So I thought I’d take a break from my Tuesday post schedule.  Maybe it’s because I’m curious about the answer, or maybe it’s because me & my camera have been inside a lot lately working on the computer. Maybe it’s both.  Wink, wink.

Seriously, though, I’m curious about this.  Do you prefer Color or Black & White on a “typical” close-up portrait.  By typical portrait, I mean the subject’s face takes up most of the space in the image & is focused on the eyes and other features.  A headshot, in other words. Now, the easy answer for these is that it depends on the photo. And I know, it does to some extent, but on the other hand, when I’m doing processing, I’ll typically convert a handful into black & white & I’m just wondering what others think.  I’m a black and white fan (though I also like color), but I want some feedback.

With this in mind, I present one of Lauren’s portraits from last week’s session.  I just love that you can see her laugh in this image.

So what does everyone think? Do you usually like color but like this particular image in black and white? Or vice versa? Or are you flat-out always going to choose color? Share!  : )

Happy Tuesday to all.

So I had a busy week (as I’ve mentioned in previous posts), and here’s a little taste of what’s coming.  : )

This is a shot of Emily from our session last Saturday.  Isn’t she beautiful? Look at those pretty eyes.

Much more beauty to come soon!  : )  I’ve got a busy day, but I’ll have much more for you later!

Happy Friday.

I’m not sure what this plant is.  But I thought it was pretty. : )

I’ve got a full week ahead after a full weekend. We got to visit my brother & his wife & little Noah, who has gotten so big!  He still has all that hair & blue eyes!  He’s such a handsome baby.  : )

I hope everyone else had a good weekend, too. I’ll have some pretty senior images coming soon!

Happy Tuesday!

I don’t have a whole lot of commentary today.  (Yeah, I know and I was getting so good at it!)  : )

My next week and a half is packed pretty full, but most of it will be fun. : ) And you’ll be seeing some of it here!  (Excuse me while I celebrate).  But for today, enjoy this simple little image. And the fact that I think we’re finally seeing Spring around here!  : )

Enjoy your Tuesday.

So, since it’s still cold, cold *cold*, I decided I’d see how I could take advantage of the situation instead of whining about it. Or at least whining about it less, lol.
So I got out in the cold & after spending about 5 minutes straight trying to take pictures, I returned to my car with a red nose & frozen fingers & a bit of condensation on my camera’s LCD display from pressing my freezing cheek to it.
So I changed my tactics. If the weather was going to attack, I’d just return to my fort (aka car), get warm, and then venture out again for another go. So that’s what I did. Over & over. Though I did drive between excursions, so the scenery changed. : ) It kept me sane and at least slightly less cold.

And through the exploration, I decided I’d run a 4 weeks series of Winter’s Nature. Spring/Summer doesn’t have a monopoly on pretty nature, so I hunted some down.

Look!  Baby pinecones!  lol. (I have no idea if that’s what they really are, but they sure look like it!)

The “frame” on the image is thanks to Rita over at Coffee Shop Photography’s Free Actions. I’ve loved this bordered look for a while & thought I’d try it, especially since she made it so easy, though you should still check the tutorial so you know exactly how to customize it. : )

Happy (Cold) Tuesday!  Enjoy the weather as much as possible.

Well, after a hunt for green high heels that fit my specific requirements, I decided I’d try something new… and hope I didn’t fail completely.  I didn’t. : ) Which makes me very proud since I haven’t painted anything for 4-5 years, but I found a pair of canvas shoes on sale & dug out my old paints, to produce these:

The shoes started out as that subdued teal color (check the inside of the shoes) & I painted them a popping bright green.

Then I really tested my skills & tried to paint those little cameos. Believe it or not, the one I like best is the one I didn’t try to sketch out.  Figures, right? lol.

I stumbled upon this idea via this etsy shop.  If I had more spare cash laying in corners, I’d spend a lot more of my time on Etsy. lol.

And that’s what they look like on my feet – phenomenal, right? (Please ignore the bit of old nail polish peaking out of the shoe.  It will be removed by the end of the day, I promise. ; )  I still need to spray them to seal the paint on, and now that I’ve taken these shots, I see a few places I may want to touch up. Little things that I can’t see when they’re on my feet & I’m not studying them. : )

But all in all, I really am pleased. And now I have more custom-shoe ideas. Anyone got old shoes they want painted? ; )

This little tree stump bridges the fence between our neighbor’s yard and ours.

Every time I look at this image, it makes me think this tree has a nose (please, someone, tell me that they see it, too), which leads me inevitably to Ents & Narnia wood nymphs. What can I say? I love fantasy. And since I’ve now brought up a literary topic, may I just say that Terry Pratchett is hilarious. I mean, he used to read the dictionary for fun as a kid — how cool is that? (And I mean real cool, not sarcastic cool, just in case you couldn’t hear my tone over the internet). I mean, I was an English major, after all, and there are just certain levels of cool that go with that. ; )

Happy Tuesday!

Entwine #2.  I hope you enjoy how I’ve interpreted it this week. I mean, what could be more figurative than a set of wedding bands? : )

Aren’t those bands lovely? (And, no, they’re not mine & Chris’ — ours are silver because I love silver more).  : )  These are a set that my mom inherited from a family friend that she let me borrow to take some images with.

I love macro images like this and it’s one of my favorite things to capture at weddings: the details that make the day unique.  I think it’s those little things that the couple takes time to plan, but can still miss in the busyness of their day.

Well, enough philosophizing from me, Happy Tuesday to All. ; )

Don’t get me wrong.  I love the rain & cold weather is nice… for a while.  It’s been cold a little long this winter and we’re only in January.  Of course, since we’re in Texas, it should clear up in a few weeks (haha), but I am looking forward to not having to dig a jacket out of my closet to do something as simple as run to the store.

As you can imagine, this image is a few months old.  I was digging through my archives, to delete some images that I never sorted through a while pack and stumbled upon this lovely.  In color, it’s not so fantastic, but after I switched it to black & white, I just love it!

In other news, I got my new camera yesterday.  It’s a Canon 7D.  I’ve been looking forward to upgrading for several reasons, but after taking some experiment/play shots last night, I plugged my new “toy” into my computer today & my image program couldn’t read the files.  After a moment of “oh-my-gosh-what’s-wrong”, I googled the problem & found the fix.  Thank goodness I waited a few months to get my camera (or else the update wouldn’t have been ready).  Everything is much better now, running just like it should.  Hurrah for my new camera!

My first session in 2010 and I absolutely adore the results.  (Of course, I like the subject, too, I’ve known him just about forever). ; )

Ryan is a senior in Lubbock & is planning to study music in college next year. And with good reason: he got second chair in all state choir this year.  Amazing, yeah? (Especially to me – I’d like to have musical talent, but, well…)  On to the fabulous visuals.

How photogenic is he? And if I wore glasses, I’d try on ones like that first!

There are these neat old train cars outside of Lubbock that are set up on the side of the highway & if I understand correctly some type of Christmas celebration/decoration happens there every year… but when that stuff isn’t up it’s the perfect place for some photography.

Cotton!  And look at that sky!  So blue!

Can black & white get any better? His expression, pose, & the textures – I just love it!

His expression here makes me smile every time. Just a little bit of mischief, I think. ; )