A Hurst Photography Blog

D Family Photos at Louisville’s Cherokee Park

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 15:57:00 PDT

I had a great time Sunday before last at Louisville’s Cherokee Park where I met the D Family for some fun photos! They brought their oh-so-cute puppy and I brought along some balloons and we caught some great memories in the two hours we were together.

I’m trying something new and letting you see most of their photos in this short little video. Notice the pic where they are walking and you’ll see little gold flecks in the air. There was something from the plants around there blowing in the air and the way they picked up the light made them look like gold!

D Family

Looking Forward To Levi

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 05:55:00 PDT

I had a family session at the beginning of September that I finished editing a few days ago. I did something with this session that I don’t normally do… I gave them about 40 more photos than my norm!

That sounds like a great thing! The family gets twice as many photos as most do – but there is a downside to that. Sometimes that many photos are overwhelming to choose from, and if you don’t have an unlimited budget and want them all, that can get pricey. And, to narrow it down, can be confusing and frustrating.

All that said, I did it this time, well, because there were just so many good ones that even I couldn’t choose which ones to throw out!

This beautiful family is expecting a new addition any day now and mom wanted some family photos that reflected this time in their life, but weren’t stiff and canned, like most budget retail studios.

Even though the little girl did not really like my camera, I still think these pictures reflect the love and happiness of the family and I look forward to meeting their new bundle of joy in just a matter of days!

Drip Drop - I Heart Faces Water Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 06:42:00 PDT

This photo is about a year old and I can’t believe I haven’t posted it before, but I looked through all my past posts and couldn’t find it. It’s one of my favorites! I love how the water was captured and the look of joy and maybe surprise on my nephew’s face as it splashed him!

I thought it was perfect for this week’s I ♥ Faces theme, ‘water’.

Eight Is Great! I Heart Faces Challenge -- Props!

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 17:39:00 PDT

The Challenge this week at ♥ Faces is Props! My sister has had her son’s photo taken every year in his birth month. She started letting me take them last year. Here is one of this year’s photos, taken just a couple weeks ago. Guess how old he is? lol!

Boys Will Be Boys - Photo Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 15:47:00 PDT

This week’s challenge at the I &Hearts; Faces blog is called 'Let's hear it for the boys!'

I wanted to put a photo of my own son, but every photo that came to mind was one that I had already used on this blog! lol! (which means it’s time for some new pics of him!!!) But, then this photo crossed my mind and I thought, ‘yep, that epitomizes a boy!’ Every bit of this boy’s personality comes out in this photo, even his mom agreed that it showed, ‘the real him!’

Melissa’s Senior Session

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 06:11:00 PDT

I had the privilege of photographing my friend’s sister a few weeks ago. She actually graduated this spring, but hadn’t had any senior photos done.

I had never visited the area where she took me for her photos, and so I got to see a great Forest that I didn’t even know existed, and even climb a fire tower for an incredible view!

Additionally, Melissa was on her High School Tennis team and so we made a stop by the courts to get a few shots. And, finally we ended up on her property and her older sister joined us for a couple pictures.

I had a great time and hopefully she’ll enjoy the memories we captured of this time in her life!

Love In The Mist… Sunflare Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 13:30:00 PDT

It’s been a couple week’s since I’ve joined in the fun, but I thought instantly of this photo when I read the theme for this week’s I ♥ Faces photo challenge is 'Sunflare!'

I had someone comment when they saw this picture that lighting and mist from the falls behind them worked out perfectly for this photo… nope! I added the flare. I don’t always like flares that are added, sometimes they just don’t look right, but I think it worked with this one!

I took this at a wedding I attended in October. If you’d like to see more shots from it (it was a gorgeous day!) visit my website at AHurstPhotography.com.

Impromptu Photos – And Another Lesson Learned!

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 21:46:00 PST

After watching the Daytona 500 with some friends, my friend’s son’s girlfriend (say that three times fast) said I could use them as models for a few shots. He wasn’t thrilled… but, to give him credit he was getting over a horrible case of strep throat and just felt like sleeping.

It was also too dark. --Lesson learned: don’t take photos without enough light or with a new flash that you aren’t sure how to use.

The scenery was great, it’s a shame it was too late in the day. But, the good news is, I’ve promised them a do-over! Until then, here are a couple that I don’t mind sharing.

Go Team! Phone Photo Challenge!

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 18:20:00 PST

This week’s I ♥ Faces Challenge theme is “Phone Photo!” It’s a little different this week because your photo has to have been taken with a cell phone! I actually really liked the camera on my previous phone which was a Samsung. This photo was taken with it. It was just 3MP, but I thought it took pretty clear photos. (However, it didn’t have a flash so it was natural light or no photo!) My newer phone is also a 3MP… but I haven’t been as impressed with the photos I’ve gotten from it.

Anyway, I didn’t know if my good (Canon) camera would be allowed at the football game I went to with my guys this past fall, so I didn’t take it. I kind of regretted it after the game when my son wanted to wait for the players to come around to congratulate them on their win. However, I whipped out my cell and snapped a couple shots anyway, and this one -- I was pleasantly surprised with!!

RED-Faced!

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 09:14:00 PST

I finally have time to link up again in this week’s I ♥ Faces photo challenge and the theme is RED! I have no shortage of red photos because my husband and son’s favorite college team’s colors are red and black and they are die-hard fans, usually decked out in those colors every game.

I posted a photo of them at the basketball game a few weeks ago, but today I decided to use a photo from one of the football games I went to with them. It was a hard decision… I actually put a different photo on here when I was writing this post because it had more red (it was a close-up and he still had on a red hoodie) but I just love this photo, so at the last minute I switched to it. I hope you like it too!

Joy Of Love Project, Day 1 – 32/365

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 18:58:00 PST

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, today is exciting!! It’s Day 1 of the Joy of LOVE February 2011 project!

The theme for today was “what they do.” This was a no-brainer for me. My subjects for my LOVE project are my son, my husband, my dogs, and maybe I’ll get to get my sis or mom at some point… but mainly my son and hubby will be the focal points.

So, the first thing that came to my mind, is what my son “does” – video games!

He’s almost 20 and is still a huge video game player -- and has been since he was little.

So, I went up to his room to catch him in his element. The lighting was horrible and he didn’t really want his picture taken, so this is what I got. I decided to put it in black and white because there was too much going on to really notice what he was doing. His walls are red and black, his chair is blue and then there where the objects in the background. So, black and white puts the focus on him and what he’s “doing.”

Four More Days Of January… 12-15/365

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 21:34:00 PST

I’m trying to get a few more of my January photos posted because, as I ~~warned you~~ promised, tomorrow starts February, which means the Joy Of Love project begins!

I will be following the course instructions for the next 28 days… but that doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll get them posted here daily. I will probably be posting on my Facebook page daily, even if I don’t get them blogged, so be sure to fan me to see if I get any better!

Here are four more days in January. I know the one of John Paul White from The Civil Wars (who by the way put on an excellent performance – go listen to them if you’re not familiar – they have incredible harmony!) was taken on January 14th and the one of my nephew playing the drums was on the 15th so we’ll just call these days 12, 13, 14, and 15.

Would someone PLEEEAASSE let me in!!

Does John Paul White remind you slightly of Johnny Depp?

I ran an action on this…. might have gone a little overboard, it’s very 70’s looking now.

Shades of Grey–Project 52–21/356

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 09:47:00 PST

This week’s Project 52 theme is Shades of Grey. A lot of people are entering black & white photos, (and some are really incredible – go check them out!) but I thought grey would be easy enough to find without making a black & white, since the sky has been that color for days now!

So, I stepped onto my front porch to take a snapshot of the trees and sky and instantly this grey rock, sitting on my weathered bench, on my grey weathered deck caught my eye instead. So, this is what I shot –and no need to turn it to black and white, because it’s got ~~too much~~ enough grey in it as it is.

Notice the dusting of snow on everything… It was under the covered porch, but the wind was blowing like crazy!

Days 8, 9, & 10–Project 365 = Snow, Fruit & Corks

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 21:30:00 PST

Told you I was still taking pictures and not posting them… so here are three of them. I’ll get caught up before February starts because I’ve got big plans for February!

I made the most of what I had on the snow days, so a lot of my pictures are just things around the house. Interesting perspective comes from desperate times…

7/365–The Rose

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 08:11:00 PST

I haven’t given up my 365 project…I just haven’t posted the pics I’ve taken. Here is one I took yesterday of the roses that my hubby bought me! He surprised me because he knows how much I miss my flowers in this dreary dark winter! I loved these roses because they are light on the outside of the petal and dark red on the inside! Very cool!

I did run an action on it, it’s called “All For One” and I’m thinking it was freebie from My Four Hens but I’m not 100% on that. And, I lowered the opacity on almost every layer.

This photo is also the one I added to the group MCP Actions Flickr pool this week. MCP is hosting a Project 52. It’s just one photo a week and there’s usually a theme. This week’s theme was ‘a song.’

Easy enough – the song for this photo is either “The Rose,” or “Every Rose Has It’s Thorn,” take your pick!

Day 5–Project 365: Onions

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 21:12:00 PST

Yes, you read that right, I took a photo of onions! Well, it’s almost midnight and I didn’t take a pic today and I looked around and I found my onions that were sitting on the counter interesting.

Oh, and yes, I missed yesterday so is it really Day 5 or is it Day 6? If I miss a day do I just lengthen my project, or should it just end in 365 days whether or not I’ve actually taken 365 pictures? If I drag it out to 365 photos, it could last two years knowing me. So, help! Which way should I do this?

Day 4–Project 365 UofL Game

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 21:03:00 PST

And again, I only had time to take a pic with my cell phone. My husband and son are huge UofL fans and go to every basketball (and football) game. They picked up an extra ticket for me and that’s where I took this shot. It wasn’t great, so I ran an action on it. I’ve taken my good camera in to the games before, but I spend the entire game worrying about it and whether or not someone is going to take it while my back is turned, or else I have to hold it for 2 hours. Neither is fun, so I just didn’t take it in this time. And, while there, I remembered I owed my blog a photo for today.

Day 3–Project 365 Kitty Kitty

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 20:45:00 PST

This isn’t my cat. I have a cleaning biz and when I walked in today, my client’s cat was laying on her desk with half her body in the cubby. After I stopped laughing, I took this pic of her. I took it with my cell phone which is only 3MP and has no functions on it other than the shutter. I played with it a little in Photoshop – boosted the color, sharpened, burned the edges etc. and now, even though it probably won’t win any photography awards, it looks decent.

Day 2–Project 365

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 20:17:00 PST

Well, here’s the first of probably 250 photos for the year of my little dog Scrappy. If you’ve been here before, you've seen him before! But, he’s still such a cute little model!

Project 365–Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 21:23:00 PST

It’s the 2nd day of January 2011 and I’ve spent my evening ~~playing on Facebook~~ considering starting a 365 project. I like the thought of challenging my photography skills, but I will admit, I’m not the most dedicated person in the world. Be-that-as-it-may, I’m not getting paid for this, so if I quit, I quit! It’s not the end of world. And, I may take a photo each day, but not be able to get around to posting everyday. So, some posts may include multiple day’s of photos.

Whatever happens with it, I do think it will make me see things in a new light. For instance, when I decided I needed to take a picture to start this with, I looked all around me and was actually heading outside when the color and sparkle of my bowl of truffles caught my eye.

I love truffles! Creamy, dreamy, yummy chocolate! How pretty are these?

Why Learning And Practicing Photoshop Is Important To Me

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 07:29:00 PST

It’s interesting how much photography has changed since the first camera was invented in the early 1800s. Originally the camera was big and took only black & white, very grainy looking, photos. Then in the late-mid 1800s color was introduced. During that time a photographer not only had to know how to work the equipment, but also how to develop it properly.

As time went on, cameras became smaller, less pricy, and more readily available. No longer did the photographer have to have his own dark room, instead he just dropped his film off at the local drugstore to be sent off for processing. Seven days later, your pictures arrived at the store. Hopefully! -- That is if they didn’t get lost or damaged! And, all the photographer needed to be good at was the use of the camera and composition.

Enter today, photography is not just about knowing your camera and how to take a good photo. There’s so much more involved! Social Media has changed the way we market, and having editing skills is a must! Whether it be Photoshop, Lightroom, or something else, clients don’t want nice photos, they want incredible, take your breathe away, photos; and that usually means at least a little tweaking.

We now have the ability to make the lighting perfect, make the client’s skin perfect, take unsightly objects out of the photo, and more.

So, the reason for this long tirade? I snapped a photo of my niece at a wedding a couple months ago, which was nothing special. I was actually just going to get a piece of cake and there she was with hers with the cutest look on her face. However, the photo was too yellow, I only had my on-camera flash at the time which was too harsh, and the background was nothing short of boring! Actually, it was pretty ugly. But, she was in focus and I caught the expression I had seen and loved. So I started playing around in Photoshop with the picture and I ended up very happy with the result. So much so, that the next morning I showed my husband and said, “Look at this picture.” He said, “Wow! That’s really cute of her!” Then I showed him the original and even he was impressed with what I could do! Lol!

This is why I join Fix-It-Friday so often. I didn’t take a class in Photoshop, but really, there is so much online you can learn. So, when you wonder why I’m showing, yet again, how I edit a photo, remember, it’s because I keep reading tutorials, and trying new things, and practicing, and practicing that I can get this result. (And, hopefully get even better with time!) What do you think?

Straight Out Of The Camera:

After My Edits:

Fix It Friday #81

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 21:48:00 PST

Today’s Fix It Friday Photo was captured by Michelle Johnson. It’s a gorgeous photo SOOC but a little cool and there are a few tweaks that I do to just about every photo to make them “pop”.

So, tell me your opinion of my editing. Too warm? Too Sharp? I’m up for constructive critism.

Here’s how I edited this photo:

I ran the Pioneer Woman’s Boost action and thought about raising the opacity of the saturation even more, but then remembered the saying, “just because you CAN do something, doesn’t mean you SHOULD,” And decided better of it.

I then ran her Warmer action. Next ,I added a layer and added a Lens Flare at 125%. I finally cropped a little off, burned the edges, flattened and sharpened it just a bit.

All that took me less than 5 minutes because it’s an edit I do often.

Now, head over to I ♥ Faces and see how diverse the editing of one photo can be!

Original SOOC photo:

My Edit:

Reflecting On My Old Furry Friend – Pets Challenge!

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 06:57:00 PST

This week’s I ♥ Hearts challenge is ‘Pets’, and I have no shortage of pet pics! My dogs are usually declared my models because, unlike my human family, they don’t complain about it! I usually wind up publishing a photo of my little Jack Russell, just because he’s so cute and animated, but this time I went with one of my Lab.

I love this pic, not just because of the reflection, but because that’s his normal expression - it’s just real.
This is Spanky and Spanky has been an incredible dog! I say ‘has been’ because Spanky will be 11 at the end of this month and so probably won’t be with us for many more years.

We originally purchased a female Labrador puppy from a relative. My husband didn’t want a dog, but I really wanted my son, who was an only child, to have something to love and be responsible for. So hubby got a new truck and agreed to let me get a dog. The female, Sassy, died of a congenital defect after we’d only had her a couple months. We were heartbroke. Ironically, my husband, most of all! So,he insisted we go find another Lab two nights later. We ended up with Spanky. Spanky was the friskier pup of the two we looked at and that’s why my husband wanted him. But a frisky Lab is A LOT of work!

Some of the antics of his puppyhood included dragging my son by his hoodie through the snow, tearing up every dish towel and pillowslip in the house, ripping my wrap-around skirt off of me, and he even dug through my vinyl floor when I left him in the bathroom all day!

It may sound like he was horrible, but he was just a Lab puppy. If you’ve ever had one, or seen Marley and Me, you know how rambunctious they can be, but you also know how they eventually calm down and are the best dogs you can have.

Spanky would never hurt anyone, he even cowers to my much smaller Jack Russell! His entire body seems to smile when you take him for a walk, and he ‘talks’ when you rub behind his ears. He sleeps with my son every night, even though he can barely make it up the steps any more; and the only real drawback to having him (since he calmed down) has been the dog hair. If I could find a way to keep Labs from shedding, I’d have a more of them!

Thank you Spanky for being such a great friend! We hope to keep you happy and pain free for as long as you can remain with us!

It’s Just Me! Self-portrait Photo Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 20:26:00 PST

This week’s I ♥ Faces photo challenge theme is ‘self-portrait!’ I really didn’t have any self-portraits on hand. I usually only ask someone to take my pic if I’m with a friend or family member. But, this was actually a lot fun!

I’ve been considering eventually adding studio photography to my repertoire so I used this opportunity to see how I could do with lighting.

You should have seen it, a lamp laying on it’s side, another one with the shade off, my reflector leaning against a basket and my camera on my tripod. It was a funny sight, but it actually worked out fairly well. The hardest part was getting the focus correct since I couldn’t focus on my eyes and be behind the camera. What I did was to lay my camera bag in the place where I thought my eyes would be and lock the focus in on it. Then I set the exposure, set the self-timer for 4 continuous shots, hit the shutter and ran into place.

This was one of my favorites, but black and white is so much more forgiving than color so I decided I’d like it better than way. I used Kelsey Anderson’s Signature B&W Action and I’ll be honest, I did smooth out a few of my wrinkles! (It’s my portrait, I have that right! Right?) And, ran the Pioneer Woman’s Bright Eyes action.

It’s me! –But please overlook the fact that I need my roots highlighted, I have an appointment for Friday to get them done!

Show Your Skills–Another Sample Of My Editing…

noreply@blogger.com (Angies Photos, Blogs, etc.) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 11:50:00 PST

Everyday Elements Online also has a weekly link-up/contest where a photographer can show off their editing skills! This week, the challenge was to change a photo into a black & white. I mentioned in my last post that I’m still not 100% happy with my black and white processing. I’ve tried doing it by desaturating, using curves and I have many actions. Someday I might find a process that is truly me and unique. Until then, I use a different approach depending on the photo.

For this one, I first used The Pioneer Woman’s Bring Out The Eyes action on her eyes. There was some great catch-lights in the photo and I really wanted to bring them out. Next I cropped the photo a little. I don’t care to crop too much off a photo because I know if the photo is made into an 8x10 it will be cropped even more. Plus, I want the size to be large enough that I can blow it up as large as a client wants.

Then I added a lens flare in the top right. The backlight was already there, I just wanted to boost it a little more. And, then I burned the bottom and left edges. And warmed it up a bit. That’s where the color edit ends.

To make it black and white, I flattened the image and then ran Kelsey Anderson’s Signature Black & White action. But, it still needed tweaking. I took the tones level down to 0 and the contrast down to 18%. That left me pretty happy, so I saved it.

So, be honest – but not brutal, what do you like/not like about my edits? I welcome constructive criticism!

SOOC shot from Everyday Elements Online:

My color edit:

My B&W edit: