On Monday Tony was fired. That fast. He left for work, and came home less then 2 hours later. So he called on a job opp. he saw online on the state job site. At 3 he had an interview, at 5 he was hired. At 7 we went shopping to get the things he needed for the job. So far so good. its construction, which he likes, but its outside right now. And Alaska… outside… and winter are words you dont like to say all at the same time. However the pay is better and the hours are better. And its a job he wants. So hes roughing it out for the next few weeks. They are the hardest part of winter, the next couple of weeks. Very cold, clear, lots of ice fog. That sort of thing. Its rough. Hopefully it will pass soon.
In the meantime, im getting our house cleaned. We wee able to get our tax return, and with that we got a new 46 inch TV ( its huge) a new computer, and some clothes for everyone, mostly the baby who is outgrowing everything at an alarming rate, and some house hold nessessities.
The kids are doing great. Conner is crawling wonderfully. He loves being mobile, he also cruises along furnature. He even stood alone for a few seconds one time. Hes growing up too fast! Brennan is doing great too. He gets a bit of cabin fever from being stuck inside. But we can only be out for about a half hour untill Im too cold. And im the one without good winter gear. At least the kids are warm right.
Anyway i just had to post our news. New job, tv computer and a few other odds and ends. Its been a good year so far.
L

PhotoCross

I found this interesting Blog which is a new interesting Photo Competition. You get themes for creative picture, then you go and do the work. Some of the themes they mentioned have been on a wire, tradition, window in the world and more.  I found to to be very interesting and  something i want to follow along. Even though, chances are, i wont actually submit my photos to them. I will probably stick with the themes and try to get some new ideas for creative pictures to add to my portfolio.

Im so slacking in the writing department. Its just that i have nothing really to say. I dont go many places. the kids and I dont do much at all.
The kids are doing well. C is crawling so well, getting into everything. B is as onery as ever, as much as any typical 3 year old exserting his independence. I guess thats just the way things go.
Im doing all right, a bit bored by daily living but what more can i say? T is doing well, looking for a better job, hopefully he finds one, doing grea in our personal life, well thats about everyhting.

Portraits

Its very difficult to get a mobile infant to sit still for portraits. Shooting my sons 7 month pictures today was difficult to say the least. He is fully mobile and can crawl everywhere. My solution? A old broken Cell Phone. It tied into his MVP sweater that he had on and made him sit still long enough to get a few cute shots off.

When attempting to do portraiture of small children, mobile or not, you need to have some kind of focal item that the parents wont mind being in the picture. Because im the parent as well as the photographer, its easier for me. I just pick up a toy that my son loves and if it ends up in the end result then i am alright with that option. A teddy bear that makes sounds, a rattle, or a ball will all get small childrens’ attention and hold it long enough to get a picture of their face, hopefully smiling. Or even better, an artistic picture, a child cuddling the bear, or tossing the ball. Or in my sons case today, chewing on the phone and appearing to talk into it.

Finding something to help occupy the subject is a great way to put a shy child at ease and keep a smaller more adventurous child in their seat. While giving you the opportunity to get some fun and creative shots.

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Shooting in direct sunlight

Lets start out with talking about photography in direct light. Direct sunlight is extremely harsh. It can wash out the subject and cause shadowing on the face. However there are a few things you can do to maximize your shooting time when in direct sunlight.

If at all possible avoid shooting when the sun is its strongest. When the sun is at its peak, in early afternoon, the rays are the strongest. If you have to shoot during the harshest hours try to stick to shooting in the shade. The shade of a tree is often a great tool, plus it provides a very nice prop for your subject. Be sure though to keep your background from washing out by using the correct shutter speed. Meter your light off of the sky if necessary to keep everything from washing out. Do not meter your light on the background as this will cause a silhouette image. While this would be nice for one, its probably not the look you are going for.

Use a reflector if you are going to be out in full sun. A reflector can be store bought or home made. A piece of white poster board makes for a great reflector. Be careful of using any with colors on it, as they will also reflect on your subject. Reflectors keep the whole image lit, they will also reduce the harsh shadows.

Remember direct sun is very harsh and will cause shadows, there are only a few things you can do to avoid this washout. Experement to find what combination of events work for you.

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!

We have been so sick here. Both boys had the flu. B first, then the day after he felt better C came down with it. Even I have been feeling sick for the last couple of hours. Its just been misrable here. But im on the mend thankfully. My parents took B while I was sick, so that i wouldent have to worry about him. Because C is sick too, i just slept all the time like he did. Thankfully it did the trick. Minus a bit of a fever, im better. C hopefully will be on the mend in a few days.
C is 7 months old today. How exciting!

Snow

It finally started snowing here in Alaska. Its so pretty isnt it? Its been slowly, ever so slowly snowing since yesterday. While it looks great, we have only accumulated about an inch. Fantastic, but i wish it was more. Late last night my Husband, Children and I went for a drive. Farther up the highway it was snowing a great deal more. We knew of this neat old trial. Through an abandoned military base. So we decided to go and check it out. With about a foot of snow and unbroken trails to drive on it was a fun drive. Pitch black, but we have great headlights. Its a beautiful thing to see. The snow falling silently, reflecting just off of our head lights, covering the trees. I cant wait to get up there during the day.

So my boy has strep. I let a sick little baby in my house a week ago. I was later told she had strep and pink eye.
After B running a fever of 103- 104 for 2 days, i took him to the doctor and was told it is strep. Poor boy.
So now im treating him, thankfully with fever reducers, he is feeling MUCH better. And EATING!
Yay!

Happy New Year

Happy new year to everyone out there. I saw lots of fireworks and spent time with my family. Since then i have been cleaning, ever more cleaning. I just wanted to pop in and wish everyone a Happy 2008.