Slacklining and the Final week

Last weekend Stephen and I shook the dust off of the slackline that we've had since college and gave it a try. It was something we did almost weekly during the four years of college, but since then life has gotten in the way. Then we set it up again the next day while Justin was in town. Jus and Mere are moving down this weekend so I have a feeling we will be slacklining more. It was a nice break before this long, stressful week. Its my final week of my first year of med school. I can't believe it been a year! Anyway, here are some shots.

Ok now back to studying.

Woodworking loveliness

My dad asked me to take pictures of the two pieces of furniture he has made me over the years for a portfolio of his woodworking projects. These are the pics I took this morning of my headboard and hope chest. They really are beautiful (the furniture, not necessarily the photos).

Our headboard was a wedding present. Its solid cherry, which makes it very heavy and kind of awkward, but its so lovely its worth it.

 This hope chest was high school graduation present. I use it to keep all of our extra linen (read: one set of extra sheets) and our beach towels. I don't think that would constitute a dowry, but I've already got my man.

 The inlay on the front is too pretty to not get a close up.

Blackwater Canoe Trip II

Blackwater canoe trip

This series of pics documents the way that David had to get Max into the canoe every time he got out. It was absolutely hilarious. 

Around Mobile

Here are some shots from downtown Mobile from a couple of weekends ago. I meant to post them last week. But its finals time and I am forgetting almost everything.

Statue outside a little art gallery by Cathedral square.

Mobile has some cool street art, not that I would really call this street art, but its interesting nonetheless. 

 Bienville Square is beautiful, but on this gorgeous spring saturday nobody was there enjoying its beauty (except a few homeless people that looked like they had made a home here). It made me sad and really miss Denver and the people's love for the outdoors. 

Cathedral square is also beautiful and enjoyed by more people. The farmer's market (starting in a couple of weeks, Yea!) is held here and there are some good restaurants and such around it. 

Spring and Fstops

These days I have to work really hard to find beauty around me. School is kicking my booty and I am having to study like crazy. But I am trying. Its been fun the last couple of weeks to see all of the flowers blooming in our backyard. We moved into this house in July last year so all of the flowers were gone. There have been so many. Here's one that is incredibly beautiful just outside the back door. I decided to play with different aperture settings.

Lately, the lower the f number the better. But I am realizing that it might not always be the best setting. The one above is F2.8. I like it, but the edges of the flower are really sharp. The following picture is F5.6 and overall, its a lot better. The edges on the flower are a lot shaper. I still like the drama of the strong small focal field and the blurred background.

In other news, there might be redemption for my birthday. We are planning on going on an overnight canoeing trip this weekend. We are going to leave on Saturday afternoon and camp somewhere along the river. It sounds like so much fun and very much needed. I am SO tired and burnt out from school. Our friends Jennifer and David are coming too so even better. Hopefully, we will get some cool shots.

Worst Birthday Ever

So yesterday was my 26th birthday. I knew it wasn't going to be exciting mostly because I had 6 hours of class and I have a test on Friday, but I was hoping for something unexpected. My parents and in-laws sent me birthday money which is great but impersonal. My friends posted on FB and my sisters and brother all texted but these things don't really make anyone feel special. Then Stephen didn't do anything. I had asked for several things and didn't get anything. I know I sound like a whiny baby, but I haven't had the best semester and this just adds insult to injury.

Ok there I have said it and its out so I can move on. There's always next year.

Typical Saturday

I am not really a beach person, but we live about 45 minutes from the Gulf so its hard not to spend a few days on the sand. There will probably be a lot of pics of the beach b/c its really the only thing worth doing around here.

For some reason, the pics don't show up the same on here as they do in Aperture. Oh well. School has gotten a little out of hand so this is the best I could do for new.

Self-portrait

I don't often take pictures of myself, but I started to get frustrated that what I see in the mirror is not what I see in photos. So here is my attempt at a self portrait. I am also LOVING learning about the editing features of aperture. I finally understand white balance and how/why to fix the colors. I am also in love with the skin smoothing feature...it makes it look like I have perfect skin which I have never had.

The last two are the same shot, but I loved it so much I put it up twice. Not too bad for a quick project before school. 

dinner last night

In my attempt at becoming a better photographer, I am trying to just take more pictures. So since I don't live a wild and crazy life, I have to take pictures of ordinary things like dinner. Food photography has its own following and I guess I would like to get better at it too.

Here are some of the shots of our delicious dinner last night. It was Warm asparagus salad with bacon and shallots. YUM!

I have using the aperture priority setting lately. I love having the short (?) depth of field. It makes the pics so much more interesting. But I discovered the downside.

This picture just looks out of focus. The focal point so small that its hard to even find it. I need to get better about changing the settings up from shot to shot. I wish this one had come out better b/c I feel like it represents my life. This is what I love, eating really amazing, fresh food outside on the patio in the amazing weather that is spring. Ahhhh. Oh well, there will be more dinners...a girl's gotta eat. I have a long way to go on perfecting my food photography, but I have to keep trying. 

Also, I watched several tutorials last night on Aperture. Its amazing how much this program has to offer. 

My favorite thing

One of my favorite things in the whole world is to hear Stephen laugh, I mean like a real belly laugh, the kind of laughter where his shoulders shake and he makes this sound...well, anyway, it makes my heart happy. And he doesn't laugh easily, so it makes it all the more special when he does. I was lucky enough to catch a true smile in the midst of a belly laugh.

Lesson in Light

I took some shots of this paper mache elephant from India. I am trying to get a feel for how light affects a picture. The elephant stayed in the same spot and I worked around it, and each pic looks completely different. 

 I love the way the light affected the lens.

Goals

My goals are simple for this blog.

1. Recognize the beauty around me.

2. Record what I am learning about photography and photo editing.

3. Create an outlet because med school is hard and stressful.

Here are the usual players: 

Ella, my sweet dog. She will be featured on here a lot, mostly because she is the closest thing to a kid that I have.

Stephen, my amazingly talented husband. He doesn't cooperate when I am trying to take pictures so he will be on here less often. (This pic is from Jan, 2009, but its hard to get a good one of him.)

And me. As I don't really enjoy taking pictures of myself, I probably won't be featured very much.

I don't lead a very exciting life, mainly because I don't have time, but I will do the best I can to see the world around me.