April 21, 2013Comments are off for this post.

LAUREN + SHAWN

Capitol6 copy

Collage

TheRing1

Capitol10BW

Outside4

Overture1 copy

BWShawn

State5

Collage3

Brickhouse copy

Brickhouse4

Brickhouse1

Remember how I said the answer is always "yes?"

Well...it's the only thing that pushed me to say yes to my very first engagement photo session. Fear of hypocrisy can motivate you to do crazy things, let me tell you. I couldn't bear to have said those very words (much less have them published on the Internet) and not fully live up to them, so I nervously accepted my friend Lauren's request to take photos of her and her fiancee, Shawn.

We spent a frigid afternoon together in the throes of Wisconsin's longest winter ever and ended the shoot with beers and nachos at a local BBQ joint. It wasn't the perfect afternoon as far as engagement photo scenarios go (hello! it was 13 degrees), but it really didn't matter. Because I quickly learned photographing a couple isn't as much about you or your skills or your lack thereof, but more about being attentive. It was about finding those small details - the handholds, the side-glancing looks, the inside jokes - personal to Lauren + Shawn and trying my best to capture that love in the lens.

Lauren + Shawn's relationship is so natural - filled with laughter, snarky jokes and a respect for each other and good Wisconsin beer. Just how it should be. And hopefully my attentive watching skills and ever-evolving photography skills worked to do just that.

February 12, 2013Comments are off for this post.

PIZZA NIGHT

basil by night light

spread that pizza sauce!

cheesin'

illuminated pizza

what's the time?

is the pizza ready yet?

fresh out of the oven

my handsome manfriend

margherita pizza

let's eat!

Last week, I bought a fancy new camera. It's a Canon 5D Mark ii I found on Craigslist that once I figure out how to use (aperture adjustment button, where are you?!), should be quite a lovely addition to my life. I was soooo excited to get outside and experiment with it this weekend, but then good ol' Wisconsin decided to snow / rain / sleet / rain / snow all three days long.

So I settled for documenting the manfriend and I's weekend pizza night, which is one of my most favorite things to do with him. Homemade margherita pizza, wine + House of Cards. Really, does a relaxing weekend night get any better than that? I think not.

Plus, all that is required of me is drinking wine while manfriend whips up one delicious pizza pie. Oh...and stalking him in the kitchen with my new camera and taking pictures of his every move.

Yep, that's not going to end anytime soon

January 4, 2013Comments are off for this post.

MORE GARLIC PLEASE

Still Life Garlic Bulb

I love garlic...like really, really love garlic. When a recipe asks for one clove, I usually put in eight. So, it should come as no surprise that I love this photo and have major plans of plastering a big print of this gigantic garlic clove in my kitchen.

Photography class was a complete joy this past semester, and I find myself wanting to do more of it. More classes. More books. More learning. More (much more) expensive equipment. While I've got my eye on a very expensive Canon 5D Mark ii on Craigslist (ahem, $2000 used, ahem), I am making use of my trusty Canon Rebel in the now and trying to expand both my shooting and Photoshop skills.

Mostly, so I can photograph more garlic.

Then eat it, of course.

//

class  Introduction to Digital Photography
what  Studio Still Life shots

To create a composition using at least two different lighting sources (spotlight, soft box and/or umbrella) of the subject of your choice.

Studio photography was a great skill to practice. Since this project, I've taken some studio headshots for friends + manfriends (hello, LinkedIn profile!) to add to my portfolio. While I still prefer the unsurpassable beauty of natural light, it's nice to know that I can set up studio sessions to shoot people or rather, my graphic design projects for my portfolio as I finish up my program.