Learning the Camera... Again!

I took 2 and 1/2 semesters of photography in college... I won't say how long ago that was, but let's just say it was before digital cameras made it's way onto the scene. I spent countless hours in the darkroom back then, and enjoyed every single minute of it. These days, the cameras you can buy make taking pictures so easy and I have become very lazy! It's been a long time since I have not relied on "automatic" settings.

But since I've been back on the photography wagon lately, I decided it is time I relearn how to take pictures the right way... by manually programming my own aperture, shutter, and exposure.

Whewee! It sure has been a while! While I struggled this weekend to remember what I used to know, I tested out my rusty skills around the house on random items, and on my cats, Yoda and Chloe. I have a lot more practicing to do, but I was happy the pictures actually came out!

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The Dog Park

Craig and I usually take Lucy to the dog park on weekends so she can play with her friends and burn off some energy. We took the camera with us this weekend to try and capture all the cute puppies she likes to play chase with. Craig took most of these pictures, so I decided to practice my Photoshop skills on the shots he took.

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The Children

It’s so much fun taking pictures of my animals… but so hard to capture their little personalities! Every time I take the camera out, they either run away or make silly faces at me.

Lucy, is our new Lab/Pitt mix and she is 11 months old. Craig and I adopted her about a month ago, and she is full of so much energy! Yoda has been with me the longest. He’s fat, moody, and all those other good things cats like to be.

For these shots, I had to wait until Yoda and Lucy were getting ready to nap. They happened to be in the same room, and the light was pouring through the windows so softly and in all the right places. It was my lucky day!

There’s also two more “children” at home… I’m still waiting for them to cooperate with me, so hopefully I can share some pictures of the rest of the family soon.

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My Favorite Subject!

I might be a little bias, because he’s my boyfriend. But Craig really is one of the greatest guys I know, and he’s HOT! So taking Craig’s picture is pretty easy.

We did these about two weeks ago, and it was a hot one outside! (to be expected this time of year in Phoenix). But despite the heat, we managed to enjoy ourselves. Craig’s a musician/music producer, and I was trying to capture some of his personality here. Below are some of my favorites we took that day.

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Why the photo blog?

I have always been drawn to photographs. Pictures are frozen moments in life, and they can tell great stories far beyond the one second it took to snap the picture.

Black and white, color, abstract, landscapes, portraits.... It does not matter if pictures are taken from a professional or an amateur. It does not matter if they are taken from an expensive camera or with a disposable. What matters is the feeling each image conveys… happy, sad, beautiful, ugly, fun, love.

Sometimes when the emotion is so intensely captured, I feel as if I’m a part of the experience. When I desire to be in the picture more than only observing the image, then I know that photograph has done its job.

There’s so much beauty in this art form, and I will always enjoy creating in this way. This is why I decided to start this blog. I wanted to tell some of my own stories through this art form.

Besides, it’s just a lot of fun, so I hope you enjoy!

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