Picture Inspiration - Week 1 - Self Portrait

I'm excited to embark upon this journey of my first online photography class called Picture Inspiration. The assignment for Week 1 was a Self Portrait. I haven't done many of these and the ones I have done, have all been taken in the mirror.  So, this challenge encouraged me to try something new, along with giving me a reason to break out my new wireless remote I bought almost a month ago. (No, I have no idea why I haven't played with it prior to this).
I positioned myself in the front room where I knew I'd have the best light, set up my camera and started clicking away.  Okay, well, I clicked once and then crawled over the camera to check the image.  I made some adjustments and did it again.   I changed lenses, changed positions and crawled back and forth to my camera no less than 53 times.  And, I thought photographing OTHER people could be workout!

In the end, I'm rather happy with the result.  I had a bunch of photos that weren't good at all, a few that were almost there and a couple I was happy with.  Here is the final image.

Inspiration

The farther I go into this amazing journey of photography, the more resources and inspiration I find. I have just signed up for my first online photography class.  It's 52 weeks of inspiration. I can hardly wait to get started!

Sneak Peek - Ashley

Ashley and I have known each other for a long time. Much longer than either one of us would like to admit, as it means we have to admit our actual age (which I'm not sharing here!)  :)  We met in college and have run into each other in the most random places since we graduated.  Recently, Ashley reached out me via Facebook to ask me to do some headshot photos for  her.  It's not the type of shooting that I normally do, but I always welcome the opportunity for a new challenge. So, we set up a date and off I went to her house to take some photographs and catch up with an old friend.  What an enjoyable day - two things I truly love to do!

Ashley plans to use a black and white image.  However, I love the color version of this one as well and just had to share it. She is so beautiful!

Thanks for a great day, Ashley! More photos to come soon.

Sneak Peek - A Family Gathering

With this whole family together in town, just after the holidays, we scheduled a shoot for family photos. A sweet little girl and a new little boy were the centers of attention. It was a lively morning indeed!

Towards the end of the shoot, we all headed outside for some final photos. Here are a few indoor shots, more to come from the outside.  Everyone was such a good sport, in spite of how cold it was.

Thank you for the opportunity to photograph your wonderful family.

Wishing you all the best in 2011!

Sneak Peek - A Welcome Addition

What a fabulous way to kick off the New Year!  This family brought a brand new little guy into the world and into their family right before the end of the year.  I was lucky enough to photograph everyone on January 2nd and what a fun shoot this was.  This beautiful little girl was a very willing subject and more than happy to do whatever I asked of her.  Normally rather shy, she completely bloomed in front of the camera.  And, while I thought the little guy wouldn't be awake for long, he was such a trooper and stayed alert for the entire shoot.

I feel so lucky to have met your new baby so early in his life. Thank you for allowing me photograph your entire family.  I look forward to watching your little ones grow - just hopefully not too fast!

Sneak Peek - A Family of Nine

This family photo shoot marks the end of my sessions for 2010. I loved having a session on the second to last day of the year.  Everyone was home in his household for just a few days around the holidays so we made sure to get a date where everyone could be included.

I started out photographing the kids.  They were an absolute dream.  Both kids were more than happy to let me click away while they stared at me with those gorgeous eyes of theirs.  I do believe I could have photographed them all day long.  The little guy said "yes" to whatever I asked of him in this sweet little voice. I'm not sure he said "no" even one time.  They both just stared into the lens with those beautiful dark eyes and I happily clicked away.

We got shots of every family within this family and 

I truly enjoyed getting to know each of them just a little bit.  

 I absolutely love that the dog is winking in this one!

Getting the large group shot lit inside properly was a challenge so outdoors we went.  Everyone was such a good sport.  We still had a bit of snow but it was chilly and drizzly.  The dad of the whole clan kept me laughing by observing my personal comments after each shot I took.  I guess it's a little more telling than I realized.  After a few "okay" and "good" comments from me post shot, I gave them an "awesome!" once I finally got what I was looking for.

It was wonderful to meet everyone.  

I wish you all the best in 2011!

Sneak Peek - Five women and a Dad

Oh, what a fun family photo shoot this was! A family of 4 girls plus Mom, Dad is certainly outnumbered. But, he kept us laughing the entire time.  The silliness reminded me so much of my dad when I was growing up and I loved every minute of it. We started out inside the house and everyone was wonderfully wiling to do whatever I asked of them. Then, we all decided to brave the cold and took some fun shots outside in the snow.  I wish everyone had a beautiful background of winter white snow for their photographs!

Thank you for the opportunity to photograph your beautiful family! 

Wishing you all the best in the New Year!