Wednesday, August 27, 2008

And 6 Hours Later...

Well, I got my photos re-edited. Here were a few of the winners in my book...

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

#8

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRIAN!!!

Today is Brian’s 41st birthday!!! Happy Birthday honey! I love you!!!

This year’s celebration is slightly less interesting than last years, which was a huge bash at the house and a Rolex watch…

This year we’re going to Kelsey’s for dinner, sans kids, and to Brown County to break in his birthday present



for a weekend of relaxing and trail riding. The weather’s supposed to be perfect, unlike last year which was 100 degrees – and our campsite was right in the sun. This year we planned ahead a little better and got a large site that backs up to the woods and a creek with tons of shade, especially in the morning.

Everyone help me in wishing him a good one!!!

Monday, August 25, 2008

Holy God... Did I Screw Up...

I spent about 6 hours yesterday editing pictures from Saturday’s wedding. Follow me here so you can weep with me…
Total images in RAW format = 1050
First edit; get rid of the “blinkers” remaining images = 789
Second edit; just bad pictures, remaining images = 624
Detailed edits = 624
Total files containing edited information = 624
Now, since I went from 789 images to 624, what was image #4 was now image, oh, #2 or so.
I renamed the 624 remaining so they were in numerical order (1-624) – so now the edit I did for the OLD #4, now applies to the new #4… you get the picture? (no pun intended).
I just lost 6 hours worth of editing, and there’s no way to un-rename the files to get them associated back with the edit file for which they are associated.
Does this make sense or am I just still in a state of delirium? So rather than opening roughly 624 edit files in notepad, noting the original image number, and guessing which RAW file it should be paired to, I’m. Starting. Over.
Yikes. We won’t make that mistake again!!!

Friday, August 22, 2008

Mean Parents

I got this from a friend of mine, and found a copy on the internet. The author is unknown, so I hope I'm not plagarizing... IT'S NOT MY OWN but I sure think it's true!!

All parents are mean for a reason. As we grow into adults we know why our moms and dads were mean. Someday when my children are old enough to understand the logic that motivates a parent, I will tell them:

I loved you enough... to ask where you were going, with whom, and what time you would be home.
I loved you enough... to insist that you save your money and buy a bike for yourself even though we could afford to buy one for you.
I loved you enough... to be silent and let you discover that your new best friend was a creep.
I loved you enough... to make you go pay for the bubble gum you had taken and tell the clerk, "I stole this yesterday and want to pay for it."
I loved you enough... to stand over you for two hours while you cleaned your room, a job that should have taken 15 minutes.

I loved you enough... to let you see anger, disappointment, and tears in my eyes. Children must learn that their parents aren't perfect.
I loved you enough... to let you assume the responsibility for your actions even when the penalties were so harsh they almost broke my heart.

But most of all, I loved you enough... to say NO when I knew you would hate me for it.

Those were the most difficult battles of all. I'm glad I won them because in the end you won, too. And someday when your children are old enough to understand the logic that motivates parents, you will tell them....

Was your Mom or Dad mean? I know mine were.
We had the meanest mother in the whole world!
While other kids ate candy for breakfast, we had to have cereal, eggs, and toast.
When others had a Pepsi and a Twinkie for lunch, we had to eat sandwiches.

And you can guess our mother fixed us a dinner that was different from what other kids had, too.

Dad insisted on knowing where we were at all times.
You'd think we were convicts in a prison.

He had to know who our friends were, and what we were doing with them. He insisted that if we said we would be gone for an hour, we would be gone for an hour or less

We were ashamed to admit it, but Mom had the nerve to break the Child Labor Laws by making us work. We had to wash the dishes, make the beds, learn to cook, vacuum the floor, do laundry, empty the trash and all sorts of cruel jobs. I think she would lie awake at night thinking of more things for us to do.

They always insisted on us telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
By the time we were teenagers, they could read our minds. Then, life was really tough!

My mother and father wouldn't let our friends just honk the horn when they drove up. They had to come up to the door so they could meet them.

While everyone else could date when they were 12 or 13, we had to wait until we were 16.

Because of our parents we missed out on lots of things other kids experienced.

None of us have ever been caught shoplifting, vandalizing others' property or ever arrested for any crime.

It was all their fault.

Now that we have left home, we are all educated, honest adults. We are doing our best to be mean parents just like ours were.

I think that is what's wrong with the world today.
It just doesn't have enough mean moms and dads.

Friday, August 15, 2008

A Few As Promised...

I know most people probably aren't really into looking at pictures of people they don't know, but as I do more and more photography, I'm feeling like I'm settling into my own "niche" if that makes sense. I've gotten some really good feedback from these from other pros - people whose work I've admired - asking ME what settings I used etc! Yay!





Monday, August 11, 2008

A Busy Weekend

Well, wedding season is starting and I’m feeling the heat. I had engagement pictures for a couple whose wedding I’m shooting next year on Saturday, and I met with my couple from this months wedding this weekend, too. We shot the engagements in Indy, which was AWESOME! After a while, I feel like I’m taking the same picture over and over, using the same locations blah blah blah. Even though the pictures are new to each couple, it was refreshing to actually go to a location I haven’t been before.

We started out at the Oldfields–Lilly House & Gardens at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. There were so many very cool locations there, I could have spent an entire session there finding new stuff. The actual Lilly house was absolutely stunning. I told my couple, it was like the places I see in magazines and always wonder, “Where do they find these places to take such beautiful pictures?” Well, I found it. Actually, the area behind the house was even better than the house itself. And all the bridges and fountains were just magnificent.

After that, we went down to the canal walk downtown and took some cool shots there too. At the very end it was getting dark and I got some really nice shots with the city all lit up in the background. Not only that, but I got to play with some flash, ISO, and dark shooting techniques that I haven’t had much opportunity to work with yet. So on top of being just a great place to shoot, it was a really good learning/practice session for me too. I should have some of the pics on my website by the end of the week, so check back. They turned out to be some of the best I’ve done yet, in my opinion. It also helped that the couple were a lot of fun and willing to play around a little, too.

Sarah and some other girls from the barn showed the horses this weekend on Sunday. I took them to the show, since I really shouldn’t be riding and especially showing just yet. Sarah and Harley got a 2nd in their first class out of 15 or so very nice horses. Yay! It’s nice to see all the hours spent in the saddle come to fruition. She won $25 too – can’t complain about that! So that pretty much paid for the day and all the entry fees and stuff.

Vincent went to the show with me and was such a good boy. He hung out all day, didn't complain at all, and was great. He got a new cowboy hat for his efforts. I'll take a pic of him in it - he's gonna be a little heartbreaker! Anyway, I'd better get to work... more later...