TBT: Newborn baby and newborn photographer

I mentioned in an earlier post, that the big push to get a DSLR was when I found out I was pregnant- I wanted to be able to take quality shots of my child's life with a quality camera.

The Christmas before Zoe Kay was born, I finally got my camera. However, I really had no idea how to use the thing. So, for a good long while (almost a year), I pretty much stayed in auto mode and adjusted ISO. So, pictures were pretty much hit and miss. 

I decided to take on the task of taking my daughter's newborn pics all on my own. I have to say, for the lack of skills and knowledge I had, I managed to pull off some halfway decent photos. 

Here are some of my favorites I took within Zoe's first couple of weeks (all unedited- someday I'll get around to that.....):

Not too bad, right?

....yeah?

I'd like to think that my skills have much improved in the 18 months since I first got my camera!

Roses for a baptism

My beautiful niece, Genevieve, recently turned 8 years old and will be getting baptized later this month. Unfortunately, I won't be able to attend this big event in her life, so she asked if I would take pictures of her in her beautiful baptism gown. How could I resist?!

I asked what she thinks of when she thinks about baptism. She thought for a moment, then said, "For some reason, when I think of baptism, I think of roses!"

DONE. We got a bouquet of roses for the shoot! With a white dress and flowers she definitely started looking like a little bride- it was adorable. (my husband thought it was kinda weird...pfft. whatevs, dude.)

Here a some of my favorites (most of these have been tweaked in photoshop):

 
Isn't she beautiful!? Look at those bright blues!

Genevieve LOVES horses, so naturally we stopped by a                                                                          neighbor's pasture to take some shots with the horses!

 I tried to incorporate symbolisms of baptism- mostly the water aspect. (with roses!)

My focus for this shoot was on taking some good portrait shots- posing, creativity, proper focus, etc. 

I am definitely struggling with focusing properly!!! GAAAAHHH!!!! It's pretty frustrating to look through your pictures after a shoot and realize a lot of great shots were OUT OF FOCUS!!! Any tips or tricks?! 

I also struggled to adjust aperture appropriately. There's still a lot for me to learn!! 

Luckily, Genevieve was a patient and cooperative model and we got a few good shots to help her remember her special day.

Photography Origins: Capturing Memories

I LOVE taking photos.

As long as I've owned a camera, it's practically been an added appendage to my person.

Since I got my first camera as a kid, I've been snapping pics like crazy. At times it seems that I take photos of everything- events, places, things, scenery, people, moments.
Every vacation, every girls camp, every play I performed in, I had a disposable camera (until I got a digital, obvs). It was always first on my packing list, and I always had a camera in my purse. I even bought waterproof disposable cameras for water-related activities. When I started using a digital camera (the only thing I wanted for high school graduation besides a laptop), it went with me EVERYWHERE. I've been through more digital cameras than I've got fingers.
When facebook came along and allowed one to upload loads of photos into albums, I posted photos. Lots of them. often. (I think the 120 albums on my facebook page can attest to that fact!) When I finally got a smartphone, it rocked my world. Now I ALWAYS HAVE A CAMERA WITH ME!!!
I've spent hundreds of dollars on developing film,  I've got stacks and stacks of pictures in boxes and albums, and gigs and gigs of photos on my hard drive.

My first camera was similar to this!

But, WHY? Why the urgent need to constantly take photos and carry a camera with me at all times? 

I honestly hadn't figured it out until I was planning my wedding. Funds were tight for my parents at the time and I was thusly was given a strict budget for said wedding. 

My mom couldn't understand why I wanted to spend a decent chunk of that budget on a photographer and videographer. 

My explanation was something along these lines:

"When the wedding celebration is over, all that's left (besides a new spouse) are the memories. It's worth it to me to capture the memories."

THAT'S IT!! I am constantly taking photos to capture memories, because I'm afraid of forgetting: forgetting what things looked like, what people looked like, places I visited, friends, family members, experiences, etc, etc, etc... 

I take pictures to remember the details of my life and experiences.

Here are some pictures I took as a kid to illustrate this point:

At 12 years-old, right before we packed for our move to Texas, I wanted to remember my bedroom:

At age 10, I wanted to capture my personality:

(I was totes taking selfies and food pics LONG before the smartphone, yo....)

I wanted to remember my last elementary school lunch:

Hiking with my family:

Life at home:

My last day of elementary school:

The horse next door:

The dolphins at SeaWorld:

These last two photos are two of my favorites. I'm particularly proud of the epic dolphin show shot.

So, there you have it. My love of photography stems from fear of forgetfulness and nostalgia!

Photography Origins: Photographic Artistry

I didn't start taking an artistic interest in photography until college. I would see a beautifully composed frame before even turning the camera on, such as this photo from a musical rehearsal:

I also really enjoyed editing my favorite shots in iPhoto:

                

               

                                        

                                        

However, I didn't truly fall in love with photography as an art form until my life-changing trip to Baja my senior year of college. With so much breathtaking scenery surrounding me, I started seeing the camera not only as a tool for capturing memories, but as a tool for capturing the beauty and artistry in life and in the world around me. 

I plan on dedicating a whole post on this experience, but here's one of my favorites from the trip:

ummm....can I go back NOW?!?!

I decided I wanted to legitimately pursue photography after my husband and I went on an epic 2-week National Park trip (we hit up 11!) and I couldn't get enough of the gorgeous scenery we were witnessing. I started putting my point and shoot camera into manual mode and fiddling with the settings and had a lot of fun in the process!

After failing to successfully capture the grandeur of sunrise and sunset at the Grand Canyon, I vowed to save my pennies for a DSLR!!

Again, I am dedicating another post to that trip, but here are a few shots of sunrise and sunset at the Grand Canyon:

It wasn't until I found out I was pregnant that I aggressively pursued saving for the DSLR. I wanted to be able to take GOOD QUALITY photos of my baby. That child was going to learn quickly how to live with a camera in his/her face-  and as you'll see in future posts to come, that is pretty much how it's been her whole life. Poor kid. #sorrynotsorry

yep. that about sums it up.