Switcheroos

Such a long time! Sorry to have been absent from this blog.

Many wonderful things happened in the last few months. I have photographed many families and have met some awesome people.

You can see some recent sessions and the fun I've had on my new site, Holdlifestillphotography.com

I am also on Facebook at Holdlifestill Photography

If you have visited me here and wondered what happened, do not be alarmed! I am more than ever in love with the art that is photography. I hope you take a few minutes to check out my new ventures.

Happy Fall :)

stretch

I feel so happy.

I am happy because I am getting to do what I love to do. Capturing people and showing their spirit. Capturing the essence of time.

During the last three days, I have had the privilege of shooting three different families. Families to be, families about to expand, and families that have just expanded. I have learned invaluable lessons about how hard this really is. How much you have to concentrate to bring it all together and the stamina that you have to have to keep up the energy for 2+ hours. I have learned that you have to go with the flow, regardless of where the flow takes you. That light can be both your friend and your enemy, but it will make or break the photo.

I have also learned that this makes me want to keep going. For the last three days, the camera has felt like an extension of my hands. That's the feeling you get when it is a tool to channel what you see in your brain. It's such a high.

Here's how to do it

Steps to snaring someone who is not expecting to be a model for the day:

1. Offer a 'try' of your foundation
2. Suggest it might look lovely with some blush and mascara
3. Encourage a few (hundred) poses

Got the sis in front of the camera today. Gorgeous.

We also had a fun time in Paris, if only the one in Ontario.

Could there be more hours in the day, please?

It's a rhetorical question, I know, but I really wish that I had more time to learn. I have an arm's length list of what I'd like to know...things that would really help take my pictures to the next level. It's out there, it's free, it's just the time that I'm missing. I know exactly what I'd like to change with certain things in my images, but I just need the time to learn and to practice!!! So frustrating and so exhilirating at the same time.

I tried not to multitask in Church today, but it was really hard. Wonder if they would frown upon bringing a laptop into the 'crying room'?

Two posts in a row, it must be some kind of a miracle, as this person would say.

Today, not so wonderful. You would think that getting together with extended family might be awesome on its own merits. However, when you throw two dogs into the mix, oy. Sage did not know whether she was coming or going. She was rather going. A lot. The thing is, the other dog is three years older than Sage, and she would have gladly just gone to sleep, had Sage not been there.

So, I have a headache. It's Friday night, and my crew (dog included) is in bed. And it's 9:20 p.m.

keeping it real

Today, we swam. The four of us. It was joyful. Spending two hours in the pool away from everything else. Not worrying about anything else. Tomorrow is another fun day to finish off the March Break. I can't wait.

It's all about the props

Props to have the courage to take the next step and also the props that you actually need to take the next step. Of course, I'm talking about photography. I've had the D300 for a cool week and a half now. I need to know that it was not a waste of money so I'm trying to see if my work is actually different than before, but I just can't tell yet.

Today was about props. I have this crazy idea of taking things to the next level. And for that I will need props. So, I went scouring through Value Village, Pier 1, and also through the Reuse Centre for props. Specifically for fuzzy blankets and baskets that I could use to position a baby with and in. Value Village is having a 1/2 off sale on Monday - will have to check things out then and Pier 1 had some possibilities, but they were too wobbly for my taste. I don't think that they could physically support a newborn. The Re-use Centre had a wonderful wicker bassinette, but with my storage issues, it would not work because of the size. There was also an awesome sled, but again, I don't think that I'll be needing that for some time. So, my other ideas include trusty old Homesense and then, get this, hopping to the States to check out Target. I also love their TJ Maxx, so it would kill two birds with one stone!

Ah, the props to be bought!

365 ideas

Bear with me, I'm doing a 365 flickr photo a day project. The results can be seen here.

I'd like to keep track of places that I'd like to go to for inspiration, so I'm going to start a list on here. Some people are doing a theme for their 365. I'm more about getting through it. I have had some brief thoughts of inspiration here and there, and I'd like to go back to them.

1. Locke Street
2. Confederation Park
3. at the Movies
4. friends and neighbours
5. junk
6. Re-use store
7. rusted
8. quote me
9. winter wonderland
10. Spencer Smith Park
11. Raymond & Associates
12. Love
13. What a mess
14. Spring has sprung
15. NOTL
16. Creekside
17. Winona Peach Festival
18. At the cottage
19. Cherry blossoms at Puddicombe
20. Frootogo

The holy grail

...for me is my new D300.

I walked into the camera store today...thank you

Bell Arte Camera, and said that I'm buying that camera. The gentlemen did not even ask me any questions, just took my comparative prices, which, by the way they matched, and sold me the rather heavy and rather expensive box that I have longed for. It's such a sweet feeling and at the same time it's scary. I wonder if I will live up to what this piece of equipment can do.

I have no idea how to fix the font going all wonky because it's late, and frankly I don't care. I just wanted to document the day of my momentous purchase. Now, if I only had a memory card!!!

Defrosting

My sister taught me about 'buy nothing day.' I've recently blogged about my concerns with a full-blown case of shopiitis. Needless to say, it's not cured in a day. I'd like to really keep track this year of the financial end of things, and am inspired by Olga's steps forward with that. So, my (small) resolution will be to keep track of BND's and see where I end up. You see, I have some big dreams. One of them is for my kids not to have to worry about paying for school. That, of course, comes from having to pay for school myself. Still paying for school in fact. It just sets you up for a long long time with a very tight margin. The other dream is to visit some places I've not been to before. That's an awful lot of places. It too takes careful planning, so BND's here were come. Today was one!

I'm defrosting, because we spent the afternoon outside. The four of us, and one very snowy dog. First we burned things in the firepit and then we were trying to build things out of snow that was not cooperating. We took a walk down to the marsh in the knee-deep snow, got separated from Brian and the dog and met a guy that would not go away. He had a flock of kids with him, and no partner, and kept pace with me and wanted to talk. Creepy. He took off when I loudly said that we were looking for Dad + dog. Ugh. Family walk and creepy dude comes by.

Complacency

I must admit that the new year is walloping my ass.

I returned to work after a week's sojourn between Christmas and New Years' to my job that I truly love and that has kept me fascinated for the last five years. I guess I've felt too comfortable lately, because this week I've had to deal with some nerve wrecking things and it's thrown my sense of complacency out the window. I think it's good that most people don't have to deal with situations where kids might be harmed. I wish that I could write about it here, but no such luxury. The people that I work with help, but a lot of the time they are facing the same nightmares. I'm not exactly sure how I deal with it, other than taking the green pills that bring my blood pressure down to where it should be. That, and hug my own little people a bit longer, while they still let me.

You're not in charge of me

It's so simple when you're five. Today, on the way to dinner, the bickering picked up speed. All of a sudden Ethan said to Leah - "stop bossing me around, you're not in charge of me, God is!" And I thought, how apropos and how simple it is when you're five. No big questions. It is how it is. He's the one in charge. He supersedes all else. I wonder when we lose the kind of big faith that we seem to inherently have. Does it happen quickly, or stealthily over time? It made me think of where I fit within this situation...where is my faith? I know it's there, but it's a bit trampled by everyday life. It's just moments like that snap you back to what's important. If it's as simple as that to a five-year-old, why is it not as simple to us when we get older? What gives, what changes? I haven't got the answers to those questions, but I'm glad that I took a minute today to think about them.

Fresh

It came and went without much pomp and circumstance, but nonetheless, I'm glad that we got to share the last night of the year with the neighbours and their kids. We had a nice dinner and then just hung out. The kids did their thing with watching a movie and coming and going to the bonfire, where the dads stood for about two hours. We, the moms, stayed inside. Duh, it was -17 yesterday evening.

Today, we are taking it easy. Back to work for me tomorrow, so I'm not planning on doing anything, other than making a quiche. That's right, if I were to make any resolutions, and that is a stretch, it would be to be more adventurous in the kitchen. And to get a new kitchen.

There, resolution made!!