The Evil Crab Apple thingy!
The Doc v. the Evil Shrub
The shrub that wouldn't die
All gone!
Taking out the shrubs on the hill
Planting the seed
Now we wait!
Mums are in bloom!
September 26, 2011
Adventures in Landscaping!
We have been working on our landscaping for what seems like forever! We have ripped up a portion of the back hill and planted some grass seed, we have also added more seed to the side by the driveway where the previous owners had flowers planted. We also planted my hydrangea, which I love so much!
The biggest accomplishment in our adventures in landscaping was getting rid of the ugly crab apple bush (or whatever it was). I honestly think it was two different types of shrubbery that fused together. It was a beast to take out, the Doc even broke our neighbors ax trying to chop the stump. After chopping it down as much as we could we decided to just bury it and let it rot, hopefully it's been chopped enough that nothing will grow back! In it's place is a much nicer PJM Rhododendron, I can't wait to see how it blooms in the spring.
Here are some more pictures of the work we are doing! We still have so much we want to do, but the rest is going to wait until spring!
I Heart Faces / Best of Summer 2011
This week over at I Heart Faces they are doing a People's Choice! All they ask is that you submit your favorite photo from summer (meaning any photo taken from June 1st to August 31st). The photos will be reviewed and narrowed down and then we will get to vote on the winner! I can't wait to see all the entries!
I am submitting this picture of David and Shaun taken in early July at the park down the street from our new house. We had just moved and we were spending a great deal of our time unpacking and organizing the new house. The boys were being so helpful we tried to take time out of our busy days, to take the boys to run around and play!
Daddy was spinning them "around and around, super fast, all the way up in the trees!", as Shaun would say!
Stop over and check out all the other summer favorites, in this weeks People's Choice!
I am submitting this picture of David and Shaun taken in early July at the park down the street from our new house. We had just moved and we were spending a great deal of our time unpacking and organizing the new house. The boys were being so helpful we tried to take time out of our busy days, to take the boys to run around and play!
Daddy was spinning them "around and around, super fast, all the way up in the trees!", as Shaun would say!
Stop over and check out all the other summer favorites, in this weeks People's Choice!
September 21, 2011
Week 2 Homework Assignment
Part 1 of this weeks homework was to work more with understanding depth of field. We were to select a scene that had a close foreground and a distant background (like a person standing in front of a building that was off in the distant). Usually I try and get my boys to participate and be my subjects but they aren't always in the mood, plus these assignments require a subject to stay in the same place for more than 3 seconds!
So let me introduce you to Cat, one of the boys stuffed animals. By using a stuffed animal I can set the scene up that I need and keep it there while changing the settings or focus points to create the different images that I need to create.
In the first image we were to use a single autofocus point and focus on the forground, in this image the foreground will be sharp and the background blurry. This is done by using a large aperture.
In the second image we were to ignore the subject in the foreground, due to the shallow depth of field the foreground is now blurry.
Part 2 was all about white balance. White balance which is basically the color of light. In manual mode there are different settings for your white balance. Auto, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent and Custom. The first part of this assignment was to set up a scene (in this case I used the same scene with Cat from above) and shoot an image using each of the different white balance settings.
Auto:
Daylight:
Shade:
Cloudy:
Tungsten:
Flourescent:
If you look closely at each image you can see that the coloring is different in each one. Especially as you get down to Tungsten and Fluorescent. Notice the blueish hues.
Now for the second part of the white balance assignment was to custom set the white balance. To do this you need a gray card (or if you don't have one a white sheet of paper will work). Snap a photo in the lighting your shooting in with at least 80% of the image being the gray card (or white sheet of paper). It doesn't have to be in focus, you just have to make sure that the majority of the image is the gray card (or white paper). Under your menu settings go to custom white balance and select the image you took of the gray card or the white paper and hit OK! Now any image you shoot in that same lighting will all be correct.
You can see the above image is the best quality straight out of camera! It was very cool learning this feature since I did a lot of my photographing at the Rec center in terrible fluorescent lighting. If only I had known this I could have customized my white balance before each party!
Tonight is the lens class! I cannot wait to try out all the lenses that I have had my eye on! And now that I have a better understanding of Depth of Field, I am really looking forward to trying out the 50mm 1.4 prime again!
So let me introduce you to Cat, one of the boys stuffed animals. By using a stuffed animal I can set the scene up that I need and keep it there while changing the settings or focus points to create the different images that I need to create.
In the first image we were to use a single autofocus point and focus on the forground, in this image the foreground will be sharp and the background blurry. This is done by using a large aperture.
In the second image we were to ignore the subject in the foreground, due to the shallow depth of field the foreground is now blurry.
Part 2 was all about white balance. White balance which is basically the color of light. In manual mode there are different settings for your white balance. Auto, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent and Custom. The first part of this assignment was to set up a scene (in this case I used the same scene with Cat from above) and shoot an image using each of the different white balance settings.
Auto:
Daylight:
Shade:
Cloudy:
Tungsten:
Flourescent:
If you look closely at each image you can see that the coloring is different in each one. Especially as you get down to Tungsten and Fluorescent. Notice the blueish hues.
Now for the second part of the white balance assignment was to custom set the white balance. To do this you need a gray card (or if you don't have one a white sheet of paper will work). Snap a photo in the lighting your shooting in with at least 80% of the image being the gray card (or white sheet of paper). It doesn't have to be in focus, you just have to make sure that the majority of the image is the gray card (or white paper). Under your menu settings go to custom white balance and select the image you took of the gray card or the white paper and hit OK! Now any image you shoot in that same lighting will all be correct.
You can see the above image is the best quality straight out of camera! It was very cool learning this feature since I did a lot of my photographing at the Rec center in terrible fluorescent lighting. If only I had known this I could have customized my white balance before each party!
Tonight is the lens class! I cannot wait to try out all the lenses that I have had my eye on! And now that I have a better understanding of Depth of Field, I am really looking forward to trying out the 50mm 1.4 prime again!
September 19, 2011
I Heart Faces / A Touch of Sun
This weeks theme over at I Heart Faces is A Touch of Sun! It's something that I have loved seeing in photographs and had been trying to practice. I had the honor of photographing a wedding reception over the summer so that I could continue working on my skills. I love this picture. Not only was it my favorite from the night, but it is one of my favorites over any other moment I have captured. It was the first time that I was able to capture the sun and not only did it work well (well at least in my opinion) in the photograph, but it was such a beautiful candid moment captured of the bride and her daughter.
To see more please stop over at I Heart Faces and check out all the beautiful touches of sun!
To see more please stop over at I Heart Faces and check out all the beautiful touches of sun!
September 15, 2011
Fun with Slow Shutter Speeds
Last night in class the teacher was giving some fun examples of ways to creatively play around with slow shutter speeds. One scenario in particular I knew would be a big hit to practice on with the boys. The boys are mostly willing to be my test subjects but sometimes they are just not in the mood. They are little so I don't push it and in fact one of these days I think I might just set up some stuffed animals to practice on! However, this one I knew they'd be on board for. I told them to go grab their flashlights and meet me down stairs. I was going to turn them into ghosts and make them disappear!
To achieve this you will need a tripod, a dark room, some flashlights and a really slow shutter speed. You have probably seen those really cool pictures where people spell words using sparklers (something I can't wait to try next summer!), however, this is a safer way to achieve that same affect when you have small children! I set them up on the square carpet and told them to move the lights when I said go, and voila!
Shutter: 10 seconds
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 18 mm
ISO: 400
Pretty cool, right! I can't wait to play around with this some more!
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 18 mm
ISO: 400
Pretty cool, right! I can't wait to play around with this some more!
September 14, 2011
Week 1 Homework Assignment - Exposure Compensation
Tonight is my second photography class and so I am spent a little time this afternoon practicing the last part of the homework assignment, exposure compensation. This was something completely new to me. I have always seen the button on my camera but had no idea what it did. I set the camera in program mode or P on my camera settings and then pushing down on the +/- button I adjusted it to underexpose -1 and snapped a picture of David, he volunteered to be my test subject!
Then I changed the settings to so that it was overexposed +1.
And to have a control, an image back to 0 (or the middle!)
After taking the images we were asked to look at the histograms of each image. The first image's histogram would be skewed to the left, showing that the image was underexposed whereas the second images's histogram would be skewed to the right showing it was overexposed. That will bring us to the start of tonight's class which will cover topics like white balance and more on the histograms!
I also feel the need point out that all of my homework assignment images that I am posting are of the images straight out of the camera. I usually like to edit all of my images before posting but editing them would defeat the purpose of the assignments!
Then I changed the settings to so that it was overexposed +1.
And to have a control, an image back to 0 (or the middle!)
After taking the images we were asked to look at the histograms of each image. The first image's histogram would be skewed to the left, showing that the image was underexposed whereas the second images's histogram would be skewed to the right showing it was overexposed. That will bring us to the start of tonight's class which will cover topics like white balance and more on the histograms!
I also feel the need point out that all of my homework assignment images that I am posting are of the images straight out of the camera. I usually like to edit all of my images before posting but editing them would defeat the purpose of the assignments!
September 12, 2011
I Heart Faces / Back to School
This weeks I Heart Faces theme is Back to School. This year was a big milestone for us as our oldest started Kindergarten. Two weeks ago I packed his back pack and snack and sent him off to the big school, Elementary School. It was also my middle son's first year of preschool. This is a picture of the two of them on Shaun's very first day of school. David having been to preschool for 2 years and already had his real first day of school a few days before was a seasoned pro at "First Days of School".
All morning he was explaining to his younger brother what school will be like and when I asked him to put his arm around his brother for a picture outside. This is the shot I got! As a mother it made me feel all warm and fuzzy. David was such a proud big brother that morning and I think it really shows!
Stop over I Heart Faces and check out all the other great back to school entries!
All morning he was explaining to his younger brother what school will be like and when I asked him to put his arm around his brother for a picture outside. This is the shot I got! As a mother it made me feel all warm and fuzzy. David was such a proud big brother that morning and I think it really shows!
Stop over I Heart Faces and check out all the other great back to school entries!
September 11, 2011
Soccer Superstar
Saturday David started his soccer clinic. While I admit, I am not the biggest soccer fan in the bunch, I was super proud of him. How cute is he in his uniform! I only watched for a little since Shaun and Evan wanted to go play on the playground. But I got to see from a distance and by the looks of these two action shots captured by Daddy, it looks like he had a blast!
I couldn't resist snapping a head shot in his uniform!
I couldn't resist snapping a head shot in his uniform!
Week 1 Homework Assignment
On Wednesday I started my first photography class. I signed up for a four week Intro class at a studio located in Manchester. I really enjoyed it and I am very glad that I signed up. The class is a lot of fun, very laid back. I am already excited for next weeks class, though I am most looking forward to week 3 when we get to try out all kinds of amazing expensive lenses! Just in time to start my wish list to Santa!
In the first class we discussed the 4 basic exposure modes and what makes up an exposure. A lot of this I had already read about online and in books so I did have a basic understanding of the concepts but it was still nice to have an actual person explain it face to face. His analogies helped me grasp the concepts better too! We were given a homework assignment but we don't have to turn anything in, so I though I would use my blog to post my assignments and keep me accountable!
The first assignment was to practice using the exposure modes on the camera. Part 1 was to capture motion using the Shutter Priority feature (TV on Canon or S on Nikon). To capture motion you are looking for a slow shutter speed like 1/15.
I took a bunch of pictures of moving things like David riding his bike down the driveway. This one of the pinwheel is my favorite. You can see that the spinning motion of the pinwheel is blurry but the background is relatively sharp.
Shutter: 1/15
Aperture: f/20
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO: 200
Part 2 of the assignment was to stop motion. Ever wonder how you could get that perfect picture of your kids jumping up in the air and have it all be in focus? Well this is how! To stop motion you want a fast shutter speed. So if you are using 1/15 for capturing motion you would want something much, much faster to stop it. For this assignment I used the recommended 1/1000 and spinning the same pinwheel you can see that it looks like it's perfectly still.
Shutter: 1/1000
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal length: 50mm
ISO: 200
Part 3 & 4 of the assignment related to Depth of Field. A deep depth of field, will have foregrounds and backgrounds in focus whereas a shallow depth of field will have a sharp focus on the foreground and a blurry background. To create a deep depth of field you want a small aperture like f/22 and for a shallow depth of field you would want a large aperture like f/4 (and yes that is correct, aperture is backwards the small number = large aperture).
Shutter: 1/1250
There is one more part of the assignment that I haven't worked on yet but I will this week. It is using the exposure compensation feature on the camera. I am looking forward to seeing how these ones turn out. It will be a good intro into really learning how to read the cameras histogram.
In the first class we discussed the 4 basic exposure modes and what makes up an exposure. A lot of this I had already read about online and in books so I did have a basic understanding of the concepts but it was still nice to have an actual person explain it face to face. His analogies helped me grasp the concepts better too! We were given a homework assignment but we don't have to turn anything in, so I though I would use my blog to post my assignments and keep me accountable!
The first assignment was to practice using the exposure modes on the camera. Part 1 was to capture motion using the Shutter Priority feature (TV on Canon or S on Nikon). To capture motion you are looking for a slow shutter speed like 1/15.
I took a bunch of pictures of moving things like David riding his bike down the driveway. This one of the pinwheel is my favorite. You can see that the spinning motion of the pinwheel is blurry but the background is relatively sharp.
Shutter: 1/15
Aperture: f/20
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO: 200
Part 2 of the assignment was to stop motion. Ever wonder how you could get that perfect picture of your kids jumping up in the air and have it all be in focus? Well this is how! To stop motion you want a fast shutter speed. So if you are using 1/15 for capturing motion you would want something much, much faster to stop it. For this assignment I used the recommended 1/1000 and spinning the same pinwheel you can see that it looks like it's perfectly still.
Shutter: 1/1000
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal length: 50mm
ISO: 200
Part 3 & 4 of the assignment related to Depth of Field. A deep depth of field, will have foregrounds and backgrounds in focus whereas a shallow depth of field will have a sharp focus on the foreground and a blurry background. To create a deep depth of field you want a small aperture like f/22 and for a shallow depth of field you would want a large aperture like f/4 (and yes that is correct, aperture is backwards the small number = large aperture).
Shutter: 1/60
Aperture: f/22
Focal length: 90mm
ISO: 200
Shutter: 1/1250
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal length: 90mm
ISO: 200
My lens is very limiting. Some of the nicer (more expensive) lenses will have apertures that are as low as f/1.4. But you can still see a difference in the background in the two pictures.
My lens is very limiting. Some of the nicer (more expensive) lenses will have apertures that are as low as f/1.4. But you can still see a difference in the background in the two pictures.
There is one more part of the assignment that I haven't worked on yet but I will this week. It is using the exposure compensation feature on the camera. I am looking forward to seeing how these ones turn out. It will be a good intro into really learning how to read the cameras histogram.
September 6, 2011
Back to School
It's back to school time and this year is a big year for back to school. David is now in kindergarten and Shaun is going to preschool! Shaun's preschool is 3 days a week so that will give me some one on one time with Evan! On Friday's I have signed us up for a Mommy and Me swim class. We had our first one last week and he loved it!
Back to school was different this year in the fact that we recently relocated to a new city with a different set up. Back in Revere they had full day kindergarten and while I am sad that David is only in school for 2.5 hours a day we'll make the best of it. I have signed him up for some different activities to make up for the time he won't be in school. I think he is most excited about learning to play the piano. Another difference was how he started his first week. The first day of school was a Meet and Greet where he went in and colored a name tag for himself and met the teachers (his teacher is leaving soon to have a baby so he'll have a guest teacher for the first part of the year).
David at his Meet and Greet
The next day, Wednesday was set aside for half of the class to attend and then the remaining half would attend on Thursday. Friday and Monday were closed for the Holiday weekend. Since David didn't have school on Wednesday we decided to take one last trip to Revere to visit since they don't start until the 8th. I made sure to bring my camera so that I could get a picture of David and Briana. They started school together 2 years ago and I have gotten a picture each year. Just because they are no longer in the same school doesn't mean I can't get a Back to School picture!
Thursday we needed to be up bright and early! School starts at 7:45am sharp! I woke David up and he jumped out of bed and said "It's my first day of school!" then he proceeded to thank me for waking him up for his first day of school! I am wondering how long before I get "just a few more minutes of sleep please!" We ate breakfast, I packed him his healthy snack (an apple) and we went outside to take the obligatory "First Day of School" pictures!
Kindergarten 2011 (I got the idea for the chalk board from a blog; who stole it from the Pottery Barn Kids catalog!)
At school checking out the scene.
Our kindergartner! They grow up so fast!
The boys waiting to bring David to his classroom
David waiting in line to get picked up after a great first day!
He loves his class and he loves his school. He was just as excited to wake up this morning for his second day of school (the first day with his entire class!). Today was also a special day because this was Shaun's first day and Meet and Greet.
Pre-School 2011
Our preschooler! Getting so big!
Walking to the school ready to take on the world!
David (a pro at this school thing!) walking side by side with his little brother, showing him the way!
David and Shaun ready for school!
In Shaun's classroom he walked right in found his cubby and then sat down to play with the Mr. Potato head that was set up on one of the tables. Since I had Evan with me I wasn't able to spend much time walking around with Shaun as I was chasing Evan and making sure he wasn't destroying the place! Shaun seemed just fine and when they asked all the parents to head over to the library for a brief meeting, Shaun said to me, "Mommy, I can stay here?" I think he'll be just fine tomorrow when I drop him off!
Evan didn't want to leave the classroom. He made himself quite at home. He's going to be so sad when we drop Shaun off tomorrow and we don't get to stay again.
Everything went as smooth as could be. I think both kids are going to have a great year and I am looking forward to watching them develop a love of learning!
September 5, 2011
32 Years Young
In case anyone was wondering what the best day of the year is; that would be September 4th. Yesterday marked 32 years of my presence on this planet and each year it gets better and better! Oh and in case you couldn't guess, I am also a HUGE Birthday Diva!
For my birthday the Doc surprised me with dinner out in ManchVegas! We went to a trendy bistro called Cotton. The food was delicious as was my Blueberry-Basil Mojito! We finished the night off by sharing the cheesecake which was so rich, but so good!
For my birthday the Doc surprised me with dinner out in ManchVegas! We went to a trendy bistro called Cotton. The food was delicious as was my Blueberry-Basil Mojito! We finished the night off by sharing the cheesecake which was so rich, but so good!
The Birthday Diva before heading out to dinner
Three weeks ago the boys all got me my birthday present; a new elliptical for our home gym. Earlier in the spring my knee started bothering me so I haven't really run much. But after a lazy summer the pounds started to creep back on! What took months of hard work to lose only took 3 short weeks to start putting back on! I had been doing great early on in the summer but eventually without exercising, the pounds started to creep back on! If only it was as easy to lose weight as it is to gain it!
Three weeks ago the boys all got me my birthday present; a new elliptical for our home gym. Earlier in the spring my knee started bothering me so I haven't really run much. But after a lazy summer the pounds started to creep back on! What took months of hard work to lose only took 3 short weeks to start putting back on! I had been doing great early on in the summer but eventually without exercising, the pounds started to creep back on! If only it was as easy to lose weight as it is to gain it!
The Doc putting together my birthday present!
Having the elliptical has been great. Not only is it easier on my knee, but with the two machines the Doc and I are able to work out together! It's so much more motivating! Eventually we'd like to hook up a TV in their and maybe add in a weight machine! So now I am ready to get back on track and lose that pesky 10 lbs (well 15 now thanks to my lazy summer!) I have left to reach my goal!!
Having the elliptical has been great. Not only is it easier on my knee, but with the two machines the Doc and I are able to work out together! It's so much more motivating! Eventually we'd like to hook up a TV in their and maybe add in a weight machine! So now I am ready to get back on track and lose that pesky 10 lbs (well 15 now thanks to my lazy summer!) I have left to reach my goal!!
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