Madeline ...

Madeline came in for grad photos today I just love them and had to get them up right away before our busy week end and time got away from me. I photographed Madeline and her brother Ryan when they were little - so a real trip for me to see Madeline all grown up - other than making me feel older, it was real super to see what a sweet and cool person she has become :).

Sara and Evan equals Twins

Sara and Evan are twins, they were here for graduation photos. They share a sense of humor, a gentleness - a kind of self conscious awareness and at the same time they are totally comfortable with who they are - but their favorite thing is definitely not being photographed. They had already had the formal school photos, mom was looking for outdoor photos to have something that really resonated with their personalities.

So we played - hey - it is all about personality. I have to say that I absolutely loved doing the session. Here are a few of the shots I really liked...

I love water and reflections - so I get real low to the water - just think it is pretty ...


For you photographers ... there is a tree to the cameras right the the sun is hitting - that was the light source.








So I handed Sara my camera at the end of the session and showed her what buttons to press and she took this one of her brother - my favorite photo of the session :) - I just love it when I am surprised with something real cool and I think it is real wonderful that Sarah and Evan felt pretty comfortable with me.

Sara and Evan - Thanks!

The irony of quality

I did a copy and restoration for a new customer which was picked up last Friday - I did a wonderful job, and the customer asked - is this a good job? It took me off gaurd. It was a wonderful job from a very difficult original - superb. I would post the before and after here, but I didn't ask for permission ...

But, the point of this is it got me to thinking about perceptions. What I think is obvious isn't always obvious. Unless the customer had the same job done by someone else, and then compared the jobs, they might never know. And on the other hand if they had the job done by another who did not do as well, they would still never know how good it could get... quality is something we do. But quality will not guarantee that we get the business and lack of quality in others will not necessarily bring us business.

OK, I realize and I am thankful that this isn't every customer, and I do feel like I am ranting a little (would have much rather had the customer say 'oooh this is good'). I just wanted to share this little life reminder - one of those many ironies of life ...

Two boys ...

This mornings portrait session was of two boys, feisty and kind of shy and full of energy :-) ... it took them a little while to warm up. I love these portrait sessions, where the personality comes out and we get photos that are really unique ...



Thanks!

Photo Restoration and Photoshop - My Educational Sources

Just wanted to post a quick sharing of my favorite resources for learning and figuring out copy & restoration and photoshop challenges. My learning has been mostly reading and online, and these are the two best resources I have found!

Online: www.retouchpro.com - a group with a wide range of abilities and interests, with some of the sharpest minds around! All skill levels are always welcome. From restoration work to commercial beauty retouching and art from photos ...

Books: Anything by Katrin Easmann ... www.photoshopdiva.com and www.katrineismann.com she is the Photoshop Diva!

These are my main sources for learning. Anytime I have a question or want to stretch what I think I know, this is where I go! No matter what your skill level something from these two resources will be sure to bend your brain (mine is twisted - enjoy!).