summer photo fun

So here are some of my favorite photos from a few of my summer photo sessions. This will be my final "catch up" post and then we will resume to present day life! :o) But these were great times so I don't want to skip over them! I am currently editing pictures from one of my favorite senior picture shoots and also soon will document my finished crafting projects!

In an effort to make this blog helpful rather than just a photo posting zone here are some of my personal photo taking tips: (these are in no way like "official tips" just things I would personally suggest!)

1. When taking a photo outside put the sun behind the person (professional people call this back-lighting, I think) This keeps the person in the photo from having harsh shadows on their face from the direct sunlight. 

2. If you want to take your own outdoor portraits- avoid the mid day hours when the sun is high.

3. Many people I talk with think taking pictures on a clear day is the best- but you actually want to look for a slightly overcast sky- or at least some cloud coverage.

4. Wear vibrant colors for pictures- avoid the black and khaki look!

5. If you are wanting to slender yourself through your pose then always pull your arm away from your body, put shoulders back, pop the very top on your shoulder forward (this accentuates your choler bone) and lift your chin.   

6. You can totally change your picture by experimenting with angles- try tilting your camera to the left or right or try getting on the ground ( I do this a lot! haha)

7. The most flattering photos are often taken from a higher position then the people in the photo (rather than lower) 

8. Try to have as much depth as possible in your photos- in other words look for layers of depth in the background of your photo. For example- in the photo below of Whitney with the blue panels behind her- this angle produces more depth than if the building was flat behind her. 

9. Lastly, if you can't afford a fancy editing software then get a membership to www.picnik.com it is only $4.95 a month (or a better deal to sign up for a year...) and it has some great editing tools. Some of the best are: "curves" and "clone" and most of their "touch up" edits are great. The key with these editing tools is to notice you can use a brush with most of them rather than changing the whole picture.

I hope you don't feel short changed with only 9 tips...thats just all I got right now...So here are some photos from the summer :  

 

 

summertime love

So this summer has brought many photo opportunities beginning with my very first wedding shoot! Now let me just say that I could not have had a more wonderful and amazing bride- she was so easy going and just pleasant to be around! But photographing a wedding is still hugely stressful! It may be awhile before I venture to do another one! But here are some highlights:

 

mr. turtle

Ok so I completely missed August...so here I am back and ready for the summer catch up! For those of you sitting on the edge of your seats wondering about the sad plant in our living room- it did in fact pass on into the plant after life. Sadly in our laziness we now have a pot of dirt in our living room rather than a plant or sprout as it was in the previous picture...

So we failed at the plant...but before having a child we really should succeed at nurturing something, right? And so might I introduce our new family addition: "mr. turtle"

 

Kevin has always wanted a turtle- in fact 3 years ago for his birthday I bought him this turtle tank with the promise of a turtle! Finally mr. turtle has arrived! He is a tiny baby turtle (a Red Eared Slider to be exact) at about 2 inches in diameter! SO cute! We are very proud. It is a new experience for sure- we find ourselves worrying about how much he is sleeping and if he is eating enough...he is our first pet and we really want to see him grow big over the years! 

Other big news in the Reed house is our upcoming move- we will be switching to a new rental home going from 1800 sq.ft to 600 sq. ft! It has been quite a challenge of simplifying, but a really good one! It is so freeing to get rid of the things you do not need or use! There is one room in our existing house that I will miss a lot- it is our laundry room/office. 

It is such a perfect space...however I am very thankful for the opportunity to be challenged in the way of simplifying. Already it has brought us a great blessing!