Greengate Photography Blog

Portraits: Ashley and Courtney

2012-05-23T17:24:00.000-07:00

Just a very small sampling of my favorites from a recent work-related portrait shoot. Ashley and Courtney were happy to cooperate as I asked them to climb on muddy/rocky terrain in their heels, crouch against wet bricks and try various poses in the wind and rain.

This is Ashley!

Looove.

And here's Courtney. :D

I know her hair is all windblown here, but I think she looks great!

Thanks, ladies!

Eclipse

2012-05-20T18:56:00.000-07:00

Well, it was cloudy today, so I couldn't really see the eclipse. This was the best I could do. (It wasn't actually that dark, I just had to turn down the exposure to get more definition in the sun's shape.)

This is the most eclipsed I've seen the sun. I've only seen little bites out of it a couple of times over the years. But in 2017 there will be a total eclipse right over Salem! Hopefully I'll get a good view, and it'll be non-cloudy (it's in August, so chances are good).

Did any of you see it?

ETA: My sister posted some photos from her vantage point down in Albuquerque, and they're really cool!

Thankful Thursday

2012-05-17T15:15:00.000-07:00

Yeah it's been awhile blah blah blah.

1. Nice weather. I'm happy to put that on every one of my Thursday lists if it means its true! Loooooving the nice sunshine. Even if I don't spend a lot of the day outdoors, just seeing it through the windows makes me a happier and more motivated person.

2. My car's oil is changed. Glad to have that chore out of the way.

3. Free stuff. I got a set of nightstands for free the other day! How, you ask? From Freecycle. I've never even been on that site, but my coworker uses it and it was through him that I got the furniture. Possible photos to come, after I figure out how I want to use them.

4. Freezer burritos. I made this recipe (with some tweaking) the other day and am loving that these are easy and don't seem to get soggy. I guess I always thought that would happen so I'd never made them for the freezer before.

5. Upcoming fun. I'm driving down to visit my parents soon--did I tell you? My friend is even able to carpool with me (to visit friends in the area), so I won't have to make the 8-hour drive alone.

6. Upcoming fun part 2. My niece is coming to visit me next month!!

7. Beaver season. No, not for hunting! Sheesh. I just like it when it's light enough that I can watch the beaver buddies pretty much any evening.

8. Padington's Pizza. I just suddenly had a craving for them so I figure I'll add them to my list. They are THE BEST. And their personal pizzas are a really good deal.

That's all I've got. Sorry, R, it's just 8. I know 10 is a more comfortable number for you! I'm just feeling a little blank. Padington's was really just tacked on.

Okay fine! More tacking:

9. My Wii. I <3 it.

10. Cherry Zero Coke. I love it too much.

Wow, this list is pretty shallow. Oh well.. I'm living in a material world and I am a material girl. So what made you happy this week?

Portraits: Hollie (part 2)

2012-05-14T20:14:00.000-07:00

More Hollie! I wasn't happy with many of the purple flower* shots from the first shoot, due to the lighting. When I was expressing this to Hollie, she happily volunteered to put her dress back on and let me try again! I was more successful this time, I think.

Of course I tried a couple more in other locations, before it got too dark.

Have a great week!

*Bluebells, I think, but we have been referring to them as "the purple flowers." They grow outside our office every year.

Project 52 (43)

2012-05-11T22:48:00.000-07:00

A few of us celebrated Jennifer's birthday with a Cold Stone gathering. Delish!

Portraits - Hollie

2012-05-09T22:44:00.000-07:00

The other day I was telling my coworker, Hollie (who I am always using for portrait practice), how I wanted try some experimental portraits in a particular location (on a nature trail), but that the scene seemed more appropriate for bridal portraits, not just someone in casual clothing. She said her prom dress was sort of like a wedding gown and she had been wanting to put it to use again, and tada!: This photo shoot was born.

I wanted to step outside my norm a bit, but I didn't get all that crazy. (Baby steps.) I tried a lot of things that didn't really work, but some did, and I had a lot of fun doing it.

Hollie is always so cooperative. Check her out! (And yes, she's laying on a plastic mat.)

I love her expression here.

Some of these are more my norm.

Time for the purple prom dress! I actually ended up loving these the most, even though this dress was kind of an afterthought. I wish I had taken a photo of the scene here, because you probably wouldn't know that we're just on the side of a road (which is behind her) and next to a big wire and telephone pole. I found just the right spot up on a hill to stand and get a great angle on her.

She was actually taking her hair down in this one, and of course I'm snapping away like the
paparazzo that I am. But I think it's cute and natural.

Thank you, Hollie!

Photo mix

2012-05-06T13:10:00.001-07:00

Here are a few photos from the past month that I meant to post. This was a deer I saw at my place when I was really looking for beavers.

The next few are from work.

I'm a little obsessed with getting a good fern spiral photo. I think I'll have to go to some old forest to find some really good ones.

I'm not usually into tilted photos, but I ended up liking this anyway.

Of course I had to use the rental camera on some hummingbirds.

A tad grainy, but that's cropped down and the ISO is at 2500. It's so nice being able to crank up the ISO!

Last hummingbird photo!

Switching gears (it always seems a little weird to mix nature and food photos, but I'm doing it anyway), here's a crock pot dish I made the other day. It was fine and has potential, but there were various factors that hindered my enjoyment of it, most of them psychological (I was afraid I had left it out too long, that the salsa was too old, etc.). It's a Thai peanut chicken dish, but I would like to try it again before I link you to the recipe.

And here were the Orange Creamsicle Cookies that I made for a couple of departments at work. I thought they were really good with a little tweaking. I added more orange zest, less white chocolate, and I let the dough hang out in the fridge for several hours so the flavors could marinate a bit. (Marie, I got this tip from that chocolate chip recipe you posted, which I still have yet to try.) Try them! They'd go well with tea. I wish I could make some right now.

Enjoy your week, everyone! Thanks for looking.

Project 52 (42)

2012-05-05T09:40:00.000-07:00

The beavers and geese don't seem to mind each other.

Still no decent beaver photos where they're out of the water. That's my summer goal, and I think I just need to be patient. It's still getting dark a little too early to get crisp photos, and they so rarely get out of the water where I can see them.

The rental camera and lens are pretty heavy compared to my usual camera, and my right hand and arm is starting to feel the strain. But today is the event that the camera was rented for, so I need to suck it up and get some good photos. I'm actually kind of dreading it, as event photography isn't my thing. I'm just glad to have a camera that can handle the poor lighting situation fairly well.

Have a great Saturday! It's supposed to be pretty nice all weekend here. I wouldn't mind if the clouds stuck around this afternoon, though, for the outdoor photography I need to do.

Do you have any fun plans this weekend? Maybe you're busy doing them and not reading this post, which is fine. :D

Testing out the rental

2012-05-02T22:18:00.000-07:00

At work we rented a Canon 5D Mark II and two lenses for an event where we need an extra set of equipment. It's for me to use, so I excitedly practiced with it today to get to know how to adjust the settings, etc. This is the sort of camera I'd love to have one day, after I find a sugar daddy. It's sooooo nice! The camera and lenses together are so different from my current little Rebel XSi. (In a way, it's probably bad for me to use these nice cameras and feel more discontent with mine!)

I've noticed these nicer lenses and cameras tend to result in more vibrant photos.

How cute are these? I love spirals in nature.

These were interesting--all the leaves had a ripple on them.

We have the rentals for five days so I'm going to try and get a ton of use out of them! Stay tuned. :)

May

2012-05-01T00:00:00.003-07:00

I like May. It's the Friday of summer, and full of possibilities. I get very corny talking about May! Maybe you noticed. (Oh, me!)

I was trying to think about what sort of post I could do in honor of May, and one idea was to give you some fun facts about me. Some things you may or may not know. :) But when I started to list things, I kept second-guessing whether I had told them to you already, and also whether they were even interesting. So we'll scratch that idea.

Another idea involved showing you photos from previous Mays, but every time I go looking into my photo archives, I get all tired out. There are SO MANY, and I spend too much time deciding, while simultaneously getting incredibly bored.

Yet another idea involved saying all sorts of happy things about May, whether they are things I like about it, hopes I have for summer, or even good memories. But I'm not feeling energetic enough to write about those things, and once again it seems uninteresting.

So the result is a post about what I didn't post. Satisfying, isn't it?

Happy May Day and month of May! Please tell me what you like about May, and/or what fun plans you have this month.

By the way, if you ever have a request for a particular post or some information, just ask and you may receive! I do actually have a few requests for a wallpaper post as well as a particular tutorial/tips post, and I just need to get my act together and make them.

Portraits: Ning

2012-04-29T11:49:00.000-07:00

The other day a work photo shoot led into a bit of portrait practice with the lovely Ning. It was a super fun mini-session and Ning is a natural in front of the camera. Read between the photos for a bit more about her!

Ning is from Taiwan, but is attending college here in Oregon. I asked what she liked about Oregon: My favorite things would probably be the pretty trees and scenery in general.

What's your major and what do you want to do after college? My major is psychology, and I want to be a counselor after I get my degree. I want to work with families and kids (part of the reason is I love kids so much).

Describe your personality. I am pretty easy going, friendly, positive, joyful and energetic.

Beauty! Thanks again, Ning. :)

Project 52 (41)

2012-04-27T22:51:00.000-07:00

You may remember me saying I wanted purple tulips, in a previous post. Well, my friend Deborah took that as a challenge, and last weekend I had these waiting on my doorstep! Yes, she's very thoughtful!

:) :) Thanks, Deborah!

Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm

2012-04-26T23:41:00.000-07:00

The other day I went to Woodburn for a work-related photo shoot. It didn't occur to me until I was arriving that I should try and stop by the tulip farm before I left town. I hadn't been in a couple of years, and going on a weekday is ideal (it's so crowded on sunny weekends). I was grateful for the opportunity that lined up so perfectly with the work assignment and the peak of tulip season.

You would think a place so picturesque would be easy to photograph, but I have found that it's really hard for me to get creative when I visit the tulip farm. I feel like all of my photos end up looking the same. The result is a lot of snapshot-quality photos that thousands of people have taken. Oh well, at least you're getting a look at the place, if you've never been!

Hey, sexy.

I'd really love to take portraits here sometime. In fact, I was on the verge of asking strangers if I could photograph their kids. :P I just didn't want to creep anyone out or make them think I was just trying to trick them into purchasing photos from me.

Cool how the focus of this photo is the ditch. Oh me and my mad skillz!

Gosh, there must be over two dozen tulips at this farm! Perhaps it's in the triple digits!

The first time I visited this tulip farm was in 2006. It was raining and miserable, but I had driven all the way out and was determined to get some photos. (This sounds like a Pop Up Video fact.)

Back then it didn't seem to be as big of a production as it is now. They've added so many tents, stands and kid attractions that it kind of annoys me, but it's still nice to be able to see so many tulips at once. I think I'll just stick with weekdays any time I visit in the future. It's cheaper that way, too.

This one's probably my fav.

Have you been to the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm? What about another tulip farm? Tell us alllll about it.

This has been a very tulippy spring for me!

Green

2012-04-25T22:12:00.000-07:00

(And a little pink.)

We're getting to that time of the year when the green reaches its peak. It makes rain and clouds more tolerable, and the clouds just made everything more vibrant. So today I took a few photos of a nearby golf course and the grounds by my place.

If I had to marry a color, of course I'd choose green.

There are so many shades! Something for everyone. Or all for me--that's fine too.

Oh look, some of my future homes! I've always thought it would be awesome to live on a golf course. Or above one, in a mansion. ;)

Now I'm home!

It was really windy today, so the blossoms were all blown off onto the water. Yesterday, I was imagining snow that's made of blossoms, but then I remembered the cleanup factor that makes it less appealing to have piles of flower petals. So then I thought, what if in heaven there is snow that is like blossoms, but they melt? And they aren't cold or made of ice. They're more like cotton candy, without a sticky residue on the ground. And that's my snow story. The end.

I also went to the tulip farm today (busy Wednesday!) and will show you a few photos later on. How are you? What's been going on? Do these photos look dark to you?

Project 52 (40) + Oregon Garden

2012-04-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

I know that this is a poor photo, technically speaking, but it seemed like the best representation of "everyday life" that I had this week. Especially for kids this time of year. It all happened so fast that I had no time to adjust my camera's settings (and then the frog jumped out of the girl's hand), so there you go.

That was taken at the Oregon Garden yesterday, so I'll put the rest of my photos in this same post.

This is the only photo I took of flowers. It was an unusual visit. I had a weird day, and due to the weather, many animals were out that I usually wouldn't see, so I ended up just taking creature photos and not bothering with the rest.

(If you don't like snake pictures, you'll want to just skip this post.)

Another bad photo (sorry, but it's true!), but I wanted to remember this silly koi in the pond. It kept going around the edge and sucking at the rocks. I've never seen my parents' koi do this. You could even hear the sucking noises from across the water. It's a plecostomus in training, I guess.

At first I couldn't see any frogs, but there were several tadpoles/pollywogs/whatevers.

After missing a photo op of a heron catching a frog, I was feeling grouchy at myself for not being prepared and sulkily walked back behind the pond where I found not one but two garter snakes hanging out in the sun. That sort of made up for my heron miss.

Then there was this woodpecker.

Later I saw a/the heron again. This time I was determined to get a picture of it catching a fish or frog, but gave up my resolve after standing there for like ever while it basically stood motionless.

I should note that the animals at the garden must be extremely used to humans, because I've never been this close to a heron. Instead of being skittish when someone walked nearby, it was like he thrived on the attention. For that reason, these photos seem kind of cheaty and less rewarding, like I was at a zoo.

There were plenty of red-wing blackbirds out.

Finally I started noticing the frogs. It's one of those situations where once you see one of them, you better know what to look for and you see several that have been out all along.

I'm sure I'll be going back soon to take photos of the actual garden areas. By the way, did you know there is a resort at the Oregon Garden? (Too bad about their website, though. :P) I learned only a couple of months ago, though I think it's been around for at least a couple of years. It looks nice (I had to go to the front desk to get some passes). I wouldn't mind staying there, even though Silverton is only half an hour from me.

Unrelated: last night I dreamed that I saw two pink and purple hummingbirds (I'm sure they exist, but not in Oregon). I kept trying to get photos but then would notice my camera was off, or it was backwards (?), or I couldn't focus. Typical photography dream. But eventually I did get a couple of photos. I only wish I could show you!

Flowers (Deepwood Estate)

2012-04-20T00:15:00.000-07:00

Okay, last installment of DE photos (until next time I go, of course). My flower photos are a bit on the predictable side. Shallow depth of field, lots of singled-out flowers, etc. Especially in this batch, as I was trying to get some petal detail. Next time I'll try to be a bit more creative. (I say this half-heartedly.)

During most of my stroll around the gardens, I was thinking of my sister R, who loves tulips. Who doesn't? Armload of purple tulips, please!

(I don't even have purple tulip photos in this post, I just always
thought it would be beauty to have a big bouquet of them.)

Yes, these last two are very similar. I posted them both anyway!

Hi, Mom! You know all my orange flower photos are for you.

And sure, the peach too.

This is probably a weed. :P

This picture is so cliché! But I loved the color on this tulip.

Thank you for looking! Have a great weekend, everyone. :)

PS Happy birthday to my childhood friend Jennifer, who may see this blog sometimes. And also to my friend Lori!

20 years ago...was I even born yet?

2012-04-18T04:18:00.029-07:00

Happy TWENTIETH anniversary to my sister R and her husband C! It seems unpossible that I could have a sister married that long! I remember the very windy wedding day like it was only ten years ago. Twelve, tops.

Here's to 50 more years. *clink* Oh and hey, maybe by the time you celebrate your 70th anniversary, I'll be planning a wedding of my own!

PS Happy half-birthday to me. :D It's my blog, so I get to bring the focus back to myself and my non-accomplishment.

More Deepwood

2012-04-17T16:34:00.000-07:00

Yes, I still have more photos to show you. Sometimes I feel I lack blog material, and other times I have way more ideas than energy or interest in posting them.

Not a fantastic photo, but I love when I can catch the shiny coloring of the male hummingbirds. They have to turn their heads just right.

Mom, these are especially for you. These are the same birds that were eating from your hummingbird feeders, and now I know why! They also eat from the same flowers as the hummingbirds.

Oh hey, Robin. I only took a photo of him because it was so easy. Robins are kind of like Mallards--I feel bad about finding them mundane, and I end up taking pictures because they're so willing to pose.

Okay get ready for several of these. I kept this one because it's kind of funny.

I didn't want them to go to waste. :)

Bees like these flowers too.

Here's a closeup of the last photo. Hi, little girl!

Ookay, I have one more installment that'll go up later this week. If you're sick of hummingbirds, the good news is that it'll just be flowers (as far as I can remember). :)

Project 52 (39) + a little about my week

2012-04-15T10:14:00.000-07:00

On Easter evening, I went out in hopes of seeing some beavers, but just saw a bunch of salamanders instead. There are lots of them at the edge of the lake. For some reason, I don't think I'd ever seen a salamander until a year or two ago. I'm sure they are in California, but I don't remember seeing any growing up. We were more likely to find pollywogs and crawdads.

For funzies, here's a bit about how the rest of my week went.

I took Monday off work (I really think it should be a holiday anyway), and used part of the time to go back to Deepwood Estate and try out one of the work cameras/lenses. I have become so used to bringing my own [Canon] camera for work purposes that I feel like I'm re-learning Nikon. It's worth it, though, because we now have some equipment that's better than mine (even if it is Nikon ;)). It's fun to use some fancier stuff, and I'm hoping to take it out for practice regularly over the next several months.

I was happy that a male hummingbird was flying around and showing his nice coloring, but I wasn't super happy with my resulting images. I need some practice with that heavy lens.

Tuesday, I went out to do some practice shots for a work photo session I had the following day. Hollie helped me out with light tests, because she's very cooperative about stuff like that. (NOTE: I'm really looking forward to doing another portrait session with her soon--we'll take advantage of her old prom dresses!)

It was such a nice day, that on our way down the path we saw this little guy sunning himself. Hollie was not thrilled, but I count it a lucky day when I manage to get a snake photo at work. I think that's only happened about 4 times in the past 6.5 years of working there. Someday I'll actually get a decent photo.

Friday morning, I had a creepy dream and woke up early, so I headed back out to see if there were any beavers. Typically I watch beavers from my deck, but I'm more determined to get a photo of them up close. My ultimate goal is a good photo while they're fully out of the water.

I did end up seeing three beavers swimming around, and even getting slightly up on shore, but the photos aren't so hot. I love my camera (although, yes, I'd like to upgrade), but I'm not exactly set up to photograph distant moving objects in a darkish setting (R, you might be able to relate ;)). I'm going to use the work camera and try again soon. Fingers crossed!

Every spring I get the renewed urge to travel. I took a month-long road trip around the US when I was 19, and so often I wish I could repeat it now that I'm into photography. Back then we just had a few film point-and-shoots. My daydream is to travel around taking tons of pictures, blogging regularly, and also stopping to see friends around the country to do portraits of them. I have several friends all over, due to moving, friends moving, online interaction, and college. It would be so fun. How can I make that happen?

Well, this is probably the most I've typed here in awhile. How are you? What are your traveling daydreams? (PS I also want to travel more outside of the US, but that's another post.)

Various flowers

2012-04-11T21:24:00.000-07:00

I have lots of pictures, but I wasn't really sure how many to post at a time.
We'll see what happens here. Most of these are flowers from Deepwood Estate, though some came from work or maybe even Bush park.

R, here's another one of those camellias with its perfection. Only striped!

Not striped!

I had a good Easter. The fact that it was sunny made it a million times better than usual, but it was also a good balance of quietness and social time. Church was good, the day was good, and then I took Monday off and took some of these flower photos! All weekends should be three days.

How was your Easter?

Deepwood Estate: Hummingbirds

2012-04-09T09:33:00.001-07:00

The other day I decided to go out and take pictures at Deepwood Estate (here in Salem, OR) and I was really excited to finally get some hummingbird photos where they are not eating from a plastic feeder. :) Sorry for so many similar pictures, but I couldn't seem to narrow them down any farther.

I also took some other bird and flower photos that I'll be posting in the next few days. Have a great week!

Easter

2012-04-08T07:59:00.000-07:00

This isn't a traditional Easter flower, but it's a photo I took yesterday, so I'm using it. Think of it as hearts made white as snow and coming out of darkness! It's so symbolic. ;) Have a nice Easter day!

[Those are lyrics from See, What a Morning, in case anyone wonders.]

Project 52 (38)

2012-04-07T13:06:00.000-07:00

I almost forgot to post my baby bird photos until my aunt reminded me! I was out taking pictures at work, the other day, and one of my coworkers pointed out this little bird. I tried to get him to pick it up (it was mostly hopping around, not flying long distances yet), but he said growing up on a farm taught him to be careful of picking up birds. :) So this is the closest he got, and this photo is just for a little size comparison.

This is how the bird looked at first. Like if he hides his head, he will appear invisible.

But if you annoy a baby bird long enough, eventually it will reveal its head again. :)

Poor guy.. he was so scared. I'm not going to hurt you, little bird!

I think 50% of my Project 52 photos include birds. :P Well, they are a part of everyday life.

Just Thursday

2012-04-05T17:47:00.001-07:00

I am thankful for things, but this post will just be pictures. Like this one of a bunch of geese flying around.

Then there's this vulture flying around.

He's still flying.

Here are some flowers that are just staying on the ground.

It rained a tad.

I have some cute baby bird photos, but they'll be on my Project 52 post this weekend. You can hang out on the edge of your seat for those.

Graphic Redesign: Easter Mailer (part 1)

2012-04-02T21:16:00.001-07:00

Hi! Happy Monday. Thanks for the nice comments on my last post--it seemed like it was more popular than some of my other Thankful Thursdays, for whatever reason. :)

Today I have another redesign--this time an Easter mailer my friend C passed on to me. You can read my disclaimers about this type of post here.

This was put out a couple of years ago to advertise the various church services available in Blockhouse Bay (Auckland, New Zealand), but in order to keep things somewhat anonymous, I blurred out the names/locations and put in generic names on mine. I think you'll still get the idea of the changes, though. This is just the inside of the mailer, and I'll hopefully do the outside in a separate post.

ORIGINAL:

MY UPDATES:

As always, there are lots of other ways this could've been done, and lots of improvements that could be made to my quick redesign, but here are some of the changes and why I made them:

1. I changed the background to white. Since this is an Easter piece, I wanted to give it more of a fresh "Eastery" feel. (Which is going to be different for everyone, I realize.) I kept it in black and white because that restriction was put on C as well, for cost reasons. I wanted to stick with the original guidelines as well as I could.

2. I added a background image to liven things up and give texture, but still leave plenty of room for all of the text. It's hopefully not too feminine, and in this case it seems like it can work for the southern hemisphere since Easter is in the fall. Hopefully it doesn't look silly...hey, I've never designed for anything in New Zealand before! But for the record, my lovely Australian friend Danielle says, "We take most of our holiday cues from America anyway, so hills and flowers and bunnies and things all factor into Easter here." So I guess I'm safe. :)

(2-b. I found this image for free on Vecteezy, but there are a number of sites with either paid or free (usually with some restrictions) images. If you're interested, one day I can give you a list of ones I use.)

3. I made the title more prominent and in a font I felt better reflected the holiday.

4. I added some lines to help separate the text a little so it's easier to read. If my church secretary is reading, I bet she noticed that this actually looks a lot like my church bulletin that I designed, so I guess I'm a little predictable. :) (Okay, a lot.) NOTE: A common "mistake" I see is when lines are too thick. There is a time for every line thickness, but make sure it goes with the overall design and feel. In this case I wanted them more delicate and kept them at .25pt.

5. I organized the info so it was more consistent. In the original, each took on a different order of dates, services and times, so I rearranged things. When there's a lot of text, it's extra important to make everything as clear as possible. Otherwise people might just toss it aside instead of trying to decipher it.

6. I kept my margins roomy and balanced. I like a nice cushion. I don't want text to get really close to the edge of the page, nor do I want my margins to be inconsistent. There are a few different margins within this piece, and I tried to make them feel balanced. The bottom margin under the church listings is larger than the one above it, but I felt it worked okay in this situation and would be better than trying to stretch the text to fill the inner box.

It's quite possible that I didn't capture the look that the church producing this was after. Maybe they wanted something more contemporary, for instance. Those would be things I'd consider if I were actually hired for the job, but as it was I didn't ask C too many questions about it other than whether it had to be in black and white. Anyway, thanks for reading!

Any questions?

If you have a piece you'd like to submit for me to possibly makeover, please email it to me at jessica @ greengatephoto.com. Thanks!