Images of U Photography - Glens Falls NY, Lake George, NY, Family Photographer

Last Wedding of the Year–Lake George, NY Wedding Photographer

2012-01-03T15:36:00.001-05:00

I had the privilege of not only taking photos for this amazing couple but also doing the bride’s makeup. It’s always an adventure to photograph a busy wedding but it’s even more of an adventure when you are and your family are attending the festivities as family! I had Quincie Kubricky there to help me photograph which was such a treat. She is so talented and very good at posing people!

M&M, here’s a little sneak peak. Love you guys!

Sneak Peak–Lake George, NY Newborn Photographer

2011-12-27T21:10:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday little Baby A! What a tiny guy! He slept so well for our little shoot. Here are a couple of favorites!

Sweetness–Glens Falls, NY Newborn Photographer

2011-12-03T21:31:00.001-05:00

A few more to enjoy while you wait!

7 Days New–Glens Falls, NY Newborn Photographer

2011-11-30T20:16:00.001-05:00

Just a quick sneak peak. One of my favorites of this brand new Baby E. Isn’t she gorgeous?!

Family Photographer–Glens Falls, NY

2011-11-22T21:11:00.001-05:00

I LOVE this family. When they came before and we tried to get some photos it was pouring rain. They were great sports but I have been really wanting to get some more shots of them. You can never take photos too often of young ones because of how quickly they grow. The light we had was gorgeous so even though it was a little chilly the pictures were so much fun!

Scott “School” Pics

2011-11-17T09:00:00.000-05:00

Scott asked me before we took these pics why we had to do our own school pictures and not the ones we did at school? I had to laugh. I just said, because I think I get better pictures of who you really are. Luckily that was enough for him because I’m not sure what else I would have said. Hazel wanted in on it so we got some cute sibling pictures even though she wasn’t “dressed” for a shoot. What good memories I have from just a few minutes of a shoot with Scott.

Halloween

2011-11-16T10:26:00.001-05:00

I adore kids in costumes. I think next year we will definitely have to do Halloween mini-shoots!

We painted jars like jack-o-lanterns this year. It was fabulous and amazingly less messy then real pumpkins. We intended to still carve pumpkins but that never happened. Woops!L.O.V.E. the concentration faces in the next couple shots!

Fall School Photos–Glens Falls, NY Child Photographer

2011-10-17T21:31:00.001-04:00

I still needed to take “school” photos of my kids. I try to take photos of them every fall so that it kind of matches the usual school picture time. The weather is supposed to get a bit iffy this week and the leaves are falling fast, and Hazel has been wanting her picture taken lately so I decided to take advantage of the sun and do a mini-shoot with her before lunch.

We had so much fun. We tried taking pictures of her while she was sitting in my lap, that was interesting. We took pictures of her upside down, playing in the sand, twirling, laughing, pouting, getting kisses, and so much more. What a blast. Here are of “few” of my favorites!Haha, she’s already figured out how to store her cell phone when she doesn’t have pockets!

Don’t you love how her hair and the fall leaves are on in the same?Trying to show that she is three but that ring finger is so hard to get up!You can’t tell me boys and girls are different. Hazel is very good at being a girl with those little hands on her hips when she is serious!

She got this idea in her head and started pretending she was in a circus and was balancing. There’s a whole serious of balancing/almost falling shots that I love. May need to frame them in a row! Now if I only had any wall space left for those frames!That’s my girl!

C & W–Albany Wedding

2011-09-13T09:27:00.001-04:00

What a gorgeous day we had! I had not even met the couple before I walked into her hotel room and watched the amazing Crystal McDaniel bringing out all of the brides true beauty. Crystal is a genius and so passionate about her job. She is a joy to work with.

The bride had this unbelievable calmness about her. It must have come from planning and giving herself plenty of time. Maybe it was because their love began in the 8th grade. Maybe it was because she was going to be marrying her sweetheart. What a treat to work with an unflustered/unrushed bride. I was so impressed!

Thank you to Liz for being my second shooter and taking some amazing shots! Also to my incredible husband for hauling my gear and staying by my side through it all!

Congratulations C & W!

C is 2!

2011-08-25T18:58:00.001-04:00

My poor neglected blog! Here is a fun sneak peak of this adorable, busy two year old. I got to photograph this guy’s one year pictures with him smashing his first cake. Man, he’s gotten big and Mom has a lot to keep up with!

Sneak Peak–Alaska family Photographer

2011-06-29T14:19:00.001-04:00

This photo session was a dream Alaska photo session!! We gardened, played in the woods, picked flowers, rode 4-wheelers, played in a dirt pile, and chased the many dogs around. The weather was a gorgeous Alaska summer day, warm enough for shorts and cool enough for a long-sleeve T.

I had so much fun with this family! I felt like this was a “a day in the life” photo shoot which I have always dreamed of doing. We arrived during blueberry pancakes for breakfast and ended the day with a picnic lunch! The girls weren’t so sure they wanted to play with me because there was a lot of other things going on but with a little bribery and some great strategizing by their amazing mom we convinced them to hang out with me. Thank you guys for playing with me! I even go to see their secret fort and eat their porridge!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Wedding? Photographer

2011-06-25T16:35:00.001-04:00

I know it’s not Friday but it’s summer vacation so the days are irrelevant, right?

I have been asked a lot lately if I do weddings. There are many reasons why I don’t at this moment in time but it is something I am working towards. I read this latest post from one of my all-time favorite “celebrity” wedding photographers and my heart jumped. I’d love to help someone like this at an incredibly important time in their lives. Family is what it’s all about.

Check out this picture of the bride and her very ill Grandmother taken by Cliff Mautner and posted as his Image of the Week for June 24th.

Have a great weekend!

Newborn yummyness–Alaska Family photographer

2011-06-18T22:20:00.001-04:00

This is how I spent my morning. The Alaska summer light melts my heart, mix that with a gorgeous, squishy newborn and I’m a melted mess.

Look at this handsome big brother!

Sneak Peak–Granville High School Senior Photographer

2011-06-17T21:40:00.001-04:00

I had so much fun photographing Darian. The lighting was perfect, just until the thunder and lightening storm came.

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-06-14T08:39:00.001-04:00

Two tips for today. First, use the light. This was around 6pm. A great time for some soft light if you have a few trees like we do to diffuse the light a bit. I did practically no editing to this photo. This was how the light was.

I personally like the bottom photo best of these two because it is more intimate. I took the first so that in case they stopped what they were doing before I got there that I at least captured the idea. I would have like to have gotten down even more at there level. The idea here, especially with children, catch the moment first and then see if you can better it. If you wait for perfection you may just miss it altogether.

Fabulous Friday–Granville High School Senior Photographer

2011-06-04T08:25:00.001-04:00

Ok, so I guess the theme of the week is me thinking it’s a day earlier then it is so we’ll pretend today is Friday. Ok? thanks! A little sneak peak for one of my Granville Senior Reps. Isn’t she amazing?

Alissa is a volleyball player so I might be a little partial but she was fantastic to photograph! Her smile was so real no matter what! Alissa is also an active member of her FFA and does so much good with her time. We were able to take our photographs at a local farm which was completely fitting.

I had such a hard time narrowing it down for this sneak peak. They all ended up “dreamy”. Wonder what that means for the kind of day I’m going to have? Two photoshoots today! Woohoo!! Can’t wait and gorgeous weather at that. Enjoy!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-06-01T06:25:00.001-04:00

We’re going to ignore the fact that it’s actually Wednesday. Since Monday was a holiday today is kind of like Tuesday, right?

We had some dear friends drive over from another state and while they were here we had a photo shoot planned. Of course it decided to pour rain. Because it was our ONLY chance we made do. As the rain grew heavier I lost more and more light. I was able to get enough to take the picture but not enough to get a catch light in the eyes.

After taking a few outside we hauled indoors. There was absolutely NO window light to work with. I was feeling desperate as the boys were rapidly losing all focus (who can blame them!). I wasn’t sure they would be able to wait for me to pull out any bigger equipment. I found, laying on my floor, a large piece of white paper. I immediately bounded by speedlight flash off of it, getting more light but also creating a reflection from the white paper. Here’s the difference.

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-05-27T07:07:00.000-04:00

I’m loving this time of year! The weather is getting warmer and the flowers are out. It’s so beautiful when things first green up! I’m in the thick of high school senior rep photo shoots and loving it! Just a few more weeks and I head to Alaska. I can’t wait to photograph up there! For my Friday post here is a beautiful family that I adore. We got in a few good shots before it started to POUR on us. They had to head back home and live out of state so we didn’t get to do a full shoot but we will reconvene again this summer to complete!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-05-24T09:18:00.000-04:00

My tip for today is personal. I may have said it before but it soooo worth repeating. I have very few pictures with me in them with my family. Every time my mom comes to town I get a few precious photos with me in them. I don’t look perfect in this photo but as I always tell my clients and myself, it’s not for me. These photos I will look back on with love in remembering the wonderful time we had and the precious expressions of my children but most importantly my children will look back. When they do I want them to see their Mom. I want them to know me when I was young and they were young. I want them to have this photographic memory. Don’t use the excuse that you are losing weight, or you don’t take good pictures, or, or, or….suck it in, suck it up and get in those photos!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY High School Senior Photographer

2011-05-20T08:50:00.001-04:00

I’m so excited for this weekend. There are so many great things happening. Pictures. Pictures. Pictures. That’s what I call heaven. I have someone that I promised one more sneak peak yesterday and didn’t get it up. Ahhhhh! I hate not keeping my promises. So here’s is her official sneak peak…now now more until the official unveiling! Ain’t she beautiful!!!!

I call this an outtake! haha, the wind was crazy and Crystal was such a good sport!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-05-17T09:00:00.000-04:00

This is really cool! It’s a camera simulator that can help us to understand how changing the settings on our cameras effect the outcome of the photo. Check it out!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-05-13T10:00:00.000-04:00

This website cracks me up. Need a good laugh, check it out.

Awkward Family Photos

Tuesday tip day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-05-10T07:32:00.001-04:00

I’m looking for some feedback. What are you learning from Tuesday tip day? What would you like to learn? What questions do you have or what mistakes do you keep making with your photos? Do you want to know how I achieved a certain look or how I made a particular shot? Would you like to see more before and after edits?

Thank you so much for all your support!!

Sneak Peak–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-05-07T21:15:00.001-04:00

I had the amazing privilege to photograph this family shortly after Daddy returned from war. The love and pure happiness was seeping from the whole family because Daddy was home. We had so much fun at this shoot. We chased chickens, took some pictures, chased some more chickens, and took some pictures while chasing chickens. The kids were covered in hay in the end but I think they were happy. Oh and there might have been some brightly colored paper airplanes!

I truly believe the sunshine we had during this session was the Lord shining down on this amazing family!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-05-06T09:30:00.001-04:00

It really is a fabulous day here in Glens Falls, NY. I am home from a wonderful trip and glad to be back with my hubby. Here’s a favorite pic from our trip.

Tuesday Tip day–Vacation style

2011-05-04T08:11:00.001-04:00

It’s always a little hard to blog while I’m out of town. I wanted to give you a quick tip for the week though. It’s tough because as I’ve been photographing in different environments while away from home I have a ton of things floating around in my head. I chose this from a family photo session at the farm in Argyle, NY just before I left. The tip is, it doesn’t always take a smile to make a photograph to treasure!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-26T09:14:00.000-04:00

Rain, rain go away, come again another day! What do you do when your stuck inside because it won’t stop raining? Get really close to a window! Have your children play with their favorite toy in front of the window and use the window light. It might be grey out but if you increase your ISO and use a shallow depth of field (make those f-stop numbers look small on your camera) you should still be able to get enough light from the window.

Have them face the window in order to get some reflection in the eyes. This reflection is called catch light. It’s what makes the eyes sparkle and look full of life. We’ll talk in coming posts about other items you can use to get catch light.

I was in a clients home ready to do some professional shots. We were starting indoors because of the weather. While my client finished getting ready I snagged her daughter (a very willing model) and sat her next to the window to see what light I could get.

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-22T09:00:00.000-04:00

This extended family was so much fun. They had me smiling and laughing the whole time. I think family get togethers must be a blast!

Tuesday tip day-Glens Falls, NY family photographer

2011-04-19T08:31:00.001-04:00

I'm posting from my phone so no pictures as I try to figure this out!

I've been wanting to talk a little more about depth of field. I have just a couple quick tips that anyone can do to increase bokeh and make your subject stand out more.

First tip, pull your subject further away from the background. This makes it easier for your camera to focus on the person and leave the background nice and blurry.

Second tip, if you have a slr and a zoom lens then use it! Get back further from your subject and zoom in on them.

Happy shooting! I'm on my way to Boston for a quick day trip!

Decorating–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-17T10:00:00.000-04:00

Love these ideas and just had to share….ways to decorate kids rooms with photography!!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-15T09:00:00.000-04:00

Back in February I took an amazing trip to Oregon with a quick layover in Utah for my cousin’s wedding. I’m finally getting all caught up and I just loved the way some of the wedding photos came out. I wasn’t the wedding photographer by any means. I just took photos for myself (that was the theme of my trip!)

Isn’t she the most gorgeous bride?!!!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-12T09:00:00.000-04:00

Today is going to be a basic summary of what we have talked about so far. I’m assuming that these tips are for those that have a camera they can use in manual mode.

We have learned about ISO, Shutter Speed, Aperture, and Depth of Field. I’m going to make some assumptions. I’m going to assume that if you are reading this you have children or family (including pets) or friends that you are photographing and that you want better day to day pictures of them.

ISO – keep it as low as possible to reduce graininess in the photo. Increase in low light

Shutter Speed – Increase the number on your camera (it’s actually a fraction not showing the top so you are really decreasing the number) for faster movement like children. Decrease the lower the light.

Aperture – these are your f-stops. The lower the number the smaller amount of the photo will be in focus. Don’t go too low most of the time or you’ll end up with just the nose in focus. 2.8 is my fav!

Please feel free to comment on this post to ask specific questions. Have a great Tuesday!

Prom–Lake George, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-11T09:15:00.000-04:00

I was invited to see a beautiful friend and her friends/dates before their prom. I wasn’t there in any official photographer capacity but what a blast it was to be there. I love the excitement!!

Quincie, you are GORGEOUS, inside and out!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY

2011-04-08T09:00:00.000-04:00

I’m trying to get organized, one family photo at a time. What do you do with your older family photos? Are they safe?

Squishy Greatness - Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-07T09:00:00.000-04:00

I just love these girls! We had so much fun and I go so much personality from them. The problem with visiting the little ones you love is that as you get to know them it’s just harder to be far away from them!!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-05T09:00:00.000-04:00

Woot, woot! Today we get to learn about Depth of field. Have you ever looked at a photo and thought, how do I get that blurry background and sharp foreground? The amount of the photo that is in focus is depth of field. Depth of field is determined by a few factors but the main factors is your f-stops.

The lower the f-stops, or the more wide open your aperture, the smaller the depth of field. The larger your f-stops the greater your depth of field. A larger depth of field is great for landscape photography or when you want to get everything on an even plane in a sense. The smaller depth of field numbers blur out the background making your subject the focus of the shot and giving great bokeh in the background (that’s those round blurry circles!)

I often like to set my camera in Aperture priority mode. What this does is let me set the depth of field (f-stops) how I want them and then the camera controls the shutter speed. This gives me a little less to try and change every time a child or pet runs out of frame!

This photo was taken at f 2.0 so the barn is blurry and some of the grass but the grass right under the subjects are in focus more but the subjects are the sharpest part of the image.

The other great thing about short depth of field is that you are letting in more light as your aperture is open wider. That allows for lower ISO and greater shutter speed. A fast shutter speed can be critical when photographing children or movement. If you are shooting on a bright sunny day and are not in enough shade you may find that you can’t get your f-stops as low as you want. That’s one of those moments where I want to curse the triangle! haha, just go out and experiment with f-stops and depth of field!

Monday, Monday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-04T09:00:00.000-04:00

This last weekend was General Conference weekend. It’s a weekend where instead of regular church we get to listen to the Lord’s prophet and other leaders of the church on T.V. or internet (or in person if you’re there). It’s a fantastic weekend. We have to work hard to make it a pleasurable experience for the kids but it’s totally worth it. Scotty and his Dad made a balloon Laminate warrior with a breastplate of righteousness. We played General Conference bingo and ate lots of candy when we heard the speakers say key words. Scotty made up a couple of stories that he illustrated with photos and his Grandma typed out.

Sunday before we headed to Grandma and Grandpa’s to watch conference I painted a BYU Y on the kids wall and Dan made construction paper marble roller coasters with the kids! So fun! This was my absolute favorite picture from the morning

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-04-01T09:00:00.001-04:00

Good morning April Fool’s! If you area fan and living in New York you probably have already discovered Mother Nature’s not-so-funny April Fool’s joke. But we can make it a fabulous Friday none the less.

Scotty is studying pets in school this week. His teacher asked them to bring in a picture of their pet. We went a little overboard. I had pictures of our dog Moose but I had mentioned something to Scott about having a picture of them together and so that’s what he wanted. I of course couldn’t fin any except from when Scotty was 18 months and Moose was brand new to our family!! What do you do when you are a photographer, your child needs A photo for school, and the sun is shining, AND you have a new density filter to play with? Well you have a mini-photo shoot with your child and send him to school with 3 photos! My husband thinks I’m an overachiever and I’m relieving my education through my son. Yikes!

We told him to hug Moose. I you give my Moose a hug, he’ll want to give you a kiss!And if you let him give you a kiss, chances are he’ll want some more!

Winner, winner, chicken dinner–Glens Falls, NY family photographer

2011-03-31T09:00:00.000-04:00

That’s what my kids say anyways. Congratulations to Kaylieh for winning the Sweepstakes. Her number was chosen in by the online random generator. Now we get to plan a session for her. Woohoo!!

Have a fabulous Thursday and keep your fingers crossed that the weather stations are all in on this cruel April fool’s joke together!

Oh and if you haven’t watched this adorable video yet, you should.

And the winner is…! Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-30T09:01:00.000-04:00

Thank you to all who entered our Sweepstakes and voted in the 2010 Thank You Sweepstakes. Thank you again to all or our 2010 clients here in the Glens Falls, NY area. What a wonderful year it was. If I can survive the talk of the “S” word this weekend then 2011 is shaping up to be a great year as well. We’ve got some amazing things coming up!!

Ok, enough already. I’ll announce the winner. The photo with the most votes goes to Mr. Handsome. Congratulations to Joey and family!! They have won a free custom photography session and a gallery wrapped canvas. That’s over $300 worth of prizes. This little guy was a blast to photograph. I can’t wait to hang out with him again! Who could resist those eyes?!!

I have contacted the winner of the mini-session and am waiting for a reply.

Congratulations to our winners! All sessions booked before May 15, 2011 will receive a special gift as well!!

Tuesday Tip day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-29T09:00:00.000-04:00

I’m so excited to announce the winner of the Sweepstakes and the 2010 Client Vote! That will come soon!

Today’s tip is a little lesson about aperture. Last week we talked about shutter speed and how it tells us how long the shutter stays open. F-stops tell us how far the aperture opens. The aperture opens more the smaller the f-stop number. These numbers affect depth of field. I need to explain depth of field before we dig too much further but that’s for next week. For now we’ll just stick with how the f-stop affects the exposure triangle. The lower your f-stops the more open the aperture and the more light will be coming in. So in low-light settings you’ll want to open your aperture or decrease your f-stops to let in more light.

Quick tip for today but next week we’ll find out what else f-stops do (depth of field)! Depth of field is my absolute FAVORITE!!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-25T07:58:00.001-04:00

Good Morning! I’m not sure it’s a fabulous Friday but I am sure I’m going to make it one!! To go to bed to BYU losing their game and wake up to snow covering my car makes finding the fabulousness in the day a little harder then usual.

On the bright side, BYU’s game was fun to watch and hard fought despite a few things that left them short at the end. And, well, the snow is going to melt because it’s just a covering!

Tuesday Tip day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-23T10:57:00.001-04:00

Although I’d like to pretend it’s Tuesday and I didn’t COMPELTEY forget to blog yesterday, the truth of the matter is that Wednesday is closer to date night so I’m going to stick with Wednesday (because I have the power to change the day of the week like the government changes the time of day?!) Ok, no more sinicism. I’m hoping this blog will make sense because I’m feeling all over the place today.

Did you practice using your camera in manual ISO settings last week? Woohoo! (I’m pretending or assuming you said yes).

Let’s talk a little today about shutter speed. Shutter speed is simply how long your shutter opens up for. So if you have a faster shutter speed, your camera is opening up quicker and therefore not letting in as much light. If you have a slower shutter speed your camera is staying open longer and letting in more light.

Ok, this is how I look at it. When I want more light…darker settings and my subject is fairly still then I make the shutter speed number on my camera be a low number. Be careful not to let that number get to low if you are not using a tripod. The human hand on average can only hold the camera still enough to get a sharp (not blurry) image down to 1/60th of a sec.

***It may get a bit confusing when I say low number. In practical terms that shows up on my camera as the number 60. I have to remember that 60 is 1/60 and so 4000 is 1/4000 and therefore 60 is great then 4000. I’ve always been a wiz at math! So a slower shutter speed is a larger number then a faster shutter speed but on my canon cameras it shows up as a lower number because to save space they leave off the fraction. I’m sorry if this is confusing but I said my mind works in practicality, not in technicality.

Another example:

When it’s daylight and bright outside or I’m shooting in snow (lots of brightness) I get my shutter speed number number up pretty high 1/4000 (showing on the camera as 4000). Also, if I’m shooting movement like a 2 year old or a soccer player, then I need a “smaller” number to appear on my screen.

Ok, feedback please. Do I make sense? I’m really trying to write like I think. That’s a little scary! Happy Wednesday!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-18T09:10:00.000-04:00

Just a quick BYU and Jimmer moment. Gooooooo Cougars!

Ok, now that I got that out of my system, here is my Fabulous Friday pic (pick, get it?)!

A picture a day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-16T08:58:00.001-04:00

I probably take many pictures each day but today is a gray and rainy day after a sunshiny day. I need to remember the sunshine. It sure is a good thing Hudson Falls school had a superintendent’s day. We soaked in the rays all day!!

Tuesday tip day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-15T07:25:00.001-04:00

First off, if you haven’t voted yet, head to Facebook and vote for your favorite photo of 2010! Just for voting you receive an entry into our sweepstakes for a free-mini session!

The tip for this week is ISO. What is it? It’s the old school film way of identifying the different type or speed of films. The rules of ISO still apply for digital photos. The higher the ISO the grainer the photo. Also, with high ISO you will be able to capture more movement and photograph in lower light conditions. The basic rule of thumb is to use the lowest ISO possible.

There’s always a bit of give and take. If you are shooting, for instance, your child’s sporting event outside on a bright sunny day you can bump up your shutter speed and keep your ISO low so that your photos have very little noise (grain, little dots, etc.)

If it’s dark and rainy out you may need to a bit higher ISO to compensate.

Go out and enjoy this sunshine. Play with the ISO, don’t leave it in AUTO!

A picture a day keeps the blues away!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-11T09:53:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone! I’ve moved all the voting over to Facebook. If you’ve already voted here, no worries, your votes will still be counted. Check out the Sweepstakes page here to enter!

Have Friday!

What’s a Friday without some picture love? Here’s a little something I’ve been working on. Aren’t they are beautiful couple? I may be partial!

Tuesday tip day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-08T09:00:00.000-05:00

Apparently it’s really hard for me to get out of vacation mode. Vacation mode is a happy place though so that’s not so bad! We talked a couple weeks ago about the exposure triangle and how ISO, Exposure, and shutter speed have to be balanced. Today I want to delve into exposure a little bit. I won’t get into the technical aspect a whole lot. There are a million tutorial’s on it. I just want to talk about how it affects your photos.

Exposure tells us, in general, how bright are photo will be. Most cameras have a line of dots, one side being more exposure and one side being less exposure. This is for when you are using your camera in auto mode. Auto mode essentially means that your camera decides for you what the exposure and other settings will be. The way you can have some control is the little hash mark. By moving the hash mark left or right you are essentially changing your exposure up or down stops. Each dot is usually a quarter stop.

For example. You are using your camera in automatic mode. You are taking a picture of your child. They are standing up and you are low to the ground so the sky is in the background. The camera will decide it’s settings based on that bright sky in the background. That will cause your child’s face to be too dark. In order to lighten the face you need to stop your exposure up. Try one or two hash marks at first. That will brighten your child’s face. It will, however, also brighten the sky. You have to balance the two when you are using natural light. If you don’t want your sky blown out (too light in order to brighten your subject’s face) you may want to try a different angle or a darker background.

See your camera’s manual to know how to move the hash mark. If you read your camera manual and it feels like your reading Greek and you don’t know Greek, shoot me an email! I read camera Greek!

Inspiration–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-03-02T15:04:00.002-05:00

I LOVE this inspirational post I found on another photographer’s blog. I just LOVE the county fair. I used to love the state fair where my Grandparents would work booths and the gate for the groups they volunteered with. I love the food, the excitement, the smiles. I would LOVE (have a used this word too much) to be able to do a family shoot at the fair!!!

(click on the photo for more great pics)

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Photographer

2011-02-22T15:44:00.001-05:00

Ever heard of the exposure triangle? It can seem as daunting as the Bermuda triangle but is really quite simple. haha. Ok, so really, the exposure triangle is something that you should understand no matter if you use your camera in manual or automatic but most importantly if you want to learn manual.

The triangle consists of ISO (or film speed), shutter speed, and aperture. To get the photo you want you have to get these three items to work together. For instance, shutter speed controls how long your shutter is open. If you want the shutter speed to be quick, you won’t get as much light. In order to have a photo that is light enough or exposed enough, you need to adjust your ISO or aperture to compensate for the faster shutter speed.

I’ll start talking about what each of these items can do and how they play off of each other. When it comes to the technical stuff, I like to know how it works but just briefly. To me, it’s so much more important to know how it works for me or in other words, how does increasing or decreasing that number help me get the shot I want?

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-02-17T23:23:00.001-05:00

I have had an amazing vacation in Oregon. I have squished and loved on many close friends and families little ones. If I didn’t have happiness on the other end of my flight I sure as heck wouldn’t leave all of this! I hate that distance has to separate us but how grateful I am for little visits and technology!

I’m a big sap when it comes to photos. I pull out my computer/photo album/phone or whatever and just flip through the photos. It always makes me cry! (happy and sad tears)

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-02-11T22:26:00.001-05:00

I’m loving being in Oregon but was so wasted this week with being sick and then traveling that my poor blog has been neglected. I felt I had to make a post for Fabulous Friday though because it truly is a fabulous day. If you don’t follow my ramblings on Facebook, I’m on the west coast visiting friends and family.

We did nothing technically special today. The kids had a normal day. Whined, cried, played, laughed, and all that good stuff. But it was still just fantastic!! I just got to be with them, enjoy them, and visit with my dear friend. It is so weird not having anyone else's well being my constant worry at all times. I can help clean, and cook but it’s not MY responsibility. I only have to worry about me and assist where I can. Wow! Weird! I nice change of pace but I think I’ll be pretty antsy by the end of the trip.

The other thing I’m doing on the trip is shooting for me. All the photos are for me and all the editing for me. I took a photo today of a random tree! Maybe saying it’s all for me is just selfish but I’ve read and I believe that it’s important to remember why we take photographs. I photograph to document the memories that make family and life special. I photograph to feel again what I once felt. I photograph to engage my creativity. It’ll be interesting to see what I come up with.

Since we didn’t have a tip this week (I’m wanting to get into the photography triangle, not anything like the Bermuda triangle) but for today we’ll talk about lines. Flowing lines that take the viewers eye where you want it to go. Pay attention to the background and background lines in your next photo and see where they are leading your eye. Does your eye go to the focus of your photo?

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY and Lake George, NY Family Photographer

2011-02-04T09:00:00.000-05:00

Contest!! Woohoo!

Images of U Photography will be a holding a Best of 2010 for our clients because we love you so much oh and because we want some more love on Facebook! Over the next couple of weeks I’m going to choose my favorite (input is appreciated) photos from each photo session excluding headshots and my family (sorry). I’ll post them on Facebook and the contest will be on! The winner will receive amazing things from me and all that fabulousness. So get your contest guru and mojo ready and let’s bring it! (too much listening to Tony Horton)

Have a great weekend!

2010 We love you! Some will miss you and some will not but here’s to a great yesterday and a better tomorrow! (I probably shouldn’t write these posts late at night, should I?)

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-02-01T12:51:00.001-05:00

Happy Tuesday! This happens to be the best Tuesday as it is my birthday

For today I wanted to talk a little bit about light. Light is a little hard to come by these days. It’s too cold most of the time to take a little one outside for any length of time unless every inch of their face is covered up. The good news about the cold though is that usually means the sky is clear and the sun in shining.

One other probably we run into around here is the lack of window light. Houses have small windows, efficiently placed and therefore without much light. Find one or two windows. Use this as a Vitamin D therapy/picture moment. In the case of the photos below it was the corner of an older home with the windows on either side of the corner of the house. Let the child sit or play near the window. The entire face doesn’t have to be eliminated to get the feel for the child's personality. If the child gets a little funny being asked to play in a certain place distract their attention to something outside the window. Chances are they are looking that way anyways.

Have a sunshiny day!

For this last photo this big brother was a little far away from the window to get quite enough light. I used a small speedlight flash and pointed it directly at the window making the window “appear” bigger.

Jimmertime with Edshoots–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer.

2011-01-31T15:54:00.001-05:00

Check out these photos. I was able to follow around a couple very talented creatives for a couple of days while they were here in Glens Falls.

Check out Edshoots here and a couple video snips from John Howe’s video’s here. I sure can’t take any credit for the fabulousness of Ed’s photos but I was able to help out and learn some amazing things, oh and I managed not to break any of his equipment, permanently anyways!

Here’s a few shots I took along the way.

The creatives (EdShoots and John Howe) and BYU athletics guys doing their thing.

Jimmer doing his thing!

A few shots of my family enjoying the pick up game in Crandall Park in Glens Falls.

Potty Saga Continued, Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-29T15:00:00.000-05:00

Because I know you are sitting on the edge of your seat to find out how the potty training went I am going to tell you so you don’t fall off your seat. We figured out through trial and error that there were some performance anxieties and she just wasn’t relaxing. (Could explain the lack of pooping for two days. Just maybe.)

We finally let her take her potty chair out of the bathroom. Her and I sat it at the tea party table instead of her regular chair. We had a tea party and she freely peed and pooped in her chair. She loved it and decided to sit on the chair while eating lunch. Promptly after lunch she said, “I want more tea party.” I helped her move her chair back to the tea party table where she sat, peed, and got up. I think “tea party” might be her new code word.

A little more practice to insure the potty becomes a habitual part of life and we should be smooth sailing. *smiling* *whistling* *optimistically skeptical*

I started the week by telling you how I was the potty training bomb. Well whatever. Reality hit. I can’t change a thing so there’s no looking back but I don’t think I will go forward with my, “How to throw the perfect potty party, I’m so amazing posts.” Seems ill-fitting at this point.

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

What’s not fabulous about this? For a girl (me) that had her first baby while living in Provo and now calls the Glens Falls, NY region home, this is pretty fabulous!

Drum Roll Please, Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-28T00:00:00.000-05:00

It’s official! I’m coming to Alaska! Photo sessions will be offered in the Matsu Valley from June 16-23. I will be in Seward on July 1-5 and will be offering custom photo sessions there as well. A limited number of sessions will be offered. I would like to accommodate other locations as well but will need to plan that soon so please contact me ASAP. Your session fee is required as a deposit in order to reserve your session in my schedule. As a mostly available light photographer I am sooooo excited to enjoy Alaska’s summer light and to come home for the summer!

So be thinking if you want a photo session for your whole family? Or a siblings shoot of your children? Do you have a baby being born in June? Or a baby turning one for a smash the cake session? Also being offered are High School Senior Sessions for the Class of 2012!

The possibilities are endless and I can’t wait!

I’m coming to Alaska to shoot U! (haha, lol, rotfl, I crack myself up)

And a picture from my Mom because posts without pictures are boring and this bear is sooooo cute!

Life is just a big joke–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I don’t really believe that EXTREMELY pessimistic view but sometimes it seems that way. Hazel did amazing on Monday and used the potty perfectly before nap. Then she woke up. She had wet her pull-up but that’s ok, not worried about that. We were going to follow Teri Crane’s method and practice using the potty all afternoon. She had one accident an hour after she woke up. I thought that was great because after an accident we could work on getting to the potty. Well 3 1/2 hours later was the next time she did aaaaaannnnyyything! Ok, so I got a little discouraged at the lack of pee. I was pumping her full of liquids. Nothing. We had fun. We played. We celebrated. No pee. No poop.

Yesterday morning comes. Same thing. Pee in the pull-up. No biggy. Not worried about overnight. 4 1/2 hours later and she finally peed! F.O.U.R and a H.A.L.F! How in the world are we supposed to practice and learn how to use the potty if she only pees every 4 1/2 hours??? At that rate we would only have what like one accident a day. Hey, I could live with that. We won’t wear diapers OR be potty trained.

So there’s the story and then Mommy had a very slow epiphany. Can you even have slow epiphany’s? I thought of my little scoocher, the girl who didn’t crawl but just got around on her bum and who didn’t walk until she was 17 months old. Some have said that it’s due to her broken fractured leg at one year. I think it’s more because until then she couldn’t do it perfectly. I think she stumbled once when she started walking and then was practically perfect. I have seen other little kids start walking the minute their feet could hold them up. Hazel would never stand for that. Pun intended.

So how do I let her be perfect at using the potty before she learns to use it? How do I encourage her and help her to understand that mistakes are ok? I don’t yell at her or even get upset when she pees on the floor but tonight she won’t even go to sleep because she is afraid of pooping in her bed but doesn’t want to put a diaper or pull-up on. I think she’s trying to please everyone but is worrying too much. Oh. My. Goodness. I have a girl on my hands.

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-24T15:00:00.000-05:00

So today’s tip is a bit unorthodox. Here is my tip. It’s a book. It has nothing to do with photography and everything to do with having a 2 ish year old.

Potty Party. Here’s a quick glimpse. My fairy princess and her tea party. It’s pretty funny how much she loves tea party’s when we don’t even drink it. haha.

Love it!

I used Teri Crane’s Potty Party method for potty training my son and today was the big day for my daughter who is just over 2 1/2.

I learned many things from Scotty’s party that I’ve incorporated into Hazel’s. I’ve taken some pictures because I think it’s pretty funny to see the mess that is my house. My philosophy, better one day a disaster then for 1-2 weeks because then I would lose my sanity!

Teri’s method can be kind of expensive if you buy allll the things she says. I have found several ways to cut down on the cost without cutting corners on the method. I will share some of those along with pictures in the next few days but for now I’m going to rest so I can survive the second half!

Later! Wish me luck!

Thoughts for a Saturday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-22T15:35:00.001-05:00

For the past week or more a friend from high school’s family has been in serious distress. Their youngest child and only son was in a dirt bike accident and he was in critical condition. I found out last night from a text that he did not make it.

My friend is VERY pregnant and was not able to fly out west and be with her family. My heart just hurts for them. They are an amazing family and will pull through this but I just wish I could hug them all. I know he is in a better place. I know that Heavenly Father loves them and has a bigger plan then we can imagine. I am so grateful for eternal families.

As I type, my husband is out fixing our car, my daughter is sleeping, and my son is next to me on the couch. Other family is far away or down the street. There’s not a whole lot significant happening in our lives at this very moment but all I can keep thinking is to hug my dears a little tighter, call my brother’s a little more often, and take pictures through it all so I always have my perfect memories. Maybe this is a bad plug for photography. I think everyone should hire a professional photographer to capture those moments, but more then anything I love pictures because of the memories they hold and that can be done by anyone with any type of camera.

If nothing else, please take a photo everyday of the one’s you love.

What cute little melting snowmen!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

I have an exciting announcement coming. I’m hoping to have details by early next week. Isn’t Friday the best?

Well I think that Glens Falls, NY and the surrounding area have received our fair share of snow this January! I’m loving the snow if it would just stay in the 25-35 degree range. Much colder then that and you can’t get out to enjoy the snow as easily. It’s a little funny that I would say this as I once lived in a place that was known to get below 40 below zero. Yes. I did say BELOW 40 BELOW zero.

Here’s a fabulous day for you, a two hour delay for Hudson Falls school, my son home for the day since morning pre-k was cancelled and now off to the story and library with my beautiful babies!

Here’s some more fabulousness for your viewing pleasure!

My dad has the most contagious smile. I’ll never forget the time we went white water rafting and they take a picture along the route like they do on an amusement park ride. My dad had the biggest, best smile! I think these pictures are the essence of what I want to remember from my Christmas!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-18T09:00:00.000-05:00

Snow day! Woohoo!! Last week there was a snow day and we had to drive to Albany for Scotty to have a procedure done. Today is a snow day and I have to go to the hospital for a test (nothing big). At least it is at the Glens Falls hospital. We have bad luck with snow days I’ve decided.

One of the things I love the most about shooting (taking photos) in the snow is the reflections. Snow is bright and has an amazing reflective quality. Find places that reflect when you are out playing with your kids. These earmuffs are a great example. Also, the side of a vehicle that’s clean is a great and easy one to find. Happy reflections!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-13T09:00:00.000-05:00

I’ve posted a couple of these photos before. Yesterday I was speaking with a business associate. He said to me that he is always trying to find a way for me to photograph his family. He has taken to heart “lifestyle” photography and really wants me to photograph his family doing something together. He said, “You’d have to come and hike a mountain with us because that’s what we do.” I said, “Okay!”

I love to tell stories. I’m posting the following series of photos to illustrate the beginning of a story I told for my family. The other half of the story is the photos from when we decorated it as well as Scotty’s birthday tree. You can check out the slideshow of all the photos here.

If you are wondering what this man was, “What would our family do for a photo session,” then here is one idea. As it’s not tree hunting season anymore some other ideas would be building a snowman and having a snowball fight, or decorating Valentine’s Day cookies, or making your favorite logo’s airplanes. The ideas are limitless. The most important thing is that it should be true to who your family is!

What tells your family’s story?

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Fall, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-11T11:13:00.001-05:00

I think it’s time we continued our tips for taking pictures in the snow. I have so many new photos from the holidays that I would like to share and use for these tips but man do I have a lot of editing to do!

Tip of the day, don’t freeze your model’s!

Haha, that’s good but not really the tip. I’m so glad that it’s not just cold anymore and that we actually have snow, the only good thing about it being so cold.

Snow is funny. It makes your camera expose like there is a TON of light and then things looked washed out. I’ve probably mentioned this before but it is the main difficulty to photography in the snow.

There are several ways to work around this. One way is to use the manual settings on your camera. Another way that most cameras offer is the ability to just bump up or down the exposure from how the camera thinks it should be.

In this photo I let the camera do the figuring and it washed out the model’s clothes.

In this photo I bumped down my exposure by 1.5 stops so that it was a little darker. This is the unedited photo (SOOC). I would then take it and sharpen it and add vibrancy to the colors as digital photos come out very flat naturally.

You may have to read your camera manual in order to figure out how to do these two things.

A way to get a great picture without having to mess with you camera settings is just to get up close! That way the camera is not figuring in the snow but you know you have plenty of light! Try these and see what happens. I’d love to hear how it turned out and see your photos!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-07T10:21:00.001-05:00

This little girl is truly fabulous. I drove to their house in Glens Falls, NY to take photos of the gorgeous newborn. I was greeted by her big sister who celebrates her birthday next week and then found out that her other big sister was 2 that very day! These girls also have 3 big brothers! This family is amazing.

This special little girl has yet to meet her Daddy. He is serving overseas for all of us but especially for his fabulous family. This post is for him. Thank you!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2011-01-04T09:10:00.001-05:00

So what is your favorite thing about this time of year? I’m going to take a count…maybe I’ll even figure out how to add a poll to this post. My favorite thing about this time of year is that it is lighter tomorrow then it is today!!!! I don’t care how dark it is and I don’t care how cold it is, I just care that the light is going in the right direction!!

…..Ok, so that was the beginning of last Friday’s post. Yikes! My brother was coming to town and I had promised my husband and myself that they would get all of my attention for that week. I kept thinking, “Oh, but I’ll have time for at least blogging.” But this nagging feeling told me to just put it away and focus on my family, “Your business will still be here when you get back,” the nagging voice said. So I stopped my post midway and got every other have to thing done. Now here I am, and you guessed it, nothing changed while I was gone! haha, the joys of being a small business owner.

The most amazing thing has happened that I want to tell you about. On Christmas evening my brother and his wife got to town. We hung out and settled in and I was trying to get the kids to bed early so I could wrap presents (someone told me I was a procrastinator by doing this Christmas Eve but I just always plan to do it then because if I do it sooner and put the presents under the tree the kids would be tempted and would probably open them). Anyways, little did I know my brother, his wife, and my husband were all stalling me. They tricked me by misdirection and when I wasn’t looking my parents sat in the chair behind my Christmas tree! (video to come…my brother has it). They had been lying to me for months, as well as every other member of my family except my children. They had been flying for well over 24 hours from Alaska and had just arrived to show up under my tree!

Since it’s Tuesday here is your tip of the week. I find that when I take pictures of my family the quality is never as good technically speaking because I’m trying to be photographer, mom, wife, daughter and it’s a little too much. But what I’m learning is, it’s ok! The quality doesn’t matter all the time what really matter’s is capturing that moment the best you can and then loving it!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-12-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

Not the photo but the moment is the theme for this week’s tip. I had a gallery viewing with this amazing family and while we were trying to narrow down the choices this came to me.

These photos are interesting because they are essentially the same photo. I kept them both because the one had all of them showing more. As we were talking I realized that there wasn’t enough of Dad to make it a “family” photo and so it wasn’t needed. What is important is the way the photos feels, what memories come to mind when they look at this photo. The first one is nice but the baby is such a minor part. In the second photo you know that there is a great Dad holding her and keeping her safe and a loving mom nurturing her sweet newborn. You know all of that and yet you get to see a closer view of the main attraction, the new baby!

So to summarize, less is usually more. You don’t need to tell everything to tell a story. Sometimes saying less let’s people feel more.

I’m not a writer but I’ve read a lot of good books and I would assume any writer would tell you that it’s the same idea when you are writing a story as it is in telling a photographic story. Any writers out there? What philosophy do you take when deciding what to include and what to leave out?

The men and women who serve–Glens Falls Family Photographer

2010-12-20T09:00:00.000-05:00

I didn’t take these pictures or make this slideshow but I was touched by it. The two women signing are two amazing women I’ve been able to know in this life. The photographer, Annie, does an amazing job and this slideshow inspired me to say more thank you’s to those that loan out there precious ones to fight for our freedom. Check out Annie’s work here and here

The big Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-12-18T08:38:00.000-05:00

Scotty’s big day is on Christmas (1 week, yikes!). We’ve struggled over the years with deciding how to make it special for him. My brother’s birthday is earlier in December and he’s always complained about it. We do several things to try and emphasize how special the day is as his birthday AND as the day we celebrate the Savior’s birth. Most of these items probably work better now then they will as he gets older but we’ll see!

1) I’m constantly telling him that he’s the BEST Christmas present anyone has ever given me.

2) He gets a small tree in his room that he decorates. It’s his birthday tree and his birthday presents go under it.

3) We are careful not to use Christmas wrapping paper for his birthday presents

4) We started last summer having a half-birthday party for him!

5) He gets a birthday present from Santa.

6) We emphasize that our Savior gave us everything and that Scotty is so precious to his Savior.

7) We have Christmas morning and birthday evening to try and separate the two a little

8) He’s decided this year that he is going to leave birthday cake for Santa! I love this idea and I’m sure it will be a long standing tradition!

Whenever anyone finds out that his birthday is on Christmas they say, “poor guy, he’s going to hate that.” And I always cover his ears. For now he thinks that both events are amazing and won’t know any different until he learns it from somewhere. No matter what happens as he gets older he is truly an amazing little boy and I can’t wait to share many more birthday’s with him.

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-12-17T09:00:00.000-05:00

We go out every year to a tree farm and cut down our tree. It doesn’t take all that long and the kids love the adventure. Although we are horribly indecisive but that’s another topic. Make sure to have your camera ready this time of year if you have young children.

Scott woke up this morning and was bouncing off the walls looking out the window at all the snow. We think, “I have to shovel,” and “It’s going to dangerous on the roads,” and ,”Man, it’s cold.” Kids think, woohoo it’s snow to play in and to throw and to build forts, and, and, and! It’s new and it’s exciting. Don’t miss those moments whether with your mind’s eye’s camera or your point and shoot or your phone or your DSLR.

(taken with my phone camera)

Tuesday Tip Day–North Country Family Photographer

2010-12-14T09:24:00.001-05:00

White can be tough. You have to be VERY careful with any white background. Now that we finally have snow I’ll be able to give some more tips on photographing in the snow. First thing to do is to check your camera manual. Pull it out. Read it. I know but you’ll be glad you did. Find out how to manually change settings. Your camera in auto mode will choose all of it’s settings by the overall amount of light. If you are photographing in the snow it will underexpose everything because it thinks there is tons of light. The bright white snow does give off some light but it doesn’t give off enough to compensate for what your camera does in automatic mode.

Here’s a non-snowy white background example. I love this picture of Nicole!

Fabulous Friday–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-12-10T09:00:00.000-05:00

What’s more fabulous then my alma matter school coming to Upstate New York and playing a basketball game. HERE. RIGHT. HERE?!! The answer is nothing!

So, I should preface this. My husband I met at college. Our friends bought all-sports passes to watch all the BYU sporting events together. On bad weather days, when the team wasn’t doing well, etc. most of our friends didn’t go. Heck, some of them had never seen a football game before in their ENTIRE lives so they didn’t really care beyond the social. Yeah. I know. But, when it came down to it Daniel and I always went.

After he returned from serving a mission for our church I had already bought my all sports pass and attended all the football games with my current friends/roommates. We kept finding extra tickets for him and so he went to most of the games with me. As we started officially dating/courting that’s what we continued to do, football, basketball, soccer (our second date was a BYU soccer game), you name it, we went. After we got married and a lot of our friends did the same, we went to the games with our married friends. AND…after we started having children we still went to/watched all the games.

When we moved from Utah and left college life behind it was hard. We were excited to come to New York and get “real” jobs and raise our family here but had to leave some things behind. We left friends and family out west and we left BYU sports!

BYU is/was part of the Mountain West Conference and the Mountain began their own TV station for it’s school’s game’s. Grrrr, no cable, dish, anyone had the Mountain. Not enough people outside of the Mountain West wanted it. We cried, we searched for games online, and rejoiced when ESPN would pick up an occasional game. Here we are now. I’ve been out of school for 6 years and we’ve been away from Utah for almost 4 and last night BYU came to us!

It was amazing! Some were just there for Jimmer, and some were there for a good basketball, both great reasons, but all in all I cared about was that BYU was HERE! (and the fact that they won was an awesome bonus…woot, woot!!)

My BIL flew in from South Carolina, we met people who drove up from Virginia, our friends held up their Spain Love’s BYU sign and we all cheered. The house was disappointingly quiet I have to say. I’m used to the wild and crazy (alcohol free but still very fun and loud) Marriott Center. I thought that at least alcohol in the house would liven things up. I tried to sing the Cougar Fight song but don’t have a very loud voice. Scotty chimed in and I was so proud. I’ve been teaching it to him since the womb.

All in all I love the excitement of being part of a team. I love BYU and all that it is and stands for. I love Jimmer for who he is and for the excitement and good that he brings to this community. Thank you BYU. Thank you Glens Falls Major. Thank you to all who made last night a dream come true for our family!

I know this post wasn’t much about photography. The above pictures are Scotty’s early life as a Cougar. The ones on the far right are from when he fell asleep with some shredded chicken in his mouth and sucked on it like a pacifier! Needless to say I searched for some photos (pre-digital) of Dan and I at the games together before Scotty but couldn’t find any. So that’s my plug. No matter what you do, capture those moments because they go by crazy fast!

Tuesday tip day–see yesterday :) Lake George, NY Family Photographer

2010-12-08T09:00:00.000-05:00

Don’t ask me why I chose the grumpy picture . I wanted to show how a little editing goes a long way. I’ve wanted to do this for a while but I never want to show the lesser picture of anyone else. I don’t mind showing my before and after's though so this is perfect for that.

I softened my skin (it’s dry here right now), whitened my eyes as my contact tend to create a slight blue look, Brightened my iris, and darkened the background.

SOOC (straight out of camera)

Editing

Tuesday Tip day–Wednesday, Queensbury, NY Family Photographer

2010-12-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

A fellow photographer posted this link on Facebook this morning to this blog. It’s a woman. A photographer, who is going to Zambia and teaching children how to use cameras. No one there has cameras whereas everyone here does, usually multiples. This could change lives. I can’t wait to see what is produced after having this photographer teach them. Being that cameras are new to them it should be eye opening and amazing to see what their fresh perspective finds.

Camera’s for Zambia

Check it out if you have an extra minute. I thought it was timely and so am going to put off my regular post for a day.

BONUS: I will give a free photo session (a $250.00 value) to anyone who donates a camera to this cause! Email me!!

Good Morning Monday–Lake George Family Photographer

2010-12-06T09:00:00.000-05:00

Check out the new about me page!

Hopefully we've met. If not I hope we can soon. I am a very social person. If I go too long by myself I get really cranky and depressed. It's funny because then I don't want to be around people. My goal is to avoid ever getting to that point.

Something many people don't know about me is that I am a born and raised Alaskan. I met a boy and now I'm a very happy New Yorker. I like to call myself a New Yorkan but that term drives my husband crazy.

I love pickles and olives and salad. I. DON'T. LIKE. CHOCOLATE. I know. I'm crazy.

I couldn't be happier in the midst of chaos, after I've had time to plan and organize it.

My family is my total inspiration. I am a better person because of everything they do for me. My husband truly completes me and my kids keep me young.

My almost 5 year old boy is intense and loud and LOVES people more then anyone I've ever known.

My 2 1/2 year old girl has curly red hair. She is as calm as her easy going Daddy with a little fire in every curl.

I miss my mom like crazy and call her everyday.

I am almost 29 years old and this past year I found my first gray hair and had my first real wrinkle, the kind that doesn't go away after getting a little extra sleep. The funny thing is that I'm HAPPY about both of those things. I am different then I was. I am better. My goal is to grow old happily and gracefully!

Stop by and check out the photographs of U. Making my clients cry is the biggest high and I can't wait to meet you and make you cry as you remember the moments. Protecting your memories and giving you a photographic one is what I do!

Fabulous Friday–meeting a challenge–Hudson Falls, NY family photographer

2010-12-03T16:05:00.001-05:00

A challenge was presented this week by another photographer whose blog I love to read. This challenge was for photographers to step in front of the camera. There were several reasons, one because we can’t ask our clients to do it if we are not willing to, and two, so that people can know WHO we are.

I truly believe that you can learn so much about a person from their photograph if they are being honest in it. By honest I mean, being their true selves. So here is my presentation of my self portrait. Leah said that we could have someone else take the photos, and although I recently had my portrait done by my friend Karey I still felt a need to express myself. The photos Karey took were at a photographers convention in Las Vegas. Not exactly a location I would call “me”.

A few bloopers to begin…where am I? These photos are small because they are NOT flattering (or I lost my head). The red gloves were wrong, I hadn’t thought about them I was just cold. Then my pose was wrong. Oooh, and that hair! I took the jacket off because it looked tight (it’s not) but apparently I still don’t look good in washed out colors. Yuck! After checking these photos I was about ready to give up. I had an hour or so to myself but plenty of other things I could have been doing. I had two choices, give up and wait until another day when I had time to do my hair, or go with it and see what happened. I went with the latter and I’m really glad.

I LOVE hats but most of all, I hate being cold! Don’t get me wrong, I love the cold weather I just don’t like actually being cold. I’ve also always wanted to take my self portrait with this hat on. This hat always feels very Alaskan too me (I got it at the Alaska state fair) which is where I grew up and is so me. But being that it’s pink is also a new expression of who I’ve become. – point of info, I didn’t wear pink until after I got married and now my closet is full of it!

Ok, so another couple bloopers. My eyes look ha-lariously, unnaturally, huge in this first photo and I think I made myself mad in the second.

This is one of my favorite. The sun kept peaking in and out of the clouds and here it shown and made my usually dark eyes sparkle. I love close-up and personal photos like this one. Foreheads are not always needed!

Haha, who was I laughing at? and………oops I missed! Every time I moved the camera I had to re-aim and let’s just say I don’t have the best aim.

This one I’m actually using on my business Christmas Card. I love the light and the color and who knows what made me so happy. Actually, my trick was to think of my children and pretend like they were there with me. Then I was able to fake a smile but make it feel real.

This is for my Mom. I’m assuming she would say it looks the most like she pictures me! The second photos here is a shot of where I was. My ugly shed in my yard. You can kind of see the tripod in front of the pile of boards. This is to show that you can make photos in unusual places.

A little outfit change. Another new expression of me mixed with the old. I use to always wear long-sleeves with short sleeve over and a fleece vest. The short hair and J-Crew hat is definitely the new expression of self.

I was using a remote, not a self-timer but this totally looks like a missed self-timer shot. Oh and in the right photo I’m dancing. All alone. Oh well.

I had to lean back and just laugh at myself. It was pretty funny because I was ALL alone!

Love this one! I try to get the White balance (the warmth of the colors) to match up but the sun was so in and out that some pictures are really cool and others warm. Up until this time I had left Moose hooked up because if I sit on the ground all he wants to do is get in my face and be loved and that would be a bit awkward for a portrait. I decided to let him off so I could snap a few shots with him. Yeah. Nice thought. He wanted nothing to do with it. I waited and waited and tried different spots away from the camera.

Can you just hear him saying in this photo, “Whatever Mom.”

I LOVE his eye with the sun in them but of course he didn’t. What a lovable guy!

If you’ve stuck with me this long (hi Mom) I plan to re-use some of these photos for Tuesday tip day. The plan for the next several tips was to focus on photographing in the snow but since we don’t have snow yet I think I’ll change it up a bit until we do. I’ve always wanted to show some more before and after editing photos but didn’t want to focus on anyone else’s “fixes”. They aren’t fixes they are just smoothings. I think it helps us focus on the real person and not the zit or the dry skin. So get your learners ready for Tuesday!

Tuesday Tip day–What weather? Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-30T09:00:00.000-05:00

Unless you have a really small baby please don’t let the snow/rain or other weather stop you from getting out. Sometimes inclement weather can just make us cranky and that’s a good reason not to push it but snow can be gorgeous and cloud cover is fantastic!

Check out my fellow Photog’s latest snow shoot with a High school Senior. I love this photo! Cold weather can make for some awesome accessories, coats, hats, scarves. Get creative!

Snow Shoot

Now get out there and have fun! This will be the beginning of some “snow” tips. Hopefully the snow will follow!

Here’s a little inspiration. I did not style this, just threw on Scott’s play in the snow clothes. I loved it when he switched hats with his Daddy though because the blue hat looked amazing on him.

Fabulous Friday–Newborn goodies, Glens Falls, NY family photographer

2010-11-26T13:47:00.001-05:00

This is definitely a fabulous Friday. Put a hole in my wall (on purpose), did some painting, ate pancakes and leftover turkey, and now I get to blog! Baby T was so sweet. Reese had to keep a close eye on me but wouldn’t get to close. I think she may still be getting used to all this new baby stuff. Having a stranger taking her picture didn’t help. She sure is pretty though!

It was a cold, wet day outside but we got lots of light in through the windows. The home was perfectly decorated for a photo shoot! I couldn’t have wished for more. It was also nice and warm inside and Baby T slept so perfectly. Here’s a sneak peak!

Tuesday Tip Day–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-23T09:00:00.000-05:00

Have you ever said, “Say cheese,” before taking a photo? I have. We all have. Try it. Tell a 3-6 year old to say cheese in front of the camera, then catch them just smiling on there own or even ask them to say something different, something goofy that might make them laugh. Now take those two photos and look a them on your computer side by side. Can you tell that they are say the word cheese? Does it feel “cheesy.”

Try this and let me know how the experiment works! I’d love to hear your favorite funny things to say!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Fabulous Friday–Larger then life, Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-19T09:00:00.000-05:00

It had been mentioned to me that this little guy’s personality was “larger then life” and she wasn’t kidding. We had such a blast on this gorgeous fall morning.

This kid was incredible but he was just the icing on the cake. These 4 women are an absolute inspiration to me. Not only are they a close and very loving family but they are all REAL women. Real women who are doing things with their live to make a difference for families. Educator, director, mom, pharmacist, sister, friend, aunt are only a few words that come to mind when I look at these women.

I brought my husband along as he is my favorites helper when it comes to 4 year old boys! He had so many amazing things to say about this family. He is a very real person and can sense anything fake from a million miles away. Due to this, we will never buy a car from a car lot. haha. But he could sense the reality of these women and their lives.

Sometimes I wonder if I’m being to personal here on this blog but my work makes me think. It makes me feel. It makes me love people and gives me hope for the future, specifically the future of the family. I felt so honored to be a part of the lives of these amazing women if just for a morning. Thank you Nicole.

Sneak Peak’s Sneak Peak–Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-18T09:52:00.001-05:00

This is just a tiny preview to the official preview. Almost 4 year old, shares a name with me, and walks up with red hair! Love at first sight. We ran, we through leaves, we talked because that was the only time he would hold still, and we laughed. Plus he was perfectly styled by his gorgeous mom!

A shout out to the Chocolate Mill. We expected a chilly morning, although it ended up sunny and pretty warm, so I had planned to walk over to the Chocolate Mill for some warm hot cocoa when we got through in the park. We went anyways as Brayton said his favorite candy was anything chocolate! What a gorgeous setting!

Albums–Lake George High School Senior Photographer

2010-11-17T13:00:00.001-05:00

I keep thinking that I should get away from album designing and stick to photographing but I always just love to see what comes out. I think a photo session tells a whole story and therefore deserves to be published as a whole book!

Ok, so anyways, I just loved the way this page tuned out. Minus the blog border and watermark, it is the simplest page and by far one of my favorites. What a glamorous way to be remembered and what an amazing keepsake to show your children. Speaking of children, I need to get making albums for my little ones!

What’s that quote, something about an accountants finances are never done, a plumbers plumbing always needs work. I have a million pictures of my kids but I have done very little with them. One of the things I feel passionate about is helping my clients to overcome this. I have had so many say, “Yeah I have this great photo rolled up in the basement somewhere,” Or “I loved this one of my son when he was one but just never got it hung up.” Call me!! I will come and hang it up. What good is a happy memory if you can’t see it to get you through the rainy days?

To sunny days!

Tuesday Tip Day–Lake George, NY Photography

2010-11-16T09:25:00.001-05:00

A quick tip for this bright Tuesday…more light is not always better light. Sometimes it’s just more. Look for unusual amounts and placing of light to see your loved ones in a new way!

Portrait of a Golfer

2010-11-15T09:00:00.000-05:00

I absolutely LOVE the way this slideshow came out. This photoshoot was so unique. It wasn’t a full family or a small child. It was family in a different sense.

My friend asked me to photograph her Mom playing golf. At 92 it’s a pretty amazing thing. She has these little angels in her life that help make it possible for her to keep playing and I was blessed to tag along on the prettiest day of the year.

After some bad weather and scheduling conflicts the day arrived and it couldn’t have been more perfect. It was one of the incredible Upstate New York fall days. The women were a blast and I got a quick lesson in how to keep up on a course because they are there to play golf!

Paperwork – Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-12T16:15:00.001-05:00

I have a business degree. I KNOW how important the right paperwork/legal docs, etc can be. I don’t hate them, they are a necessary thing. That being said, I’m SOOOOOOOO bad at it! I hate stopping the fun and excitement of the photo session to get a form signed. I have to do better though because without them I can’t post sneak peaks. This is from an amazing session a did a few weeks ago. It was two sisters, a mom, and a grandma plus a great-grandson. This grandson was larger then life and we had a ball! As soon as I get the necessary papers I will show more! Have a happy Friday!

Baby Addison - Queensbury, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-10T15:40:00.001-05:00

This is my first full slideshow from a session, complete with music and transitions. Please leave a comment. I’d love to know what you think!

Tip Tuesday – Queensbury, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-09T08:39:00.001-05:00

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this recently but I keep noticing it in my “snapshots” of the photos I take of my children. When I’m out with my kids and not in professional mode I sometimes forget to pay any attention to these things and just snap photos cause I think my kids are cute. It makes such a difference in a photo if there is a catch light in there eyes. That usually just requires them to look up to the sky or at a window or such. Sometimes you can just have something white or otherwise reflective near them. (A white shirt will even work in a pinch).

I love this memory. He was so excited for this hike and then sooooo exhausted as we went along but loving life. I hate that there is no life in his eyes. I will keep this pictures because it brings back memories but I wouldn’t hang it on my wall. Light in the eyes makes all the difference.

Perspective – Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-08T10:52:00.001-05:00

I opened up my computer this morning to check emails and read some of my favorite blogs when I came across something that made me think and cry. This fellow photographer/blogger does some amazing work and I love to read her inspiring blogs.

It’s great to see what others are doing, thinking and even struggling with. Today’s post was a little more heart wrenching then normal. It’s a story of a mom who had a baby and then a few weeks later (just now) left this world, leaving her young husband a widower and her tiny baby motherless.

Now that photographer and I have some of the same beliefs about afterlife that give us some great peace about where that beautiful mom is and that her family can be together forever but it still hurts to lose those we love. As I watch my little girl on the couch and think about this I remember just how important it is to me that she and her brother and their Daddy are always first. I don’t want to ever look back and say I missed something. Don’t blink. It’s not worth it!

Here is a link to her post if you’d like to read it.

Love your family, give them a squeeze, and then smile. Just. Keep. Smiling! and Loving!

Fabulous Friday retake – Queensbury, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-05T11:57:00.001-04:00

Did I really think yesterday was Friday? That’s ok, it’s one of the best weekdays so I don’t mind repeating it. Sorry!

Here’s some more summery warmness for a cold fall/almost winter day!

When does an image become a photograph? – Upstate New York Family Photographer

2010-11-04T20:58:00.000-04:00

This was written by Skip Cohen and I thought it was worth repeating.

An image or a picture becomes a photograph:

1. When it’s printed professionally on stunning paper with rich vivid colors.

2. When it’s matted and framed professionally.

3. When it’s included in a stunning album.

4. When it’s slightly re-touched/enhanced as only a professional can do.

5. When it’s shared with family and friends.

6. When it simply makes you cry with sadness, joy even excitement and anticipation.

That last two might be my favorite. What is your favorite thing about your favorite photograph?

Friday Fab Day – Queensbury, NY Newborn Photographer

2010-11-04T10:08:00.002-04:00

Despite concern that it might be obnoxious or over the top I think I’m going to go with Fabulous Friday as my theme for my Friday posts. I just love the word Fabulous, if said right. It just makes me smile. Today is wet and rainy and frankly I’m FREEZING. I don’t really want to call Friday’s “Freezing Friday” so we stick with Fab.

I needed some warm, squishy fabulousness today and so I thought I’d share. Doesn’t it just make you want to kiss and hug Baby A and sit in that sunshine she is basking in through the window?

Breakfast – Glens Falls, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-03T09:10:00.000-04:00

Breakfast while we were camping. Depth of Field (how much and what is in focus) is so much fun.

Which would you focus on?

Tuesday Tip Day – Lake George Family Photographer

2010-11-02T09:10:00.000-04:00

I’m trying to come up with themes to the day of the week so that I can have blogging inspiration. We’ll see if I can choose one and stick to it. Ideas? Suggestions? Please!

Here’s your tip of the day! A series of 3 pictures can tell an amazing story.

What words would you fill in to these 2 picture stories?

Brightness for an otherwise gloomy Monday – Lake George, NY Family Photographer

2010-11-01T09:44:00.000-04:00

I’ve been looking at some photos from this summer. I decided to have a Hazel day and tomorrow I will have a few of Scotty. These are from our camping trip just before Dan and I started coaching and our lives got crazy. A few things that these photos make me think of…tips for taking better photos of your children on an everyday basis.

1) Use a post processing program to enhance color but don’t over do it. The light here was right so I didn’t have to enhance her eye at ALL. It is a fine line between gorgeous eyes and alien eyes. Which leads to tip number 2…

2) Get it as right as possible in camera. The left photo is SOOC (Straight out of camera). All I did was use my post-processing software to increase the vibrancy and clarity a smidge. *More on post processing software to come.

3) This third photo is my favorite because she’s not talking to me but listening to her Daddy. Have your camera ready to catch those moments that aren’t focused on the camera. They are the most real. Sometimes that can be as simple as catching them when they are focused on someone else.

Have a happy Monday!