My Photos Have Arrived!

May 14, 2009

How I Really Enjoy My Photographs

Often I enjoy getting some of my favorite photographs printed into 12 by 18s and so I am always on the lookout for the special deals with my favorite online store. About once every quarter they put on a sale, so I am always getting ready by locating those favorite photographs to upload to be printed.

Getting ready for these sales allows me to look at some of the many photographs I have taken of the grandchildren, and as I look through them I can see where I have done well and where I need to improve.

This time around I think I found some great shots, and I am very pleased with the prints I received today.
Over the years I have collected many of these treasures, and I enjoy giving them as gifts to family and friends. It is always a joy to see the look of pleasure spread over the face of mom or dad when I give them a framed photograph of one of their great grandchildren!

But you have to be careful – I like to work with photoshop and create more artistic renditions of some of my photographs. I had one in particular of my grandson that I wanted to share with my father, so I excitedly prepared the photo and took it over on a visit.

Much to my surprise his reaction was that “this isn’t my great grandson!” I guess an artistic rendition of the image wasn’t quite what he expected, and that what he really wanted was a regular photograph of his grandson. Well, no problem. A quick fix and he got what he wanted.

It just goes to show you that you never know what someone will like or enjoy. Some enjoy the more artistic images, and others just want the regular photographs. My advice? If you are trying to make a special gift for someone in your life who is a little older – ask them before you do all that work!

Until next time keep your camera handy and watch for those fabulous opportunities to photograph your children.

Please share “My Photos Have Arrived!” with your friends using the buttons below. Thanks!

Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!

ps: Don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter “Real Kids Photography” here!

If you enjoyed this article please subscribe to my RSS Feed here and get future articles sent right to you!

Lighting Indoor Photos For Better Photography

May 13, 2009

Today it was raining outside, so the grand kids decided to play indoors. If I was going to be able to get some pictures of them, I would have to have a way of lighting these photos. After the usual feast of Reese’s Puffs cereal, a banana and a small bowl of ice cream for my granddaughter, off they charged to the living room for a little game of “you’re it”.

Soon enough they settled down and were playing well together with a doll house. Now, consider this – a 9 year old girl and an 8 year old boy – siblings – playing well together inside on a rainy day. Kind of unusual for siblings, eh?

 Photography Challenges For A Rainy Day

So the trick is how to get some great photographs of these two. Outside it is dark and rainy, the gloom sinking through the two skylights into the living room; darkness everywhere. How can a great picture be taken in this lighting and situation?

Time to bring out the flash unit for the camera which, conveniently, can be rotated to bounce flash off of the ceiling. In this manner the subjects – the grand kids – can be the focus of a great photograph without having to use a high ISO and dealing with the noise it causes.  However, as you can see, I was lazy today and didn’t bother to bounce the flash, I just aimed it right at them. And, what did I get? Uneven lighting in the area around them.  This is one of the very best tips on indoor photography: Learn to bounce your flash off of a white ceiling or wall for more evenly lit digital photographs.

The lighting In These Photos Is Terrible & I took them only as JPEGs!

And, to top it off, I only took the photos as JPEGs. So they were only processed once by the camera; that’s it! If I had taken them in the RAW, I would still have all of the information that the camera gathered to work with for several different processing options in PhotoShop CS5.

What if you only have JPEGs to work with (just as I have here), but you would like a better picture.  Is there anything that you can do? Yes, a little. Just save your image in Photoshop CS5 as a PSD (Photoshops native file and the best one to do your work in so that you don’t strip your original file of pixels). Then use a light brush to go over the dark background in the picture to reveal some of the detail lost in the area surrounding the kids. After that, convert this newly corrected image back to a JPEG.

Now, back to the picture taking: A quick snap of the scene, check out the histogram, and I can see where the shadows fall. As long as the spikes aren’t lined up against the sides of the LCD screen, and are basically in the middle of the LCD screen, we’ve got something to work with in Adobe Photoshop CS5
if a few corrections are needed.

If not, then make a  small adjustment to the Camera exposure compensation dial (usually you can only do less exposure here with the flash unit on, if that is the needed correction, because the lens you are using may not have more exposure to give you, or make adjustments as required to the flash unit for more or less light), a few more shots and the next thing you know a few more great pictures are ready to be downloaded onto the computer. So how do you learn to take these kinds of photographs? Why, with A free lesson in photography, of course!

I hope that you can make use of these photography tips and start getting better low light photos.

Please share “Lighting Indoor Photos For Better Photography” with your friends using the buttons below. Thanks!

Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!

ps: Don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter “Real Kids Photography” here!

If you enjoyed this article please subscribe to my RSS Feed here and get future articles sent right to you!

Take A Great Birthday Picture for Birthday Memories

May 9, 2009

When your child goes to the birthday party of a friend from their school, it may be tough for you to be able to take a birthday picture, because you may not be invited. But, if you can figure out a way to come for even part of the time,  it will be a wonderful opportunity for you to get some great birthday pictures.

Yesterday our granddaughter, age 9, was invited to a birthday party for one of her school friends. The party was held at a pottery club, and each of the girls made something out of pottery. There must have been around 15 of these young girls, and fun was being had by all.

The birthday cake was unique: it was Cinderella’s wedding dress. Cinderella stood on top, her veil trailing off behind her, and the cake itself was her dress. It was conical shaped; you know, like the dresses of old that were wide at the bottom and tight around the waist. I think they used wooden hoops to keep the bottom round and away from the feet back then.

While this was going on her grandfather and I walked along the lower part of the high banks on a river. We had hoped to see some rock formations, but because of mud from recent rains we couldn’t get that far down the river. There is an island in the river, so we strolled out there with our son and grandson to wait for the party to be over.

Upon our return we found the birthday girl opening her presents. Her mother was desperately trying to take pictures, but she was not having much luck. Birthday girl would hand the tag from the present to mom, then open the gift and slowly swing the gift from left to right in an arc to show all of the guests what her gift was. At the end of the arc she would simply drop the gift into the pile building off her left shoulder. It was really cute to see.

There was more for the kids to do at the party, so grandpa and I simply excused ourselves and headed home, enjoying the perfect end to a wonderful Michigan spring day. Some days are just perfect.

How To Create Some Wonderful Birthday Memories. . .

At the top of this post we can learn just what to do with that one very special birthday picture: Have the photo put on canvas for the birthday girl, or for yourself! Another fun way to delight your little daughter or grand daughter is to make your birthday pictures of her into a photo book just for her and have it mailed directly to her as a surprise! What little girl doesn’t love to get some of her very own mail? Just click on the pink picture to start making your special photo book for her.

For Safe Storage of Your Birthday Memories. . .

If you are going to burn your photos to a DVD, the following information will be very important to you:

CD/DVD’s have a life expectancy of 2 to 20 years. With corrosion intercept refill sleevesthe life can be extended from 40 to 120 years. The intercept plastic acts as a barrier to the atmospheric gases that cause corrosion and tarnish, and that in turn causes the aluminum layer on the surface to break down. Corrosion Intercept traps the gases and permanently neutralizes them. Intercept also is designed to protect from the dangers of static electricity. Very stable Archival Gold CD’s & DVD’s are also available to purchase from this company. Just click on the picture of the gold DVD in this paragraph and search for Archival Gold DVDs in the search box.

Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!

Please share “Take A Great Birthday Picture for Birthday Memories” with your friends using the buttons below. Thanks!

 

Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!

ps: Don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter “Real Kids Photography” here!

If you enjoyed this article please subscribe to my RSS Feed here and get future articles sent right to you!

Spring Adventures & Kids Spring Pictures

May 6, 2009

The grandkids arrived again today, and immediately set out on their adventures. Overturned rocks, sticks dragged around, dirt spots examined.  Baby roly polys and Lydia and Squiggly are quickly discovered, and the mad dash to show Nana their treasures is under way! It’s time for Nana to give up whatever she was doing that she thought was so important, and grab the camera, follow them outside, watch them in action, and take some great kids spring pictures!

The baby roly polys are tiny snails snuggled underneath rocks that line the driveway, while Lydia and Squiggly are worms found under wood left on the ground. Each one requires close examination, and observation posts are set up on the picnic table.

Kids Will Even Give Baby Worms Their Own Name

Soon Lydia, Squiggly and the roly polys are on the move, executing their escape plan from the grasp of these giants. A little inattention, minds distracted and upon return their captives have fled to places unknown. Oh well, tomorrow there will be more adventures.

Grandma heads to the gorchard, (that’s garden and orchard together) grand daughter in tow.  She discovers the apple tree is in full bloom, and the bees have flown from their hives to do their work with the beautiful flowers that adorn the apple tree.  Pinks and white, the flowers attract the workers from the hives as they quickly gather their treasures to give to the Queen bee. Spring flowers and children mean the hope of new life. Time to start fresh with your life and take some spring pictures for your children!

What a great time to get some spring pictures for kids to delight in. Discovery around every corner, adventures to be had and action all around. Grab the camera quick, before the moment is gone!

Keep those cameras handy!

 

Remember, keep taking lots and lots of pictures of your kids, especially of those spring children. You will be glad you did!

 

Please share “Spring Adventures & Kids Spring Pictures” with your friends using the buttons below. Thanks!

Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!

ps: Don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter “Real Kids Photography” here!

If you enjoyed this article please subscribe to my RSS Feed here and get future articles sent right to you!

A Picture Perfect Day For Some Picture Perfect Images

May 5, 2009

Today was one of those wonderful Michigan days, the kind you just like to spend outdoors.  Not too cold, not too hot, but just right. A day just right to get some picture perfect images of the little ones you love.

Today I didn’t have  to pick up the grandkids, so I finally had time to plant my strawberry plants in the Gorchard.  Well, that’s what my family calls it anyway.  I have rhubarb, currents, grapes, apples, blue berries, raspberries and four bee hives to keep them producing.  Located just behind the cozy forest, I find my refuge there.

Tomorrow, however, chaos returns and it will be time for the camera. You see, at this time of year the little ones explore the cozy forest and the gorchard for any kind of bugs, worms or snakes they can find.  Spring brings out all kinds of things, the forest is greening nicely, and the warm sun feels good after the cold, dark and dank winter. It’s a wonderful time to make sure that you have your camera ready to take them outside to explore nature while you capture some beautiful picture perfect images of them!  It’s very simple and easy to apply an artistic filter on your image using Photoshop and then have your wonderful work printed on canvas to enjoy!

One of the best times to photograph children is when they are happy, full of energy and exploring the newly emerging world with the wonder only children seem to have.  They will turn over rocks, sticks and fallen tree limbs to discover what is hiding there.  With luck they may scare up a rabbit or two, but hopefully not a skunk.

I say that because years ago one of our sons, and our dog, cornered a skunk, determined to do it in.  They may have succeeded at that, but the skunk got its revenge.  After a couple of baths in tomato juice he smelled OK to me, so I sent him off to school.  Shortly the phone rang and the principle told me our son smelled like skunk.

My reply? Again? So, I told the principle to teach him not smell him and left them to their problem.

Ah, life in the cozy forest.

Please share “A Picture Perfect Day For Some Picture Perfect Images” with your friends using the buttons below. Thanks!

Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!

ps: Don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter “Real Kids Photography” here!

If you enjoyed this article please subscribe to my RSS Feed here and get future articles sent right to you!

« Previous Page — Next Page »

• 
  
  

• Categoires

  Select Category Child Photography  (140) Child Photography Podcasts  (1) Display Your Photographs  (52) How To Photograph Children  (43) Kids Photo Contest  (13) Photography Tips  (66) Preserve Your Photographs  (23) Share Your Photographs  (45) Starter Digital Cameras  (29) Uncategorized  (21)

Name: Email: