Father and Son

Today we took our son to the National Zoo in Washington, DC. It was the first time for all of us and I think our son enjoyed it greatly.

Whilst walking together (he doesn't like to ride in the stroller ALL the time) I just saw the perfect picture of both my husband and son. I had to take it. It is in color, however, I changed it to grayscale for more depth. I really like the turn out.

Cat in Black and White

This is my cat, Darien. He is a tuxedo cat and I just thought it would be neat to take some greyscale photos of him.

Darien loves to sit on my husband's computer desk while we are in the office. I guess one could say it's one of his many "special spots". He didn't seem to enthused when I took this photo of him.

I'm not a huge greyscale fan, but there are just some photos that I believe look better in black and white than in color. I love the contrast in black and white photos, especially when shadow is involved.

Here is another photo I took of Darien on the back of our living room chair. Originally it was in color, however I think it looks amazing in black and white. I love how his black fur melds into the shadow.

Photo-shopped

This past June we bought our son his first sandbox. One of those small turtles that have the shell as a lid. After setting it up, we placed the box in the shade prior to taking it to the dump. When my husband was about to take it to the dump, he noticed that there was a moth on it. It was still sunlight and I believe the moth was sleeping because it didn't move much.

I took many pictures of it because it was so calm. Afterwards we put it in a nearby shrub.

So I wanted to post the pictures of it but I hated the background of a sandbox box so I did some puttering in Photo-shop. It's not great by any means, but I am happy with how it turned out. I'm new with PS so I still have a lot to learn!

I chose blue because I wanted to make it reminiscent of the night time; when moths are most active. I played around with a paint brush that was shaped like grass and I just love how it used the different variations of blue, as if the moon was shining down.

Shadows..... or are they?

It feels like I have not posted in forever. We have been quite busy bees, but I've still kept my camera clicking nonstop. We recently went to Milan, PA to visit family. The rolling hills are exquisite and we all enjoyed ourselves.

Recently, I took some pictures of my cat. He's a tux cat which means that his markings look like he's wearing a tuxedo. I decided to take pictures of him against the wall near the lamp. It's funny to look at the pictures because it always appears as if he's mostly shadow; but that's not it at all.

Baby Rose

This is the rose prior to full bloom that is pictured below. The below picture (in the previous blog) was taken straight on. I used my skylight lens with these pictures as it gives the whole atmosphere a "softer" glow to it.

These are my mother's roses that live in front of the garage that my father built. This particular rose was one of the very first to bloom this Spring, hence why it is all alone in the picture.

In the previous log, you can see that the others caught up in no time!

Pink Roses

Before my parents left their home (my childhood home) I did my utmost to capture as many memories as possible. In the backyard right beside the garage, my mother planted a favored pink rose that was growing like crazy! It's quite a lovely flower and I couldn't help but take a few pictures of it.

Earlier in this blog I posted pictures of the same rose but not completely bloomed. Here it is, in its full glory amongst others.

Dandilion

When I discussed the below photoshoot this is another picture I took. I fully admit it is my absolute favorite out of all of them!

I love how the dandilion stands out so much amongst the colors of the pool and grass. The Skylight filter gives is such a soft warmth that is calming, in a way.

I know that many hate dandilions but they have always been a favorite of mine and I'm not going to stop liking them! :)

Leaving Beauty (Black and White)

Currently my parents are in the process of moving up North to Pennsylvania. The house that they currently occupy, I consider my childhood home of 20 years. It's a nice house and I do admit it will be awkward to see that someone else is abiding within, but alas, one cannot avoid change.

So, this past week I did some photoshoots around the house attempting to preserve memory. I took pictures of the garage my father built and made it black and white. The filter I used was the skylight filter which is a Light Pink. The effects are really meant to be used with b&w film, but it also reduces blue and gives the colored picture a soft warm glow. What I like in the above filter is the depth that the black & white gradient gives to my parents' garage.

While discussing the photo to the right, I like how it makes this building seem much older than it is. Granted, yes, it is 20 years old, it still is not considered to be "old" by any means. I must admit, that out of the whole photo I like the clouds the best. The skylight filter gives the clouds a soft hue and I love how the sunlight plays in the clouds even in black and white.

I caught Lightning!

Yes, the title is correct! I. CAUGHT. LIGHTNING! We had our first real thunderstorm here in Fredericksburg, VA a few nights ago. The rain pounded and the wind was crazy! I knew it would be the opportune time to get a good picture of a lightning volt.

So, I got my Pentax K100D, went outside, turned my filter onto night view and started clicking away. Most of the pictures came out black as the lightning was much faster than the shutter speed. Fortunately, I was able to get a picture right when the lightning began. It was so bright that the camera clicked with no problem whatsoever.

I'm quite proud of this picture as it is a dream picture I have wanted to take forever. I've been into photography as a whole since I was 12, be it messing with disposables to my dad's broken SLR to my first Digital camera (Kodak) up until my baby Pentax, I have ALWAYS been fascinated.

Whilst attempting to take pictures of lightning I ended up taking pictures through the water coming out of our shudders (yes, they need to be cleaned... again).

I had no idea how the pictures would come out as I knew, after I heard the 'click', that I had missed the volt.

Upon uploading the pictures to my computer, however, I saw these two photos that do look strange. Mind you, I was completely still while taking these photographs.

To my knowledge, these "light lines" are the light from the porch lights being reflected on the dowfall of water from my shudders!

I think it looks amazing! I never once thought that one could photograph light moving via water. Simply stunning!

Montpelier's Flowers

Montpelier has a beautiful garden that belonged to James Madison's wife, Dolly. Though it isn't the same as it was in the 1800s, the refurbished garden is quite lovely.

The layout of the garden is circular. I have never seen a garden like this. Down the middle is a path with two large bushes on either side that go on until you reach the end which is atop stairs that are guarded by two lion gargoyles.

My husband, son, and I walked along this garden and through it. The sights were breathtaking. There were gorgeous white irises along with some flowers I had never seen before. Out of those pictures, I must say that this picture is one of my favorites that I took of the garden. It was a rainy day and I just love how you can see the raindrops still on the petals of these flowers.

Like I said earlier, the white irises were simply breathtaking. There were many varieties of iris in the garden. Some were a dark purple, all white, a mix of purple and white, marroon, and light purple. Again, the white was my favorite.

Here is the picture I took of some of the white irises that you see right as you enter the garden. They will be on your left.

As you walk through the garden you will see various colors of the iris. It is quite a sight!

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was spent at the beauitful home of President James Madison, Montpelier. Though the houe is undergoing major reconstruction, and the day was gray and cold, the surroundings were simply stunning. Every year we attempt to visit some different place in Virginia. This time, I must admit, was my favorite place thus far. My son enjoyed the walk, though at times he got a bit grouchy. This picture, out of the many I took, is one of my favorites. He has that glimmer in his eyes that tells you "I love you mommy and daddy" on it which melts my heart. I used my polarizing filter on this photo and in color, the colors are more pure. I find that it "evens out" the black and white and gives it life-like element.

Waking Up

This year I planted new flowers in my flowerbed. I am an avid gardener and I just enjoy the peace I recieve when planting new flowers into the ground.

This year I planted red tulips with orange edges along with some orange day lilies, a pink lily, and also a yellow lily.

In the shade I planted a bleeding heart which I hope will start producing some lovely flowers soon. I've had green/green Hosta lilies as well and received some varigated hosta lillies from Lancaster, PA to add to my garden.

Overall I am quite happy with how it all turned out. I do my utmost to take pictures every year of the various stages of my garden. I'm attempting to get it to that "perfect" stage in which everything is where it should be. I am happy to admit that it came quite close this year.

Out of all the pictures I took of my "2008 Garden", I like this one the best. I love how the mulch adds such contrast to the tulip itself. The mulch looks like a bunch of mere lines that surround the beauty known as the orange tulip.

Another thing I like about this photo is how the tulip looks like it is "waking up" from a long sleep. The tulip was in that stage between being completely open and starting to wilt and being a closed little bud on the tip of the long green stem.

Fun in the Sun

Amongst a VERY warm Spring day, my son played with some of his friends in the backyard of a dear friend of mine. Of course I had my camera along with me, as I take it everywhere, and I took many action shots of him playing.

When I got home and looked at all the treasures I had gotten, I couldn't help but be drawn to this particular photo. The shadow, in the color version, was excellent and I knew that once it went grayscale that it would pop out even more.

I really like the contrasts seen throughout the black and white version of this photo. When I look at it, it's timeless. Having the black and white element in this makes it more timeless.

In this photo he was trying to take my camera from me. I love the smile on his face that just beams with love.