/5.6, ISO 400

For the above photo, I used a super cute template that I won from Trisha at Orange Gecko Designs, isn't it so cute?!

Manual. SS 1/60, f/4.8, ISO 400

Thanks for stopping by!!

My love

Kylie loves to look outside at the snow. I caught her checking out the white stuff today. I love the reflection and her breath on the cold window!

I hate the cold and snow (especially in February), but I love this little munchkin!

ISO 400, f/6.3, SS 1/60

The D-O-G

This is Carmen, our 2.5 yr. old YorkiPoo. She is full of energy and can be quite a spaz, but whenever the camera comes out she always looks so calm and innocent!  I took advantage of her "posing" to play a little with aperture and manual focusing.

Shot with my 50mm f/1.8. SS 1/60, f/2.8, ISO 800 and external flash.

Aperture & Composition

Composition is the theme for this week's photography course. It's something that I never consciously thought much about. I've been trying to understand and play with the Rule of Thirds to create more visually-appealing photos. SO, what better excuse to take the kiddo outside with a brand new, bright red slicker to play?  

I also tried to stay on this week's theme of Aperture. The last 3 photos showcase this the best- using a large opening I was pretty happy with the results.

For the most part, all of these are SOOC. I don't have Photoshop yet, so I just do a little tweaking in iPhoto. 

PLEASE give me any advise or tips that can help me make my photos better!  

Thanks for visiting and for all of your feedback! =)

Top 2 photos: Shot in Aperture Priority mode. SS 1/60, f/5.0, ISO 200.

 

Manual mode. SS 1/80, f/4.8, ISO 200. WB Cloudy

Manual. SS 1/80, f.4.8, ISO 200. WB Cloudy

Manual. SS 1/80, f/5.0, ISO 200, flash.

Aperture & Composition

Composition is the theme for this week's photography course. It's something that I never consciously thought much about. I've been trying to understand and play with the Rule of Thirds to create more visually-appealing photos. SO, what better excuse to take the kiddo outside with a brand new, bright red slicker to play?  

I also tried to stay on this week's theme of Aperture. The last 3 photos showcase this the best- using a large opening I was pretty happy with the results.

For the most part, all of these are SOOC. I don't have Photoshop yet, so I just do a little tweaking in iPhoto. PLEASE give me any advise or tips that can help me make my photos better!  

Thanks for visiting and for all of your feedback! =)

Top 2 photos: Shot in Aperture Priority mode. SS 1/60, f/5.0, ISO 200.

 

Manual mode. SS 1/80, f/4.8, ISO 200. WB Cloudy

Manual. SS 1/80, f.4.8, ISO 200. WB Cloudy

Manual. SS 1/80, f/5.0, ISO 200, flash.