Photographing Kids in Action

First off, I am not a professional photographer, nor am I great at taking pictures, but I do LOVE a good photograph.  That being said, I feel it's hard to get great pictures of my kids.  The next few weeks, I'm going to focus on different angles/settings to get pictures of children.
This week, I wanted to get some pictures of my older boys playing basketball outside, but I've never been able to get a great action shot.  So, I was determined to this time and here's what I did....most important lesson is get at their level!  I often want to stand and take pictures, but I realized that it wasn't a great angle for shooting the photos.  Second was to take LOTS of pictures!  Since I have a digital camera I knew I could just delete that bad or blurry pictures.  Here's two great photos I got using my two strategies:

So don't be afraid to take some action shots this week!  Hope you have a fabulous day!

~Sharon

First and Last Photo's

Hi!  Everyone that has children in school takes a photo of the first day of school, right?  Usually!  But, most people don't think to take a photo of the last day of school as well.  I like to do the photo in about the same spot and have them in the same position so we can see how much they have changed throughout the school year.  Here's my example with my oldest son:

First day of 2nd grade

Last day of 2nd grade

I can't believe how much he has grown in one school year!  I hope that this has inspired you to do some first and last photos of events.  Where ever your journeys take you this week, take some photos of the events to remember them by and HAVE FUN!  Hope you have a fabulous day!
~Sharon

Photo tip

Hello everyone!  For the longest time I would look at pictures and realize that I wasn't in many at all because I was the designated picture taker. I decided to put an end to that and be in the pictures with my family!  So, there were two things I needed to buy to be in the pictures more...

My remote

My tripod

and I LOVE them!  Now I can set the tripod up, set my camera to remote and be in the pictures with my family!  I love to set the tripod up and take family pictures, pictures of me and my husband, and candid shots as well!  These two items have helped this momma be in many more pictures!  :)  

Hope you have a fabulous Tuesday!

~Sharon

Photo Growth Chart

Happy Tuesday!  Today's photo tip is one idea of how to create what I call a "photo growth chart."  I cannot take any of the credit for our family doing this it was completely my husband's idea.  He thought it would be fun to document our boys' growth by putting them next to a football.  Here is one of the boys in his first football photo at 11 days old.

From there it became a regular thing in our house.  Their first year we took one every month, then we went to every three months, and now we are doing them every six months.  Here he is at age three.

It is so much fun to see how much they grow and mature from picture to picture.

This is just one of the many ways to document the growth of a child.  What are some other ones?  I would love to hear what other people do.

Have a great week!

It's Just a Phase

Happy Tuesday!  When my twins were a couple of months old and very close to sleeping through the night all of a sudden one of them started waking up every morning around 4 AM.  The first time it happened we tried feeding him, changing him, rocking him, walking around the house, nothing would calm him down.  I decided to try laying in our oversized chair sideways with my legs hanging over the arm, him laying on his tummy with his head on my chest.  Within a few minutes he was sound asleep!  The next morning he woke up again, but this time sitting in the chair sideways was right after feeding and changing and once again he was asleep within minutes.  Every morning for what seemed like forever he woke up, we picked him up from his crib, and moved to the chair.  At the time it was very frustrating and we wondered how long this was going to go on. 

However now looking back, I'm so thankful that I got a picture of my husband laying with him (even the dogs joined in on this morning snuggle time) because like most things kids do, it was just a phase.  Within a couple of weeks he started sleeping through the night and the early morning cuddle was just a memory.

Now I wonder what phases, good or bad, that I don't even remember because I didn't get a picture of them.  Are your children going through any phases right now?  How about you?  My photo tip for you is to take pictures of those phases...even the unpleasant phases.

Have a great week!

Last Day of School

Happy Tuesday!  This year was my boys' first year of preschool so at the beginning of the year I took their first "First Day of School" photo in our front yard with their backpacks on.  Then, I took more of them...hopping into the car, standing in front of their preschool, and walking into preschool.

Today was their last day of school for the year and they were already in the car before the thought even hit me, "Should I take a picture of this?"  So, I ran into the house, grabbed the camera, used all of my "get the boys to cooperate" tricks to try and get them out of the car, (my tricks only worked on one of them this time), and lucked out that the one boy who would get out of the car was nice enough to pose for me without too much hassle (I didn't even have to bribe him with candy).  We were already running a little behind so I stuck with just the one photo, I didn't go into full paparazzi mode this time:)

One other school photo idea that I forgot all about...taking a picture of them with their teachers.  I'll have to remember that one for next year:)

Have a great week!

Happy May Day!

A new month means a new Mix-A Kit at Scrap Matters.  This month Ramona has created two fantastic paper packs and a beautiful set of clusters (I love how easy it is to create a layout using clusters).  You can find these amazing products, along with other pieces to mix and match, in the shop at Scrap Matters.  Also, the Mix-A-Kit pieces are 20% off for 1 week!

 

 Here are some layouts for inspiration by the very talented creative team.

Terin

March

Amy

Bethany

Now for your Tuesday photo tip...To get pictures of things you maybe wouldn't normally photograph choose a theme each day and take some photos of that theme.  A few examples of themes would be, your hobbies, friends, favorite toy(s), favorite foods, parts of your home, etc.  I know I go through phases where I only take pictures of major events and holidays, but when it comes to everyday life I have very few photos.

Have a great Tuesday!

Photographing flowers

When photographing flowers it is best to avoid full sun and high winds.
I placed my vase next to the kitchen window on my trusted kitchen counter.

You can see the neighbour's house and my tins on the window sill but these don't matter.

The first shot shows a close-up, however they're all in focus and the eye goes from one to the next trying to determine what it should be looking at. Nothing really sticks out or says "look at me!"

This next shot has the middle section in focus. This leads to the rose in the foreground being blurry. This create less confusion for the eye, but I don't like a big blurry something in the foreground - it feels like an eye sore to me.

With this next shot, there is only one whole rose that is in focus and the eye is lead straight there and lingers, no confusion with multiple things to look at. Better but still not my favourite.

I tried a different angle and this shot is also ok, nice depth of field, some context, no confusion.

Then I took this one and loved it. Even though the focal rose is in the centre of the image and not following the rule of thirds it is still my best shot.

So what do you think, do you take photos of your flowers?

They always look happy to me, they don't moan or blink when I try and snap their pictures.

These say "Happy 24th Anniversary" to me.

Delightful details.

Hi there, Stefanie here bringing you your weekly photographic tips and ideas.

I was thinking about story telling through photos. If you think of newspaper photos, they're usually big and have everything in focus. There is action and context. It is eye catching and attention grabbing. We sneak a peek to read about it. The headlines are bold and give you additional context. The caption provides you with the who, where, why and any additional details your curiosity needs to be satisfied - or the article continues onto another page and if you're intrigued enough you'll buy the paper.
Those celebrity type magazines do much the same. The cover houses a usually unflattering photo of someone famous and then attention grabbing snippets and titles litter the rest of the cover to draw you in and make you want more.

I prefer a different kind of photography. I like my photos to tell the story. I like a beginning, middle and end. Make no mistake I will still have an eye catching title and details within the caption.

I find I delight in the details. I visited my friend who was baby sitting an under the weather 2 year old. Life with little ones is busy, filled with mundane tasks and repetition. But what wonderful stories our lives will tell.

The hub of the home

I am sure that every home has one.
The place that draws people, the place that things get dumped on.
The place where all the action happens.
In my home it happens to be the kitchen counter.
I like to keep it clear, because I function better that way. I am able to think or just exhale, if it is cluttered I feel a little rattled. Not when people are busy there but when it is left in a mess.

My DD had been shopping here and then wrapped the present she had bought for her friend. 

There are dirty cups and cloths and just evidence of activities.

The Easter bunny brings the eggs to the kitchen counter as well.

Food gets prepared on it, homework gets completed on it. The whole family revolves around the kitchen counter. Even though we have a dining room and a dining table we eat around the counter unless we have visitors - we only have 5 chairs at the counter.
My mother has a sign in her kitchen that says "no matter where I greet my guests, it seems they love my kitchen best".
So where is the hub of your home? Have you photographed it and captured the everyday details. as the family grows so the roles fulfilled there will change. We don't have toddlers playing with playdough anymore, no messy babies learning to eat, no high chairs. We have a biscuit jar that needs to be refilled often with hungry teenagers living at home. A jar with pens and pencils waiting to help with homework. Coffee has replaced juice as the seasons change and the temperature drops.

What stories do your homes tell?

Pet photography

Just like taking photos of people take photos of your pets. 

They're an integral part of the family.

Think about their personality. 

The things they do, the things they love, the things they don't like, the things they avoid. 

What makes them special?

For instance we have 4 cats. All of them LOVE chicken.

Snuggles (9) is the oldest, she rules the roost. 

I read that the dominant cat often licks the rest of the clan. This licking is an important part of grooming and bonding. Afterall who doesn't want to smell like cat spit? 

She loves to lick, she'll even lick us. I hate it. 

She has a special fondness for ears.

Cleo (also 9) is her sister, but she is much more timid. She also tends to hurl more easily. She has nicknames like: hulry girly and vomit comet. 

My oldest said he knows how she keeps her trim figure - she's bulemic!

 She will eat food and then go outside and eat grass. Ugh. 

Other than that she is the prettiest and loves to cuddle.

Shadow is what we call a semi-mese. 

A cheaper Siamese. 

He is also sweet but much like Nermal in Garfield - not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

 He loves cuddles, sleeping on my bed in the afternoons and 

often goes onto the roof and then miaaws to be rescued.

He has the softest, thickest coat and feels the heat the worst.

this leads to him getting into the most interesting sleeping positions.

Topaz is the latest addition. 

He is mine. He is just over a year old and very much a spoilt baby. 

He has the most magnificent purr and crossed saphire eyes. 

He jumps onto his chair to be fed and will come and collect me at 10pm (or there abouts) for his bedtime snack. I joke that he is my alarm clock, I can give him some love and that acts like a snooze button for a while but he'll go off a few minutes later again.

Capture your pets doing their favourite things or in their favourite spots. Shoot from a different angle, if they're high then get down low. Crouch and see the world through their eyes.

Capture their relationships, either with other pets or with their people. Get in close and crop out unnecessary details. Pets can be very active so make sure to have your camera set on a faster shutter speed and have good lighting. If the light isn't good make sure to avoid the ugly green eyes (like red eyes in humans) above everything have fun and enjoy the process.

photos for projects

Whether you take part in project life, photos of a day (POTD or 365+1) or 52 layouts there are many sites to inspire you with great ideas for photos and tips on how to take them.
I do a photo a day because there are many small things that happen or things that my family do or says that is cute or memorable. I want a place to record them (not only in the blog) so they don't get lost and yet they don't really warrant a whole layout created about them.
I have been inspired by Ali Edwards week in the life too, to take ordinary everyday snapshots of us, the things we use everyday, our favourites and the way we live. These things can change virtually over night and oftentimes we don't know when the last time will be.

I took my daughter to the library and walked past a lady loading a screaming toddler into her car and I smiled. Not because I'm a sadist but because I remember when my DS was that age - a trip to the library wouldn't be complete without bringing home the postman pat video. and you know what? He's 16 now and one day he didn;t ask for postman pat and I never realized that his time had come to an end. I miss it. If I'd been documenting our lives through a photo a day in those years I would have a record, a photo of the importance postman pat an dhis little black cat played in our lives.

So here are just some of my favourite pics for 2012. I used Ali's dated overlays.

 One hot cat stretched out on the oldest's bed, alongside his table and various other technological gadgets that wouldn't have been found on my bed back in the day.

 The oldest is in college now so there are only three lunch boxes to prepare weekdays,

 Oh the places we've been, and bought fridge magnets from...

 I host a scrapping morning once a week, this photo represents the ladies and their orders of tea or coffee.