I met Kelly when we were 8 or 9 playing slow pitch softball.

I was blessed enough to rekindle that friendship over the last few years.  When I say blessed, I mean it truely.  She’s taken the path she was given head-on, with a smile that was larger than the sun – and with unwavering faith.  She always shared this with her friends on her facebook page, and her mother made it a point to tell everyone today at the funeral home that these were the words she lived by;

Isaiah 40:31 But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.

They will soar high on wings like eagles.

They will run and not grow weary.

They will walk and not faint.

When we got together for these pictures, it was five (yes 5) degrees outside. But she didn’t care, this was going to happen – she’d waited long enough! 

We did them two weeks before Christmas, and being the sweetheart she is, she grabbed some of my photos off facebook and made me a mousepad out of it as a thank you.  Don’t mind the cellphone picture, it’s all I can do right now.  I will always treasure it and the thought behind it, and will try to remember when I am working and frustrated or overwhelmed with my kids nagging at me while trying to do so, that there is a precious little girl out there who now only has her mommy in spirit.  When I work I am reminded of her kindness and determination to overcome whatever it was that needed to be overcome.

” and he will raise you up on eagle’s wings

bear you on the breath of dawn

make you to shine like the sun

and hold you in the palm of His hand “

I think for her family and friends right now there is a plethora of emotions – torn between the relief that she is FREE and healthy now, and between the fact the world lost one amazing woman,  friend, girlfriend, daughter, sister, and mother.  Man was she an awesome mom – please pray for little Jade and for her family, they need the comfort so terribly.

I dont think I ever took the time to say thank you to Kelly for all that she has taught me about life and what it means to really seize the moment.  In the months of time this transplant bought her, she truely got out there!  I will forever remember the phone call sometime shortly after her transplant. I saw her name on my phone’s caller ID and I picked up the phone and heard a squeaky little “hiiiii!!” and I just cried.  She spoke of her first breath on her own with her new lungs, and how the air just kept coming… and coming… and she was just so full. 

Be grateful for the deep breaths you take, and breath them in often. Treasure them.  We are so lucky to take them in.

Let nothing stop you.

Say thank you. Today – to someone you have thought to say thank you to, but haven’t.  Let them know.

Consider organ donation.  When we leave this earth, our bodies are free.  They are complete in our makers hands.  This gift of life is the greatest gift of all.

Please visit www.organdonation.gov for more information.

Here’s to you, Kelly Wagner.  You fought the good fight, and have won a place in His home with your Lord and Savior.

May angels lead you in

Hear you me, my friend.

xo

“Those” front teeth are on their way in.  I can feel the profit margin for the orthodontist going up already… and those SILLY BANDS! Whod’a thought… and animal bracelet that doesn’t look like an animal when worn, is all the rage.

Having this time off with my children has made me realize so much.  I needed this.  Maybe I’ll explain sometime.  I have so many sessions to blog, two to finish up, and two coming up.  I’ve really, really cut back this year and I think it was the best thing I could have done.  I have really, really missed being a Mom.

Happy Schools-out-for-summer to you and yours.

xo

dani

If you don’t want to read below, feel free to click the “portfolio” button at the top of the page to take you there!

There are 50 bazillion shoots to happen and 3 weddings on their way, so the portfolio site will probably be updated quite soon yet again with lots of  new fun Have a great day everyone!

xo

dani

(ps, I know you wont, but I’d love feed back below if you enjoyed it, or if you encounter any issues while viewing! thanks so much!)

…I’m annoyed my date stamp says the 25th when I’m clearly publishing this after midnight.

Have a great Sunday, everyone.

d

So… You’ve got your proofing gallery. You’ve selected your faves, now what?  Recently, we remodeled one of the family rooms in our home, and I wanted it to be fresh, bright, and airy because it was mainly for the kids “play area”.  I chose a poppy blue and green apple theme – finding this vintagy looking couch at Value City Furniture last summer – it went perfect with my “vision”.  A lot of you asked about the Thibau wallpaper I picked out – and here is what good use I put it to: I used it to cover the built in shelving , as it matches the couch. HOW SWEET IS THAT?!  You can see it in the image below.

So I had my “gallery” of choices to pick from that I did of my kids – because I wanted this room filled with a mix of classy and color – I chose a selection of BW and color images.  I had two 16×20’s and two 11×14’s for color, and two square 12×12 and 9×12 BW images.  I laid them all out on my couch to show before hanging. (sidenote: im aware of the gross toddler fingerprints all over the tv, and that I did no PP on these so the exposure is all over and the blues do not match – please don’t criticize, I’m short on time!)

In this case, I didn’t want to have framing being that I was using a larger size of prints. So, I had them mounted (which I do to all of my wall sized prints ordered).  Versus using any wall-penetrating devices (NAILS!) I chose to go with the 3M velcro strips – they are removable like the command strips, but each side is velcro so that the picture can be removed, THEN the adhesive – so you can still use the pull tab. GENIUS!  The color are the first that you see when you walk into the room, and as you turn around, the super candid giggly BW images are on the opposite wall.  I chose the 9×12 to match the height of the square 12×12.  The mounting is a foamcore – which will not warp or bend. 

Since I had the wallspace, and only 8 images, using one image per item worked for me. Had I had more images, I could have created a Storyboard… with many images per item: taking a few in collage or straight line form and applying them to 16×20 down to 8×10, and more intriguing sizes like 10×20 for a longer approach.  I’m really looking forward to helping you fill your home with prints that you love, and help you display them properly.  There’s no reason to leave an image behind – please, let me help you with storyboarding if you are at a loss for which to choose! 

I did several of these last summer and they were beautiful.  Now I have a few plug-ins that create them a little quicker for me so hopefully I will be adding these to your gallery for your choosing. 

So, when you have trouble deciding, don’t be afraid to ask me to bring along my tape measure and fit your home for the images you would like to have mounted or hung!  I will help you choose a mount and we’ll go from there =)

I just wanted to share how one of the rooms in my home is displaying images. More to come! 

Now a few of R. who’s gallery went up last night – the color in these turned out fabulous!  He’ll be up and done with his HS years here soon and moving on to bigger and better things. Good Luck, R.!

Take care everyone  – just wanted to pop by the with that… hopefully to inspire you to take those candids and show them off =)

I’ve got to run through my portofolio site and finish it up.  Some of the lower resolution test files for graphic pages are still up (oops).  That site will be a year old here in a few months and I suppose the updates/renovations I began in January should be completed… not that my broken shoulder threw anything else off schedule that I had to tend to first!  I remember how happy I was with it when it was first complete – then came december and big plans for a fresh batch of ‘08 images and BAM! Plans ruined!  Hopefully soon I can be complete and let it go for another year.

I’m joining venture with KCC this evening to sit in on their committee meeting tonight for some design “stuff” – I can’t wait!  Below are a few new graphics for them that I sent out the other day!  Thought I would share… aren’t they fresh and poppy?!  The top one is a new letterhead for a photographers commitment contract when signing onto the program to work with families and their kids as a complimentary service =)  Isn’t it great when we can take advantage of an opportunity to share our work/time/talent with others in such a special way?!

Welp, probably won’t see me this weekend.  I have a session Sunday and Monday (back to back, I never do that!)  I wanted to leave you with some images from a senior this past season of whom I am turning out a second order for – isn’t she awesome?  These are her wallet prints:

Enjoy – and have a great weekend!! Sun’s shining =)

*disclaimer:  it’s not a snooty I’m – better – than – you post by any means.  It’s simply meant to educate somewhat, and help those in the market for a new camera think of  a few things and be aware of a few things before making that big purchase.*

I also get the “what kind of camera do you have?! Ive got to get one like that!”  Well I must tell you, the cameras and lenses? They are just tools. 

If you do not know how to manipulate the exposure (yes, you must learn to shoot manual and semi-manual modes – automatic wont do what your thinking  of), your results will be the same as your point and shoot (P&S).  If the light is too low and youre not using flash – you’ll get the same result – a slow shutter speed and a blurry picture.  Those principles do not change because the camera you bought costs a lot. Sorry!

I encourage those with interest to purchase one at a decent price – for sure!  Photography is an amazing hobby.  But please, don’t get caught up in the “megapixel” scheme.  You can make an 8×10 with an old 3.2 megapixel camera.  You do not need that 12 MP camera to get decent snapshots – don’t get suckered in by the guys at Best Buy trying to get you to spend that extra $300.00 for it, you just don’t need it.  They’ll try to sell you the 70-300 zoom too for what seems like a great price – but really its cheap (in most opinions)  build and you’ll need a tripod if you’re not using flash… and you cant use a pop-up flash with that long of a lens, so you’ll have to buy an external flash to attach – and BAM, they’ve got another $250-500 dollars out of you.

People gasp when I tell them that the lens they are asking about that is attached to my camera costs well over a thousand dollars.  Sure the lens gives me added sharpness and clarity (and super fast focus!) but If i didn’t know how to manipulate the exposure that the lens will allow for – it’s useless. 

This my friends, is how you can spend THOUSANDS on photography equipment and have it function just like your $200 dollar P&S camera.  I write this in kindness that if you are searching for a DSLR or a higher-end P&S, that you will do your homework and not get screwed on things you do not need, or can’t use because you do not understand the operations.

I love when others show interest and want my opinions on equipment or a camera body – and I love when others can take the advice seriously and run with it.  I encourage anyone interested to take some classes or at least read some books to understand the relationship of ISO, Shutter Speeds, and Aperture values…white balance.  When you see me photographing, I am adjusting these with (almost) every image.  A lot of thought and calculation goes into what I refer to as artwork.

Once you’ve spent years learning the functions and getting it wrong more times than right – you’ll finally start to be satisfied when you realize you’re never going to stop learning.  Then you’ll understand the annoyance when people want to know why you charge what you do – because you work HARD.  It’s fun, but it’s definitely work. 

So, in your DSLR search, remember:

1. bigger isn’t always better*. in fact, it almost never is (excluding L series lenses, that candy is always better!)

*I shoot with two 40d’s, and know consumers who’ve purchased the 50d’s recently and cant figure out why the “images don’t look like” mine. please don’t get sucked into the gimmick! get what you need for your usage, hand size, etc.  Most pros are still shooting with 20/30d’s and are dead set on never letting them go. And I don’t blame them.  Mind you, these are 6 MP cameras I think.

2. megapixels are a scam for the consumer dollar.

3. don’t buy the long lens if you’re going to use it indoors unless you’re going to buy a flash unit, too.

4.  take your popup flash and rip it off (not really), it ruins your photographs if your not going to diffuse it.

5. learn, learn learn! get your money’s worth!

A good camera? Yes… but it’s only as good as its user – pro or enthusiast.

Examples: 

You purchase an auctioned set of Tiger Woods’ golf clubs.  You probably won’t be shooting any hole-in-ones’ right away.

A great Chef is not the result of his pots.  They might benefit his cooking, but he or she controls the end result.  It’s how you cook it.  Burnt food tastes like crap.

If you buy all the fancy canvas’ and paints to create a painting – fancy brushes included – if you do not have an artists training and knowledge, you cannot utilize them in the way they are meant to.  The paint doesn’t create the image on the canvas, the Artist does.

It’s a common peeve shared by many photographers – that misconception that we over charge (I absolutely do not think I overcharge) for something simple.  However, we love to help and we love to help educate those interested in taking it seriously. 

So, if you’ve got questions – ASK! Don’t get stuck in a large investment that you later on want to throw out the window =) 

Remember, it’s just a tool.  If you need help picking one out – I’m happy to assist =)

Happy Shopping!

I’m working on some tri-fold information… cards (?) and I needed legal-sized cardstock.  Well, Staples didnt have any so I had to get ledger (i know, huge) size and have Ken cut it down at the firestation on thier cutter.  Now, every time I go to staples… two things happen.

1. I roam

and

2. I get asked 50 BILLION times if I need any help.

I roam because its full of office and electronic goodies.  Every aisle there is someone bugging me about something, and typically there is at least one double-asker.   It’s just not meant to be a quiet experience I guess! I mean I got asked if I needed any help in the PEN AISLE.  Which, much to my crazy delight, Zebra fine pens were on sale buy one get one pack 1/2 off. Now these are my fave so this started things off well (beyond no legal sized card stock).

Then off to walmart.  Quite a venture for someone who hasnt really gone many places or done much in over a month. Boohoo, I know.

Ever notice the products you could have used just a little while ago, but weren’t on the market then, are always available when youre no longer in need?  I used glass bottles for the most part with E. because I didn’t really care much for the BPA scare, and my plastics were Dr. Browns.  Boutique shops (admission: obssessed) online were selling silicone sleeves for them to ensure grip and ease when dropped.  They were like 10-15 dollars a pop! Oh, but what’s at walmart today?  Glass ba-ba cozies, silicone and brightly colored (with polka dot holes for crying out loud) for like 3.44 a piece if bought separately, and for sale WITH gerber bottles!

I survived a jam-packed walmart…dragging my shopping cart along and coughing all the way (i think my lungs are almost clear).

Onto my lovely evening.  My son has figured out, at 18 months old.. if he stands on the wide swing gate between the living room and kitchen just right, and jumps/bounces, he can pop it open.  And he does it with beaming pride and pure ambition.  It’s time for the gate to come down, I’m sick of fighting him over it – but really, its the only way to delay his beeline to the stairs and the high island chairs so i’m unsure what to do about that.  He’s smart and silly and is at that stage where he wants mommy if mommy is leaving but doesnt want mommy if daddy is leaving (or vice versa) and its driving me bonkers.  I can’t keep him happy cooped up in this house much longer – spring (slush, mud, and rain) where are you?!  Same goes for K. she’s tired of watching TV, coloring, crafts, computer games, and the like.  She’s ready to run (I’m ready for her to run) and burn off that energy.  She’ll be in kindergarten next year and I know this will help somewhat during the winter months but the 3 day a week preschool isnt cutting it on tuesdays and thursdays

So basicly my shopping experience annoyed me, my kids are sick of being in the house and are figuring out ways to try and get out and I can’t sleep. I promise I don’t photoshop when I am only half awake – proof seekers, haveth no fear.

I finally put a spam filter on my blog because spammers from email to email are hitting up wordpress with those long paragraphs full of links to all sorts of fun things.  Now, they go through a moderation period first but I cant do over 30 a day of those – and the filter has eliminated it completely (so far).  Think junk emails trying to get you to cash checks and move money for your long lost relative in singapore that you never knew who passed away, and letting you keep 20 % kind of spam. ACK!

Okay, ending the late night babble.  Hope you maybe got a chuckle out of that for your monday. If not, well… wait for the next posting, I guess:)  Maybe it will have something to do with photography.

If you have not had a chance to read my prior post, please do so and do it with your heart wide open.  I have recieved some great responses and am looking forward to them growing.  If you give directly to www.curesearch.com versus going through me – that is FINE! Please just email me a copy of your recipt and you will still recieve the credit(s).  Any other donations will go toward helping offset my travel and print costs to kindly provide families in the fight with complementary sessions.  I am an extremly small business but I really want to be able to help make a difference, even if small.

Onto the stuff you’re really actually interested in – photos!  Here’s a few more for the M. family and probably the last sneak peek (sorry!).  I can’t give them all away before the big reveal , now can I?!  I love after I have finally finished up a gallery, being able to go back and share even more.  I just think mom and dad should get to view them all first!  Enjoy, she’s a little doll and has the cutest, rolliest- polliest legs there could ever be!

 She’ll be giving her mom and dad a run for their money soon crawling.  As you can see from these two frames, she was upright on her belly in one and rolling around in the next!  Oh how I miss that stage (sometimes)!

Peace, love, and Pampers – until next time…

danielle

Meet GORGEOUS little E.

There… that should give you enough baby-gaga sweetness until I return.  Isn’t she precious?!