Viking warrior

We bought this hat recently, and everywhere we go, we get soooo many compliments! It seemed picture-worthy so...

My first "job"

About a month ago, some friends asked me to help them announce their pregnancy by taking photos. I was super excited to help out and also, of course, to get some practice in. I was soooo nervous the day of the shoot. I made a bunch of mistakes, but I've decided to call the shoot a success because I learned a lot from the experience! Here's my favorite photo:

A minor breakthrough

I've been overwhelmed with work and being sick lately but managed to pull out my camera the other day and get more pictures of Naomi. I was getting frustrated with all of my blurry photos (indoor lighting + fast moving baby = a blurry extravaganza) when I had one of those "ah ha!" moments that made me feel incredibly stupid for not figuring it out sooner. You see, my photography teacher hammered it into my head (a bit too well, apparently) that you want to use the lowest ISO possible. Which is true, but you can't go around using 100 ISO indoors when photographing a quick moving baby, even with a fast 50 mm lens. At least I can't. So I bumped up my ISO and took some shots and, well...this is just one example of what I got:

Yay for progress! :)

Not macro, but still...

Caught this bee at the pumpkin patch...If only I had a macro lens! ;)

Hello, Instagram!

Like Hipstamatic, Instagram lets you apply different settings to your photos with one quick press of a button. It's uses are limited, but it's definitely been fun messing around with it. Here's an example of how I was able to take a fairly mediocre photo with my iPhone and make it pop:

I certainly wouldn't use the app on every photo. And a bad photo is still a bad photo, no matter what special effects you use. But it is a fun little app!

Happy baby!

Naomi was hamming it up for the camera today. Here's one of my favorite shots.

Close-Up Photography

We went to a rose garden yesterday, so I could work on my close-up photography (not macro, mind you). I've been reading Bryan Peterson's Understanding Close-Up Photography and wanted to practice some of the stuff I've learned. I also now have a list of camera equipment I want that is a mile long, but I haven't won the lottery yet, so I guess I'll make due with what I have. ;P

May the fastest couch win!

Yesterday we went and watched couch races at the park. Yep. Couch races. It was the first year of, hopefully, many more to come.

Naomi watches the world

Summer has finally arrived and we've been spending more time outside. Naomi loves it!

The Thinker

Here's the baby-style Thinker pose as modeled by my daughter. :)

My first attempt at...

...making homemade ice cream...and ice cream photography. ;P

So photogenic!

I'm having fun playing with indoor lighting and my 50 mm lens. Here's some more Naomi pictures:

I promise to post some non-Naomi pictures...eventually...

Cutest baby in the world

I can't help it. I think she's the cutest baby ever. Here's a photo to prove it:

Cuteness factor dialed up to 11!

At almost 3 months old, here she is:

Happy Mother's Day!

We had brunch at a local winery this morning. We ate in what was essentially a big warehouse so the lighting was awful (as you can see by some of the funky shadows). I'll have to try some fill flash next time. I always avoid using the flash because it's so harsh, but I forget that it can be useful--plus I can turn it down. Something to practice in the future!

Naomi Rose

Finally! A beautiful day! Perfect picture-taking weather...

Introducing my newest photography subject...

Wow! It's May, and I haven't posted any photos all year! How did that happen?! Oh, yeah...Meet my daughter: