May 30, 2010

a day in the crowd....

thousands of people. fresh onions and radishes. tomatoes and spinach.
we filled our bag with flowers. kettle corn and cheese curds.
we drank fresh pineapple smoothies.
i took photos of everyone. even my hubby standing in line. do you see him.
it was like we were on date. with everyone watching.
~~
i have more photos. lots more.
they're over here
*

May 29, 2010

dull moments.....yeah right....

my sister has two cats. two dogs. three kids. a hubby. and now five baby chicks.
did you know she's a saint. well in my book she is.
actually my book of crazies was filled to the max. otherwise i would have found a place for her there. right next to the page i'm saving for myself.
*
happy weekend
everyone

May 28, 2010

i hope you jump....

by now
most of you know my love of capturing
"the jump"
and
while i was down by the lake earlier this week
these sweet young girls
~complete strangers~
were more than cooperative
to make me happy
i loved this photo so much
that it's getting my
2010
best and favorite jump
~so far~
award

can you believe the first photo is
sooc
~shot on manual~
and
since it got an award and i loved it so much
i had to play around with it just a little bit
~
the
black and white version
and
the
vintage thru the view finder look
ended up being my favorites
to share with you
*
i hope this memorial day weekend
is filled with memories and laughs while you relax
and
i really hope
you take the time
to
jump
~at least a little~
*

May 27, 2010

aperture instead of auto....well, it's a start

this photo is just fun
which is what i needed when a few people who i adore said
"are you crazy"
"teaching aperture is hard when everyone has a different camera and multiple lenses"
and
i banged my head against the wall
~
but
if you know me
i kind of like challenges
so here goes
~
in order to get everyone on the same play ground and not talk about or get confused about focal length and iso and exposure and shutter speed and spot metering {today}....everything i'm suggesting you do is based on you being outside on a beautiful sunny day, so that light is not a factor and all we're going to do is take our cameras off of auto and put them on aperture priority instead. that will be an A or an AV on your camera. if you have a point and shoot, your lower numbered aperture is your portrait setting and your higher number aperture is your landscape setting....so i've been told.
~
aperture refers to the opening in the camera through which light passes into the lens
~simple right, until you read the definition below which is opposite to our thinking~
~
the smaller your aperture number, the more light you'll have to work with
the larger your aperture number, the less light you'll have to work with
or
as my hubby likes to say....if you squint your eyes, one thing is in focus and the background is blurry, which is how he remembers that that means you need a little number if that is the effect you are trying to get. if you want everything in focus, open your eyes wide and that represents a larger aperture number.
~
most aperture numbers will look something like this
1~1.4~2.8~4~5.6~8
and
on up
~
now today, on our bright and sunny play ground, the reason for playing with your aperture is to get your subject in focus and to blur out your background. this is called "depth of field" or "dof".......if your aperture is set at it's lowest, let's say 2.8 and you have a flower right in front of you, you will have a narrow depth of field, since the area in focus is relatively narrow and your background will be blurry.
~
let's look at my examples below

aperture 2.8
aperture 11.0

aperture 2.8
~i only wanted to concentrate on the purple irises~
aperture 13.0
aperture 2.8
~see the difference in the sky, overall color and blurred house~
aperture 11.0
aperture 5.6
~i switched to auto for this shot just to see what it would take my aperture to and it took it to 5.6 which is what the camera wanted and that's fine, but i prefer a blurrier background~
aperture 2.8
aperture 10.0
~~~
most of these photos were at a focal length of 30-50 mm and since those of you with a d-slr have your kit lens, you should be able to get something similar, photo wise. beware though, that you might have lenses that don't go as low as 1.4 or 2.8...they may only be a 4.6 aperture lens, in which you will have lots of experimenting to do.
~~
one thing you might notice when playing with aperture, is the change in coloring in your photos...more of a washed out look....and some of you might not like that and others will be playing with their photos in photoshop, so that doesn't really matter then.
~
i think one of the most important times to know how your aperture works is when you are shooting portraits. it's really nice to be able to eliminate an ugly background when you have a cutie patootie in front of you. also, if you are in a low light situation and you don't want to use your flash {which is always me} you need to set your aperture at it's lowest setting. granted there are some other things you'll also need to change, but remember we are just at the beginning of learning something new and this is a good start.
~~~
like i said earlier, there are so many other components to your camera to go along with aperture and beautiful photos, but if this can be a start for you to stop shooting on auto and makes you feel like you have a bit of control over your camera, then it's certainly worth playing around a bit. it took me learning aperture to feel confident to shoot on manual and all i can suggest is to photograph something everyday. don't leave your house without your camera. take too many photos of everything. if you're not driving, yell "pull over" when you see something fantastic and most of all, don't be afraid to play. you can always go back to auto if you get frustrated, but if you have a nice d-slr which many of you do, play...play...play and learn to love what you're holding in your hands.
~~
by the way
i'm not a teacher at all
seriously
not one little bit
so
if any of you have suggestions you want to add...or corrections or questions....throw them this way. let's have a party.
~
i'll bring the mike's hard lemonade
*

May 26, 2010

are you up for a challenge ?

i want to see you
now that you're seeing me
~
it doesn't have to be a self portrait. hand your camera over to your spouse. or one of your kids. or your neighbor. or your sister
~
i don't want to see your feet. or your hand holding your favorite coffee cup. i want to see you. your eyes. your smile. your laugh.
be brave
be bold
be fun
~
you don't have to be a dork like me standing on your porch. show me you. dancing. or writing. or eating. or whatever it is you do.
and
don't make it blurry
~unless you give your 3 year old the camera, then blurry is adorable~
~
love yourself and share you with me and the rest of the blogging loves
who will get to see you. and appreciate you for you.
~
come on
if i can do it
you can do it
~
so
today
go ahead
get on the other side of your camera
~
you just might surprise yourself and like it there
*
be sure to let me know if you take my challenge
so i can come visit you
and
my best attempt at "aperture explained" will be posted tomorrow

May 25, 2010

i was bored during the bachelorette.....

and
ended up making a couple of banners
while some gross men drooled all over ali
~sheesh~
she's too cute and sweet for that show
~
so
anyhow
i'm selling these
~
send me an email if you're interested
oh
and
aperture 101
vanilla pudding style
should be thursday if i get my act together
~
thanks for being patient
*

May 24, 2010

my glamorous life where i swear...

this weekend we drove around looking at land. abandoned properties. old barns.
we trespassed. because we're bad asses like that.
i got close to the cows
close enough that the cluster flies on them
attacked me
and
the gigantic wild thistles in the brush i was standing in
scratched my legs
~
but
i like cows
so it was worth it
i went to my first real derby bout saturday night
my friend's girlfriend is in the white and blue helmet. she's a bad ass too. they won first place. the whole thing made me laugh and cheer
while i kept thinking to myself
" i could totally do that"
perfectly tender
grilled teriyaki chicken and garlic naan was our dinner last night
and
we smiled when bret michaels won celebrity apprentice
actually we smiled because he's alive
and
the world needs more people in it like him
he's a bad ass
too
~
you know
the more i think about it
this life of mine
really
is
glamorous
and
actually the more i think about it
i don't think
bad ass
is really swearing
is it
*

May 23, 2010

because....

it's just as hot as they said it was going to be. and the humidity is heavy and sticking to me like a coat of paint that isn't drying fast enough. and the ceiling fans aren't enough so i had to do what i hate to do and turn on the air conditioning. and the idea of eating anything makes me a bit nauseous while lemonade makes me feel all sparkly inside.
~
let's just laugh about it
~
the kind of laugh where your eyes get all crinkly and you snort
because
it's wisconsin
and
it's not snow
and
this is how we roll
*

May 22, 2010

i really don't sweat.....

the weather forecast for the next 7 days is warm. really warm. record high warm.
my hair will be frizzy. the humidity thick enough to bottle. ceiling fans on high.
and
i will be very happy
~
this is one of my florida photos from seaside/watercolor taken in january
i think i need a turquoise colored bike
and
a diamond patterned sidewalk to ride on
~
just a thought
*
happy saturday

May 21, 2010

when you're two and three....

your eyes are spectacularly blue
flowers tickle your nose
you can make silly faces just because
blowing bubbles is the hardest thing you have to do all day
your best friend gets to come over and play
you can scowl and nobody takes you seriously
hugs are tight enough to squish your head and you like it like that
and
a day running around in the backyard
barefoot
followed by chicken nuggets for dinner
makes for a perfect day
~
guess who's going to act like a two or three year old today
*

May 20, 2010

oh you beautiful thing, you !

you've always had them
your wings. you know.
they were there the day you were born. untouched. perfect.
~
are you waiting for the perfect dream to use them. wings don't need dreams
did you know that other people see our wings long before we ever do
~
i saw wings on a foster mom at the grocery store yesterday. she doesn't know how their brightness almost blinded me.
i have wings. they're kind of green and sparkly according to my friend diana. they really got a workout when i lived in indiana and worked with children who lived in group homes. lately they feel a bit dried up and crusty. my fault.
~
do you help out in a food pantry. a homeless shelter. watch your neighbor's children for her when she can't find a sitter. shovel the driveway next to yours just because. maybe you deliver meals on wheels. or talk and gently pat the hand of your elderly neighbor whose family doesn't visit often enough.
~
tell me
who is it lately that's been talking about the wings they saw you wearing
when you thought the only thing they were pointing at was your new haircut.
come on. don't be shy.
i just know you've been doing something good
*

May 18, 2010

like coloring without a box of crayons...

by now
we've all been hit with the texture bug
and
i thought i'd show you what happened when i mixed a little of this with a little of that
this is a fantastic texture
but
not the easiest to use on just any photo
due to the coloring in it

but
when i rotated it and mixed it with this old wagon wheel
ummm
what's the old saying
"everything old is new again"
~~
and
WOW
you all blew me away with your request for
a "simple as vanilla pudding" aperture tutorial
which my sweet and adorable hubby with a great big smile on his face
informed me there really isn't such a thing
but
i promise next week to prove him wrong
by
doing my absolute best to teach
an aperture 101 class
~
did you know that i'm a dental assistant
~
oh
this is going to be so interesting
*
and
real quick
for those of you seriously interested in aperture learning
please tell me what camera you have and what lens/lenses you use
~
thanks a bunch

May 17, 2010

sweet things and aperture.....

this barn is totally sweet
well
only if you're like me and love old barns
my girlfriend's new puppy is sweeter than sweet
well
only if you're like me and love babies
his name is jude
he's 10 weeks old
his feet are huge and he's terribly uncoordinated
his baby teeth are sharp and he chews on everything
and
oh my sweet lord
he's precious
and
now some
aperture talk
~
top photo vs bottom photo
see the difference
top photo
vs
bottom photo
~
big difference
right
anyhow
many of you
maybe
most of you
who come here to read about my not so glamourous life
~snort~
already know all about aperture
so i'm not going into detail today about it
other than showing you the above photos captured from using two different settings
BUT
seriously
if you don't have a clue about aperture and only shoot on auto
~that little green button~
and
want to learn about aperture
raise your hand high and wave it all silly like
dance around
and
shout
me yes me please me
and
then leave me a note here to let me know if you want me to write a tutorial
in words
that i promise to be as simple as vanilla pudding
~
i won't throw in shutter speed or iso or exposure or anything else with it
because baby steps are essential when it comes to loving what your camera can do
*
happy monday

May 15, 2010

silly life....

sometimes
all you need in order to get through your day
is a paint brush, a wrench and a tape measure
~
of course things turn out even better if
you're wearing your dad's old coonskin cap from when he was a little boy
along with your favorite baseball cap
~
and
heck
why even fasten your shoes
~
really
is it even necessary
~
i think i could learn something from
this little guy
~
how about you
*

May 14, 2010

sometimes life is really scary...

and
you know that you should be stronger
and
standing on your own two feet without toppling over
but
it's hard
and
you get all turned around
heading in a direction you think is right
only to get turned around
again
but
you're determined
and
brave
and
beautiful
and
you know the wings you've been blessed with
will take you where you dream to be
and
then suddenly just like that
everything feels right
and
your head is lifted high
and
finally
you're exactly where you were meant to be in the first place
*
meet my baby flicker or red bellied woodpecker
{thanks hillary for the information}
who lives outside our cottage
who couldn't figure out what to do at the feeder
and
whose parents have pecked huge holes into our cedar siding
~
isn't she adorable
*
oh
and
for those who asked
the picture below is the original photo from yesterday's post