Capturing The Perfect Imperfect Holiday Photo

It's time!

Holiday cards and the family photo. Does that make you cringe? The attempt at clean shirts, clean faces, good moods, good light, great location. All at the same time! Is that even possible?

This year I say embrace the imperfect! Let your family be who they are. Let them wear what they want to wear. Let them make the faces they want to make! Most families are relaxed fun loving people right? Let your holiday cards show that!

Want the best photo? Plan a couple of things keeping FUN in mind!

• Find good light: An hour or so before sunset gives beautiful even non direct light. Check here for your sunset times.

I shot this around 430PM and the light was stunning! I really gave them no direction, they are just that cute!

• Go somewhere fun! A park, a playground, out for ice cream, or any favorite family spot! I'd say find a great alley or wall, but that will also require bribing your subjects with a little something after.

• Shoot quickly and get it over with! No one wants to watch you fiddle with your settings or examine your histogram over and over and over. Shoot in a mode you are comfortable with and watch your shutter speed (keep it above at least 1/125). Shoot at eye level with your dear ones, they'll look better. And don't fear getting close! Watch your backgrounds, clutter, trash cans, random stuff aren't so much fun.

• Lighten up! Tell jokes, say silly things, ask them to tell their stories, let them just be. Make noises. Ask them to do silly things. Shoot!

Nothing like admitting to who really is the boss in our house! The self timer worked for this one. Flash bounced off my bedroom ceiling.

• Give yourself a break! Family shoots are difficult. Don't worry about everyone looking at the camera or being perfect. Show everyone your real family!

Boys! While little girls tend to smile too big, boys tend to show every goofy face imaginable! Go with it!

Do you want to avoid the entire headache? Grab a favorite photo from the year! Last year I snapped this photo the day after Thanksgiving and knew INSTANTLY it was destined for a card!

I kept it simple with word art from Ali Edwards

Once you've got the photo you can try out a quick (and fun) Shutterfly card, make your own using some of the beautiful products at Designer Digitals, or print it for the super duper easy stick it in the card approach. I'll spend the next few weeks deciding if I'm just emailing my card this year. (I have this discussion with myself every year!)

Any other ideas to add?

Link us up to your favorite holiday card photos! I can't wait to see what you create!

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Thanks to the two gorgeous families who willingly listened to my jokes and did the crazy clown dance! And Ian, Santa is watching!

Thoughts On Leaving 40 Behind

Credits at Designer Digitals

I Heart Faces Week 43 "Balloons" Photo Challenge

I thought I had nothing for this week's challenge and then I remembered this photo! What a fun day, fun moment it was! I was able to put my novice balloon tying skills to work and he wanted to play along!

And because out takes are just as fun as the best!

Click on the layout for credits at Designer Digitals.

Sneak Feet Peek!

I'm an everyday photographer. I carry my camera with me everywhere. I shoot what inspires me. What catches my eye. What I feel like shooting in the moment. Every now and then someone will ask me to take photos because they really get me. They understand that I'm not a posy posy matchy matcherson kind of person. They may not understand I'm going to make their kids say silly things, run, jump and do other craziness, but they get me.

Today I got to spend time with two families who just get me! We've known them for several years and just adore them! I knew too that they are dear friends so we planned for a little family overlap. I love the photos of the two families together. I think the kids just shined with their friends!

So here's just a tiny peek at them! Okay, more like a little tease ;) I'll post more soon!

Happy Halloween!

I hope you have a spooky great day!

Fix It Friday #34

Thought I'd have a little fun with I Heart Photo's Fix It Friday. I often download the photo with the intent of playing, but then life gets in the way. Today I'm trying to Just Say Yes with the little one in my house and amazingly I had time to edit and upload! Yes is working well! More Yes in the house, perhaps more No to those outside?

Here is my take. I seem to be really drawn to black and white lately. Those who've visited my house are probably thinking, "lately?" It just draws me. I love the clean feeling it gives me as well as the emotion invoked. I believe that's what photos are all about.

For this photo I:

• Adjusted it a bit in Lightroom 2
• Added a black and white preset
• Adjusted brightness, blacks, and contrast
• Imported into CS4
• In CS4 a little healing on her bruises
• Brightened her eyes just a tad
• Saved

And here we have it! I tried to keep my adjustments to less than 5 minutes.

Obsessed

Credits at Designer Digitals.

If you know Ian you know his obsession. The kid loves Halloween! He told me last week it was too spooky for him this year so he wanted to skip the holiday. The moment quickly passed and he is ready to go! He's got his costumes at the ready. Yes, costumes. We'll see which one wins! Thanks to Mom and her sewing talents and his ability to wear things from two years ago, he is well stocked for the "Holiday."

Shooting Your Kids This Halloween!

So much great information for Halloween photos this year. Here is a round up of some of my favorites found around the web.

Halloween Photography Tips from Digital Photography School

How To Take Great Halloween Photos from New York Institute of Photography

Tricks & Treats for Taking Great Halloween Photography from Shutterfly

20 Tips from Scrapbooks Etc.

Spooky Photo Tips by the Fabulous Me Ra Koh

And of course, my favorite tips:

• Shoot at your child's eye level
• Shoot from slightly below to make them appear larger than life!
• Grab the from behind shot as they head toward doors for trick or treating
• Turn your flash off and your ISO up
• Capture the details - pumpkins, candy, feet
• Don't say cheese, keep it real, even if they make faces!
• Enjoy!

Have fun and be safe!

Click on the layouts for credits!

One More Reason I Carry My Camera Everywhere

I would miss the tongue tricks without it!

Reason Why I Carry My Camera Everywhere

Without it this face at this moment wouldn't be captured for all time.

Blog Action Day - What Scares You?

Once upon a time there was a little boy. He had to listen to his parents talk since he couldn't talk much himself. One day he heard his momma say, "that really scares me." He worked really hard, struggling a bit to find the words and asked,"what scares you momma?"

She paused for a long time. Because he was a little boy.

"Global warming," she said.

And he understood. Even though he was little he understood wasting and driving the car too much and not putting things in the recycle bin made global warming bigger.

And he understood if global warming got bigger some things wouldn't be the same anymore. The parks. The playground. The backyard. The air he breathed. The world he lived in.

So he was happy to ride behind his mom's bike to school. He was happy to wear clothes someone else had used. He was happy to help in the garden, well most of the time anyway. He was happy to be a vegetarian, even if he wasn't quite sure what that meant. He was happy to use a cloth napkin and didn't even know what a paper towel was.

Because he knew. He knew he was making global warming smaller. In his small way. Because he was small.

And for the big people he thought they should do more. Because one day he would be big. And he knew he had lots of things to do in the world. And he didn't want Global Warming to be the only thing he thought about. He understood though. He understood doing things differently is hard. He understood habits, even if he was only little.

His momma said, maybe if the big people understood more. Maybe they'd do something different. So she showed her friends this video:

And she pointed them toward information. And they hoped. They hoped people would do their small part too.

31 Simple Pleasures

“That man is richest whose pleasures are cheapest.” - Henry David Thoreau

I love following ZenFamilyHabits blog. Today Leo posted 31 simple pleasures you can enjoy as a family given the right mindset. It made me happy to see how many from his list we've shared together just this week. What's on your list?

1. Take a walk and have a nice talk.
2. Pack a simple picnic and go outdoors.
3. Get outside and toss around a ball or Frisbee.
4. Ride bikes or jog.
5. Rent a movie (or get out one of your old DVDs) and make some popcorn.
6. Bake cookies.
7. Play boardgames.
8. Make tents out of blankets.
9. Read a book together.
10. Tell stories.
11. Look for bugs outside.
12. Make paper airplanes.
13. Go to the library.
14. Take a hike.
15. Camp in your backyard.
16. Go to the beach or a lake or river.
17. Take a stroll in the park or go to a playground.
18. Read a book of tongue twisters and make up your own.
19. Play loud music and dance.
20. Just snuggle.
21. Hide, and go seek.
22. Thumb wrestle.
23. Watch a sunrise.
24. Count the stars and find constellations (or make up your own).
25. Have a good hug.
26. Eat chocolate. Slowly.
27. Banana split.
28. Root beer float.
29. Make pancakes for dinner.
30. Tell jokes.
31. Be lazy together.

and my 32. Eat icecream

Looking Up

We made the choice for Ian to only go to school two days a week this year. It was based on many things but my underlying desire was to capture time with him before he heads off to kindergarden next year! Yes, kindergarden. I'm overwhelmed by that!

There are moments and days I worry about our choice because, well, I worry about everything! Is he getting enough time with friends? Will he be able to meet all the kinder readiness points? Am I working too little? Can we pay the mortgage? You know, small things!

Yesterday we ventured out together for coffee and PVS (petite vanilla scones). Together we decided an outing around the Capitol and down K Street was needed. I love just being with him. Watching him play and discover the world. Noticing details only a four year old can point out. I could take one less "why" question, but that is part of enjoying him!

Seeing everyone hustle about in their business suits and uncomfortable shoes I realized how lucky I am. How lucky to just spend time with him. Could I be doing other things? Yes. Could I be in endless meetings trying to change the world? Yes.

Then he said, "momma, the building is really big." And I stopped. Looked up. And he was right.

I was in the best meeting, changing the world in the most important way.

My Favorite Things

One of my favorite sites asked for a posting of a few of my favorite things. I realized I'd captured this last month! So here it is again. A few of my favorite things!!

Dreams

Our morning routine:

Me: Good morning Ian.

Ian: Good morning!

Me: Did you sleep well?

Ian: A little bit.

Me: Did you have good dreams?

Ian: Yes.

Me: What did you dream about?

Ian: You.

That is sweet enough to just kill me. But today he added:

Ian: Momma, what did you dream about?

Me: (stunned in disbelief) You.

Home Body Blasts Off

Ian is a homebody. Truly. If you ask him what he'd like to do or where he'd like to go it always ends in some combination of home and play. Or more correctly, play at home.

Mondays are our home days. No work for me. Time with just him. We may watch movies. We may play games. We read. We draw. And we repeat all of those. I enjoy it after the craziness of our weekends and it makes him happy!

Today he wanted scones. He would have been happy making breakfast at home but I piled him into the trailer and away we rode for PV Scones and a little coffee. While there I asked if he wanted to go to the Art Beast - the children's art/play studio nearby. He said yes. A real yes. Not a Monday I want to go home whimper in him.

I had no idea! 3 1/2 hours later we biked home for lunch. 30 minutes later he said, can we go back? And since it's not cheap and we had stamps to return...1 1/2 hours later Dad showed up and Ian said "hi" and well, didn't want to go yet. So we staid 1 more hour. Yes, that is 7 hours in one spot. I was not prepared and my phone got no service! So it was old Martha and BHG magazines for me while the wild child played. So what had him mesmerized that long? Just this ultra cool...rocket!

He's just asked Dad to build one for his room. Do you think that means 7 hours of play at home?

I doubt it!

I Want To Ride My Bicycle!

A year and a half ago I reluctantly said okay to the purchase of a cruiser. Since then it has become my primary mode of transportation. We go everywhere on them! We had an I LOVE my bike and I LOVE my neighborhood weekends. We rode everywhere! Ian loves to be in the trailer and often yells, go faster!!

It started out for the new Thursday Night Music Walk. We rode there and then walked our bikes!

Friday Shea got a SERIOUS no patching it flat so we walked to dinner.

Saturday we got in the car (gas...p) to get a new tube. (okay it was less than a 2 mile drive, should have walked!) And then Saturday night we headed out on our bikes for date night.

Sunday back on the bikes to head to the Cowtown Marathon and cheer for friends! We rode all over the course, to breakfast and then home.

There is something so freeing, so simple, so childlike. So perfect! I love my bike!

Capturing MY Child Through The Lens

I was beginning to panic. All of my pointers, tricks, tidbits were not working. All I was getting was the hand or the pout or the run and hide his head somewhere. No smiles. Not even with my longest lens.

Any other month it wouldn't matter so much. Take some photos of other things. Let him have a breather. But this month? Twelve days before my class goes live? Twelve days before I begin to teach people how to Capture Their Kids Through The Lens. Sure I could capture other people's kids quite successfully, but I was beginning to feel like a bit of a sham. Bribery, coercion. Nothing.

Oh, and to top it off. I needed 4 more photos. 4 photos to illustrate a point I want to make in Lesson #2 - Candid Moments: Light & Funny Faces. Nothing. Zilch. Zero. Nada.

I thought for a brief moment of calling my guest photographers Myra, Melanie or Torm and begging for photos and advice. Help! THE TEACHER can't capture her own kid through her own lens!!

I could hear people asking for refunds already.

And then, as if I'd taken my own advice from Lesson #1 - Avoid the Cheese: Camera Settings & Conversation, it all came together. The perfect light. The perfect moment. And a little boy who was ready to pose and goof and smile and who REALLY WANTED to be photographed. What relief. Perhaps I should take my own advice more often!

Off to read the other four lessons, I might just learn something!

It Takes A Village...

to pick a photo of the day! I spent the weekend visiting my mom. Fun times! We spent Sunday wandering through the zoo so Ian could see elephants for the first time! He LOVED them, mimicking them for anyone who would watch! Returning home last night I sorted through and found a few I like but can't make up my mind.

Choice #1 - The Artsy Detail

Ian's feet in black and white - watching the seals!

Choice #2 - The Experience

Blue Poison Dart frog in the new Rain Forest Exhibit.

Choice #3 - The Action Shot

Ian attempting to feed the rays. His little arm was too short!

Choice #4 - The Sentimental One

Nosy was the elephant I grew up visiting. This little statue is in his honor. And look, 4 year old and almost one year old BOTH looking at the camera! As Ian says, "my best little cousin."

Looking at these it makes me wonder. Do you choose your 365 photos because they capture YOUR DAY best or for the BEST photo of your day? Thanks for casting your vote!

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BTW - My real camera is headed back to me! It should arrive tomorrow. So excited to have it again and it only took 16 days! So much faster than expected.

I Heart Faces - Blue

POTD 041009 - Blue Eyes, originally uploaded by katrina.kennedy.

She has the best blue eyes!

Dirt Makes Me Happy, Really Happy!

You know my camera makes me happy. My back up camera...not so happy. It's slow and lacks back button focus and a focal point larger than a grain of sand and takes 7 years to process photos once I take them. Seriously, I feel sorry for the pain I must be putting it through if I take more than two photos in a row. The little red light on the back just blinks and blinks telling me it is working.

My garden makes me happy. Very happy. In fact, today I found scientific proof of just that! Who knew?

So today I decided to take the old camera, new lens, and play in the dirt. Not so bad. Made me happier. I've been trying to get a good photo of these since they started setting. I just love how they look like little Chinese lanterns.

And then there was this. I didn't like knowing what it was up to in my garden, but it did make for a good photo!

Looking Back

I take a lot of photos everyday. You know this. I've been taking at least one photo a day for almost a year and eight months. I don't always take the time to do anything with my photos as I take them. I select the POTD and move on. Since my camera is now somewhere in Southern California I'm not taking as many. So today that meant a look back. I found some photos I love that I didn't even realize I'd taken. And I found some that I got a chance to play with and edit in ways that didn't appeal to me (or I didn't know about) last year. This is a favorite of the day. It is so him, even a year later! I like it much better than last year's version.

Touring California Via UPS

In November 2003 after driving all over Seattle my husband I purchased the Canon Digital Rebel. The original. It was over priced, had been on the market less than a month. We paid about $100 for the HUGE 256mb card since no card was included with the camera. We were in love. With each other and more importantly with the camera. It was a logical upgrade from our EOS RebelX from film days.

I loved that camera. Marathons, triathlons, more marathons, and my son's arrival in the world. All captured with its 6.3 megapixel digital sensor. WOW! 6.3.

Technology has changed some. In 2006 in celebration of our 10 year anniversary I was surprised to receive the Canon 30D. Instantly I was in love and threw my old love aside. Stuck it in a bag. Stuck it in the back of the closet. Only retrieving it when my hubby asked if I'd teach him how to take pictures.

Today I placed my beloved 30D in a box. Handed it to the kind man at the UPS Store and sent it touring California with the final destination of the Canon Repair Center. It needs to have the BOULDERS of sand removed from it so I can take a photo at an aperture fitting a landscape photo without having to photoshop a bunch of brown dust bunnies out of it. I'm excited for its return but until then I'm without a camera.

Or maybe not.

I dug into the depths of my closet. I placed a battery in it. Gave it a nice shiny 4 gig card. And began to shoot. It isn't the relationship I'm used to. The buttons aren't in the familiar places. Its menu lacks the intricacies I'd come to love. But it is an old friend. It feels light. It looks just a bit outdated. But it is the camera I have. So here we go. A few days testing this relationship to decide if we can make it work again. It won't be permanent. Just a bit of a rebound relationship.

It captured the first vampire sighting in our house.

And this sweet little face.
I may date around a bit though. Thinking of trying my film camera out again. Just needs batteries. And somewhere in this house probably buried deep in another closet is our old Pentax that is a simple relationship. Takes gorgeous photos but means you must do everything with it. No fancy dials or buttons or knobs and definitely no menu. And if those don't work I have a polaroid with one last roll of film!

"Completely Candid" Photo Challenge

I took 558 photos during Justin's 11:40:08 Ironman. Fewer than I expected as watching with both eyes, clapping and cheering became important. At the end of the day one photo stood out for me. One capture of the pure raw emotion before the race started. I think this says it all.

A New Pet

POTD 092009 , originally uploaded by katrina.kennedy.

Saturday I cleared some garden beds to make room for winter veggies. In the process we discovered a tiny green caterpillar. Shea showed it to Ian thinking he would help squash it before we dumped the leaves in compost.

Nope.

Ian wanted to hold it. And keep it. And so now it sits in our kitchen in a jar with leaves. He gets it out every few hours so he can "feel it tickle me." He even set up a little rock wall for it to climb. He talks to it and tells it stories. He was a little considered that it was missing it's mom and dad but has decided we are an okay substitute family.

I think we can handle a pet this size!

The Unedited Moments

Watching 2,500 people swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, and run 26.2 miles is an inspiring experience. Watching through my lens was AWESOME. Not in the overused word way but in the truly breathtaking way. I found myself shooting people I didn't know because the emotion was so raw and real and present.

I found myself playing with light and angles because the moment needed to be remembered.

Last night we had friends over to help celebrate my brother's achievement and I showed them all 558 photos I took. Unedited. None deleted. Just put them out there for the world. The blurry ones. The badly composed ones. Everything.

The pictures captured the moment. For me they help me relive the inspiration and emotion I felt at the time. For others they were able to experience the event from my angle, including the people who stepped in front of the camera as the shutter clicked and the blur of runners in front of the lens.

They didn't care. No one was there to critique the moment. They were there to relive it. Enjoy it. Revel in it. And that's what we did.

What are the moments of your life that can be left unedited?

I'll Time You!

Growing up my little brother had a lot of energy! We used his energy to our advantage, asking him to get things for us or do things for us paired with "I'll time you Justin!" We would then count very loudly and he'd run like crazy. On his return he'd ask, "how much?" I remember often answering 6. Not minutes, not seconds. Just 6. He didn't know how much was how much anyway. He was happy as long as we added, "that was really fast."


He grew up, but his energy didn't go away. He continued to run. The distance just kept getting longer and longer. And today I realized something. I'm still timing him! I've watched him finish short races, marathons, triathlons and on Sunday his crossed the finish line of Ironman Wisconsin -- 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 run. He finished looking strong and happy.

And I timed him!

I'm so proud of his accomplishment. So proud of his dedication. And so proud he will finally be able to spend more time with us!

Photos to follow soon as soon I return from Wisconsin!

Lego Parenting Part 2

So every day Ian has continued to say, "remember, I'm working on my Crystal Sweeper." EVERY DAY. AT LEAST two times a day. It has been at least 20 days he's been working on it. It's really a good thing he doesn't have the concept of counting down completely.

I was waiting until I left for Wisconsin this weekend. I thought it would be a nice distraction for him. Hey, you have no mom for 5 days, but you do have A REALLY COOL lego set! Ahhh, such outstanding parenting techniques. Then I discovered it was going to cost me $20 more to buy it on Amazon than to drive 21 blocks to pick it up myself. So I drove. This morning. With a little boy in the back seat. The entire drive he said, "the Crystal Sweeper misses me. It has been SOOO lonely."

Did I mention that is the farthest I've driven in about, ummm, 3 months??!! I don't drive often, obviously.

Crystal Sweeper into the cart. The box is as big as he is! Crazy! How can tiny pieces of plastic I'm going to suck up in the vacuum cost so much?! He was thrilled though! He actually sat patiently as I wandered through the entire store looking at things I had no intention of buying. Weird. I don't shop very often. Well, except on Amazon.

We got home and that's when I realized my mistake. Buying it at 1030 in the morning meant hours before dad arrived home and there was NO WAY this little boy was waiting for someone else to put it together.

So TWO AND ONE HALF HOURS later, I completed the Crystal Sweeper. TWO books worth of Lego directions that take one page for the simplest ONE STEP and then cram 17 steps into another one page. I think they co-conspire with Ikea! I injured myself once, actually drew blood. WITH LEGOS! But wow, was that little boy happy with his mom AND his Crystal Sweeper. No crying. No whining. No asking for videos. Nothing but complete joy in our house! Complete joy and 5 bags filled with plastic parts that now are a crystal scooping machine! Here's to Lego Parenting!

Snapshot Saturday #6

Good Saturday morning! A three day weekend and 80 degree weather, who can ask for more?

Today I thought we'd join in a little fun from one of my favorite photography sites Digital Photography School. It is a HUGE resource for tips, pointers and perspective on everything photography related. You can subscribe to their daily email tips or follow them on twitter. And of course it is a great supplement to any classes you might think of taking (shameless plug).

Yesterday they posted a weekend self portrait challenge! I thought, perfect inspiration for our own challenge! Lots of great tips on taking them are included! So grab your camera find your tripod a reflective surface and let's see YOU! Once the light is a little better here I'll be doing the same. I'm also going for Saturday morning in the garden real...no makeup, hair up, natural shot! So don't be too frightened when you see it!

Link me up here so I can see what you've taken! Have fun, can't wait to see you!

The Lego Approach To Parenting

It started with a haircut.

We told Ian that if he let Dad cut his hair we'd buy him a lego set. It made sense. Haircut $20.00 + $5.00 tip = $25

Okay, so the Lego set they started with was slightly more than $25, but the theory was the sets would get smaller and the haircuts easier. And they did. He now lets Dad cut his hair with no bribery involved.

Then it moved to naps and healthy food. One sticker for each occurrence. Set number of occurrences. Lego earned. Notice I said...EARNED! And then one day having endured a high fever or temporary alien abduction I blurted out I'll buy you the Crystal Sweeper IF you earn it by sleeping in your own bed for 10 nights and quietly resting in your room during naptime. So that is really 20 occurrences. The problem?

CHECK YOUR PRICES FIRST! Good gosh it is pricey! And now he's expecting it. And well, he did earn it. In fact, he earned it like 7 days ago but didn't realize it because we never actually made the sticker board. He'd just say every night as we went upstairs, "remember, I'm working on my crystal sweeper" and dutifully march into his own bedroom!

So I'll spend the money.

But now we've really created a problem! My four year old child has become a collector. A COLLECTOR! He just wants to acquire them! Does he play with them? Yes. Will he play with them more as he gets older? I can hope. Now he spends most of his time asking to watch Lego.com so he can see what else there is. And he asks, "someday can I have the..." And we answer, "yes, someday."

I draw the line at the Millennium Falcon!