Inspiration & Experimentation

So after work today I had the yearning to be imaginative and create something. I love being inspired by other artists as well as life its self. So I got online to Flickr, a photo sharing site, and scrolled through the  recent photos under the explore drop down menu. There are beautiful photographs shown there, by golly! My desire to create something only deepened. I happened upon this picture by Nadja Sveir off of Flickr:

(for better quality go here)

I've been wanting to do a layering affect with nature and people for awhile now because I think it looks so beautiful! Then laziness struck and I wanted to use older pictures I already had instead of taking brand new ones, I know... I'm a cheater. BUT, I wanted to get started right away. So I went through my photographs and these are the pictures I decided to use and meld together. 

I then went into photoshop and played around for about an hour, enjoy every minute of it may I add, and after I was all done I accomplished these two beauties: 

I'm happy with what I came up with, but if I had to change anything... I'd shoot pictures thinking of melding them together and not go through old photographs I had already taken. It was fun putting two and two together, but it took a lot of searching and remembering through my "archives". I think shooting for the sole purpose of creating an image like this or Nadja Sveir's, is the best way to go about it. Having images that would fit perfectly together like the Flickr find (not looked like it was slapped on like mine) would make everything that much more stunning and beautiful. 

Also I'd fix the contrast on my hair in the first picture shown, to contrasty for my liking, but hey... it was an experiment after all!  I loved being inspired by Nadja Sveir to create my own work, and in turn maybe I'll inspire someone else! Enjoy, and never hold back your imagination! 

Lamp Light

So today in my apartment, I got home from work and was going to take a shower. When I turned the lights, they started flickering like crazy, and it was super dim. I was upset at first, but then I remembered I had a lamp on my desk that would help.... so yes, I did shower with a lamp as my main source of light. It was a different experience. 

Anyway, after I was dressed, I was doing my hair with the light from the lamp really close on my face, and I thought the lighting looked really beautiful. So I finished up getting ready, and took a few shots of myself (which is rare, by the way) and experimented with angles, croping, and the harsh light from the lamp. It was actually really frustrating at first because what I saw in the mirror of my bathroom wasn't what I was getting on my camera. But after a little practice, I was happy with what I came out with. 

I'm pretty sure my favorite one is the very last one. I just love the angle I chose and how the light works in that photograph. I also enjoy the second picture. I like how abstract it is... I guess curly hair does have it's advantages! 

If you'd like to try this out, I'd suggest being very careful, even if it is just a lamp, the bulb is still very hot, and could hurt ya. Also it is really bright in a pitch black room, so be careful with your eyes. Don't be afraid to try something different, get creative!

(edited with Lightroom 4 and Photoshop CS5) 

Lauren & Rachel

So while my cousins were here, I had a photo shoot with the two oldest, Lauren and Rachel. It was really fun because I got to take some of Lauren's senior pictures she might use, and I got to take pictures of Rachel for her sixteenth birthday! Even though it was a little hot outside, and I was a little weird throughout it all, we had a blast and got some great pictures for these awesome sisters! Love you guys, you're both gorgeous!!

Here are some behind the scenes shots I got while I was figuring out the lighting on my camera etc. All of these make me laugh every time I see these photos. 

Rachel and Krista being patient. 

  We tried to get my little sister, Krista, in a few pictures for some cousin shots...haha,  but as you can see, it didn't work out too well! It was overcast and the sky was really bright, and they couldn't open their eyes, haha! I did the "open them on three" trick, but after 5 seconds they would close them again, hahaha! I couldn't stop laughing! ...I know, I'm horrible.

A Day In Salt Lake

My cousins from Texas are here to visit us up in Utah for a week, I'm so excited! 

Yesterday we spent most of the day in Salt Lake City with them and family friends. (Altogether we had nineteen people!)

 We started this rainy day off by getting on a train to Salt Lake. My younger cousins loved riding and looking out the window, while the older kids entertained themselves with apps on their phones and card games as the train went on, haha.

Once we got to Salt Lake we went through a Latter Day Saint museum, where the younger kids found a play area. After that we were supposed to go on a tour around the humanitarian building involved with the LDS Church, but the bus could only fit ten people... haha, so we decided to get something to eat instead since we were all hungry.

After a short list of restaurants were said, we decided to go to The Lion House near the Salt Lake Temple. There was a wait of 40 minutes, but it was worth it because the food was so good!! Homemade and perfect. 

Afterwards we went on a tour through the LDS Church Office Building. We got to go to the very top, and we could see everything!! Such beautiful views! 

Once the tour was over we had to hurry and catch our train back. We barely made back to the train in time, and had to sprint to the open doors. Overall, it was a good day spent!

(Expect more pictures of these cuties throughout the next few days!)

Rhonna's App Launch Party

Tonight I went to a app launch party for Rhonna Farrer's new app for Iphoneography editing! (It's now available on ITunes for those who want to make your phone's pictures look awesome on Instagram... or anywhere for that matter!) Rhonna is an amazingly creative and joyful person to be around, and I'm happy I got to see her! 

I had a great time at this fun party where the atmosphere was happy and carefree. I also loved meeting so many new and creative people tonight, I'm inspired by all of you! 

I was smart enough to bring my camera, so I could grab unplanned moments and the beautiful details of the night. I didn't get many, but I do love the pictures I was able to capture, and hope you love them too! 

Thanks for the invite, Rhonna, and so happy and excited for your new app's launch!

Sensational Seniors

I'm a photographer, and with that responsibility comes: Senior Pictures! It's a given that almost every photographer has taken senior pictures at one point in their life. To me taking senior pictures is actually really fun! I like getting to know people and making them feel special even if it's for an hour or so. So here are the most recent senior pictures I took at the beginning of May. This Senior's name is Abram and He is definitely sensational! He was up for anything and everything while this photo session was going on, and it was awesome! The location was one close to his house where he played while growing up, which I thought was really unique and cool. You're awesome Abram!