She's got her a belly

We met my little sister in Idaho, at the TLC ranch, for Memorial Day weekend. Her sweet baby is due at the end of August. I'm happy with this straight out of camera, but I do need to learn about lighting (and have possible help) to minimize yucky facial shadows.

Mother's Day

For privacy reasons I can't share with you the perfect, huge group shot I captured on the first take. Even this wonderful, adorable baby was looking at the camera, with no hand covering his face. However, I enjoyed a fantastic Mother's Day, picnicking at La Tourelle Falls. Grandpa did the honors of carrying the heavy little monster... and made sure he was treated to cookies. I passed the clean-up off to Dad. I mean, it was Mother's Day after all.

Also, the conditions were perfect for photography... and the photographers were out in full force. Almost every group I saw had at least one person with their bulky SLR and tripod. Awesome! I had so much fun taking pictures. And I really AM getting better at it!

(I'll likely get around to adding EXIF at some point. Just not right now.)

Seizing Every Opportunity to Celebrate

I filled the 8GB card today. Wait, I mean, not all from pictures I took today. I was "shooting from the hip" (okay, literally I was) getting chased by my boy on his bike when I hit the "card full" limit. COOL! It felt like a tiny bit of a milestone, so I wanted to share.

Sunday was World Pinhole Camera Day. And, coincidentally, I have the perfect space to try some camera obscura. Unfortunately, I didn't plan ahead, and didn't attempt blacking out my space until I woke up on Sunday morning. By the time I got the place mostly blacked out, the sun was too high and the picture was too low on the wall/floor. I left the setup for the day so I could see again this morning... but it was pretty cloudy and the picture wasn't very vibrant. Also, one day without natural light coming in was too much, so I tore it down today. I shall try again this summer, setting up the night before when the forecast calls for sunshine.

Successful Afternoon

There was a photo project for Earth Day... creating a mosaic of the entire planet. Just in case I could snap a good photo, I went out on the cloudy early evening with tripod in one hand, and baby in the other. Of course, as usual, photos without kids (or at least people) in them don't inspire me much, and I ended up playing with portraits instead.

Canon EOS 30D, 4/22/2009 4:26:48 PM, Shooting Mode: Aperture-Priority AE, Shutter Speed: 1/500, Aperture Value: 3.5, Evaluative Metering, ISO Speed: 100, Lens: 17.0 - 50.0mm, Focal Length: 33.0mm, Flash: Off, White Balance Mode: Daylight, AF Mode: Manual

I like the field with dandelions, but couldn't find a spot with the perfect background. It would be nicer without the house and such. On some other shots, it's not there... but I love the kids faces on this one. The bugs were bugging them. (Sorry for the bad pun, couldn't help myself.)

Canon EOS 30D, 4/22/2009 4:29:22 PM, Shooting Mode: Aperture-Priority AE, Shutter Speed: 1/640, Aperture Value: 3.5, Evaluative Metering, ISO Speed: 100, Lens: 17.0 - 50.0mm, Focal Length: 47.0mm, Flash: Off, White Balance Mode: Daylight, AF Mode: Manual

I'm a sucker for these blue eyes. I touched up another one that I think highlights his eyes much more.

Canon EOS 30D, 4/22/2009 4:57:02 PM, Shooting Mode: Aperture-Priority AE, Shutter Speed: 1/800, Aperture Value: 2.8, Evaluative Metering, ISO Speed: 100, Lens: 17.0 - 50.0mm, Focal Length: 30.0mm, Flash: Off, White Balance Mode: Shade, AF Mode: Manual

Nothing to say, nothing to add on this one. I'm happy with it, especially the depth of field.
Wait, nevermind. I'd like to edit out all the little pieces of grass and debris on his shirt.

As always, I'd love to hear your opinions, advice, critiques, etc.

Sunday Afternoon

I would prefer brighter colors, and if I'm understanding things correctly, that would need a longer exposure. Of course, on such a bright afternoon that would affect other settings as well.

Model = Canon EOS 30D
Exposure Time = 1/1250"
F Number = F2.8
ISO Speed Ratings = 100
Date Time Original = 2009-04-19 11:54:31
Aperture Value = 2.97 AV
Exposure Bias Value = ±0EV
Flash = Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode
Focal Length = 46mm
Color Space = sRGB
Exposure Mode = Manual exposure
White Balance = Manual white balance

I took several photos which I like much better than this one, but I wanted to mess with them a bit, so they didn't qualify to go on this "no edits allowed" blog.

Note to Self: Check Settings Every Time

I could kick myself.

The last time I had taken out the camera for practice was when I went to watch the kiddos swimming lessons. We were in a large indoor pool, I was far away on the bleachers, the kids were moving fast, and I was trying to capture fun moments = high ISO.

Yesterday, I spent the day with a bunch on elementary school kids while they spent the day in a beautiful church. I would only be busy playing piano for a tiny part of the time. Great photo op.

I forgot to change the ISO, and now all the pictures are grainy. BOO!

At least I can give myself props for knowing what my mistake was.


Camera Model Canon EOS 30D
Shooting Date/Time 4/17/2009 9:44:33 AM
Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/30
Av( Aperture Value ) 2.8
Metering Mode Evaluative Metering
ISO Speed 1600
Lens 17.0 - 50.0mm
Focal Length 39.0mm
Image Size 3504x2336
Image Quality RAW
Flash Off
White Balance Mode Auto
AF Mode Manual focusing
Picture Style Portrait
Sharpness 2
Contrast 0
Saturation 0
Color tone 0
Color Space sRGB
Noise Reduction Off

P.S. I found this photo interesting. I usually really prefer faces, but this one captured the spirit of the event for me. (These girls were way to excited to be together, out of school for the day, and having fun to really give their best attention to the director.) Plus, since I don't have explicit permission from the girls to post their photos to the blogosphere, I didn't choose one that clearly showed faces.

Shadow and Light

I played a bit with the new lens, and in following my rules, this photo gets no editing... unfortunately for his face. It's probably easy enough to dodge and fix it in photoshop, right? How would I avoid something like this in natural lighting without post processing, though? Just don't take pictures of people in caps?

Model = Canon EOS 30D
Exposure Time = 1/250"
F Number = F2.8
ISO Speed Ratings = 200
Date Time Original = 2009-04-10 19:17:28
Shutter Speed Value = 7.97 TV
Aperture Value = 2.97 AV
Exposure Bias Value = ±0EV
Flash = Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode
Focal Length = 50mm
Exposure Mode = Manual exposure
White Balance = Auto white balance