Sydney with her new bubbles

We finally had a a sunny day! It was cold but nice to have the sun out.  I hate how it fools me into thinking I can finally get excited for summer. I took these a week ago and we've had snow since then.

Cookies..... mmmmm. White Balance..... mmmmmm

I swore to myself I would go out and shoot yesterday, even if it killed me. And it snowed all day. Shooting in the snow would probably be cool, and at the same time probably kill me. All I wanted to do was curl up on the couch and stay warm. Also, I got roped into baking all day to help my mom with a dinner she had that night. So I am happy to present chocolate chip cookies from "America's Test Kitchen" cookbook.

Lately I have been trying to wrap my head around white balance. I think I may have a little better understanding of it. I mean it seems pretty basic but I wasn't sure how to get a perfect white balance reading (do I use a gray card or white? What is a digital gray card and is it really different from a regular gray card? etc) Anyways, After Kevin Ames' presentation (lighting demo) on Wednesday at WPPI I decided to conduct a little white balance experiment. In his demo he showed how he adjusts the white balance in Adobe Lightroom, after he shoots. Honestly the less amount of time spent working on the computer the better off I am. I find it's this stage that stagnates me. Okay, I dread it! I upload my photos and then never look at them again, mainly because working on the computer bores me, but also because I don't know how to use those fancy programs. So this is my attempt to figure out the best way to get correct white balance.

I shot the custom white balance using white foam core (rather than a gray card).  I think the auto white balance was surprisingly accurate, however there have been other times where it seemed pretty off. These were shot with window light on an overcast day.

Do what I love and be authentically me????

Okay I get it! There is a running theme in all the sessions I've attended at WPPI. I think it has more to do with the presentations I chose to attend, but I must have needed it. Almost every speaker talked about being unique and different. And when they say that I just get all freaked out. How? How do I be different from anyone else? What do I have to say that no one else does? How can I make myself different? What makes me unique or different from the other 700 other people in this room? And I get discouraged and end up at the same place I have found myself  some many times before, comparing myself to everyone else and feeling completely inadequate. I start to get so worried about not being different enough that I lose sight of what it is really about..... Me. From what the speakers are saying all I have to do is be me. Be true to myself and make photos that I love and the work will come. (now I have a hard time buying that one but I'm willing to put it to the test) I already know this and have had opportunities to learn this over and over in my life it still seems harder than it is. when in reality I am just learning this and rediscovering who I am every time.  I am just taking it to a new level. As Shrek would say "Ogres are like onions. Onions have layers. Ogres have layers. Onions have layers." I guess this is perfect as I am trying to figure out what my style is. So to this new opportunity to rediscover who I am and my voice I say "ommmmm.... what the hell, go for it anyway....."

WPPI 2010

As I write this I'm sitting in my hotel room at the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas. YAY! I am at WPPI! It's my first year and it's been freaking awesome! Okay, I get that I might think it's way cooler than others who are seasoned WPPI goers. Honestly, I had no idea that anything like this existed, where photographers (not that I consider myself a photographer but more of a poser or a wanna be) could go and meet other photographers and learn!  I've learned so much I can't remember it all right now. Either I suffer from information overload or I just didn't learn anything and in time I will find that it was a complete waste of time. But alas, I've taken notes and insanely detailed ones at that. So I will post more on that later when I have my notes in front of me. As for now I am freezing my butt off and my bed is calling to me. (yeah I'm totally lame. I didn't go to any parties. hehe)

Syd

 

Here are just a few of the first photos I have taken with my new camera. They're a little cool (which I kinda like because that's how my room is in the morning). Clearly I have a lot to learn! Which is the good news.

By the way, this is so Sydney. (aka; syd the kid,  sydney lou who, squidney, sydley, syd, my love, and whatever else comes to mind at the moment)

Brilliant Collection

Brilliant! I wish I thought of this. I forget such simple things can be so beautiful. It makes me want to go home and photograph my knitting yarn and needles and maybe some buttons..... all my sea shells..... and old soap......
And oh the joy it would bring my heart to snoop through all her old sshtruff. Anyone who knows me, knows that I love snooping through people's things. :) Love this blog, collectionaday2010.blogspot.com images from Lisa Congdon.

Fujifilm INSTAX MINI Film Camera

I've already picked my christmas present to myself this year. hehehe

Maybe I'll have to splurge and get it for my birthday. (a little surprise to myself)

How fun would it be to play with this Fujifilm INSTAX mini camera?!

Cig Harvey

What can I say? I love Cig Harvey! So wish she had a blog. I will just swoon over her website instead.

I am amazed at the simplicity of her photos. Her use of color is so pure and refreshing. And her black and whites are super dreamy. Wish I lived in her world.....

Love that she stands in as her own model.

Reasons to start blogging

Ahhhhh. Writing my first post seems kind of scary.

Writing was my worse subject in school..... Okay, I'm terrible at it! It seems silly for someone like myself to write a blog.
I swore I would never start a blog, just like I swore I would never join Facebook. But I have failed at resisting both. hehehehe

As I debated for a few weeks whether I should really start a blog I weighed out the reasons. I definitely don't want to post my journal all over the Internet. I have a book for that at home.

So a lot of reasons not to start a blog.....
here are my reasons I have decided to take the nerd plunge:

- to have links to all of my favorite blogs, websites and photographers for easier access and "blog-stalking" heheheh
- to post ideas and anything that inspires me
- I just recently bought a camera and I want somewhere to post the photos I take
- a way to motivate myself to shoot more often and keep me accountable
- Hopefully as I post my photos I will see some kind of improvement in my photography.......
- and frankly I can't stop thinking about it

I would love comments and feedback, but please be gentle with my feelings :)