xoxo....

so, I have been wanting to link up with emily from the anderson crew for her embrace the camera link up for a while now... then, weeks passed and I would look through my pictures and realize that oops.. didn't take any of myself, and then it dawned on me.. this is the reason that miss emily created this link up... to help us {the picture taker} have memories of OURSELVES as well!

so I have made an effort to snap a few shots {or for the mister to} of myself...

this past weekend, we had a little family time playing with sidewalk chalk.. tons of fun! 

won't you join in on the fun too??

very soon...

our bathroom may have a new addition...

and it involves

potty training!

the time is nearing...

any tips appreciated!

{source 1,  2,  3,  4  }

linking up with gussy for week 5: inspiration workshop

wordless wednesday

Lesson 5: composition

Today's lesson is all about getting creative with your photos!  right up my alley. I had a great time with today's lesson, and I hope you will too!  and guess what??  who better to tell us all about how to take better pictures than the lovely Casey ... omg, friends!.. have you stopped by her blog yet?  she is an amazingly talented artist with the sweetest little family and such an inspiring blog!  do stop by!  you'll fall in love! promise!

ok, so back to the logistics, here is the content! check it out and meet back here!

and make sure and check out the maker's of this fun class, here...

ok friends...

meet

Casey!

My name is Casey Wiegand, I am a freelance artist, wife and mama.  I love painting and sharing our life through our blog...where you can expect pieces of my perspective on life, faith, kids, marriage, with touches of art, creative inspiration, projects and things I love along the way. I have two little ones in the hopes of lots more and am married to the love of my life!

ok casey, how do you use photography in your everyday life??

I use photography in my everyday life for a lot of reasons. One, I am married to a photographer :). He is incredibly talented so getting to watch him and learn from him is amazing. {no joke, check out some of his work here, ok sorry to interrupt} Looking at life through an artist's eyes I am always trying to capture everything. And now that I have kiddos I ESPECIALLY am taking pictures non stop! They change so quickly so capturing each little phase is so important to me!

 

any advice to those of us who are just using a dslr camera for the first time?

Well, I feel like I am cheating a bit because I get to use my hubby's awesome camera's and lens' but I would say to think outside the box. You can take beautiful, creative pictures with any kind of camera, so don't be afraid to try shots that are out of the ordinary! Some of my favorite pics were taken with my cellphone!!!

  

your pictures are always creative and candid, any advice on posing or tips for creative pictures of ourselves, our families, our kiddos??  tips on achieving that candid feel in our pictures, those that we take or have taken of ourselves?

I guess I have a few pieces of advice! I LOVE candid pictures,( over posed ones.) Look through magazines and beautiful ads and notice how natural they are. When I take pictures I am often thinking ahead at how I can edit it and what the end product will look like. You don't have to know photoshop to edit pictures. Picnik is an awesome editing tool! Also, be aware of the time of day. The middle of the afternoon is not ideal for taking pictures.... usually early morning or when the sun is setting! And natural light inside makes for beautiful shots!

 

composition, summing it up...

A few tips I have on composition are think out side the box, if you have kiddos get down on their level and get close to them, also candid!!! Maybe it is the artist in me but posed pictures can look "stiff" at times. Catch a group from an interesting angle, having fun! Also, I prefer things off-centered. So sometimes taking a picture of a half of a face or just a child's feet off to one side of the photograph adds the "artsy" element that will draw someone in. Lastly, cut out "dead" space. People will be more intrigued to look at a photograph that is interesting and a close up of the subject rather than a photograph with a lot of dead space!

 

thanks Casey for stopping by today and for all the great advice!  seriously, check out her sweet little blog

I had so much fun with this lesson.. I just really took the opportunity to "think outside the box" and use my surroundings and just had FUN!

Enjoy!

{all edited in picnik}

I could keep going but I will stop, mm'kay!

are you following along?? trying to improve your photos too?? leave a comment, let me know.  I would love to stop by your blog and see your photos and cheer you on! 

just joining, that's ok too.. catch up here

come back next week for another great lesson and another fab photographer! 

 

Showing some LOVE

Happy Saturday Friends...

Can I just say

Thank You!!

I started blogging because I wanted a place to share about my little family, the biggest accomplishment of my life.  Which turned into blogging about my little biz, to inspiring me to learn photography, to building and "meeting" some amazing people in this "blogging club," to actually {and this may sound totally off the wall} changing me as a person. 

...sometimes...

I have a lot on my mind and

...sometimes...

it just sits there and I never, ever say it

...until now...

now, I can say whatever I want, a little place to not only talk about my family and my biz, but to just be

ME!

and you know what keeps me going

all of YOU!

I LOVE getting comments and seeing followers, and I LOVE what all of you have to say.  It's so nice to know that someone is listening, and that someone cares, and that other's are right there with me.  But I will say, that each time I read a comment

 I feel loved!

As crazy as this sounds, sharing about myself, and reading about all of you, and being inspired by some of the most amazing women on the planet, has made me into a more positive and optimistic person! 

and that's...

a great feeling!

so today, I just want to say...

{source 1,  2,  3,  4,  5 }

I really, really do!!

Oh, and because I LOVE you all so much...

I am having a GIVEAWAY very, very soon!

Believe me!  You are going to want to win!!

remembering...

Dearest Dani~

I can not believe a year has passed.  A year since you were so suddenly taken away from your family and friends. I think about you everyday, you are always on my heart Dani.  I can still remember everything about this day last year.  The feelings still fresh, the wounds still deep, my heart still hurts the same.  I just wish the last time we spoke, I would have had a lot more to say than the things we actually did. 

Dani, your family is so strong , and I am so proud of the way they are able to celebrate your life. Your mom is truly one of the most amazing people I know, and those babies of yours are just beautiful.    Your friends, always remembering the happy little Dani, that we all know and love.  Your life is truly something to celebrate and so many people love you dearly.  You touched so many hearts!!

I don't always understand God's plan, but must trust that he needed you to be in heaven with him.  That doesn't make it hurt any less, it doesn't make it sting less to know that you were stolen out of this world, it doesn't seem fair, but I have to know that someday, we will meet again in heaven, and we will get to talk again and laugh and hug.  I miss you Dani.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.  They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

Revelation 21: 2-4

What's on your heart ?

bbq

linking up with gussy and her I.W.  this week is all about a day of fun!

for us country folk, a day of fun, well...nothing like a good old fashioned bbq competition.  my husband has a team "the pitt grillaz" and a few times a year they participate in these competetions.  so of course presley jane and I had to go root on daddy and his team...we had some good company, great food and lots of FUN...  it was 90 degrees that day, so fun was not without some pool time and a slip 'n' slide...

if only you could taste the amazing food, delish!

family pictures... it takes some planning

I love photography.  I love having priceless, meaningful pictures of my loved ones, my family, and of my special memories.  I especially love getting my family's pictures taken.  we just scheduled our family photos with my talented friend molly and I am all giddy with ideas.  maybe its my creative mind, or just my perfection-isms that force me to plan out EVERYTHING I do, including my family pictures.  not only do we get to capture exactly who we are, but it allows me the ability to be creative which I enjoy to the fullest.  my friend molly, is such a trooper, even with my outrageous ideas, she plays along.  sometimes it works, sometimes not. 

I think it is important to have a "photography plan"  so many people just show up for their photo session and expect to have perfect photos.  while most of the time, these amazing photog's can do just that, it definitely helps to have a plan in mind.  what kind of feel are you wanting, are you wanting portraits for your walls, a photo book of the kids, Christmas cards, photo's for family members??  often times, I will get a color inspiration based on where in my house I want to hang my photos and the rest will fall into place.

I am a google surfing, pinterest loving, laptop fanatic... so it's not uncommon for me to do some good old Internet browsing for inspiration.  then, I am able to email these ideas to my photographer and she takes tid bits of those ideas and adds her flair {the flair that I love} and makes for some lovely pictures. 

having a plan is important not only for family photos, but for your wedding photos, kiddo's photos, basically any session!  most of the time, people have a certain "feel" they are wanting to portray in their photos and I think if that is not communicated before the session, a certain shot you were wanting or a particular place you were hoping to shoot at can be easily forgotten.  and.. it saves on time. you are more organized and that keeps everyone happy.

my favorite shots are those that are candid, outfits that coordinate and don't necessarily match perfectly, outdoor shots, those that display emotion-hugging, kissing, playing, and of course just about anything of my beautiful little girl.

I have been browsing, searching, shopping, and I am so excited about the direction I am going with my scheduled photo shoot.

{photo credit 1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  6,  7,  8 }

 

Inspired by mustard yellow and navy blue, earthy tones, pinwheels, and the outdoors.  I can't wait and of course will be sharing...

Lesson 4: 12 weeks to better photos

Ok, don't judge me, but... I am totally a slacker today!!!

I didn't get a chance to play with my flash this weekend which is what today's lesson is all about.  truthfully, I have been trying my hardest to NOT use the flash and the thought of turning it back on, well, it scares me!  so... with that being said, I did not do today's lesson yet, slacker right? I know!  but I am going to work on it this week. we have rain in the forecast tomorrow so, I think it will provide the right light  I need for the first task in the lesson. 

back to your photos... How is everyone doing?  noticing some changes in your skills?  shooting on M ? posting lovely photos?  friends, I am having so much fun with my camera and am really feeling more comfortable with M..

so here's the deal.  linking up with the gals from two peas in a bucket, {stop by and check out their loveliness} for their self-paced and totally awesome 12 weeks to better photos tutorials!  if you are just joining, catch up and follow along!  we have tons of fun stuff coming up that you won't want to miss..

here is the content for lesson 4, check it out and then give it a try! 

and keep shooting, keep practicing, and keep having fun with your camera!

and what's a photography post without a picture right?

my little sweetie in her new swimsuit!  it was a hot.day, and presley loved dancing in front of this fan..just love this little girl and her fun little personality!

have a lovely week friends, and you will not want to miss next week.  I have an amazing guest blogger stopping by to help with the next lesson, she is fab and you all are going to love her! 

sunday shopping: all about the daddi-o's

happy father's day to all you daddies... while I didn't do much shopping for father's day, no instead I made peaches and creme pies for my daddies and grandpa's and presley jane made her daddy the sweetest of gifts. a lovely bbq planned for this afternoon and some quality time makes for a great father's day at our house. 

so in honor of daddies day.. here are my top 5 totally crush-worthy guy products!!

in love with this cuff from lisa leonard, love that the numbers are the kid's birthdates!

toms!  he needs a pair!

wouldn't this be perfect for the office!

definitely in the market for some new trunks, and I may be loving on these!

so he all ready has this, but believe me.. it smells fantastic!

{photo credit 1,  2,  3,  4,  5 } 

 happy father's day!  enjoy your special day!

a dirty little secret

ok, so I have a confession... I have a {thing} for reusable shopping bags.  I buy them ALL the time.  If there is a cute one at the checkout aisle... yep, I buy it, every time!

{source}

{source}

{source}

but... that's not my secret.  when asked paper or plastic??  I answer plastic! {gasp}  I ALWAYS forget my lovely little bags, and ALWAYS remember how badly I want to use them when I am checking out and asked the classic {paper or plastic} question.

so, now that I am coming clean... I am going to make a conscious effort to remember my green bags and stop saying plastic at the checkout!

{source}

now isn't that pretty??

linking up with gussy and her fabulous inspiration-workshop
you should too, mm'kay??

a sofball game... and bubbles

a lovely evening it was, for a little fun, cheering on daddy and his softball team.  even though it proved to be a hot one {all 91 degrees} we found ourselves having a ball... {get it? yep it was bad}  we were in great company with fellow teammates and the greatest of cheering sections and even presley had her very own companion as well...

we packed up the wagon, a picnic, and my fave... dill pickle sunflower seeds. {I can't seem to watch the ole' ball game without em' mm'kay} and of course my beloved canon.

presley jane was entertained with bubbles... the girl just loves them.  and of course I am entertained with watching her have fun and be a kid!

a lovely summer evening if I do say so myself!