Smile

Project 365 - Day 12

Don't worry, be happy :)

20/20

Project 365 - Day 11

These are the glasses I never wear. Well, almost never. I have had 20/20 vision my entire life and until last year, I never needed glasses. Technically, I just barely need them (for distance) and since I don't need to wear them full time, I forget about them.

Freeze Frame

Project 365 - Day 10

It was freezing cold today.  When I ventured out to take this photo, the temperature was at today's high of 15 degrees with a windchill of -8.  Now that's dedication ;)

p.s.  I won't mention the fact that I was outside around midnight last night with my camera, lenses and tripod trying to get a photo of the moon.  It was around 14 degrees then too.  The photos were not coming out well, so I came inside and started to question my sanity lol.

Bye bye birdie

Project 365 - Day 9

We had a little snow today and it seemed to bring the birds back out of the woodworks.  We have two feeders outside of the sliding glass doors in the dining area and it seems that when the weather is warmer, they don't come around to eat.  As soon as it gets cold, they come back and have a party! lol

Here are a couple more cuties that stopped by:

By the way, thanks so much for the nice comments about the cake :)  It was a big hit today!

Ace of cakes?

Project 365 - Day 8

Ace of Cakes I am not lol.  I spent most of today working on this cake for a family members birthday tomorrow.  He's a huge Harley Davidson fan so I tried to replicate the Harley theme and logo.  I would never make a dime if I did this for a living.  I am too much of a perfectionist and it takes way longer than it should because I'm so picky :)

Here's a better view of the cake:

Chasing sunsets

Project 365 - Day 7

I had a great day out shopping with my parents and this was the view driving home this evening.  When we came out of the store around 4 pm, I saw the sky and knew it was going to be a nice sunset.  We drove around for a bit trying to get to the highest elevation so I could get a shot without trees and buildings obstructing the view.  The highest point was at a Home Depot that sits way on top of a hill but when we drove up there, a tall chain-link fence was in the way.  We left there and ended up stopping at one more store right around dusk and while my Mom ran in the store, I set up my camera and tripod in the parking lot and took a few photos.  Once I finally got my shots, I was happy :)

Rainy Days & Mondays

Project 365 - Day 6

I was tempted to start constructing an Ark today because I was sure a flood was a-comin' lol.  We had downpours all day and 50-60 mph winds and there several flood warnings in our area.  I took the photo above through our sliding glass door this afternoon.  Even though it looks like the color was changed to black and white, that is the actual color photo I took.  That is how gray it was today.  On to something brighter...

A few months ago I came across the photography website Stuck In Customs which features primarily HDR photos.  The webmaster, Trey Ratcliff, is a fantastic photographer and focuses on the HDR (High Dynamic Range) technique with most of his photos.  HDR is a post-processing technique that adds alot of contrast, depth, and dimension to a photo and makes the colors much more vibrant.  The colors in the finished product are still natural, but just more enhanced.  When I saw Trey's work I knew I had to learn more about this type of process and try it myself.

Below is a photo taken in September that I have posted here before.  It is straight out of the camera and has not been edited at all (other than resizing it).  I thought this would be a good photo to test this technique out on.  This is the before:

And this is after applying the HDR processing:

You can click on the photo above to enlarge it which will show a lot more detail.  This is my first attempt at this and I am pretty happy with the result.  I cannot wait to get out and take some more photos so I can try this again!

Food for thought

Project 365 - Day 5

Who says God can't get a message to you through a cookie?  I had Chinese takeout for dinner and when I'm finished, I always like to see what little nugget of wisdom my fortune cookie holds.  I don't believe in fortunes or astrology or any of that, it just amuses me how most of the fortunes don't make sense.  The message above came in my fortune cookie tonight and it could not be more appropriate.

I struggle with living in and enjoying each moment because I'm always too focused on 'the big picture'.  I plan, organize, analyze, and prioritize everything in my life, so much so that I often feel like life is passing me by while I'm planning my life away.  I found a quote a long time ago that said "Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans".  That has always stuck with me because that is how I feel a lot of the time.  I am so consumed with what will happen in the future that I am not enjoying my life now.  My Mom knows how I am and is always telling me that I need to live in the present and enjoy each day because we are not guaranteed tomorrow.  I guess I just needed a cookie to confirm that message for me :)

Inspiration

Project 365 - Day 4

I bought some Valentine's Day fabric a few weeks ago and I've been looking for some inspiration as to what I can make with it.  I'm stumped.  Any ideas?   :)

Jack Frost

Project 365 - Day 3

Today's photo is nothing spectacular, but it is a sample of something new I learned.  I have been practicing taking photos in dim/low light and always end up with grainy or blurred photos.  I recently learned how to adjust the shutter speed on my camera which [insert long technical explanation here] enables me to take a clear, sharp photo in low light.  I've been enjoying this peppermint & vanilla scent all day and now that it's starting to get dark out I figured I would put my new found knowledge to good use :)

The roar of the jungle

Project 365 - Day 2



Roar of the lion tiger kitty.

Project 365

I joined Project 365 today where you take one photo a day for a year and upload it to the group and your website.  Forcing myself to take photos every single day will not only help me to improve my skills, but also help me to become more disciplined and finish what I start.

Below is my first photo for Project 365.  I broke a glass today and the shattered pieces looked kind of neat, so it became my first photo subject.

Project 365 - Day 1

Ten on Tuesday

Wow, I'm a slacker.  It's been almost a week since my last post :(   I'm afraid I don't have much for you today, but I do have this week's Ten on Tuesday and that is something, right? lol  So, here goes:

10 Things You’re Looking Forward to in 2010

   1.  Learning more about Photography
   2.  Starting a new career
   3.  Enjoying my crafty-side (knitting, sewing, painting, etc)
   4.  Possibly making the 'big move'
   5.  Getting out and enjoying life more
   6.  Having a better financial plan & sticking to it
   7.  Developing my blog into more of a photo journal
   8.  Losing weight
   9.  Relaxing more and worrying less
  10. Having a more disciplined life


I have to mention that the whole time I have been typing this post, I have had the pleasure of smelling one of my new favorite candle scents.  This one is Cherry Lemonade and it smells SO good!

I placed and order last week and just received my package from Yankee Candle yesterday and I am in candle heaven :)  My Mom got me into Yankee Candles a few years ago, so I have her to thank for my new candle addiction lol.  I loved the Cherry Lemonade candle so much when I got it that I went and ordered another one yesterday!  I do not even have this candle lit and it still smells so good.  It's making me want Springtime again :)  Yankee is having a great sale until January 18th so I figured now is the best time to stock up.  Does anyone else out there love them as much as I do? 

Oh happy day!

Hi everyone!  I am feeling so much better today.  The highlight of my day just came in the mail a little while ago when I got the new camera lens I ordered.  I bought myself a little after-Christmas gift on Amazon.com last week :)  I know this probably won't interest those of you not into photography, but its a Nikkor 55-200mm zoom lens.  This means that I will be able to take close-up photos of objects at a distance from me which I haven't been able to do until now.

Here she is:

Aside from the camera, this was the next big investment for me and it made me very nervous.  I rationalized that this is an investment in my future and that if I want to be a Photographer, I need to have and practice with the right equipment to build on my skills.  But even though this is all true, I sat there and went back and forth for a couple of hours on whether or not to buy the lens.  I can very easily spend money on others, but when it comes time to buy something for myself I analyze it to death lol.  What if I never become a Photographer?  Then all of the money spent on equipment will be wasted.  But I still enjoy photography as a hobby, so it's ok to invest money into it.  But I really shouldn't be spending money on a hobby right now.  And I end at the same place each time I go through this dialogue with myself:  I WILL be a Photographer.  It's what I want to do with my life and it will happen.  No more self doubt.  I have faith that I can accomplish my dreams :)

I'm off to got try out the new lens.  Oh, the pictures I will take! lol  You know I'll be back with photos :)

Sew fun!

You may have noticed I am a little late with my post.  But, I have a (not-so) good reason.  In the last post I joked that my eyes were going to be permanently crossed after all of the time on the computer designing the blog layouts.  That was my way of making light of the headache I had after all the computer time.  Little did I know that the headache I had was only the beginning of the most excruciating head and neck pain I have ever experienced.  Ever.

I have had sporadic problems with neck pain and getting headaches over the last several years.  I attributed my problems to the years spent sitting at my desk at work, head bent down looking at the computer, with very few opportunities to get up and walk around during the day.  I also have had poor neck support while I sleep.  I have tried almost every type of pillow out there and still I have mornings where I wake up with a bad headache and shooting pains in my neck.  I slept in a bad position the night before last and when I woke up yesterday, I was in brought-tears-to-my-eyes agony.  The pain in my neck spread across my skull and forehead and anytime I sat down, whether on a chair, the sofa, or my bed it made the pain worse.  Needless to say the computer was off most of the day and just layed on my bed a got some rest.

Thankfully today was much better, thanks to Bengay (I smell like I'm 90) Advil, and some Vicodin I had left after having my tooth pulled last fall.  At least I can function again and finally put up this post :)  Here is my new sewing machine:

I turned my desk into a work area and bought a bin to organize all of my sewing 'stuff'.  I cannot work in clutter lol

My first project was a pin cushion.  It didn't come out the way it was supposed to, but I think it looks kind of funky and I like it better than the pattern :)  I guess I'm no Martha Stewart lol

My next project will be a table runner for my Mom.  I had her pick out the fabric for it when we went shopping last week.  I think that should be simple enough to make (obviously pin cushions are far too advanced for me at this stage lolol).  Hopefully I will be able to get it done this week and of course, there will be photos!

I may be back a little later with my Tuesday Ten post.  If not, I hope you have a great night!

A quick post

Hi!  I just wanted to put up a quick post since I haven't had a post yet this year :)  I've had a busy weekend so I haven't had the chance to post about my sewing project yet, but I will tomorrow (promise!)  I also re-designed my Mom's blog for her and of course once I saw her with a new layout, I had to go and make one for mine too. lol  I spent a long time yesterday and today working on both blogs and staring at html codes and right about now I think my eyes might permanently be crossed! lol  I better go give them a rest :)  I hope everyone had a great weekend and I will be back tomorrow!