How Cute Is He???

Now isn't this little fellow just adorably handsome??? I could not resist taking a few shots of him during our homeschool PE class on Friday. What a great subject to test taking portrait shots with on my new lens! :D These are my first official portrait shots with my "nifty-fifty". Not bad, if I do say so myself. LOL!

FYI: These shots were shot wide open. Meaning, I shot at the lowest f-stop to get a shallow depth-of-field. Therefore, only a small portion of the photo is in focus. I wanted the deep bokeh for these shots! When shooting wide open for portraits, be sure you are focused on the eyes. Click images to view original size.

Oh, I almost forgot...Did y'all notice my new (watermark) logo? I just created them this evening. I needed something that I could use for shots where my other logo would not fit right. So, I got to designing again! :D

Photography Students: Final Class!

Yay! Here are photos from last week's "downtown CG shoot". This place had so much character! It definitely was a fun location to shoot at. :) You will notice that the boys ended up being the models in a lot of the photos. LOL! They were such good sports!

Since this was our final photography class, I decided to post 2 photos submitted by each student. Enjoy! They all did fantastic! Our Photoshop class will be starting the first week of November. So stay tuned for more photos from these wonderful students!! :D

by Taran

by Natalie

by Hope

by Jordan

by Hollen

by Nate

by Natalie

by Rachelle



by Hope

by Rachelle

by Taran

by Nate

by Hollen


by Jordan

Shots with new 50mm 1.8 lens!

Here are some initial shots with my new prime lens! Totally fun! Now keep in mind, I just got the lens on Thursday so I am still learning how to effectively use this lens ~ especially since on the D40, I am forced to shoot in manual mode with it. I've only shot in manual once before, so this is all very, very new to me! But, I must say....manual mode is not that difficult at all! I am totally loving shooting manual. :D

So now that I've had it for a few days, what are my initial thoughts on this lens?? Well, let's see.....it's AMAZING! Talk about deep bokeh! And the sharpness is great! The only thing I need to get used to is not having a zoom on it. A prime lens only has one focal length, so you must move in closer or father away from your subject. With a prime lens, you sacrifice the zoom for more sharpness. Fortunately, I do have a zoom lens for those times I can't get in closer. :D

Lastly, one of the biggest reasons I bought this lens was because of the wide aperture (f1.8), which makes it a great lens for low light shots. We went to a tractor pull on Friday evening and I was able to take some great shots in very low light without a flash. I was quite impressed! I didn't post any of those because unfortunately, my focus was off on all those shots. LOL! Oh well, it's all part of the growing process, right??

All in all, I highly recommend this lens! For only $109, this lens packs a lot of power and flexibility for the money.

Downtown Photoshoot

Fun, fun, fun! This afternoon we went downtown to do our street photo shoot for our photography class. It was awesome! (Couldn't resist using that word!) I didn't realize how much character there was in this part of our own hometown! Where've I been?? :D Here are some of my favorite shots from this shoot. I couldn't wait to get these posted! Enjoy!

The kids will be submitting their shots from today by next Tuesday. I will post their shots Wednesday, so stay tuned! I can't wait to see their work! :D

Okay, I need to mention how excited I am of this last shot (below). Except for a defog, this shot is SOOC. Can you believe how deep of a blue the sky is??? Wowzers! I didn't even have my polarizing filter on. I am soooo in love with my D40! Color, color, color. Gotta love it! LOL! :D

Oh! For those who are following my photography journey, I wanted to share something exciting.....

I ordered a new 50mm f/1.8D lens last week and it just arrived this afternoon!! Yippee!! This is a prime lens and is super sharp, even in low light. This lens has been recommended for portrait shots and low light shots (because of the wide aperture). Can't wait to show some shots with this. Btw...it does not autofocus on the D40, so I am forced to shoot in manual mode. And guess what?? I am LOVVVIINNG it (manual mode, I mean -- of course, the lens too)!! :D