13 Years of Capturing Memories / Project 52 ~ Week 4

  We've had an exciting {and busier than normal} week since last Sunday.  First, my oldest had his 13th Birthday last Sunday!!  As I write this, I still find it completely unbelievable that 13 years have passed by so quickly!  Last Sunday morning, I woke up a bit earlier than usual and I reviewed his first 3 years of photographs, looking for the perfect one to place in his Birthday diptych {or as he called it his "before & after}.  I have thousands of photographs that I have taken {seriously, thousands}!  When I get a chance {normally on Birthdays}, I love to look back at these images and sometimes there's smiling and more often a lot of happy tears.  Looking at his first 3 years of photographs really reminded me that life moves too quickly.  I am forever thankful for the memories I was able to capture over the years and I know my little ones will enjoy all of these images to share with their future families!

  It is so hard for me to think of him as a teenager...even a week later.  He was my first baby and continues to be 'my baby' ... even against his will.  He is an amazing child {ooops, teenager}, he's super smart, full of humor, gracious, very humble and just the right amount of sensitive.   I have no doubt, he's going to be an amazing adult {in like 5 years?!?}.  I've spent his whole life teaching him to embrace everyone's differences, to be thankful for everything and everyone and to turn the other cheek when people do not treat him with the same amount of fairness that he was taught to show others.  He is now an awesome young adult!  I'm sure as he begins his next 5 important teenage years, we will have some ups and downs as he needs more independence, but I have no doubt he will keep his great core values.

  {Sidenote:  You can NEVER have enough photographs of your little ones.  Whether with your camera, phone camera or professional images - it's so awesome to be able to look back at each year of their lives and they also enjoy looking at these photos through the years.  Cataloging these digital images by child, events and/or years helps to easily find the images when needed.  And don't forget to back these up as often as possible!}

  I chose this photograph for Week 4:

Project 52 / Week 4
{Captured:  ISO 100 / F5.6 / 1/500}

  I picked this image for a few reasons:
    1. He's a little sullen in this picture, more serious - which really worked well for a "teenage" theme.
    2. Black and White can be difficult  - but this image was easily transformed with all the tires, metals and shadows. {I never capture images in b&w, instead I capture a highly contrasted and rich image first, then transform to the right amount of b&w}.
    3. This one wasn't planned out - but instead we used what was available, sunlight included, to capture this image.
    4. He 'posed' himself, making him more relaxed and at ease.

  On a different note,  my sister came down from VA to visit with us this weekend!  The kids and I were so excited to visit.  She is one super amazing sister and aunt - and a very important part of Y.D.P.  I captured this image of her yesterday as we were crossing the road to photograph some baby lambs.

  I love my little sister - she is so super cool, and forever patient with me when I get an idea like this one.  I wouldn't choose such a busy road to photograph on normally - but when the idea hit, and we were already on the road, it was a must.    Next time {if she's willing}, I have another idea I'd like to try on a road...with yellow dotted lines....fingers crossed!

Hope everyone has an amazing week!
-Jennifer

Balloons + Toddlers = FUN / Project 52 ~ Week 3

  Happy Weekend!  It's been a hectic one here, as we are celebrating my son's 13th Birthday {more on this for next week's post}!  This week's photo was really planned out...and it worked {YAY!}.

  I had an idea earlier this week involving balloons, helium, a floor backdrop, gorgeous headbands/outfits , lots of natural light and my youngest.  I purchased the helium (easy) - but I didn't like the balloons that came in the package (very dark primary colors) - luckily I had some pearlized balloons left over from a while ago in white and pink (love when that happens).  The floor backdrop I had purchased earlier last year, but hadn't had a chance to test it out - this was the perfect opportunity to make sure I knew exactly how it would appear in future photos.  I told both of my daughters the plan (way too early - for exactly one day they wanted to know WHEN the balloons would begin, about every 30 minutes) - lesson learned!  The front rooms in my home receive some great sunlight beginning about an hour after sunrise through about 1pm - so I knew exactly when I wanted to begin.  BUT, the sun decided to hide yesterday...we had nothing but overcast clouds.  That's ok - we had just enough natural light, I'd just to have adjust some minor settings.

  So we began by setting up the floor:

And adding the pink and white balloons at different heights:

  The result was perfectly magical (to my toddler) who was amazed at all the lovely balloons.  Initially she really liked the idea of having her photograph taken (mainly because her older sister went first - and "it wasn't fair"), but I was soon met with a small resistance as seen in these here:

{this one makes me smile - a mini tantrum}

{Yes, she is rolling her eyes!}

 And then I got some silly ones - when we resorted to singing and giving her some balloons ...

{singing 'Hey Jude'}

{she let her balloon go on purpose}

  But when I was finished processing and editing most of the photos - I found my favorite, which quickly became Week 3's image:

Project 52/2012 - Week 3

  I fell in love with this image for a few reasons:
     1. It's totally a toddler attitude
     2. I can sense her complete boredom with her sister and I trying to attempt to amuse her {note to self, must come up with some new tricks...and soon!}
     3. She 'posed' herself, which is always great!


**Red pettiskirt is from Chasing Fireflies...super soft & extra bouncy!
**Headbands from Poppy Row on Etsy...this shop has some lovely hair accessories for little ones to adults!
**The darling knot dress is from MomiBoutique ... we LOVE this designer!
**The skirt and tank top outfit is from Sunnybrook Farm Designs on Etsy ... gorgeous clothing!
**The floor backdrop is from Silver Lining Backdrop Shoppe on Etsy!
**The red sequin heart long sleeve tee is from Gymboree!

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!
-Jennifer

Changed Plans / Project 52 - Week 2

  So, I had a specific idea for Project 52 this week.  I have images that I'd love to capture, poses, lighting, props, people, etc.  Sometimes, these ideas will bother me...until I can get them captured and processed.  I had planned a beach shot, late afternoon, with balloons, my 8yr old daughter, pettiskirt, the waves in the background...in my head it was 'just perfect'.  We headed towards the beach early yesterday morning for a planned 'girls day'.  While the girls day was a success, the photograph was not.  What I hadn't planned, was the much colder temperatures which hit NC this weekend, including the bitter cold wind.  Needless to say, I just couldn't ask my daughter to stand on the beach (in the cold, cold wind) to capture the image that was stuck in my head.  I felt somewhat defeated.  I had planned the photograph (on the last day of the week)...what was I going to do now? 
  Instead, later in the day, I captured her playing on her newly constructed "bridge".  The lighting was far from perfect (it really was much too late in the afternoon), the background was certainly not the serene beach I had in mind, but I enjoyed listening to her tell me about the "bridge" and watching her reflection in the puddle as she was attempting to make ripples.   Below is the final image I selected to for Week 2:


Project 52 / 2012:  Week 2
{Captured: ISO 250 / F4.6 / 1/180}

  {A funny thing to share, my daughter REALLY dislikes black and white images.  I'm not really sure why, but she gets a little frustrated with me when I process some of her photographs into black and white.  This image, with the reflection, low light, setting and mood was, in my opinion, much more dramatic and dynamic in black and white.  I promised her, I would share an "approved image" which was in color and showcased her new haircut:}


Photographed: 1.14.12

     While, I was not able to photograph my original planned idea, I was able to capture my daughter, relaxed, in her chosen environment.  I'm still hoping we can revisit the beach photograph on a MUCH warmer weekend - spring is going to be here soon!

 

  Have you ever had photograph ideas which you just HAVE to capture?  

{This adorable owl outfit was purchased from Dress ReHERsal on Etsy.  They have some great outfits and pieces, both of my daughters love them.  You can see their shop here.}

Have a great week!
Jennifer-YDP                                           

The Beginnings {Project 52 / 2012}

  I've always thought beginning something new was one of the hardest things to do.  Today I'm starting a new blog for Yellow Duck Pictures.   Over the next year, I cannot wait to share my journey with portrait photography!!

  This post will be short and sweet - my main purpose to is to not fall behind on my Project 52 in 2012.  I'm sharing Week 1's photograph today - and will hopefully follow-up with another post later this week which contains more details, some before/after images and other random thoughts!  If you're also participating in a 52 Project this year, please leave your link, I'd love to follow along!!

  It was taken on January 1st.  My sister and I wrangled up the family for some beginning of the year group shots.  It was late afternoon, and as anticipated, the sun shining through the tall pines was nothing short of awesome.  This shot was actually a "practice" shot.  I was testing some of the manual settings to ensure everything was perfect for my sis to take our group photos.  I haven't finished processing all of the photos from this day, but this photograph of my youngest captivated me, so it made the "cut" for Week 1!


Week 1 / Photographed 1.1.12 {F8.0 - 1/200 - ISO160}

  There are quite a few reasons that I loved this shot.
My top three:
    1. I know it's not perfect
    2. No posing
    3. Lovely afternoon lighting = one magical image!

{If time permits, I will post a follow-up this week which includes the before/after of this shot.}

Stay Tuned - Lots more to follow in 2012!!
-Jennifer, Yellow Duck Pictures