Sweatin' it in the Mid Day Sun

I just don't get! See all the over exposed spots? Grrr.

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When I first moved to Spain, at the end of each day I used to sit, defeated and drained, while my brain would spin and spin. There were so many things to think about while I was trying to learn Spanish - choosing one of the 14 tenses, deciding on the gender of each noun, conjugating each verb, thinking about things like possession, word order. . .etc, plus I still had to come up with something clever and winning to say (which is hard enough for me in English!!).  Learning a language is seriously like doing mental exercise. It felt like I was doing a mental Ironman marathon when I was only equipped for Sweating to the Oldies with Richard Simmons. Actually, come to think of it, I still feel that way most of the time!

I had to back light him in full sun without blowing out too many of the high lights. I did it! FINALLY!!!

Anyway, since starting photography, that feeling has come back strong. Trying to get all elements to come together at once - exposure, aperture, focus, lighting, angle, and making sure I'm not chopping off any fingers or toes (all the while trying to capture that perfect moment) is no sock hop.  My brain hurts by the time I'm done. I'm sure it will become like second nature at some point (um... yeah...  like Spanish was supposed to become as well...), but at the moment, it's kicking my butt. I had no idea how exhausting taking pictures could be!

This one came out really well. I had to bribe Bella with a cracker.

See how her head is over exposed and her leg too? It's ok to overexpose a little bit of wispy hair, but not so much of her head. DOH!

This week has been especially trying because of the assignment we are working on for my photography workshop. We have to take photos at midday in full sun, or in the shade with a bit of back light sun to make the hair look flowy and glowy and glam. Sounds easy enough, right? Well, it's not. Not at all. I've been strugglin'. Big time!!!! I'm posting a few of the shots I've got this week, but they are nothin' special. Getting perfect exposure in high contrast situations makes me weeze just thinking about it.

So, that's that. Have a wonderful weekend!! I'm skipping the TIP OF THE WEEK until next week when my brain has stopped spinning! 

This is Bella saying "Stop taking pictures of me! I just want my cracker!"

"What does she have in her mouth?" you're asking. It's a stick! Yes, I give my children sticks to chew on.
 

TIP OF THE WEEK - WARNING: Backgrounds Not Child Appropriate!

Do you notice anything, I don't know... out of place in this photo? No?  Ok good, that makes me feel much better. Here, I'll give you a hint. I'm pretty sure that black graffiti above Bella isn't supposed to be a lotus flower. You'd think I'd have realized this before or even during this mini shoot, considering I took about 40 pictures here! On top of that, before taking this shot, I'd read a bazillion critiques on the photography forum I'm a member of, and the reoccurring criticism was that the background was distracting.

I'm apparently not distracted, or even aware of graffitied penises on walls, or stake-like trees that go right through children's bellies. But you should be. This is one of those kinds of tips - "do as I say, not as I do" (but really, all of my tips are going to be like, because I'm not a professional. And I'm not a robot. And I'm certainly not a professional robot, so I'm going to make many many photography-related errors, and you will too. At the end of the day, though, we can still pat ourselves on the back and have a good laugh at all the ridiculous things we did throughout day, knowing that it was already in the cards to begin with.)

So, my tip of the week? Pay attention to the background.

You want to watch out for any distractions in the background. This includes bright colored objects, garbage cans, trees and poles growing out of heads, and signs (anatomical graffiti included, of course). A the moment, I am reading a book about composition and the author was talking about how much the eye is attracted to writing in paintings and photographs. Interesting stuff.

Another thing to try to avoid is a lot of clutter. If you have the choice between a plain wall and toys scattered and strewn across the floor, choose the wall (unless, of course you want to include the toys as content).

I didn't have time to clean up, but I wish I could have removed some of the clutter.

Obviously there will be times when you just don't have the option of choosing your background because the moment is more important, but when you have a little extra time to compose, take a look around and see what is right behind your subject.

I adore this shot. Too bad she looks like Daisy-Head Maiyze.

A Rare Occasion

So how old is it getting, seeing my two cute kids ALL THE TIME?! I know, sorry I don't have a lot of other subjects to photograph. I, of course, never tire of seeing their squeezable faces, but I do understand the boredom that comes from repetition. So, to shake things up, I thought I'd share a face with you that you rarely get to see - MINE! Hail the marching bands and bring out the drill team!

I'm so glad we captured this - Bella let the girl next door put her hair in a ponytail!!!

I asked Jesús to take some family photos for us, and I think he did a wonderful job. He's a miracle worker! I especially love how he got all the "imperfect" moments as well. Those are my favorites. I'm posting some more of the "outtakes" on my face book page.

Here are a few of the ones I got of Alex, Bella and Julietta this past week.

Ok, I just love this one. I love how you can see the similarities between them

This is my sweet family.

Tip of the Week: Window Light

It seems fitting to talk about window light, since that's what I'm learning about (plus I couldn't think of a tip to share and Erin asked if I'd share on window light so I said, "BINGO!").

The cool thing about window light is that you can get so many different effects, by just turning your subject, plus, you don't have to wait all day long for perfect light.

Sweet little Cam Man. I love this kid. I love how these impromptu window lit photos came out too.

Here are some things that I've learned since I started learning about photography (remember, I'm no pro, I'm just a girl who would like to be someday. ; ))

1. When you see light shinning in through a window - the bright sunlight - that is NOT the light you want. You want soft, indirect light. Think of the kind of light many indoor plants like.  Most people say that a north-facing window is the bomb. I just say, "It's preferable" because, c'mon, you know I don't talk like that (I use much cooler vocabulary, like "BINGO!").

An exception to direct window light would be evening window light when you want to play with sunflare.

2. Look at the room you're shooting in. If you're in a room with a lot of windows and white walls, COOL! I'd love to come shoot at your house. You might not get a lot of contrast, but you'll get some amazing shots. If you shoot in a room with only one window, you'll get some very dramatic images which will also be stunning.

This was shot upstairs in our sunny attic. It has windows on both sides, so she's all lit up. Her face it still a tad dark, though, but you get the idea.

This was shot in our living room which only has one large window.

3. Move. You move. Try taking the shot from different angles. Then tell your subject to move (if they'll oblige. I don't typically have that luxury, so I move... or I bribe, then shoot quickly).  Try some with your subject facing the window for a really nice even effect, and also try some like I have been working on where your subject sits in front of the window, but at a slight angle. 

This is the one I submitted for our first assignment. The teacher said "great job", so I guess I did all right!

4. Pay attention to the light. Where is it falling? Where are the shadows? You typically want at least a portion of the face lit up with some shadow. Try not to get the entire face in the shadow. I did this waaaay too many times to count while I was doing my practice shots.

Julietta! Where did your face go?! Yeah, I know you can see it, but it's so dark, you see?  Get it?

5. Don't over-expose your subject. You want light parts, but not completely WHITE parts. If you can only see white, it's overexposed (if you have a DSLR you can check to see if you've blown anything out after each shot). Other parts of the picture can be over-exposed, but not your subject.

I love this shot so much, but I did over expose Julietta's face a bit and Bella's hair. Shucks!

If you want to learn more,  "Available Light" by Don Marr is a really great, informative read. Or you can always take Detra's Creative Light workshop (and no, I don't get a kick back for mentioning her. I just really love it so far!)

I hope this helps a bit. Make sure to leave me a comment if you have any questions, or you can always leave me a comment just because it makes me smile. : )

Drama Queen

Our first assignment in Detra's Creative Light workshop is to take a picture using dramatic light (ha! I feel so official. My first "assignment"). The subject needs to be in front of a light source, so you blow out the background and have some dramatic shadows on your subject. Sounds easy enough, right? Yeah, I thought so too until I started taking pictures. I took around 300 photos yesterday!! (So before you go telling me how great they are, remember · I took 300 photos to get them!!) I like a large percentage of the ones I took yesterday (thank god!), but I'd get a big fat F for the assignment because the majority didn't follow the guidelines at all. First of all, Julietta is not the most accommodating of subjects. She never does what I tell her to do!!

I expressly told her not to use this face, but do you think she listens to me?  Ok, her face cracks me up, but it doesn't work with what I'm trying to accomplish here.She just doesn't understand that I have a vision. ; )

I ended up bribing Bella with two juice pops so she'd sit still in front of the window. I also had to put on the movie Monster's Inc. Jeez! The things I'll do to get a shot!

Anyway, here are some of my practice shots. Do you see one that sticks out that you think I should turn in? We have until next Friday, so I thought I'd keep practicing.

After all of the bribes were exhuasted, I settled for just taking some random shots of my girls while they played (and cried) and got excited to see the Yayos when they came.

I've never seen a kid shed such a large quantity of tears every time she cries. Look how big those tears are!

The Yayos had just pulled up.

This probably would have been better if I'd had more room to back up, but I really like how it shows the contrast between youth and age.

Today I got Alex in on the action. I also have to do a sidelight shot for a bonus. He was not feeling well, but he humored me for a few minutes.

Wow! That was  a long post. But it was aimed at your viewing pleasure. Less words, more photos. That's how it should be. I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Back in the day, I dreamt of being a writer. I've always loved storytelling. The problem, however, is that I can never think of the right words, which can slightly hinder the writing process. I like to think that finding photography is my outlet to share stories; to see the things other people overlook. Maybe I was always meant to be a story teller, just not with words. I sure hope so. I hope I hope I hope...

A Case of the Monday Blahs. Wait, it's Tuesday...

I'm feeling very uninspired. Blah! What do I have to share with you guys? Hmmm... You'd think I wouldn't shut up since I'm home alone most of the day with two babies under three, but not today. Today feels like a Monday, like I've got leftover Brain Mush from all the crazy partying I was up to last weekend.

Ok, you got me. I joke. We did go to Canet, though, this past weekend. Canet is off da hook! It's a small beach town outside of Valencia near Sagunto where my in-laws own a cute little apartment. (Yes, you heard me right. My In Laws. What about it? You don't think they know how to party? Ohhhh, we par-tay.) Anyway, lately we have been making quite the tradition of spending Sundays at the apartment.  We usually go, have lunch (Paella or Arroz al Horno. mmm!) play in the pool, and then go on a walk. This time Bella and Julietta both got in the pool. They are hardcore water babies. I think they'd spend most of the day in the water if they never got cold.

These aren't the best shots. It was still pretty sunny.

I'm telling you, she goes stiff every time her sister tries to hug her. Smart kid.

Later we took a walk to the nearby garden/park so Bella could play some more (i.e. so I could take pictures). I swear, it must be so annoying to have to be around me all the time. I drag everyone out at sunset, and spend the next hour and a half in my own little world, trying to get as many good shots as I can before there's no more light. It's actually a bit of a work out (and thank god for that, because I'm not the gym type).

Bella and Yayo

At my defense though, I don't have a car, and we live outside of the city, so trying to get anywhere at sunset and then back home using public transportation before dinner is... well, it's idiotic is what it is, and plain out stressful. I have to make the most of Alex's day off if I ever want to get that dreamy light.

At this point, I monopolized Julietta because Bella just doesn't stop moving.

But I don't think she was very happy about it...

I get a lot of pictures of Bella from the back.

And that's that. It was a nice, chill, Sunday afternoon. We spent time together, the kids played, Alex relaxed, I got to take pictures, and we partied it up (ok, you know that didn't happen, but I still like to imagine). Happy times.

In order to get this shot, I had to act like a turkey on crack, making silly gobble noises and flapping my arms.