Twin Maternity

I really wanted to incorporate the "twins" into this photo session, I think we came up with some good idea's, and I searched around on Flickr for even more. Here are some of the shot's from the twin maternity that I did about 2 weeks ago. The babies are due any day and I can't wait, I am going to have my first twin newborn session!

Photo Series?

I already do POTD. But feel like I need to do more.
http://www.jenaphotography2009.blogspot.com
I'm wanting to do several photo series.
I just have no idea of what.

Trees and flowers are out as they started blooming last week already.
And tomorrow the grass will already need to be cut.
It's definitely spring here in Southern Indiana.

{Shabby Straps}

I ordered two straps from Shabby Straps and I must tell you I was super pleased! If you want a fun way to add personality to your camera check these straps out. They not only have straps for SLr's but they have wristlets for point-n-shoot cameras too.

I love how professional they look! I will soon be doing a give-a-way with one of these straps as the prize! (keep checking my blog for more details)

BUBBLES & SUNSET

I have more on my blog of tonights bubble fest.



Settings: ISO: 320 AP: f/3.5 SS: 1/100



Settings: ISO: 100 SS: 1/250 AP: f/5.0

50% off custom flash drives, exp today!

http://www.pexagontech.com/index.php

I just ordered 5 1 gig drives in brown with my logo and custom engraving as well as key rings for them for $39.xx shipped!

I think that is a great deal and is what I was looking for for my seniors!

{curlie hair girl and a boy in a dock}

Just to share a pic that I really like, here is my oldest son with a friend during the carnival break in the beach with some friends
They really enjoy the time, but my son continue NOT cooperating with pictures at all, what can I do, I guess he is already tired and sick of being picture all the time lol...
Hope you enjoyed them

A helpful article

I found this article at Digital Photography School to be helpful...

http://digital-photography-school.com/posing-for-portraits-a-quick-way-to-get-inside-your-subjects-head

I hope you do too!

SEO- How do we?

I am starting to search information on Search Engine Optimization. I need to draw people into my website. I have stumbled on some information that I thought I would share. If anyone has anything helpful it would be much appreciated! My area doesn't have many photographers in it so this would be very beneficial to me. Thanks!

http://www.seochat.com/c/a/Search-Engine-Optimization-Help/Search-Engine-Optimization-Website-Development-and-Search-Engine-Spiders/

~Newborn Session~

I did my first newborn session a couple of weekends ago! And I totally loved it! I wasn't sure how I would like it, b/c it takes a lot of patience to get the right shots & you have to work around babies schedule! But it is so worth it! I really enjoyed myself! Here are a couple of pictures from the shoot! Sorry, there are so many! I couldn't decide which ones to put up!

Giving is Awesome

Giving is Awesome was founded in December of 2008. It was a simple premise: photographers give a portrait shoot and products to a family who deserves it, but can’t afford it. In the twelve weeks since then, over 530 photographers have donated over $550,000 worth of custom portraiture to families who couldn’t afford it.

Artists in places as far flung as Australia, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, and Mexico joined in. Giving is Awesome is also featured in this month’s issue of Professional Photographer magazine, and we’re looking to continue to spread the word about giving. Lenovo and Microsoft are sponsoring the ‘Name Your Dream Assignment’ contest, which grants $50,000 to the photographer who wins to shoot whatever/wherever they would like.

What better way to spread the word than to load 12 photographers into a tour bus and hit up cities with Giving is Awesome shoots? The blog traffic generated by the tour would easily reach 50,000 photographers per day, thus multiplying the number of photographers who sign on for the 2009 version of Giving is Awesome. (The goal: 15,000 photographers for the 2009 edition.)

…but how would we decide who to shoot for those tour bus Giving is Awesome giveaways? Why, we would rely on our friends at ConKerr Cancer, an international charity, to provide our subjects: children currently living with cancer. We’d be bringing awareness of both utterly smashing organizations to light, spreading the photographic love, AND rockin’ a tour bus! Now we’re talkin’!

What if this project doesn’t cost $50,000? Easy! ConKerr Cancer receives the funds to purchase cameras for their chapter coordinators, less the expenses of the tour. This allows the impact of the tour to go much further than the people on the bus, or even the photographers associated with Giving is Awesome. It’s the ripple effect in its truest form, giving sparking giving sparking giving.

For more information about the organizations mentioned:
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://www.givingisawesome.com
&
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://www.conkerrcancer.org

DIG IT? GO VOTE! Click that little 'pic' button in the upper left of the assignment details, when you get there. (You’ll have to register to do so, but I promise it’s worth it! Pretty please, vote?)

GO!! : http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://www.nameyourdreamassignment.com%2Fthe-ideas%2Fgivingisawesome%2Fgiving-is-awesome-tour%2F

(wording by Kristin of 'Giving is Awesome')

Discount for Pro Photo Blog Theme!

Thank you Pro Photo!!!! You guys are the best!!!! Super long story short... CMD (my web hosting) had the hardest time getting me set up with my new blog layout from Jared - Finally with his patience, he got it all worked out. If you are thinking of getting a "killer" blog setup, Go with the ProPhoto Blog for Wordpress! The new one is awesome, super user friendly, and that is alot coming from me... I stink at all this... Anyway- Jared has a great handheld package for those who need the extra help, which I am SO glad I took on.. Did I mention Jared Rocks??? Ok so here is the deal...Here's code to get you a discount!! CSTRINGER939 just click the Pro Photo link to get started! and Take peek at my blog too! PRO PHOTO LINK You will not be disappointed!!

Picture Frames

Hi everyone, I just wanted to share this link with you all: http://www.pictureframes.com The name says it all, they do picture frames. But what is cool about it is you can upload your own photos and see what it would look like with different frames and mats. You can also get everything you need for framing your picture, including the photo printed, through them. Not that I would recommend printing from them, I've never had them print anything for me and can't say if it's good or not. Your own lab is probably better for this. Also, I have not actually ordered a frame from them yet either, so I can't speak about the quality of their frames. I plan to in the near future, I will let you know my thoughts. Or if some here has ordered from them, leave a comment on your opinion on them. I'm just posting this link because just the feature of seeing your photo with different frames and mats is helpful, not matter where you get your frame from. It can give you an idea of what colors would look nice. Anyway, I hope you find this useful.

Hey, I think this is my 2nd post. Doh! Sorry Heather.

Anyhow, I just wanted to display what so many of us experience with Photoshop. It still amazes me, at how much a picture can change in the post-processing stage. It is helpful to see what pictures looked like in natural format and where they went ... so here is my share.

This is a quick snap of the Austin Skyline this week.

SOOC (straight out of the camera)

A 10x20 crop, some sharpening, a b&w conversion and major contrast boost. I added a brown-toned action at the end to give it a little more depth.

I entered a contest!!

I rarely enter any type of contest but I thought why not go ahead and humor yourself.  The prize up to win is super sweeet!!. I’m hoping  that this photo of my daughter letting loose on my current bag will win me a great new shootsac camera bag for my newest camera. So everyone keep their fingers crossed and wish me luck! If you want to enter, just go to  http://mcpactions.com/blog/2009/02/10/shootsac   and enter for your chance to win too!!!

I haven't shared in a while, so I thought I had better share some from a recent session. I love this family, and the girls are just so adorable. I did this session for the baby's 6 month pictures and she was teething a lot, she had 4 teeth coming in all at once, and while she was a little fussy she did awesome!!

So brilliant!!!

This was first featured on Scott Kelby's blog! Then I saw it again posted by Kylie on the Phaunt form, then today I saw it again on Deb Schwedhelm's blog and it was then that I thought I would finally watch it! And I am SO glad I did! It is truly brilliant & totally inspiring. If you haven't seen this video by Zack Arias then I strongly suggest you do! It is something that I will watch again too!

Here is the link: http://www.scottkelby.com/blog/2009/archives/3433

Color Inc.

Ok so this post isn't so much inspiration...more of a shout out. I just place my first order with color inc. I got lots and lots of prints in different sizes and mounts (styrene and standout) and everything looks FABULOUS. The most awesomest part though is there was a hand written note in with my order thanking me! That was so unexpected and such a nice touch. I actually walked over to my hubby and showed it to him and he said...did any of your other labs do that for you...um that would be a nope. So if your looking for a new lab or wanting to try out a new place try www.colorinclabs.com you get 50% off your first order too....so make it a big one and get lots of different sizes, mountings and textures!

{SUNRISE}

This was what I saw on my drive back home after dropping the boys off at school.
SETTINGS:
ISO: 100 AP: f/32 SS: 1/80

Free Textures

While reading Ginnie J Photography's blog http://ginsphotos.blogspot.com/ this morning, she gave 2 great links to some free Textures! Here are the links, enjoy!

http://textureking.com/

http://cgtextures.com/

Making a Willie!

That's what I'm going to do this weekend!

What's a Willie? A Willie is a little goofy character that you can slip the over your lens when the kids you are photographing start to loose interest in the shoot. This should grab their attention for a bit and make them giggle!

What do you need to do? Hop on over to Walmart and pick up a couple fabric scrunchies (think the 1990's kind) then grab some pipe cleaners, googly eyes and felt and make a little crazy face with antenna!

Have fun!

In need of a makeover!

So the blog is boring..I know. lol what do yall think it should look like? I thought maybe something fun like zebra stripes and a bold contrasting color...what do yall think?

Lighting Diagram

hey all!
i haven't posted lately, i've been super busy with seniors and lots of cute kiddo's! anyway, i get asked from time to time about my lighting set-up, so i thought i would share a little bit about that. i use 1 alien bee 800 with a giant alien bee softbox. i also use their cybersync triggers and lurve 'em! i typically use seamless paper for my backdrops. i'm going to attach a diagram of my set-up and then also a shot achieved using this set-up, well, pretty much my whole website and blog is with this set-up, but you'll understand when you see how cute the baby is i'm going to post.
okay, back on topic. you'll see in my diagram that i have "IF" you need a reflector, i do NOT use a reflector, even with up to 6 people i've not used a reflector and my images have come out great. so basically, if you're using that large of a softbox, you don't need a reflector if you're positioning your light correctly. when your setting up, you want your light to be perpendicular to your backdrop, and then go stand in front of the backdrop, right by the light. grab hold of the back edge of the softbox and get about an arms length away from it, let go and take one step back.. this is where you want your subject to be. i use my softbox so that its parallel to the ground. you'll also have to determine how high or low to position the light, and if you turn your modeling light on, that can be fairly easily. you want to catchlights to be in about the 10-11 o'clock position if light is on the left, and 1-2 o'clock if on the right. make sure to check that the light is in the correct position for the most flattering portrait. meter your light and your good to go!

David Jay Presets

I recently purchased some new ACR presets and I must say they RAWK! Here is a link to them. They are from David Jay. There is also a video to show you how to edit your pics in Bridge without ever moving them to Photoshop. I shot a wedding in January and it usually take me a good 3 to 4 weeks to get all the pics edited(having to stop and work on other sessions). With these presets I was done editing and had the bride her proof book in under 2 weeks! Check them out I'm sure you will love them just as much as I do.

Don't forget Jodi from MCP Actions latest offering All in the Details action set. I looove them!
Here is a mixute of the presets and one of Jodi's actions soft color. Hope I helped you spend some money today! :)

Kyla

A few shots in my little studio

I had just a few minutes for some shots in my studio. Here are a few...nothing spectacular...

 

Why does it seem like only one of these kids is feelin' the love?

 
For someone who wanted her picture taken, Kristi (in pink) sure wasn't very cooperative!  

It seems that it's been very quiet here. Has everybody been off doing something fun? My oldest daughter and her family came to visit us for a week, so we're having a great time with them. She's a photographer too, and I'm really enjoying discussing photos, business, and computer stuff with her!

So what's inspiring everyone else?

6 week old

What do you do when you have a stubborn newborn and feel you don't have enough shots? This baby was such a stinker! She would barely sleep, didn't like her tummy, wanted to eat the whole time. I feel I should have had more of a variety of shots. Anyone have tips for situations like this? I told the mother when she was pregnant to schedule the newborn shots for the first couple of weeks of life. She procrastinated and now we have an uncooperative baby. Thought this might be a good "what you don't want to happen to you" post. :)

He sleeps

I haven't posted in a while - things are very slow while it's freezing outside, so I thought I'd share these fairly recent shots.

My older son insists on falling asleep with a light on. I bemoan the power bill, but it does give me a chance to sneak in and take photos of him while he sleeps. (The first time I did this, I showed them to him, and he was so irritated that his eyes were closed - he insists he sleeps with his eyes open!) Nothing spectacular, but I'm glad I've got images like this to hold on to:

And just to be fair, here's my younger son, who makes me jealous every single day with these amazing eyelashes:

A few more of the twins:)

These are a few more of the twins from last week, I have another set tomorrow...a boy and a girl. I'm excited!

Where I live

I just wanted to share this photo of the area I live in. I live in the Bitterroot Mountains of Montana...this is part of Blodgett Canyon:

(ISO 100; f/7.1; 1/400; 50mm)

~Maternity~

I did this session for my Cousin. He and his girlfriend are expecting this month! Here are a couple of pictures from his session!

Free 10 Week Photoshop Class

Yes, this is completely free - 10 weeks of Photoshop classes, definitely worth a look.

Free Photoshop Course

Portrait "Rules"

Ever wonder what the "rules" are for posing? I came across this page that has some great tips! Sadly I have so many tabs open I honestly can't remember how I got there but I seriously recommend it! http://lumitouch.com/benstudiotutorial/rules.html Be sure to also look at the other lessons on there as they provide some great tips as well.

Kayla Renckly

Prop Alert!!

Hey everyone! Don't miss out!! These babies were at my local Walmart (the suckers, not the kiddos!) in the Valentine candy isle! The big ones were $1.00 each and the little heart ones were 2 for $1.00. The little heart ones came in different colors too - purple and white, red and white, pink and white, etc....
Yummmm!!

Perks for Senior Reps

Hi Everyone - I have been out all week at a Technology Education conference. While I was there - I spoke with a vendor that sells personalized thumb drives. They are available in many colors and you can add your own custom logo. I think this would be a great way to give the Senior Reps a gift for their service. I am going to get some of the small Jellybeenz drives and have my logo placed on them - then I will place watermarked images for facebook, myspace etc. The company is called Pexagon Technology Inc They are based out of Connecticut. The president and business dev. ppl were great. They are offering discounts to photographers through a special website that will be up and running soon. Contact emails are tmerola@pexagontech.com and bcampbell@pexagontech.com

A book recommendation...

i know for most of you senior season is long over, but down here it seems like seniors wait longer to get their portraits done. you know, like in their senior year.. or in the case of my seniors, 3 months before graduation, lol! so it's this time of year i start thinking about posing. during the rest of the year when i'm photographing babies and kids, i don't much think about posing.. i mean, a baby or little kid looks cute no matter what! a teenager, however, will not. so it's for these sessions that it's so important to know a thing or two about how to pose. that's where this book comes in so handy.. it's called "Posing for Portrait Photography: a head to toe guide" by Jeff Smith. Click HERE to view it at amazon.
oh, and since i didn't really say it, i do recommend this book, i've found it very helpful!

{Austin Photographer} 9 day old twin girls.

This was my first time photographing newborn twins, it was a bit of a challenge but I had a great time! It was funny because they were opposites, one was the pee-er, one didn't pee on anything, one was sleepy, the other mostly wide awake, one curly one flailer (is that a word? Oh well it is now ;)) But I got some great images for their mommy and daddy:) I've only proofed the one so far!

11 day old {L} - Take 2!

Angela Smith Photography