Pictures from Roll #3

Ok, so I have a LOT of stuff that I want to blog about this week, but first things first. I finished up another roll of film almost a week ago, and I have just been really lazy about getting them uploaded and posting about them. But here you go!

I have to say, I am very happy with this roll. There was, in my mind, a noticeable improvement in picture composition and color, etc. Tell me what you think...

Mike and I took a wonderful trip to Houston to celebrate our upcoming anniversary, so that is where most of these shots came from.

This was the inside of our hotel room at the Four Seasons... pretty isn't it? What I like about this picture is the lighting, and the fact that I feel it looks like a brochure picture, even though I took it myself...

The people at the Four Seasons were amazing about recognizing our anniversary. They gave us two cards, and sent up a complimentary dessert plate full of goodies. What I like about this picture is that even though it is unintended, the lighting reflected in the glass table makes it look like it is split in half, light and dark. Also, the focus turned out wonderfully. This is probably my favorite picture on this roll (Mike agrees).

This is another shot of the same plate (although you might notice some of the treats are gone by this point). I am very happy with the crisp focus on this flower in this one.

One of our stops in Houston was the House of Blues, which is where we went to see The Decemberists in concert. Inside the restaurant, was this mosiac of glass tiles, each imprinted with the face of a blues musician. The odd thing is that in the actual restaurant, these faces are not that easy to see, they blend in, and make this look like a bunch of blue glass blocks unless you look closer. I will admit, I used auto focus on this one, but I was happy with the way the flash highlighted the faces and brought them out. What I don't like is the red whatever in the corner that obstructed part of the view.

This one is my second favorite on the roll. Again, I have to admit that I used auto focus, mostly because I was standing on a busy street corner, and I didn't want to take a long time with this shot. I like the off-centeredness (is that even a word?) of this picture, the fact that it all is in focus, and the contrast of the sky behind it.

So there you go, folks, roll #3.

What do you think? What are your favorites?

Pictures from Roll #2

So here is the latest batch of pictures from roll #2... I was happier with more of these pictures, but there were still some real duds that I didn't post this time around...

This first one is another picture of the vine that is growing up the post in front of my house. I like this shot because it appears abstract and almost fake (the vine). The background is out of focus, and so all that exists is this vine that is struggling to make its way up the post.



Next couple are from the inside of the church that I work at. I really like the perspective on this first one. The color is a little washed out in the foreground due to flash, but that same flash picked up the golden cross on the altar and lit up the full aisle, so it gave a good sense of perspective. Overall, pretty happy with this one.



Here we have a close up shot of the cross that you saw in the last picture. I am actually very pleased with the flash effect in this one. The rest of the picture remained dark, with just the cross and the top of the Bible being illuminated.




These next two are some of my favorites on this roll I think. It is the same shot, one with a flash and one without. The one with the flash is pretty cool because of the brick detail that you can see. The one without the flash is a little dark for my liking, but at the same time, it is kind of cool because it almost looks like the window is floating in midair.




This next shot was taken on 9-11 at a local convenience store. The flag is probably as big as the store itself, and although I have seen it flying there before, the immense size of the flag, plus the fact that they had it at half-mast, really caught my eye. Overall, I really like the picture too, because although I didnt really notice the clouds at the time, I think they give an interesting backdrop to the picture.






This next one is a random flower that suddenly bloomed next to the door of my house. I didnt plant it, not sure where it came from, but I walked out my door one day and it was there. Pretty happy with the focus on this one. I think the bloom is highlighted, the colors vibrant, and the background in just the right amount of "out of focus"





This last one is from an overgrown area near our house. It's not the most colorful, its not the artsiest, but I like it... I actually really like it alot because out of all the pictures I took, I feel this one tells a story the best. The explosion of such a wide variety of plants, the vibrancy of their colors and contrasts, the broken and deserted planter... I don't know... I almost feel as though this is a scene of something that was left behind and forgotten being overtaken by new life.



Again, none of these have been photoshopped, all straight out of the camera...

So my friends, what do you think? Which do you like the most? And why? I would really like to hear about why you connect with certain pictures, and what you like or dislike about the shots...

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures (for real)

Ok, finally got the pictures back from my first roll of film, so I thought I would share them with you... even the not so great ones.

These first shots are of our cat, Bessie (who only responds to the name "Gato"... long story). These are epic because in the years we have had her, these are the first good photos of her that I have taken. For some reason, she HATES the digital camera, and will not sit still, but for the 35mm, she just poses up pretty...




A random flower on a tree outside our house... its ALMOST right, but just barely out of focus. I was working on manual focus on this roll (which the exception of the cat pictures lol), so that is an area I will continue to try to improve.



Another flower on another tree... again, almost in focus, but just barely missing the perfect mark...



This stack of firewood has been sitting on our front porch since last year, and it has begun to grow this brilliant yellow moss. The color was too fantastic to pass up...



A couple pictures of a vine that is growing up the post on our front porch. I am very happy with the focus on these two, but I would have reduced the flash just a little bit. The color is just a tad bit washed out for my liking...





Before I show you the last one, the one that I am MOST proud of, let me tell you that I don't even own Photoshop. These pictures are all straight out of the camera, because I figure I can learn best that way. Anyone can doctor up a picture to make it look nicer, but I am trying to take really good pictures to start with.

So with that being said, here is a picture of a random azalea bloom on a bush in our driveway. It is the only bloom on the bush, and is very out of season, so it caught my eye. The color is beautiful, the focus is sharp, and the camera is of high enough quality to capture the texture of the leaves...



I have roll #2 loaded and ready in the camera. Let me know what you think of these, and what you would change...

~Ifer

Our Weekend Trip

So yeah... I failed at getting the pictures of me and Mike that I said I was going to try for. I did however get some pictures of the place that we stayed at!

We went to Lake Charles and stayed at the L'Auberge Du Lac Casino (means Inn on the Lake) (yeah, I am nerdy enough to have looked up the translation when we got home. We were there to see Blue October, a band that both Mike and I have a long history with.

We arrived in Lake Charles around 2pm, and went to check in to our room. The service at this hotel and casino was outstanding, I must admit. The lady behind the check in desk was very polite, and friendly, and made me feel like a guest in their hotel, not like I was inconveniencing them by making them clean a room for me. We went upstairs to our room, and found a beautiful room, done up in a slightly Western theme, straight down to these amazing chairs:

which for some reason really fascinated me and prompted me to take another picture, even closer, of the feet on the chair... did you catch those in the first picture?

Yeah... that's a hoof. I don't even like Western themed stuff, and I would SO put these in my house.

Anyhow, after checking in, we went down to the casino and contributed a little of our money to the economy of Louisiana, and then had some amazing Creme Brulee gelato in the dessert shop there. We met up with Mike's brother and his wife for the buffet dinner, which was somewhat of a letdown for me. The selection was not that great, and the food was very bland.

The advantage to being there was that while we were eating, 4 out of the 5 members of Blue October came in to eat their dinner, and we got a chance to say hello to a couple of them. It was really nice to see that they still remember us, even as big as they are getting.

After dinner, we hung out for a while until it was time for the show. It was a free concert by the pool in the casino, so there were TONS of people there, and only about 1/3 of them there to see a band. The band Ours opened, followed by Switchfoot, and then Blue. Mike and I found some comfy pool recliners around the other side of the pool to relax in and watch the show. As it turned out, we could see the projection screen perfectly from where we sat, and there was a cool breeze blowing there as well. The music was wonderful, and it was really good to see Blue in concert again (one of these days I will tell you about our history with Blue).

After the concert, we met back up with the family, and went to the cafe there and had some dinner, even though it was midnight. And then back to the room to crash!!

All in all, a really great trip, and a great time spent with family.

Oh, and here are a few other pictures I took...

The view from our window of the front entrance and fountain

A closer shot of the fountain

The beautiful golf course there on the grounds

I have a feeling we will be back there again...

Pancakes, Pictures, and Paraphernalia

Mental paraphernalia, that is (and yes, I had to look that word up to get the spelling correct). I have a lot of random things to share with you today, so I am going to group them all together in this one post. This one, wonderfully aliterated-titled, post.

Last night, Mike and I wanted a snack, so I made up some pancakes. I realize this is not groundbreaking news, but you haven't had my pancakes. I make a really mean flapjack, my friends. I worked for two years at a Wendy's during the breakfast rush, and I know my pancakes. I make them big, light and fluffy, really cake-like. I am not a fan of the crepe. I smothered mine with strawberry jelly, and went to town. It was wonderful!

When I got home from work, this was waiting for me:

Mike bought it for me as a surprise, and it came in the mail yesterday. I had no idea it was on its way, so I was wonderfully surprised. I have an amazing husband, the kind that sees things that I would like, and loves to surprise me with them. And excited? you better believe it! I did a little bit of reading in it last night, and it gives all the information that you could possibly need, from how to take pictures without using a telescope, to what kind of film to use, what cameras work best, etc. And also exciting is the idea that I am going to be buying a "old-fashioned" camera at some point for astrophotography. Turns out that digital cameras dont have the exposure time, and the sensitivity to light that regular cameras do, so YAY! I will get to do some equipment shopping in the near future.

This Thursday I am taking off work at noon, and Mike and I (along with Mike's brother and his wife) will be headed to Louisiana to a casino there. Our main reason for going is to see Blue October in concert there (more about our history with Blue October in another post), but let me reassure you that we are planning on enjoying the buffet dinner, and planning to do a bit of gambling. I am really looking forward to this trip for a variety of reasons. It has been probably close to two years since we have seen Blue in concert. I have never stayed in a casino hotel room before (YAY!), and the buffet? Do I even need to go into my love of food, and what a buffet means to me? Most importantly, I am looking forward to a trip with Mike and our family.

My boss, the preacher, gets back from his family vacation on Thursday. They have been gone for three weeks now, and it has been really quiet around here. While that is nice for a while, I am looking forward to having them back and there being a little more life around this place.

I guess that is all for now, my friends. The clutter in the brain is cleared out, and I can focus on the work at hand.

I will leave you with this question though... what sorts of clutter do you find in your mind today?

Capture

I just wanna take purdy piktures!

I have known for a long time that I have the eye of a photographer. I SEE the pictures in the world around me that are just waiting to be captured. I see the gorgeous colors in the sunset, I see the brilliant blue of that bug, I see the adorable way our cat is curled up on my chest.

I have the heart of a photographer too, I think. When my eye captures these pictures in the world, my heart feels what is behind that image. I "hear the symphony in the sunset" as a friend once told me. I want to grab that beauty and capture it and show the world that "SEE! this is the amazing world around me that I see"

I have the camera of a photographer. I don't know exactly the model and all the specs, but I know that is has the capability to capture the pictures I want. Yes, I need more lenses and accesories for it, yes, I need to figure out its features, but it is an amazing camera.

What I do NOT have is the skill of a photographer. I have a basic understanding of aperture, shutter speed, ISO, etc, but I don't know how to translate that into a good picture. I don't know how to make my camera see the masterpiece that I see. How do I make it translate into a shot that everyone will see, and they will understand what I was feeling when I saw that in real life?

Now I KNOW that Photoshop was a huge tool (heh, tool) in making pictures turn out as beautifully as I see them on some of the blogs and websites I visit. I know it can fine tune the shot to bring out the best in the picture. I plan on getting this software, believe me.

But I also know that you need a good picture first. A good angle, a good exposure, etc.

What I really want, I guess, would be someone to follow me around for a while and tell me that in this situation, if you want to capture that sunset, you need to have your aperture at X and your shutter at X, etc. I need a personal tutor so that I can figure it all out. That isn't too much to ask, now is it?

And while we are at it, I would like to have a personal chauffeur so that I don't have to drive anymore. And a personal maid to clean my house and wash my dishes. Oh! Oh! and a personal chef so that Mike and I don't have to cook anymore... hmm... let me see... I guess that means I need to get to work on winning that lottery (yeah, the one we never, ever buy tickets for).

In other news, our addiction to Fable 2 still goes on strong. We play it in shifts, we stop for meals, and of course sleep, but that is about it. And while it may seem bizarre to you, it makes complete sense for me that I recieve IMs from Mike telling me that "my wife just left me again". Yes, we have a gaming addiction. No, we do not plan to seek help for it. We plan to continue on, each of us being an enabler for the other.

Now if I could just figure out the personal "someone to do all the things in life that I don't like doing" dilemma....