Bridals....first attempt!

I had my first experience doing a bridal session. My cousin got married last Saturday and she let me practice on her. I have decided that I don't really want to do weddings or bridals very often. It is way too much pressure and stress for me. They turned out very nice for my first time though. Some better than others, of course. Isn't she gorgeous though? She had a beautiful dress. I was a little disappointed because I should have corrected for how white her dress is, but haven't quite figured out the gray card thing yet. Oh well...it will come. Enjoy the numerous photos.

All grown up!

My Aunt is in town for my cousins wedding (BTW, I'm supposed to take bridals for her.....ahhhh! never done that before. Sooo nervous!) and she has some lenses that fit my Canon. So, I decided to take Eden out and finally do some realy 2-year -old pictures. Isn't that sad: she turned 2 in January and I never had real pics done. Better late than never, right?
I am starting to realize how much she looks like a little girl now instead of my baby. It's crazy! She is beautiful though. These are some of my favorites. I had a problem with camera shake because I was using a telephoto lens, so that was a little annoying. I don't like using a tri-pod though, so I am going to have to learn how to not shake, or increase my shutter-speed...one of the two. Let me know what your fav's are though because I need to get some printed.

Speed Session

So, my brother and his family came to visit last week with their 3 kids. We had a lot of fun, but it was sure crazy! We kept talking about going out somewhere to take family pictures for them, but never got to it. So, instead, we did a mega-speed session before church on Sunday. The pictures turned out pretty good considering the lack of good light and good back grounds. I am actually not posting their family shots because I didn't like the background it them...way too busy. The rest of them turned out okay, but I would definitely like to have some more time next time around so that we can get some good lighting and good backgrounds going on. Aren't they cute though? We will just have to have you come visit again, guys! Thanks again for letting me practice a little on you.






I am also signed up for some Photoshop classes and am getting my hands on a version of Photoshop (I'm not sure which one yet) from Jer's sister. So, hopefully I can learn how to post-process outside of basic Picasa. For now, this will have to do.

Summer Days

Ahhh, the days of summer. Kids running around half-dressed, covered in stickiness from whatever they deem worthy of their indulgence, and parents stressed about getting them to bed in time and finding a moment of peace to themselves.
My brother and his cute family are here visiting from Seattle. So, we decided to wear them out yesterday by taking them downtown to the museum and the fountains. Then, we topped it off with a mini-family BBQ at my sisters. The kids were exhausted and the parents could barely move. It was worth it though (or so we keep telling ourselves). Seriously though, it was fun and we have had so much fun having them visit. I need to get more shots of their kids, but these are a few from the last week.
If you can't tell, I was in the mood for black and white, and just messing around with the coloring. Still no Photoshop (which is fine because I am not disciplined enough to learn how to use it right now), but we try.

One of the best things about summer: bare feet!
I was going for the old-school look here....what do you think?


This is one of the first shots of my niece where I realized that she really is growing up and is not a toddler anymore. Crazy!
Could you enjoy a Popsicle any more than this??? Thank goodness for a hose at times like this.