Christmas means different things to different people. It is my favorite season and when I think of Christmas I think of Christmas music, lights, parties, baking, shopping for the perfect gift, and celebrating with family. Please make sure you click on each photo to see the next one! (P.S. The one of my Grandson and me was taken on January 1, 2018.)
There is a myth that little girls are sweeter than little boys. In some cases that might be true, but not in most cases. Tiny people, in general, are the sweetest human beings you're going to meet!
Grant decided to propose to his Sweetheart of seven years. He creatively did this by giving her a digital photo scrapbook showing their history together. He wanted to "continue their story" and so on the last page printed, "Will you marry me?"
Victoria did not know that I was photographing her and Grant.
To view the various scenes, please click on each photo. Enjoy!
Lake Michigan is one of the prettiest lakes you're going to see when visiting the city of Chicago! Its greenish hue along with its vastness makes you forget that you're at a lake and not the ocean. It's definitely a "must see" when visiting down town Chicago!
Please make sure you click on each photo to see how adorable these brothers are!
Loose Park is probably one of the prettiest parks in Kansas City. Its vast rolling land is filled with flowers, trees, and a beautiful pond with swimming geese and ducks.
Photographing a child playing baseball can be both fun and challenging. It's important to include action shots as well as some candid photos of the child's face. It helps to have a long lens such as a 200 mm so you can get a fairly close up photo of the child playing in the field. When photographing some action, make sure the shutter speed is fast enough to freeze the action such as running. Mostly, have fun and experiment around with your settings.
It's a little more challenging photographing high school boys than girls. They tend to feel slightly more awkward in front of the camera. If you can get them to loosen up, simply by being friendly and showing genuine interest in them, they will usually become more relaxed and cooperative. Don't forget to coax and compliment throughout the photo shoot!
It's important when taking night photos to find the right balance of flash used on the model. You don't want to make them look too bright with flash because then it looks unnatural. Or, it will be obvious that you took a night flash photo. In these photos of Matthew I kept the attached flash unit straight up rather than pointing the flash toward him. I then experimented with changing the aperture setting on my camera to see what looked best.
Have I mentioned before how much easier it is to photograph girls? :)
I had the pleasure and honor to photograph my Grandson's first birthday party. Can you imagine the fun and joy of the occasion? Watching Stormy play with his birthday "Smash Cake" was a hit with everyone! (Make sure you click on each photo to see the next one.)
When I was asked to photograph the Monstrance in my Catholic Church, I said yes. Not only do I enjoy volunteering at my church, I enjoy photographing just about anything and anyone! I had never photographed the holy Monstrance and decided that it would be a fun challenge. For those not familiar with the Monstrance, it is a place where the consecrated Host is placed and exposed for veneration. Catholics believe that the consecrated Host is the Body of Christ.
Roses are not everyone's favorite flower, but they are definitely one of my favorites....especially when given to me by a loved one!
What's interesting about this set of photographs is that they were all taken within about a thirty minute span of time. It was fun looking at a scene, photographing it, and then photographing the same scene from a different angle. You get two completely different photographs. For those of you who enjoy silhouettes, simply point your camera at the sky to meter the light, and then use that setting to photograph the land on the horizon. Enjoy! (Make sure you click on each photo to see the next one.)
I've always enjoyed the holidays, but especially Christmas time! The lights, surprising my loved ones, the baking, the decorations, and yes, the sentimental Christmas music are some of my favorite things about this time of the year.
Personally, I find it challenging to get arty photos of students in their classrooms. I have found that even if a classroom is well lit, it's better to add some light via attached flash to get rid of shadows and to brighten the photos.
It's always a special thing when I get to baby-sit one of my Grandchildren. Not only am I helping the parents out, but I'm getting to spend time with my Grandchildren.....and I get to photograph!
Meet Stormy, one of my beautiful Grandbabies!
