A Then and Now...

So, I posted this on a Then and Now thread on one of my photography forums, and it really opened my eyes to how much I've improved over the past year!  I mean I knew that I got better, but I didn't think it was THAT much!


This first one was taken at the end of October 2010, so a few weeks short of a year ago...

This one was taken on Sunday October 9th, 2011... Four days ago...

Can't wait to see what the next year brings!!

Jack in Black (& White)

Nutella N'Jack :)

Chick's Beach

Shupac Lake...

It was so cold in the morning that the lake was steaming!

 

 

And one of Jack intently watching all the other people... and because I've been actually editing photos...

Just Jack...

For Fun!

 

Sun Goggles

Macro

 

 

 

 

 

A SMILE!

Some Jackson and Some Focus

Just a picture of Jackson to share.  And I would love to get the catchlights that I get in Lizzy's eyes in Jackson's.  She just sits still enough that I can nail focus easier.  I was focusing so much on focusing on her eyes, that I completely blew the highlights on her head.

 

Oil & Water

This would have been about ten times more lovely if I had a macro lens.  I took this shot by getting as close as I possibly could (about a foot) and then cropped in post processing.  I tried my hand at editing, but I think I went a little overboard with the sharpening and contrast.  And because I cropped a dark spot, I had to up the exposure a bit, and the outcome is quite grainy.  :) But isn't it pretty?!

I've lost count of the Days for 365...

Well, it's official. I have failed the 365 challenge.  I couldn't even make it to March :(  So, to make up for some lost time, I will bombard you with pics of Jackson.  He was sick last week with a fever of 103.  And then when he was feeling better, he fell and split his chin open, which needed a stitch and trip to Med Express.  He is doing soooo much better now, and I feel like I may have the energy to get back into taking and posting pictures.  Enjoy, and have a great weekend!

 

 Sadly, Jackson thinks it's funny when I tell him "No".

 

I know that his face is completely over exposed in this pic, but I love his expression in the reflection!

 

Day 51: Feet Focus

I absolutely love Jack's little feet! He was not interested in letting get pictures of them, though. There was a better composition that I shot, but I chopped off his big toe. So, I will have to try again. This shot still captured his sweet little toes.

Day 50: Or What Should be Day 50!

Wow! I have been MIA for a while.  I only missed a couple of days actually taking pictures, but as you can see, have not posted in a week.  I will do my best to keep it up better.  Cross my heart...

 Speaking of heart, Chad sent some beautiful flowers for Valentine's Day.  Jackson thought they were more fun to play with than to smell, but I did get one adorable photo of him.  It ended up making a great Valentine's Day card for his Dad!

Day 41

I spent more time with back button focus, and I'm loving it!  It is sooo much easier.

Day 40: BBF

Today was a trial with Back Button Focusing. It is explained a bit here... Canon BBF.  Though I am still getting used to it, I have found it has increased the number of keepers when I shoot.  While Jackson was eating today I took four pics of him. Usually, I'm lucky if just one of them has good focus on his eyes. However, in using the BBF I had 3 good focus pics.  So, I went from something like keeping 25% to being able to keep 75%.  Huge difference! If you haven't made the switch and are struggling with getting great focus, take some time to try it out. Here's one from today, and a 100% crop of his eye.

 

 

Okay, so it's not the sharpest focus, but it is good for me. Hopefully, it will only get better from here.

Day 39: The Very Hungry Caterpillar

50mm f/2.5  SS 1/80  ISO 200

Day 38: Last of the 9 Month Shots

This was my last attempt at getting some good 9 month shots of Jackson.  He is just so hard to get to sit still, look at me, and smile all at the same time. This is honestly the best that I got. I tried my hand a bit at editing again, though it didn't look too bad SOOC. 

50mm f/2.8  SS 1/160  ISO 200

Day 37: I've seen the color of the Light!

I don't know about any of the other ladies doing the 365, but I have started to actually see the color of light. I guess you never really notice how the incandescent lights actually give everything a yellow cast, not just in camera. I used custom white balance on the following photo, but it looked way blue and cool to me.  Though technically it's correct, because the tub is white, just the color of the light made me feel like it should be more yellow. Anyway, I did some photo editing (only in iphoto so it is far from good) and tried to make it look more natural and pleasing to the eye. I may not have been super successful, but it looks better in my opinion.

 

Day 36

There is nothing photographically special about this picture... it's just special! Jackson thought he was hilarious playing in the dog's cage. He proceeded to cry when he couldn't figure out how to turn around and get out.

Day 35

 The one thing that Jackson has of mine is my blue eyes. However, you would never know it by this picture. They look the same shade of gray as his shirt. Maybe that's it. They just always match his outfit. :)

Day 34

 We have been sleep training.  The bags under Jack's eyes seem to be super prominent here.  Luckily, on night four, he slept through the night... for the first time ever!

Day 33

Again, I'm falling behind. I took pictures on day 33, but they were of a neighbors son and I don't think it's appropriate to post those when I don't have his parents permission. So, I'm going to post a picture I took the next day.

Day 32 = Awesome!

I spent today taking pictures for two different challenges.  One was The Joy of Love by Willette Designs. It's actually a free class for the whole month of February.  Everyday you get e-mailed a new challenge, and short little lesson. You take pictures of loved ones, whether they be family, friends, or pets and follow the challenge.  Today's challenge was "How They Look", and I missed yesterdays which was "What They Do".  So, today I combined both.  I went with a simple facial expression as my growing boy crawls towards me.  The focus looks like it fell on his mouth... but that's how it is with a mobile baby. 

 

The second challenge I did today was for a spot in a class I'm dying to take.  The challenge was either a funny or interesting self portrait.  This photo is not one I entered, but I am proud of it.  It is harder than it looks to take a picture of yourself and get good focus.  It is far from perfect, but out of the 100+ self portraits I took today, this one was best!

Day 32

I started out the month of February snapping away.  This is a cute picture of Lizzy resting after playing with Jackson. She's resting her head on the rubber bone they were playing with and it looks like she is smiling.

50mm f/2 ss 1/125 ISO 400

Day 31

I didn't get much of a chance to take pictures today. For the short bit that I could, we set up our new backdrop to see what it would look like with just the indoor lighting. I had to have such a high ISO, and wide aperture, as well as a slow shutter speed, it just did not work. I used the toy alligator in the picture to lure Jackson over. It worked, but he still didn't stay put.  Besides the fact that it's quite underexposed, you can see how the lighting significantly effects the way the color of the background looks, by comparing it with the previous post. It looks much prettier in the natural light.

Day 30: Photo... Shoot!

This was again, an attempt at a photo shoot type set up.  It would have been perfect if the little man wasn't constantly on the move. He just would not stay still enough for me to catch him, unless there was some sort of toy in his mouth, which would block most of his face! Anyway, I was proud of my "set" since I made it myself. I found this DIY project on one of the photography forums I'm a member on. I picked everything up at Home Depot for about $50.  The "wall" and "floor" are a 4x8 foot piece of paneling cut in half. I just painted the one half with a sample size Behr paint, and liquid nailed the base board, which I also painted, to the bottom. I am proud of the outcome. Now if I could just get Jackson to look at the camera, stay still, and smile...

Day 29

I'm playing catch-up here. And Jackson, he was playing in the cupboard!

Day 28

Day 27

Just a quick shot of the little man today. I used a high ISO, 1600. And today I learned that when using a high ISO you should ETTR (Expose to the Right) or overexpose by a stop or two. It helps prevent noise with the larger ISO. I learned this after taking the pic, but I will be trying it the next time I find myself bumping up the ISO.

Day 26: Snowfest?

I'm day behind in posting, but yesterday we attempted to go to Snowfest. As it turns out, none of the sculptures were finished. In fact, most were just getting started.  No pictures of the snow carvings :( But, Jackson officially became 9 months old, so I had to get at least a picture of him. He was all bundled up to stay warm.

Day 25: Nature Walk

Today was the perfect day to take some outdoor shots. Lizzy and I went for a walk through the woods on the property I grew up on. It turns out that there really isn't any color these days and I really had to look to find some. The Birch trees were my best subjects today. Well Lizzy was too, as she rested her tired little self by the fire.