MoPhoto Walk: Photos

Last week Kaitlin, Mandy, and I participated in something called the MoPhotoWalk. Ever heard of it? No, you probably haven't because this was the first time meeting, socializing, and shooting with other photographers, beginners and advanced.

Basically, those that signed up (no cost) met downtown Modesto at a meeting point and followed the same route for about an hour and a half before meeting back up at the State Theater for some Lightroom and Photoshop tutorials by Jerad Hill, photographer and organizer.

Here's a sample of my favorite shots of the day...

The feet I walked with. I love those shoes. They're starting to really show their wear and tear and I can't find new one anywhere!

Great lighting on the side of McHenry Mansion.

I know, not much here. Just love the depth of field though.

Not totally focused because of an ever so slight breeze. But for some reason I'm just drawn to this one.

And the State Theater at night. Coolest neon lights in Modesto.

To see more of my MoPhotoWalk pictures of click here, or here to see the whole groups pictures.

Portrait: Pam for TID Super

Last weekend I had the privilege of photographing Pam Sweeten, who is running for a spot on the TID Board. You see though, Pam didn't just happen upon me or hear about me from a friend of a friend. Pam and I go way back. Like she used to babysit. It was just a few years ago though.

Anyways... So Pam is running for TID's District 5 spot on the Board of Directors. And she's gearing up into full campaign mode. And with campaign mode comes numerous printed items with her beautiful, warm smiling face.

Enters me... Amateur Photographer Extraordinaire!

Pam stands for and represents everything agriculture. And well, here in the Central Valley of California, we're surrounded by it. So we started out in an almond orchard, then walked across the country road to a corn field.
Moving down the road we found a great canal. Perfect! TID=Turlock Irrigation District. Kinda what canals are all about. So we took advantage of the flowing water and had a little fun.
After getting our feet wet, literally. Silly me, I wore flip flops, in the country, where there soil is fine and clings like no other. So yes, I rinsed off a little too. Off to find some different back drops around Turlock.

Like the TID Building...
And the City Building.

All in all it was a good time. I learned that I really need to work on posing. But with this particular shoot it was a bit challenging. How do you pose someone running for an office without it being a boring head shot? Oh well, we went with it.

To see more pictures of Pam click here.

MoPhoto Walk

Battery charged - check!
Lenses loaded - check!
Dinner eaten - not check yet.
Ready to go surround myself with local photographers and wannabes (like me) - check!

Tonight I'm participating in the first ever MoPhoto Walk in Modesto. And I'm really excited!

There's gonna be people. And walking. And cameras. And photographing. And teaching. And learning. And PRIZES! And fun!

If you're in the area I suggest you keep an eye on MoPhoto Walk for future events.

And check back here in the next couple days for pictures not only of tonight's event, but also pictures from a shoot I had last Sunday.

Engagement: Danae & Adam add'l

Remember those couple extra pictures I promised you from the post yesterday? Well here they are...



I'm still learning Photoshop, and probably will be until I'm 78. So I'm stickin' to the basics and picking up new techniques as I go. Bear with me.

Thanks!

Love, love!

Engagement: Danae & Adam

A few weeks ago I was the recipient of a "I'm ENGAGED! Adam proposed at Disneyland." text. After sending my congrats, via text of course, I followed up with "Can I take your engagement pictures?" Then I realized I stuck my foot in my mouth because I really don't know what I'm doing, but figured it would be good practice.

And I recruited a friend to join me in the picture taking/practice experience.

I admit. I was freaked out! You saw my pictures from Kaitlin, they came out pretty good. I was satisfied with them. But these people aren't family. I can't boss them around and punch them. Don't worry, I don't punch Kaitlin...often.

So Saturday came. I took pictures. Mandy did most of the posing (my weakness and where I need to become stronger). Look at what I captured on my camera worried me, I was sure that maybe out of 400+ pictures I only got a handful of good ones. Boy was I surprised (at myself) when I uploaded and reviewed them.

Take a look...

I love these shots along the stone wall.

Danae has an infectious laugh. And Adam makes her laugh. They were so stinkin' cute!
Danae, you'll be happy to know that I will not be posting the nose picking pictures.

Um... HELLO! Does this not scream romantic!?! This may be one of my favorite from the day!

A little black & white action. Such a sweet, tender embrace.

The lighting... love it!

Who says you can't have a little fun!

Yeah for props and outfit changes! Danae developed the love of baseball, particularly the Oakland A's. Fortunately, she found a fellow fan to spend the rest of her life with.

And to finish things off, a little smoochy smoochy as they ride off in the sunset...

I can't wait until the wedding in November!

To see more pictures from Danae & Adam click here.
I have 2 more pictures to add. They are in my "upload to flickr que". Stay tuned...

Kaitlin: The Practice Dummy

copied and pasted from Practicing Patience here because, well, it was a photography blog.

So last Saturday I took pictures of a friend from high school and her new fiancee. I volunteered to do it as practice and just to see how I would do shooting people. Not places. Not landscape. Not flowers.

But I also knew that before I took pictures of Danae and Adam I should probably practice on someone else. Or at least go scope out CSUS for good locations.

So I went to my go to gal.

Kaitlin.

So let me show you what I did. What my pictures look like...

I love this one. It may actually be my favorite (or in the top 5). Doesn't it look like she's praising God?
She thought she was being so cute. Pretending to walk down an aisle. She's right, she was b
Scary face! Or is that the "oh no it's hideous" face?Just a cool look with the sun flare and the leaf.
She was getting way into the jehovah witness propaganda. NOT!Ain't nothin' wrong with laying on a bring wall wishing and dreaming.Isn't this one adorable? I think this was taken after she rolled down the hill (intentionally). Then Kait was just being goofy.Classic black and white.Embrace the freckles! Kaitlin's typical laughing face.
Pondering life.Something about this pictures speaks to me. The way the sun is reflecting off Kaitlin and the water. The sun flare. The warm feeling.Last picture because the sun had gone down.
So... What do you think? Did I do good?

What I learned is that I need to work at posing. I learned that even more come Saturday. With practice I'll get better. I'm just so used to taking the candid pictures of people in their natural element. Oh well, that's why I practiced.

To view more pictures of Kaitlin click here.

Welcome!

As I embark on this new adventure in my life I thought it would be best to have a special place to share all things photography related. So what will you see here you ask? Well, mainly as I'm asked to photograph people I'll share the results. Maybe someday this blog will be used to lure additional clients in. But right now it's just for me to share and build my "hobby".

So stop by anytime. Share so love with comments. And feel free to give your honest opinion.

Thanks!