There is a cute little photographer named Julie Taggart who is located in Utah County. She is hosting a giveaway for one of her family photography packages. If you are in the area you may want to enter her contest. A winner will be chosen on March 14th so if you are interested, jump on over there and leave her a comment.
Way to follow your dreams, Julie!
Ok, first off… Thanks for all the responses to the request for your photos with catchlights in the eyes! It has really made me excited to sit down on Monday morning and write up this post. There is still time for you to send in your photos if you are thinking of doing it. If I haven’t emailed you back personally to say thanks yet, I want you to know that I am thankful. It is so exciting to me to get your feedback. I originally designed MomShots with the intent that it would have a community or village feel where we could all help each other. To date, I haven’t been able to implement many ways for that to happen (yet!). So your responses and willingness to share your images makes me feel that spirit again.
Catchlight post to come soon!
The other thing I wanted to say was that I recently joined a brand new blogging network for women and mothers. You may have noticed their badge on the right sidebar over there. —-> One of the things they requested from me was a banner ad for my site so I had to sit down and design one last night. I am really pleased with how it turned out and it has inspired me to put some work into the header on this site and change the image to be more like the banner ad. I love all the photos much better then the one that is currently up there. So hopefully that change will happen soon.
I wanted to show you the ad I made. Maybe you’ll see it on other members of this Women & Mothers blogging network’s sites. Here it is:
Again, not my giveaway, but over at Giveawayaday you can enter to win one of these cute camera straps. She makes them for SLR cameras and for point and shoot cameras and uses a wide variety of really cute fabrics. Go check out her Etsy site and then go back and leave a comment with your favorite pattern. Easy peasy. Maybe you’ll be the winner!
Over at my newest favorite site, I heart faces, there is a really great article about reading your camera manual and understanding what it means. It is focused toward beginner level photographers and is a wonderful resource. So if you have heard me shout over and over again, “Read your manual” and you are always thinking, “I tried that and it didn’t make any sense!!!” then read this little post and you will be suddenly shot up into a whole new world of camera understanding.
This post uses a DSLR as an example but it all applies to any camera. A point and shoot works on the same principals as the DSLR.
So the MomShots tip of the day is to go here to read the article written by Rachel Durik.
Copied directly from the site:
PhotoCamp has sold out - but due to huge demand, we have added 75 seats to our max capacity. If you are thinking of registering, this is your second chance so act fast! These will sell out again and fast!
PhotoCamp Utah is for photographers BY photographers. For this event-be a success, we need you-be there!
We have some amazing presenters comitted - sharing their knowledge, entertaining keynote speakers, and sponsors giving us some amazing gifts - all-make this a great event for all those that attend. This is going-be an exciting event.
There is limited seating available, and those that we have are filling up fast. Don’t delay, register right away-save your seat! It’s only $10 for an entire amazing day. Register now!
Last night, I was watching my Twitter feed when I saw a post about a mini-clinic at the Salt Lake Library in an hour and a half. Ben was home and I asked him if he would mind watching the kids while I went to it. He agreed and I quickly got my stuff together and ran out the door.
The clinic was hosted by the Flickr group Photowalking Utah and was presented by Rich Legg who is an incredible knowledgeable and extremely talented photographer. The theme was studio lighting for under $250.
The class was great! I learned so much. Especially since I haven’t really delved into the world of studio lighting yet. I am what you would call a “Natural Light Photographer”. For me, that’s a hoity-toity name for someone who still has so much to learn that I just haven’t gone in that direction yet. Optimal word here is “yet”. One day I will. And now after what I learned last night I feel much more prepared for that day.
Courtesy Disclaimer: This is my personal definition. Not all Natural Light Photographers are in this boat. Just me.
I really had a fun time and ended up sitting next to an amazing photographer named Anne Torrence. I follow her on Twitter and have always been super impressed with her. It was such a surprise to realize that it was she I was sitting next to. I had a little moment of star-struckness but that passed and I introduced myself and talked with her for a few minutes about her current project. I’m excited to get to know her and the whole Photowalking Utah group better. I really hope I can swing getting to events more frequently.
MomShots is really is not a location specific blog even thought it may seem like that lately. If you don’t live in Utah I am sure you are getting sick of me mentioning Utah things all the time. I would strongly suggest that you look into your local area and see what kind of photographer groups are out there. I bet there are some good ones around. If you don’t find any, maybe you should think about starting a group. A photowalking group is a great way to start.
Speaking of location specific, once again I am going to plug PhotoCamp Utah. I found out last night that there are only about 75 more places available. If you are thinking about going be sure to sign up right away or you won’t be able to. It will be held in south Provo on March 14th, 2009. More information can be found on the website.
As you know, I am speaking. My theme is tips & tricks for photographing kids. I know you’re all surprised by that title… LOL… Anyway originality aside, I was wondering if anyone had any specific topics or questions that you would like to see addressed? I am trying to put together the outline for my discussion and I thought your input would be much appreciated. Even if you are not attending, I would love your input.
Also, I need to put together some prints to show as props. Do you have any favorite pictures that I have posted here or on Flickr? I am very excited about the opportunity to speak about and share my love of photographing kids but honestly, I am a teensy bit nervous. Especially after meeting all those incredible photographers last night! I am feeling a bit like an imposter since I really am so new to the art.
Insecurities begone! No more thoughts or words about that. That’s the last you’ll hear about that. It’s all about having fun and learning some new things. I would love your input and opinions on anything related to this.
Obligatory MomShot:
I got asked to be a guest poster over at another one of my favorite sites, I Never Grew Up. She does a theme each day and Thursday is the day her site focuses on the arts. I decided to write about how photography, usually a single person spectator sport/art, does not have to be. You can easily get the whole family involved. This builds art appreciation, friendship and great memories.
I hope you will click here to read my article and if you have any other suggestions for building family unity through photography I really hope you will take a second to comment. I am trying to compile a list of fun family activities using this artform so your input would be greatly appreciated either here on MomShots or after the post on I Never Grew Up.
Ok, well maybe not gold, but for something so inexpensive it can be an invaluable purchase. Check out Luann’s story and you’ll see what I mean. You should spend some time checking out her blog and Flickr photostream. She’s a super talented photographer who I follow regularly.
This is what she said:
I teach a little community photo class, which reminds me, it’s time to set a date for another meeting. Anyway, a few months ago I advised the other photographers in the group to get a UV filter for their lenses and keep it on at all times. The only exception would be to temporarily remove it if they needed to use a different kind of filter.
A UV filter helps a little with image quality by absorbing ultraviolet rays and cutting through some haze in outdoor photos, but the main reason I gave them this advice was to protect their lenses. A cheap $10 filter can be your first line of defense against scratches, curious babies with slimy fingers, dust, dirt and any number of other every day hazards that may threaten an expensive SLR lens.
Occasionally a more dramatic accident will occur, like what happened to me last Saturday. The short version is that my camera fell from a height of about 3 feet and landed face first on the concrete, jamming the lens cap down into the front of my favorite lens. When I picked it up I could hear the sickening sound of rattling shards of glass under the cap. With the help of my auto mechanic father-in-law, we eventually got the UV filter unstuck from the lens and this is what we found underneath.
The lens cap and filter, laying to the right, are still jammed together and all the broken glass you see on top of the lens is from the filter. I used dry canned air to very gently remove all the pulverized glass from the lens before I tested it. It looks like my little filter did its job and absorbed most of the impact from the fall because thankfully, I haven’t been able to find any problems with my $500 camera or my $200 lens. First chance I got, I was happy to shell out another $10 at my local camera shop for a new UV filter. It’s my little hero.
Seriously, after reading that story how could you not rush out and buy yourself a filter if you don’t already have one?!? All my lenses have filters on them and I highly recommend you doing the same thing if you haven’t already.
There are many different types of filters that you can buy. Some filters filter out the UV light and some filters are polarized making your colors a bit more vibrant. You can also find filters in colors like blue, red, green, etc. that can add a fun tint to your photos if you are feeling a bit bold. There are lots of different options. You can find them at any camera store and also at my favorite online haunt, B&H Photo and Video.
Fitting a filter to your lens is really simple. Look at the end of your lens and there is a number like 52mm (the size of my 18-55mm kit lens and my 50mm lens), or 62mm (the size of my 60mm macro lens), and many other sizes. You just screw the filter on and you are set. You never have to take it off again.
Hopefully you will never have to test out the protecting power of your filter like Luann did, but if that day comes you will be so thankful that you spent the few extra bucks and got a filter!
The new Tip of the Week is up. Please look it over and reply. Tye wants to customize her Tips for you and this is your chance to make that happen. I know how much you all love the Tips. Please reply so she can make them even more awesome!!!
On a similar note, I found out that if you are currently running Photoshop Elements you can upgrade to their new full blown Photoshop CS4 for the incredible price of only $299. That’s a SCREAMING deal!!! If you are interested in this just click here.
I know many of you have mentioned interest in upgrading. If you can budget that price in you will not be disappointed by how awesome CS4 is!
I just found out about this really cool seminar going on next month on Saturday the 14th. It’s called Photocamp Utah and it is all about photographers of all levels spending a day teaching and learning together. The price is totally affordable and it is in the Provo area so there is no excuse for not coming!
It sounds really fun and exciting doesn’t it?
I think so too!
Plus, I was asked to speak so now you have even more incentive to come!!! Truthfully, I’m really excited and a little bit intimidated about this but there is no way I am missing it. The chance to mingle with other photog-minded people and learn from them is super exciting. It should be a really fun day and I am planning on coming away from it better at this art form.
Be sure to follow @PhotoCampUtah on Twitter for updates and info.
Also, if you register before February 28th, you can go for only $10. That’s an awesome deal!!!
Let me know if you are going to come and we can plan a meet up for lunch or dinner or something like that!
