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Beautiful Blooms + Friday Freebie

Posted on March 26, 2010

I am exceptionally thrilled to see Friday this week!

At my day job, the last few weeks have been ridiculously busy between special publications and breaking news. This week I’ve had the chance to stop and smell (okay, photograph!) the flowers. The 50mm f/1.4 lens I recently purchased seems to love them and this is the first spring since my six-year-old son was an infant that I haven’t had problems with allergies (yet?).

This? Is exciting.

Though we have a busy weekend planned, I am excited for the so-called downtime. I love my co-workers dearly, but I need a break from the news for a couple of days. And this is why I’m glad today’s Friday! (And who doesn’t love a good Friday, anyway?)

To celebrate, I’m sharing!

This weekend I am offering some of my favorite floral photos for download to use on your computer as a desktop wallpaper or screensaver. This is only good until Monday morning, (just like the weekend, it doesn’t last forever!) so make sure to grab them while you can! (I’m using Delicate, the one pictured above, as my own screensaver. It’s such a pick-me-up at work.)

If you have allergies, this is an extra special gift because you get to enjoy all of the gorgeous-ness with no consequences (score!).

Have a good weekend – and happy Friday!

Quick Tips: Using Macro (for P&S users)

Posted on March 23, 2010

April showers bring May flowers, but we can still practice in March, right?

I shot the photo on the right in May 2006 with my Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z2. With its 4 megapixels and 10x zoom, it was a great purchase back in 2004! And I used that camera until it fell apart; towards the end I was holding the battery door closed with duct tape, Band-Aids, anything I could find with adhesive.

That said, I loved the macro option.

Macro is a type of close-up photography that magnifies an image to life-size or larger. The term ‘macro’ is now used loosely, but macro photography captures a subject at at least a 1:1 ratio. Many photographers use macro lenses when they’re shooting photos of flowers, insects, jewelry or even products.

I grew up looking at macro shots of flowers my dad shot when he was stationed in Okinawa. I always loved how sharp the focus was in those photos and the bokeh, which is the blur (or the quality of the blur) in the out of focus areas of an image, was always interesting to me. From those days grew a love for photographing flowers.

In fact, sometimes I buy flowers from the grocery store just so I can bring them home, dress them up and take their picture.

Macro photography with DSLRs often requires a special macro lens, which I can assure you is not inexpensive. But if you have a point-and-shoot, consider yourself lucky! Macro photos aren’t at all difficult. Switch to macro mode – the one usually denoted by a tulip – and start shooting those beautiful blooms!

Here are some quick tips for macro pics:

1. If you can adjust your aperture, do so. The wider your aperture, the better your depth of field; this will blur your background and keep your subject in focus (like the photo on the right). A smaller aperture will keep your background in focus.

2. Steady your camera to keep your subject in focus. If you have a tripod, use it. If not, you can steady the camera on a flat surface. Great advice, I know, but what happens when you want to shoot photos of a flower or a ladybug on a blade of grass and a flat surface isn’t nearby? Use your viewfinder (instead of the preview on your LCD screen on the back of the camera); holding the camera against your face also steadies it.

3. Play with composition and details. Capture different elements of your subject. It is not always necessary to capture your subject in its entirety. If you’re photographing flowers, you can close in on its stigma, stamen and the pollen inside its petals (see above). You know it’s a flower, even though you can’t see the whole thing. Get artistic!

4. Get in closer. Test your camera and see just how close you can get while still keeping your subject in focus.

All of the above photos were taken with a point-and-shoot camera, which is proof that you don’t need an expensive camera to get great photos.

Sneak peek: Jonathan & Christy

Posted on March 21, 2010

Last weekend I shot the simple, sweet wedding uniting Jonathan, Christy and their children.

Christy, her daughter and new stepdaughters spent the morning bonding at the nail and hair salons, getting gorgeous before they became a family. Christy, I was told, even drove through the McDonald’s drive-thru with her veil on! So cute.

Though this was her second wedding, this was Christy’s first wedding dress (she was excited because she’d never had one before) and her oldest stepdaughter (MM) proudly helped her get ready.

A quick candid shot while getting dressed. Christy’s daughter MG is quite the ham! Her other stepdaughter, SM, had a case of the nerves, poor thing.

Before the ceremony, they played Kenny G on the iPod downstairs as well as up in the sanctuary. MM told us she is not getting married for 30 years -  we’ll see about that!

Meanwhile, the groom and IG, his stepson, goofed around upstairs.

IG really, really didn’t want to smile. I have a feeling this is much more his speed.

The ceremony was attended by the family only, with the exception of two officiants, a videographer and me. Well, and the lovely Holly who manned the sound system. It was over pretty quickly and Jonathan swooped in for a kiss that lasted about a millisecond, then sweetly hugged his new wife.

Afterward, they prayed together as a family. I like how IG is trying his best to keep his eyes closed! Ha.

Jonathan and Christy, thank you for allowing me to be a part of your big day! I hope it is the beginning of some of the best days of your lives. (PS – You have four awesome children!)

And Christy, you looked simply beautiful. Congratulations!

New Beginnings

Posted on March 13, 2010

This afternoon I shot my first wedding of the year.

I love weddings so much. A culmination of months of preparation, excitement, joy and love, weddings are like fireworks because they bring the same bursts of happiness to a couple’s life.

Weddings are like the first day of spring – anticipated, expected, lovely, cherished and cloaked in beauty. Just like spring, weddings are new beginnings.

For some, a wedding day is a ray of sunshine, the day when every plan finally falls into place, when two lives are joined as one no matter what color dresses the bridesmaids are wearing or what flavor of chocolate was chosen for the cake. It’s supposed to be the happiest day of a bride’s life, but the secret we find out later is that there are usually happier days ahead.

When I left the wedding today, I was smiling and happy. The couple and their children are fantastic and I was excited for their new beginning. On my way home, I noticed another new beginning.

It was chilly, rainy and dreary today and in the midst of that I saw a tree with blooms on it; it was absolutely beautiful. I stopped my car, put the 50mm lens on and started snapping away.

These blooms show a new beginning is on the way – and not just for the family united by marriage today, but for everyone. Bring it on, Mother Nature. We’re ready.

It's All About Love!

Posted on March 12, 2010

This is the ad I designed today for the upcoming Bridal Guide 2010 section which hits newsstands on April 8!

I can’t take full credit for the elements in this design, but I love it. Mostly.

We just wrapped a huge project at work, have breathed a sigh of relief for a day and now it’s back to the grind with the Bridal Guide. Many of you know I’m a reporter by day, but for those of you who don’t, the Bridal Guide will not only have my ad inside it, it will also be written and edited by yours truly. And there will also likely feature some of my photojournalism.

For the section we have tentatively planned an interview with a bride-to-be, a wedding planner and I’m hoping for a feature with Jessica Bishop of Budget Savvy Bride as well. We also hope to include advice from florists, jewelers and wedding photographers; our goal is to produce a great guide for local brides-to-be.

In order to produce the comprehensive guide we’re planning, we need advertisements. Ads are what fund pages. If you’re in Tipton County or the surrounding areas, you can call 901-476-7116 for more information.

That said, this will be my second ad (my first is coming in another special section on April 1), but my first real announcement to the community that I am officially in business. It’s very exciting!

I’m currently booking couples and engagement sessions in the local area. Sessions start at $40 and if you’re interested, book before May 1 and get your session at $35. This offer will not be made to the general public until April 8. As a blog reader, you’re getting a jump on a deal – gotta love that!

Cloudy with a chance of tornados

Posted on March 11, 2010

Tonight was the first storm of the season, a late night filled with rolling thunder, dazzling lightning and, much to my dismay, tornado watches. I hate tornados, but oh, how I love photographing storm clouds.

I grew up on the East Coast and am more comfortable with hurricanes. Sure they pack a fury, but you know they’re coming. I like this about hurricanes. Tornados are unpredictable; this scares me.

This photo was taken in a field across from my parents’ house during my first spring in West Tennessee. It shows the beauty of a thunderhead and pretty awesome rays of sun behind it, but masks the power a storm can bring, the power to take away life.

Thankfully, tonight’s storm did not result in any tornadic activity. Here’s to hoping for a quiet, safe spring.

Exposure & the holy trinity

Posted on March 7, 2010

When I solicited questions from my Twitter followers, Kimberley (@KMDeakins) replied with questions about exposure and a couple of its elements. Her specific request was:

A DSLR distionary for dummies: aperture, ISO, exposure, etc. What is it? What does it do? Why & When would you tweak it?

It would take me years to write something like that! You’re just trying to keep me busy, aren’t you? It’s working.

The truth is many people are curious about exposure and different settings. It’s overwhelming, especially to beginners and is one reason people who own DSLRs don’t turn the dial from Auto mode and take the dive into manual settings.

If you own a DSLR and never take it off of auto mode, you’ve wasted money. Having an expensive camera doesn’t make your photos any more stunning. In fact, when I purchased my first DSLR, I was upset because I had more options with my point and shoot camera; I had to get used to using my 28-70mm lens instead of having 10x zoom and wide angles with the P&S.

My plan is to go over different aspects of exposure in bits and pieces, such as in the exposure quick tips for sunny, snowy and overcast days. I don’t want this blog to be a textbook, I’d just like to offer some simple tips to help But before we get any further with those tips, let’s define exposure and its holy trinity.

What is it?

Simply put, exposure is the total amount of light allowed to fall on a photographic medium (film or an image sensor). There are three components of exposure: aperture, shutter speed and ISO. Yes, the holy trinity.

To understand exposure and to get it right, you have to also understand the trinity. Why? Because they all work together, like the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Or Alvin, Simon and Theodore. Success depends on all three elements.

Aperture

An aperture is the opening through which light passes. Think of it like the pupils of your eyes – it regulates how much light enters the lens. When your eyes are dilated, more light enters. The same is true with the aperture on your camera: a larger aperture means more light. A smaller, obviously, less light.

Aperture is calibrated in f-stops – like f/1.4, f/16 or f/22. And here’s where it gets tricky: the larger number is actually a smaller aperture. Crazy, I know. This is because this number is the focal ratio and, I guess, it makes sense somewhere. I’m not a math person, I’m a pictures and words kind of girl, so I’ll just nod my head and smile. Just remember, when you’re shooting, it’s backwards: low numbers are large apertures, high numbers are smaller apertures.

Aperture settings generally double – f/1.2, f/1.4, f/1.8 …

Aperture is also an important component of depth of field (or background blurring). Your composition/angle and the closeness of your subject also play a factor.

Shutter Speed

Shutter speed is the length of time the shutter is open; it’s measured in fractions of a second. The greater the denominator – the number in the bottom of the fraction – the faster the shutter closes.

You use faster shutter speeds – 1/500, 1/250 – for fast-movement, such as sports. I use these speeds when shooting photos of basketball games.

Slow shutter speeds – 1/15, 1/20 – are used for still motion and/or low-light situations where you want to let as much light in as possible. For example, when my husband and I honeymooned at the beach, the moon gently rose above the sea and was the most beautiful shade of orange; I propped my camera up on a deck railing, set my shutter to 1/25 and started snapping photo after photo after photo. When using slow shutter speeds, use a tripod (or makeshift tripod – like the deck railing) to steady the camera and prevent blurry photos.

Other speeds are used for portraiture, candids, snapshots and other everyday photography. You will likely use 1/60 and greater on a daily basis.

To determine which shutter speed you should be using, decide what you want accomplished within the photograph. Do you want movement? Is the subject still? How’s the lighting?

ISO

The last member of the trinity is ISO setting, which technically refers to film speed (even though you’re using a digital camera). ISO determines how sensitive the image sensor is to light.

ISO speeds generally start at 100 and go to 800-1600 or even higher, depending on the camera. The lower the number, the slower the speed.

Just as you’d use 100 or 200 film on a sunny day, you’d use 100 or 200 as your ISO setting. In low-light settings, a room lit by candles or a roaring fire, you’d likely increase your ISO to 1600. And for something in-between, like a cloudy day or dusk, bump your ISO to 400-600.

However, as you increase your ISO, you will lose image quality. I used to change my ISO only, which resulted in some not-so-great photos; learn to change your shutter speed and aperture along with your ISO settings so you don’t make the same mistake I did.

The Holy Trinity working together

Now that we know what everything is, how does it all work together?

I’ve seen a great metaphor over at Digital Photography School for the way each element works to create a properly exposed photo: a window.

Yes, a window.

Imagine your camera is a room with a window that has shutters that open and close. Your aperture would be the window and the bigger the window, the brighter your room. The amount of time your shutters are open is your shutter speed; the longer they’re open, the more light you get.

DPS uses sunglasses to represent ISO, but I like to think of it as a touch lamp. Remember those? (My friend still uses one in his office – what a diva!) When the window’s letting in a lot of light and your shutters are open, you won’t need to tap it to make the room brighter; however, as the room gets darker (imagine the window getting smaller and/or the shutters closing faster) you’ll need to touch the lamp to make the room brighter.

And there you have it: Exposure and the Holy Trinity. (Insert applause here!)

Does it seem overwhelming? It really is, I know. But do it anyway; take the camera off of auto mode and play with your settings, see what happens.

There is so much more to exposure, but I wanted to define the trinity before delving into other aspects. Alvin, Simon and Theodore have been introduced, now we can talk about them individually. And maybe meet the Chipettes, too!

Bringing spring back with Easter photo cards

Posted on March 6, 2010

It’s no secret I’ve been ready for spring since the leaves began falling off of the trees in September.

Though I was born in December, I’m not a lover of winter. Quite frankly, I hate it.

However, we’ve been blessed with warmer temperatures this weekend – I think it’s 60 degrees out right now – and I am excited!

So excited, in fact, that I was inspired to create a springy Easter photo card design this afternoon.

The Hoppy Easter card features a sweet little bunny and the lyrics to a song that will stay in your head for hours (maybe days, even!) in addition to one vertical photo.

I’m sharing the shabby chic pink, blue and green design, inspired by the dresses my daughters wore our first Easter as a big family, but the card is available in other colors as well (most times I will sample colors from the photo, but you can also make special requests).

The design is offered as a Print-Your-Own (PYO) card. When you make your purchase, I will contact you for the photo and will send you a proof within 48 hours. Once your proof has been approved, you will be sent a high-resolution file for printing at your favorite lab in addition to a web-ready file for use on social networking sites and email delivery.

Hop on over and check out the other sample color combinations – they’re super sweet and very springy!

From design to print: Dara's programs

Posted on March 2, 2010

Last year I designed not only my own wedding invitation suite, but also my sister-in-law’s invitations and programs. On my personal blog, I shared how the programs came together, from design to print. I had the programs printed in the print shop at work (my day job is that of a newspaper reporter), but the invitations were done using another facility.

Being far away (she currently lives in Texas, we live in Tennessee), I hated that there wasn’t much I could do to help my sister-in-law plan her wedding. She purchased her wedding gown here (they had to evacuate during Hurricane Gustav in September 2008), but aside from this, I haven’t been able to tag along to any appointments or do much else than weigh in on her options when making decisions. I was excited she allowed me to put my creativity to work through designing her invitations and programs. I used to design wedding and birth announcements for income, so it’s always special when I can offer my services and use these creative juices once again. Read more