Moms Who Click| Sharing Photography Tips & Tricks

Creating Lightroom Presets

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:54:00 +0000

Mother's Day Roses, a photo by Kristina_R on Flickr. (with preset)

Mother's Day Roses SOOC

I have never made a Lightroom Preset and am so excited to have taken the time to learn how to do it. It is so easy!

What prompted me to give it a try was Kim Klassen's Beyond Beyond course. If you have been following this blog, you know I am a HUGE fan of hers. Her course is fantastic and each week I am learning something new.

Anyway, if you have not tried making a preset for Lightroom, you should definitely give it a go. It is much easier than you think. Here are a few tutorials to help get you on your way....

Photography Concentrate has a great tutorial that includes a video.

Adobe has a basic instructions on how to make them and organize them.

Photo Tuts has 100 Free Lightroom Presets and a tutorial on how to make your own.

FREE Yahoo! Weather App: Plus Submit Your Photos

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Fri, 17 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

by Tina
We love photo Apps at Moms Who Click. Kristina recently wrote about A Beautiful Mess App and her fondness (okay, addiction) for camera apps. I also have a passion for a few apps with one of the most recent being Yahoo's! Weather App (and for Android users, link here). It's a beautiful app that shows all you need about the weather as well as the wind, sunrise, sunsetting and the waning and crescent moon phases (I love that feature!) Store your favorite cities. I like to see what's going in in Paris and London - two of my favorite cities....!

A good weather app will tell you the forecast for next 1-10 days. That information is handy for planning especially if you're traveling or preparing for your outdoor photo sessions. Some apps give you pollen count, moisture levels and hazard alerts. But what Yahoo! Weather features that the other weather apps don't come close to is showcase stunning photos taken by photographers from across the globe.

To submit a photo or series of photos for consideration you need to be on Flickr. Both Kristina and I love Flickr and have a Flickr Pro account which is only $24.95 a year. That's an amazing bargain. Not only can you post countless photos but video as well. I am in the process of uploading family photos on Flickr in addition to external storage for protecting my images. Having something offsite ensures my photos are protected.

Back to the Yahoo! Weather App. Once you have a free or Flickr Pro account post your favorite photos that clearly depict an outdoor scene. No matter what the time of day or conditions just post your best shots. When your photos are uploaded be sure to geotag them (that's essential). You also need to review all of the image requirements here. If your images don't meet the requirements they won't make the cut.

Next, join the Project Weather Group to begin adding your images. It will take a few weeks for the editorial team to review. A few of my photos recently made their way into the group. I realize I have photos from all of my family travels so I'm going to comb through them for the best shots.

The Project Weather team tags your photos and makes sure to link back to your Flickr page from the Weather App. I've discovered some amazing photographers of all levels through the app. It's a wonderful community.

So the next time you take a great outdoor shot with clouds, fog, rain, snow or sunshine think about sharing it to the Flickr group. Someone from around the world might just be viewing one of your images!

Here are a few of my images that made it into Yahoo! Project Weather:

Guest Post By Olivia Fulmer--Lightroom Resources

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Thu, 16 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

We are so fortunate to have Olivia from OliviaIrene Photography back with us again this week to further discuss Lightroom. If you missed her previous post where she provide tips and insights into her workflow, you should definitely check it out here. This time around she is giving us some helpful resources to get you on your way. Thank you so much Olivia for this very informative post. I think I've got a little studying to do!

Last month, Kristina asked some of KK Groupies if we would be willing to write a guest post for her Moms Who Click blog, and I sort of, tentatively raised my hand and asked in a quiet voice, “Can I do a post about before/after edits using LR and what I’m learning?” (Secretly, I was hoping she would say, “NO! ARE YOU CRAZY?” but she didn’t. She said, “Yes! Sounds great.“ So now I’m stuck! But here goes.

Back in October I did a series of posts with before/after edits using Lightroom 4 and a little Photoshop CS6. You can see some of them here and here. I think I ended up with about 15 posts, not 31, but who’s really counting and keeping score? I learned more about both programs. And I’m still learning.

I’ve used LR for several years as an organizing tool. I used it mostly for importing images from my camera card, and I would do a few of the most obvious adjustments, mostly adjustments for white balance, exposure. Somewhere along the way, I learned that if you clicked on those little triangles at each end of the histogram and turned them “black,” then you had the image within the “correct” ranges for exposure, blacks, highlights, etc.

After a bit of playing with some sliders, I used the Ctrl-E shortcut and opened the images in CS6 to finish my editing by making additional adjustments in levels, hue/saturation, contrast, etc., running creative actions, or applying textures and veils and whatnot.

Now, after taking Kim’s Roundtrip Lightroom class, I’m learning even more.

But what I really want to do is share some of the resources that have been most helpful to me. These are not necessarily in any kind of order of preference, but just some that I go to for reference, instruction, and help:

Gavin Grough, The Photographer’s Workflow: A Practical Guide to Digital Post Production Using Lightroom 4. This e-book has been extremely helpful in setting up LR and establishing a workflow. His process has ten steps divided into two parts: planning and implementation. From this book, so far, I’ve taken away the importance of labeling, flagging, and naming files and folders. I still have a lot to learn. Included with the book are a set of 30 presets (still getting the hang of them) that are useful in the editing process.

Sean McCormack, Essential Development: 20 Great Techniques for Lightroom4. If you haven’t discovered David de Chemin’s wonderful library of ebooks at www. craftandvision.com, you need to go there NOW! Where else can you buy quality photography guides for $5.00 each, and even get a couple free ones? I’ve just dabbled in this book, but from this book, I took a better understanding of how the histogram worked. Now, it has become one of the first tools I use when I process a photo in LR.

Kim Klassen’s Round Trip class. Kim’s class is wonderful—it is down to earth, easy to follow and basic. She introduces the student to the basics of LR beginning with organization. Now that is one of my pitfalls with LR (and with Bridge when I first used it). Now, I think I have a system that works for me: I import images into a folder for the year by DATE. Right now, I’m “reorganizing” my catalog by moving files into subfolders by MONTH. So my structure looks something like this:

>2013 (the year)

>January 2013

>20130101

>20130102

etc.

Each LR teacher will give you their system for organization, but you simply have to work out the best system that works for you.

David du Chemin also has a book where he takes you through his Lightroom process (and for the life of me I cannot find the book or think of the title!) His philosophy is that when we edit, we do not necessarily edit for “correctness” but for “vision”—our mental picture of what we want the final product to be. That, more than anything else, has guided me whenever I edit. I edit until it looks the way I want it to, the way I want it to tell the story.

Wordless Wednesday--An Apple A Day

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Wed, 15 May 2013 11:30:00 +0000

A Beautiful Mess App Review

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Tue, 14 May 2013 20:36:00 +0000

I am addicted to iPhone apps. I love using filters, textures, text and making collages with my iPhone photos. So when I heard that one of my favorite blogs, A Beautiful Mess, was coming out with their own app, I HAD to check it out.

This app incorporates the signature style of the A Beautiful Mess lifestyle blog using hand-drawn doodles by Elsie & Emma. If you are familiar with their blog, you'll know what I mean.

What it includes is:

filters
pre-written phrases
pre-drawn doodles
pre-drawn borders
text

It is a fun little app that is perfect for anyone who loves playing around with their photos and Instagram. It is only .99 cents in the App store, however there is an extra charge for additional doodles, fonts, and borders. The filter selection is not as robust as other apps, however I wouldn't really use the app for that. I'm more about the fun fonts, doodles and borders. Super cute!!

Here are a few I doodled up using their app.....cute, he?

So if you are looking for another great app to add to your collection, you should definitely check out the ABM App.

Keyprop--The Simplest Stand and Clap to Snap App

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Sat, 11 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

I recently had the opportunity to check an amazing smartphone accessory called the Keyprop by Integral Design that I know you are going to love. It is the perfect companion to the camera that you always have with you....your smartphone.

Now when you want to actually get in a photo, you have any easy and secure way to prop up your phone and you don't even have to take off you phone case. There is nothing to assemble, open or stick on. It is so simple!

For all smartphones, just insert the prong into the headphone jack and Keyprop rests against the front panel to prop up your phone. For iPhone5, the bottom prong can also fit right into the Lightning dock. To adjust the angle all you need to do is prop the stand on your keys.

I love the design of the Keyprop, it is shaped like a key and easily slides onto your key ring. It truly is the perfect design.

Take it from me, I have tried two other accessories designed to prop up your phone but they are much bigger and bulkier. And honestly, I rarely take them out with me because it is one more thing to put in my already heavy purse.

Right now Integral Design is in the midst of securing funding through Kickstarter. For a pledge as little as $15 you can be one of the first to get this awesome product.

In addition to designing the Keyprop, Integral Design is also developing a self-timer app called KeyCam. This self-timer is unique in that no longer do you have to push a button and run to get into the frame....now all you have to do is set up your camera and then clap. Yes, you read that right, CLAP. You can CLAP to SNAP. Check out this video to see it in action.

KeyCam features in use from Integral Design on Vimeo.

To help kickstart the Keyprop and be one of the first to get this amazing product check out the Kickstarter Key Prop page.

Liberate Your Art--Blog Hop

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Fri, 10 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

This year I was so excited to take part in Kat Sloma's Liberate Your Art postcard swap. This was her third year organizing this event which encourages artists from around the world to reproduce their artwork and distribute it to others.

How it worked was each participant mailed 5 postcards of their art to Kat (mine are pictured above) who then organized a massive mailing (along with her Liberate Your Art elves) over the course of 5 weeks. Words can not express how exciting it was to go out to my mailbox each week and find these little pieces of art waiting for me.

Another terrific aspect of this swap was the community that formed on our Facebook group page. As cards started to stream in, people from around the world would post photos of what they received to our group page. It was incredibly inspiring to see all of the creativity flowing from all across the globe. And also fun to see where my cards ended up.

Every card I received was beautiful and many had heartfelt messages or quotes which brightened my day.

Below are the gorgeous pieces I received........

The top card is from Shirina from Making Moments Count. The bottom from Emelle, with a message to "Be brave! Have fun!"

The top card is from Jani who also had a message that resonated with me, "Remember that only you and you alone can create YOUR art."......so true! And the bottom card is from someone who unfortunately I can't figure out their very pretty signature. :) If it is you, please let me know!

These lovely cards came from Peter Harklau (top) and Kat Sloma (the organizer and artist extraordinaire!).

I look forward to participating in the card swap again next year and am very thankful to have been a part of it for 2013. To see some of the other amazing pieces created by this very talented group of photographers, painters, artists, please check out our blog hop. And stop by Kat's blog to see the slideshow of all the artists that participated.

Guest Post--Lightroom Workflow From Olivia Fulmer

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Thu, 09 May 2013 15:08:00 +0000

Today you are in for a treat. We have a guest post from Olivia Fulmer of OliviaIrene Photography. Olivia, is going to walk you through a workflow using Lightroom. You will see how she edits a beautiful still life image from start to finish. If you have been thinking about using Lightroom or are already a fan, this is a great tutorial that shows you the power of this editing tool. Thank you so much Olivia for putting this post together for us, I certainly learned a trick or two!

A Lightroom Workflow

l began using Lightroom when it appeared in beta form. Or rather I experimented with it in beta form, but didn’t start using it until LR 2 came out. Since then, it has become a regular part of my workflow. However, I did not have the patience, nor the mentors to really dig into LR to learn its secrets.

Today, I’m going to share a little bit of my workflow using LR 4.

I use LR to import images from my CF card to the computer. This is an expanded Import screen, but essentially, I choose the source and the destination:

I’ve begun important my files as dng (digital negative) files, and it does take a long time if there are a lot of photos. You can also leave the files in camera raw format as well.

Now that the images are in the LR catalog, the fun with LR begins.

This image is pretty much SOOC (straight out of the camera); the only addition is the watermark. I use the Develop Module of LR to begin.

First I check the histogram. In this case, I did pretty well in-camera! The two triangles at the ends of the histogram will indicate where there is some clipping in the shadows, blacks, highlights, or midtones, as well as in the RGB color channels.

Because there is nothing at the right side of the histogram, I may want to pull the histogram to the right some more to see what happens. The image does seem “brighten” a little, and there is no clipping, so I’ll leave it alone, but as you can see from the image below (histogram 2), there is a “well” in the middle of the histogram; the darks and lights have more data than the midtones.

Histogram 2

I’m going to play a little with midtones by scrubbing the mouse in the middle of the histogram. I want to try to even out the tones. I pulled the shadows to the right, making sure that the triangle on the left stayed black. Then I pulled the highlights to the right, making sure that the triangle to the right stayed black. I’m still not quite sure this is what I want, so I’m going to play in the middle with the exposure. I try to keep the triangles black, and just adjust until it “looks right” to me.

My next step is to play with eye dropper and see if I can get my whites whiter without lightening the image too much. The daisies are white, as is the background behind the flowers. I chose to use the flowers to set my white balance.

Right now, I’m pretty satisfied with my basic edits. I made a few adjustments to clarity (which acts something like sharpening and contrast combined), vibrance, and saturation.

My next edit comes from David du Chemin. I admit that curves baffle me, so anything that makes curves easier to use suits me. One of du Chemin’s first edits it to change the point curve preset to medium contrast. Usually this is enough for me!

Next I often click the Enable Profile Corrections under the Lens Corrections section. And next I’ll just click through the Camera Calibration Profiles. For this image, I thought Camera Faithful looked best to me, so I’m choosing it.

There, I’m finished with my Lightroom Edits.

Before After

The workflow is simple:

1. Begin with the histogram, and either scrub the mouse over the various regions (blacks, shadows, exposure, highlights, whites), or use the corresponding sliders.

2. Adjust the white balance, either using the eye dropper to choose a neutral (18% gray) or white area, or by using one of the White Balance presets.

3. Play with the curves adjustments, either by using the graph or by choosing a Point Curve present.

4. Adjust for Lens Correction.

5. Select a Camera Calibration preset.

You can also crop in LR and use other creative presets, but I think my workflow gives you a pretty clean edit.

From here, I will import into CS6 for additional edits and enhancements, possible adding some texture or text.

I’d love to see some of your edits using LR as well.

Color Pop--Texture Tuesday

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Wed, 08 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

This week's challenge at Kim Klassen's Texture Tuesday was "Pop". Just take a photo where the color pops (and use one of her textures)...that was it....easy, peasy!

The roses in my garden are starting to bloom and this orange rose is one of my favorites. I thought it would be the perfect subject (along with my sweet daughter..I love her green t-shirt and the pop of orange).

For this photo, I used one layer of Kim's texture "charmed" with soft overlay at 35% opacity and erased the texture from my daughter using a layer mask and brush.

If you have not visited Kim's site, you should POP on over. There you will find all kinds of inspiration. From learning how to use textures, to Lightroom tricks, to little nuggets of wisdom....she is amazing! I can't say enough great things about her. She has truly been a huge influence on my photography journey.

I Collect.....

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Tue, 07 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

This week's prompt from Kim Klassen's Beyond Beyond class was to capture an image that showcased the things you collect.

Lately, I've been on a vintage camera and typewriter kick. The problem with collecting these kinds of items is space. Each time I bring one home, my husband says, "That's nice, but where are you going to put it?" Good question....although I always find a nice place to display these vintage goodies.

The thing is, when I find an old camera (I have 7...some were given to me and others were flea market finds) or typewriter (I'm up to 4 with this weekend's yard sale find), I can't resist. Do you think there is a 12 step program for this kind of addiction? Seriously, how can you pass these vintage treasures up?

One other thing I've started to collect is washi tape. These little rolls of goodness are much easier to store (I have a basket in my office brimming with them) and oh the fun you can have creating with this sticky goodness.

So, what do you collect? Are you a lover of vintage cameras and typewriters like me? Or do you seek out pretty paper, coins, buttons, china or thread..... We'd love to know what treasures you seek.

DIY Photo Booth Props

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Mon, 06 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

The other day I posted some quick props I made on our Moms Who Click Facebook page (please like our page if you haven't already). I was surprised to see how many people liked the idea. It's probably because so many of us have things like this just lying around. And now there's a way to put these things to use.

If your kids are like my kids they get all sorts of cheap plastic sunglasses when we go on vacation or they get them in goodie bags from parties. My husband even gets them from corporate events. So we had a lot more cheap plastic sunglasses than I realized. Previously I made a bunch of photo booth props out of foam core but those got flimsy quick. So when I saw these sturdy and unused sunglasses just everywhere in our home I decided to make use of them.

All you need to do is get these small wooden dowels at your local hardware or craft store. I got mine at Michaels (be sure to have their handy App on your smartphone as they almost always have a discount coupon).

Then use an eyeglass screwdriver to remove the ear piece. In some cases I use a wire cutter to carefully remove the piece that sticks out so it doesn't poke someone in the eye. But typically the area is pretty smooth.

Then I get my hot glue gun and glue the frames to the stick. Instant photo booth props that are easy to make, fun and they make use of these plastic frames that end up in your messy drawer (we all have at least one messy drawer in our kitchen don't we?)

So take out those plastic frames and make a bunch of Photo Booth Props for your next session. These help break the ice and gets your clients smiling!

DIY-Polaroid Photo Tiles

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Thu, 02 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

I saw this very cute Polaroid coaster idea in Country Living Magazine this month. Thank you mom for the subscription! They found these super cute drink rests from blogger, Brittany Moser of darkroomanddearly.com and I loved the idea!

We just got back from a week in Santa Barbara and I decided to make my dad (who joined us on our beach vacation) the set pictured above for his birthday using photos from our trip.

This is such an easy and inexpensive project and I think they are sooo cute! To make them all you need is 4"x4" ceramic tiles (I bought mine at Home Depot for 16 cents each), a bottle of Mod-Podge, a can of Krylon Crystal Clear spray and 3 3/4"w x 3 1/4" h photos. I sized my photos to these measurement in PSE and printed them on 4" x 6" photo paper and then cut them out.

Assembling the tiles is a breeze. Just place them on the tile leaving a bit of extra room at the bottom to give it that Polaroid look and brush on the Modge-Podge. Add 3-4 coats (allowing drying time in between each application) and once they have dried spray on the sealant. To finish it off, add felt pads to the corners of the tiles, so you don't scratch up your furniture. That's it! So cute!

Thank you Brittany for the great idea. To see her original post which has more details click here (you are going to love her blog, it is full of all kinds of great ideas and projects).

Good-Bye April, Hello May! Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:44:00 +0000

BEHIND THE LENS: Holly Strebel Photography, Golden, CO

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:30:00 +0000

This week we are honored to feature the beautiful work of Holly Strebel Photography. Not only do we love her gorgeous images but we truly admire her spirit. You can tell from her interview below, that Holly is someone who is passionate about what she does and wants to make sure that her clients enjoy every moment of their photography experience. Check out her interview below to see what her favorite lens is (she's making me want one) and her advice to new photographers. We know you'll be inspired!

Thank you Holly for sharing your stunning images and your story with us today!

Your Name: Holly Strebel
Your studio/business name: Holly Strebel Photography Location: Golden, CO
Blog: http://hollystrebelphotography.blogspot.com
Website: http://www.strebelphotography.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Holly-Strebel-Photography/123569241053170
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/holly1018/

Your Style

In 50 words or less, how would your clients describe your photography? After looking over several client emails, three words that pop up often are “fun, “patient”, and “beautiful” which is good because it is my hope that I deliver them an honest, fun, sincere, clean, stress-free session that result in stunning images. I want to be the fun family activity that they enjoy and want to do again!

Are you self-taught or classroom trained? Before I bought my DSLR I looked up everything I could regarding photography. I knew what ISO, aperture and shutter speed were before my camera arrived, little did I know how hard it would be to perfect everything so I taught myself to shoot in manual and how to meter in various lighting situations. About a year after buying my first camera, I joined a popular online forum and realized how little I really knew. It’s like I tell my kids, enjoy the feeling that you know everything because that feeling fades fast. The more things you learn, the more you realize you have SO MUCH more to learn. After joining the forum, I was blown away by the talent there and knew I had a long journey ahead of me so I took many workshops and various types of mentoring. I hope to be the photographer that is constantly striving for growth!

How many years have you been a professional photographer? Just over two years.

Where do you want to take your photography business in 5 years? That is a hard question. I hope to achieve a nice balance between family and business. I would love to have commercial gigs lined up, it would be SO fun to shoot for a kids’ clothing company. I also really like the idea of integrating video and photography and am starting to give this to my newborn clients and hope to be pretty good at the video side of things as well! See, so much to learn!

Is there a photographer who inspires your style? Who would that be? I really love Tiffany from Munchkins and Mohawks. She has such a dreamy yet clean style. I really LOVE her work! Pebbles and Polka Dots is another favorite of mine. Her newborn work is really awesome and her lighting set up is perfection!

Favorite location to take photos? There is a little historic park in the city I live in that I LOVE to use! It has older barn like buildings, has the foothills in the background and sits along a beautiful creek. I’m slightly addicted to that location and now have my own secret spots there!

Favorite vacation spot? Vacation? Did someone say vacation? I LOVE vacations!!! My current favorite spot is on a large catamaran with my husband and our friends sailing to warm places! We took two charter trips to the Virgin Islands (Hello Cow Wreck Beach!!!) and we really love it there but would also love to charter a sailboat to other warm and beautiful spots! I also love Turks and Caicos!

Your Business

What was the pivotal moment when you decided to become a photographer? To be honest, I don’t know. A spark was lit within me when I had my first maternity images shot almost five years ago. I was pregnant with my son and I was amazed how the photographer utilized light to make gorgeous images. I surprised my husband with the maternity shots and he teared up just seeing them. I wanted to be able to gift that to other people- meaningful images, gorgeous memories of the people they love most! Photography is SO emotional and I love being a part of my clients’ lives and capturing such fleeting moments! So I guess I knew what I wanted to do before I even had the fancy camera in my hand!

What’s the best marketing tip that has worked for you? Just giving my clients my all. Most of my new clients are referrals from others. I don’t have a public referral program because I want my clients to refer me to others because they truly loved their experience with me, and really think their friends should use me as their photographer as well. I don’t want them to refer me because they get something in return so I work my tail off to be sure I give my clients a great experience! In my opinion, if I’m not doing a great job, I don’t deserve new clients! Thankfully, hard work pays off because even in the slow season, I’ve been busy!

What’s the most surprising thing a customer has asked you? Hmmm, I don’t know! I’ve had clients ask for the raw files before which I don’t give out.

Favorite print lab? I use Millers and WHCC. You can’t beat Millers shipping and their customer service is really great too! Every time I order something from WHCC, I’m always blown away by their colors and quality. I’m pretty picky when it comes to my prints matching my screen exactly so I highly recommend being calibrated and having a great lab!

Your Gear

Are you Canon or Nikon (or –other): Canon

If you could only have one lens on a photo shoot, what would it be? Ahhhhh, I might be a lens junky so I don’t know! Can I pick two? I am loving the Canon 100L Macro right now. Gorgeous creamy backgrounds and very sharp but I’m also LOVING the new Sigma 35mm 1.4- sharpest lens I’ve shot on to date!

Okay but if you are twisting my arm... Sigma 35mm 1.4! It’s my new baby!

What brand bag do you carry your camera in? The Lavender Kelly Moore Mimi!

What gear would we find in your camera bag? Canon Mark II, Sigma 35mm 1.4, Sigma 50mm 1.4, Canon 100mmL (Or the 135L depending on my subject). I also have the Canon 85mm 1.8 and Canon 28mm 1.8 and will carry those when I shoot my kids and don’t want to carry the heavy lenses. I always have the 430 Speedlight and a reflector with me at sessions just in case! Oh and lots of memory cards and an extra battery.

Are you a natural light fan or strobe fan? I love natural light and actually really like dramatic low light shots if it’s fitting on my subject. I do want to try a softbox for newborn sessions but haven’t gone there just yet!

Are you PC or Mac? Mac baby! Huge mac fans over here! HUGE!

Your Tips and Tricks

What post processing tools do you use? I start with lightroom and bring everything into CS5 and videos into CS6.

Do you shoot in Raw or Jpeg? Raw for sure!

Best advice you would give your 20-year old self? You are about to have A LOT of fun so keep working hard, don’t worry when things don’t go your way because just when you don’t get what you thought you wanted, another door opens... and it’s a FUN door!

Best advice you would give a new photographer? Take a workshop! Get advice from others. Learn, learn and go learn some more. If you run into mean people, go find others to talk to because there are nice photographers out there that want to help you learn and grow. You don’t have to be good at everything but go out and make you heart sing doing what YOU love. Know the rules before you break them. Be honest to others, be true to yourself and go have FUN!!!

What site do you use for your photography and why? Currently bludomain but I’m going to not use them anymore and start with prophoto as soon as I find the most perfect template. I know what I want, I just have to find it and I’m excited to have the great customer service I hear so much about with prophoto!

What Else Should We Know? I guess my biggest passion is growth both in my personal life and my business life. I hope to not ever be intimidated by others that are better than me but let those people keep me humble and give me the desire to strive to better myself!

What was your worst photography experience? I guess having contact with mean photographers at the beginning of my journey? I thought everyone was that rude and little did I know they were just very self-conscious. People say this industry is saturated and I don’t believe that. I believe we need to work hard to make our business successful. There is a customer for every photographer and budget and we just need to come together and lift each other up in support!

What would surprise people most about you, whether it is photography related or not? I don’t know. I’m an open book and I love to chat so there probably isn’t much my clients would be surprised about!

And just because we want to know you better, fill in the blanks

Three things I can’t live without... sushi, running and coffee

I wish I had more... arms and hands though my son said that would make me look like an
octopus!

The best thing about being a photographer is.... documenting moments in my life and my clients’ lives that we’ll never get back and documenting it in way that speaks to us on an emotional level. If you think about it, we document history and that is huge! Maybe we’ll look back on these images as great-grandparents and smile remembering how small our babies once were or perhaps someone that was once in front of our lens makes history and our image ends up in a history book for future generations. I think what we do is really a big deal!

The most important lesson I ever learned was... to relax a little bit. My house doesn’t need to look perfect every single day. I don’t need to throw Martha Stewart parties. The most important things are the people that are with me not the centerpiece on the table!

My favorite time of day is bedtime! Okay, I ADORE my children but that moment after bedtime when I know we survived another day, I completed a decent amount of tasks without burning the house down and I now have a moment to sip a glass of wine watching a Netflix with my husband is pretty awesome!

Lensbaby Spark Review: From our Lensbaby Spark winner, Cheryl Crotty

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

At Moms Who Click we are definitely having some fun with Lensbaby (@SeeInANewWay). A few months ago we had a Lensbaby Spark giveaway on our blog. Our winner, Cheryl Crotty, got her 'Spark' just before heading off on vacation. She provided me with some of her Lensbaby images and a quick review of the lens.

I really liked it but it does take a bit of practice. It's different and adds some fun photos to my files. I loved the lightness of it for travel and also it was really easy to handle once I figured out how to move it. It is a really fun lens to have in your bag. When going on a shoot I surely would recommend it. I will continue to practice with it and hopefully will have that "Ah ha" moment when it all comes together like magic.

Check out her images below, and to find out more about the Lensbaby Spark for only $80 click here.

Friday Freebie--PASS it on

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

If you are looking for a way to share your photos with clients, you should definitely check out PASS.

PASS is a photo sharing tool that is designed to allow your clients to view and share photos: socially (i.e. directly to Facebook and Twitter) and on their mobile devices. And your photo credit, logo and link go with the shared photos. The idea is that the more your work is shared by your clients, the more exposure you receive and the more clients you will book....Shoot & Share.

How it works is once you've created your PASS account, you upload your photos to a new PASS gallery and then you can easily invite clients to view their images. Because the idea behind this platform is to shoot and share, the photos are available to download right away, so you want to consider how you want to work this into your business model.

The gallery is FREE for the first 30 days and accessible online during that time period. Images in the free gallery can be downloaded one at a time and can be shared by your clients via the social media platforms. Should you decided to upgrade for $29 (per gallery), the images can be downloaded all at once and the gallery will remain online for one year, plus it will have 10 years of secure backup.

Other features include the ability to see how many times your photos have been viewed, where they've been viewed (there is a map graphic that shows locations, not specific info on people), as well as how many photos have been download. So you really get a sense of your gallery's exposure and reach.

Check out their site to learn more about this cool tool and see if it is right for you.

Safeway Gas Rewards: $50 Giftcard Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 01:40:00 +0000

If you are like me, you love saving money any way that you can. I'm always thinking about that next lens I want to buy and watching my pennies helps me justify the next purchase.

So when Safeway asked my blogging partner and I to check out their rewards program we were happy to do so. Safeway has introduced a way to save money at their stores and at the gas pump.

How does it work? For every dollar you spend at Safeway your points begin to add up. Points are redeemed in increments of 100. The level you save at the pump is based on the points you've accumulated.

Check out the photo below...

Where can you get these gas rewards redeemed? Not every gas station participates. To find out where your closest gas station click here to enter your zip code and get a list of the gas stations near you.

I have a Safeway around the corner from my house and a Chevron station that participates in the program down the street. To save at the pump, just just enter your Safeway card number or telephone number that you use at Safeway to get your rewards.

If you go to a participating station you will have the option at the pump to enter your Safeway information. From there it will tell you if you have gas rewards to redeem. It's that easy.

So spend a little and save a lot. It all adds up and before you know it, you'll be getting that lens you've been longing for. ;)

Call 1-877-258-2799 if you have questions about the programs or check out their FAQ section on their website.

Want to try this out for yourself? We have a $50 Safeway gift card for one lucky winner. To enter:

Visit our sister blog, Parent Grapevine and leave a comment with your EMAIL ADDRESS so we can contact you if you're a winner.
Follow Safeway on Facebook
We will pick one random winner on May 6th Monday and announce it in our comments section.

Good luck!

Full disclosure: I was provided with a $50 Safeway gift card to use on my own to test out this program. All opinions are 100% my own.

Beach Love--Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Longing for more time at the beach....why do vacations go by soooo fast?

Guest Post by Jessica Maleski--5 Quick Tips For Using Your Lensbaby

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

We are super excited to have Jessica Maleski back to give us some tips on using a Lensbaby. If you missed her early post on why she loves this creative lens, be sure to click here. Jessica's tips below are perfect for those of you starting out with this very fun lens and have helped me tremendously! Thank you Jessica for sharing you know-how with us and for continuing to inspire us all!

So, after all the talk around here about Lensbabies have you run out and bought one? Kristina did and took some amazing shots of her lovely daughter (http://www.momswhoclick.com/2013/04/lensbaby-love-wordless-wednesday.html)!

If you have played around with one than you know they can be a little tricky. Since the Lensbaby contains no electronic parts, it can’t talk to your camera. You are in manual territory on focus, and with some cameras, metering and exposure as well. If you are feeling a bit overwhelmed by the Lensbaby learning curve, here are 5 quick tips to help you get off to a good start with this fun little lens.

FOCUS

1. You must clearly see what you are trying to focus on.

If the camera’s diopter is adjusted for your eyes, then what you see in the viewfinder will more accurately reflect what the camera sees. On most cameras the diopter is the little wheel next to the viewfinder. To adjust it, look through your viewfinder at a blank white wall and slowly turn the diopter adjustment dial until the lines in the viewfinder are at their darkest.

2. Make the in-focus area larger.

It’s best to start out using a medium aperture of f5.6 and up. The smaller the aperture the greater the area that remains in focus. A large “sweet spot” is easier to keep in focus and even see as you bend the lens around.

3. Keep the focus in the center.

In the beginning, resist the urge to bend the lens or you’ll be left wondering where the “sweet spot” went. As you practice with your Lensbaby, slowly bend the lens outward more and more. You’ll soon develop a feel for where to look in the viewfinder based on how you’ve bent the lens.

4. Use the Live View screen on your camera.

If you have mounted your camera on a tripod, then use the live view screen to get the best possible focus. Not only can you see better since the screen is larger than the viewfinder, but you can always zoom in. By zooming in you can locate the sweet spot with great accuracy and make it as sharp as possible. And the double glass optic as well as the Sweet 35 and Edge 80 are very sharp lenses.

EXPOSURE

5. Learn to love the histogram and the clipped highlights warning screens!

Check your guesstimate for exposure using these two screens. They will help you adjust shutter speed and ISO as necessary in order to get the best possible exposure. Look for a nice bell shaped histogram with few, if any, points at the very ends of the graph. Also, make sure there are no flashing warnings for clipped highlights.

Above all, get out there with your Lensbaby and practice! I highly recommend leaving the lens on your camera for a week or two and practice taking random shots throughout the day. You will begin to develop a feel for what the exposure should be based on various conditions and you will grow to love manual focus. The Lensbaby’s manual selective focus gives you so much more creative control over your subject matter. And for some of us, that’s what photography is all about!

-- Jessica Maleski is a photographer in the Washington D.C. area. She blogs at Living in a Still Life even though, with seven children her life is anything but still. She is in the final quarter of a collaborative 365 project with a long-time flickr friend at Call and Response. Sometimes she posts things on flickr, sometimes on g+ and often on instagram -- and is desperately trying to figure out a logical way to do all that!

Another Animated GIF Using Photoshop: White Tail Kite in Flight

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 20:10:00 +0000

I took a series of images of a White Tail Kite flying behind our home. I put them together in an animated GIF using Photoshop.

Animated GIF produced in Photoshop

My daughter discovered that we have a White-Tail Kite (sort of like a hawk, this is a raptor bird that seeks its prey like mice and lizards) behind our backyard. I saw them circling the other day but did not think about where it lives. Turns out it is right behind our house. I love to watch it with it's mate as it builds a nest. Below I caught a photo of one with a twig in its beak ready to build.

To learn how to put an animated GIF together using Photoshop I followed these instructions:

http://www.briandalessandro.com/blog/create-an-animated-gif-in-photoshop-cs5/

Meet Diana Foster, The Artist Behind the Art

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

We are very happy to welcome back Diana Foster (who you may remember as a previous Behind the Lens participant). Diana, owner of The Studio 56, is a lifestyle photographer and card designer living and creating in Kansas City. She is wife to one, mother of two, sister to many, a musician, blog addict, and a hopeless dreamer. Her days are spent romancing ordinary life and everyday stories. Lovely images captured by Diana have been published in Life Images, Kansas Magazine, and Johnson County Lifestyle.

The GIFT of GREETING

Diana, as card maker, is another aspect of The Studio 56. There is a long tradition worldwide of exchanging greeting cards. People give cards to provide comfort, give thanks celebrate, and to make us laugh. Greeting cards are a very popular way to connect with others. I am a fan of technology and credit much of my reputation as efficient to the conveniences of our modern day. I appreciate email, Facebook, and every other platform that's connected to the great big www that reaches beyond our walls and connects me to places I'll likely never truly 'see'.

When it comes right down to it, though, email and electronic touches just don't move me like the gift of a handwritten, personalized greeting. The personal touch escapes the computer and defies email, even with the best of intentions. Throw in a pretty card and there's quite a powerhouse at your fingertips.

Being on the receiving end of a few words scripted on good old-fashioned paper elicits almost the same response as a treasured photo; it is savored, revisited, kept and treasured. The knowledge that someone cared enough to complete the process of choosing a card, taking a few moments to write (hopefully legibly) a unique message (think about it...a card has no bcc option!), slip it in the envelope, address and stamp it and then deliver it to the post office is really quite a commitment when everyone has a keyboard so close and easy to use.

The good news is that The Studio 56 believes in the power of personal greeting so much that we've developed an entire line of photo greeting cards that make part of the process easy. With blank interiors, they are ready (and waiting!) for your personal touch. At the same time, though, they are graced with gorgeous stock photos that show you really do care enough to send the very best.

The Studio 56 online boutique has Fine Art Photo Cards available featuring Diana Foster’s original photography. Sets include 4 cards that are blank inside for personalization. All sets are approximately 4 x 5 inches and include envelopes.

Check out our Boxed Sets now available online

www.thestudio56.com/0nline-boutique

"A belief in capturing everyday life in beautiful and unexpected ways, drives my art. My inspiration comes from being awake enough to recognize a compelling story just waiting to be told. My style is fresh, candid, and full of light. Viewing the world up close through macro photography has become a prominent feature in my work. This intimate point of view dramatizes the fragility of life. Being in the moment allows me to find the visual message in simple, everyday objects and events. My hope is to invite viewers to explore the world around them with fresh perspective." Diana Foster

Find us Here!

www.facebook.com/thestudio56

http://pinterest.com/dianafoster/

http://instagram.com/dianafoster56

http://www.youtube.com/user/dianalfoster/videos?view=0

Friday Freebie--Birdesign Templates

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

We LOVE Birdesign! Not only are Rose's templates gorgeous, Rose is also so very generous and regularly provides freebies on her website and Facebook page.

This month she has beautiful gift certificates available for download (see the example below). Be sure to LIKE her Facebook page and join her newsletter to get the latest updates on her monthly freebies!

Rose, as always, thank you so much for sharing your talents and templates, we greatly appreciate your generosity!

Lensbaby Love--Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

by Kristina

If you missed our post yesterday from Jessica Maleski on the Lensbaby, you should definitely go and check it out. She is the reason why I finally decided to take the Lensbaby leap. Mine arrived late Monday afternoon and I was so excited to give it a try.

While I'm still getting the hang of it, I'm finding it to be much easier to use than the Lensbaby Spark or Lensbaby Composer Pro Double Optic (I had the chance to test out both of those before)....just my personal opinion...I'm sure with practice they would be great too.

I can't wait to shoot more creative images with this lens. I love the way the bokeh creates such a dreamy, artistic look. So fun!

Guest Post--Jessica Maleski on Why She Loves Her Lensbaby

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

We are so very excited to have a guest post today from the wonderful Jessica Maleski. I "met'' Jessica through Kim Klassen's online courses...yep, she is a fellow "groupie."

Jessica is an amazing photographer who loves her Lensbaby collection almost as much as her seven real babies. Living in a Still Life is her personal blog full of more musings about photography and art and how to fit it all in between carpool and after-school activities. You can also find her on Twitter , G+ and Instagram. And on top of all this, she is also in the midst of a collaborative 365 photo project that you can follow along with at Call & Response. She is one busy mama!

Thank you Jessica for sharing your gorgeous work with us and we look forward to hearing more from you.

P.S. After seeing your images and reading your post below, I ordered the Lensbaby Sweet 35 (thanks for the creative nudge).

You may have seen the Lensbaby Spark contest on Mom’s who Click last month and wondered why anybody would want a lens that’s designed to be blurry. Well, the short answer is because, as Texas photographer Keith Carter puts it, “sharpness is overrated.”

The long answer admits that while sharpness has its place, so does blur. The idea behind the Lensbaby is not to just document reality but rather to evoke an emotion -- to manipulate the focus within the scene in order to direct the viewer to what you think is important.

With a standard lens you may stand in front of your subject and ask, “what do I see?”; with a Lensbaby you stand in front of your subject and ask, “what do I feel?” This is what the Lensbaby slogan, “see in a new way” means to me.

But that’s not to say that there are limits on subjects. Any subject looks good and is appropriate for any of the Lensbaby optics. It’s all a matter of what mood you are trying to evoke. And there is certainly no limit to moods: nostalgic, romantic, forbidding, wishful, dark, mysterious.

But can’t you just get the same look through post-processing? Can’t you fake it in Photoshop? Maybe. Well, yes, to some degree. You can get the tilt-shift type look and you can also go back in and add layers of blur through masking. And we all know there are 101 different actions to add flare to photos. But the mechanics of the lens create something that Photoshop really can’t.

The Lensbaby works by bending the lens around the focal plane. That’s what makes the sweet spot of focus move around the frame. As the focal plane bends it causes a bit of distortion in the image especially around the edges of the frame. That distortion creates a sense of motion and a smearing of color that is difficult to accomplish in post-processing.

But that doesn’t mean post-processing can’t be used to enhance the final product. Textures and other photographic processes can all be used on Lensbaby images to good effect.

So, why do you want a Lensbaby? Because blur is what moves a photograph from a documentation of reality to an expression of an idea. The Lensbaby is a tool to help you create art.

I Get It---My New Love For My Polaroid 340 Land Camera

noreply@blogger.com (Moms Who Click) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 17:24:00 +0000

About a year ago, I found two Polaroid Land Cameras at a local flea market. I bought them mainly because of their aesthetics. I loved the vintage look and thought they would make for great display pieces in my home. I didn't really think about actually using them as cameras.....that was until I saw photos from instant film camera lovers that I met at Camp Shutter Sisters and Shutter Sisters Oasis--like Meghan, Leslie, Lindsey, Debra, Andrea, and Charlene.

The photos that my new friends were taking were beautiful (because they have amazing photographic eyes and are uber-talented). And what I loved besides the fantastic composition was the old school vibe. It inspired me to actually take my cameras off the shelf and see if mine would possibly work.

After buying specialty batteries online (they don't make these batteries any more however you can rig it to work with AA batteries but that felt like more work than I wanted to do), I popped them into my camera and unfortunately, I could not get the camera to work. So back on the shelf it went, I just didn't want to fuss with it and figured it wasn't meant to be......

But then I met up with fellow Shutter Sisters a few weekends ago and my new friend Vanessa, was shooting with her Land Camera and taking these fabulous images....again, she has a terrific photographic eye...and I loved the way her images looked on instant film. It was so fun to actually hold and look at printed images as we enjoyed lunch in Chinatown.

So I went home determined to get my camera to work. After watching several You Tube videos, like this one from Andrew Moore and fiddling with the battery, I tried snapping a photo and you know what? It worked!!! It wasn't the batteries after all....it was user error.

And now I have to admit, I am loving this camera. There is something so magical about having a printed image in your hand within 40 seconds and the suspense of waiting to see how it will turn out.

I didn't really get "it" before. I was a skeptic. I figured I could get that Polaroid look using apps or post processing and while that is somewhat true, the difference is that shooting with a Polaroid makes you slow down. You can't just snap multiple images and tweak settings as you play them back to yourself (or I guess you could, but you'd be wasting a lot of film). You need to stop and really think about your composition & focus (which I just learned how to do...thanks ladies!) because once you commit to pushing that red button, the image is on it's way...imperfections and all.

And the beauty of it all is even those less than "perfect" shots look cool on film. Slightly blurred photos or images that are a titch too light still have an artistic flare.

Maybe we are just more forgiving with the images and with ourselves because we know that perfection really doesn't exist and that we should just embrace what we capture....maybe that is "it." That is the answer to "why" shoot film. I think I finally get "it" and I can't wait to shoot more!