Last Macro Share (this week)

Ok, sorry. I'll mince words- here is vintage lace. My favorite so far. 

More Macro

As I promised, here are some more of my macro shots. I am practicing holding my camera by hand instead of by tripod so some of these are not as clear as I would like. Because you get so close, movement is very obvious macro photography and it takes a ton of practice to get those beautiful crystal clear shots. Ultimately I would like to use this lens with newborn babies, and you can't really use a tripod in those cases, so I figure I had better get practicing!

I think I might like this one the best. Something about the petals meeting the stem is so unexpectedly beautiful. Hope you are liking my sharing...

My New Lens

So, I have been debating a new purchase for a while and I finally bit the bullet last week. A couple days later, this lens showed up at my door. I have been wanting to take macro photos for a while and I ordered the 90mm Tamron. I LOVE it. I have been examining the world from a new perspective lately and have grouped things in two categories. Things that are interesting in a macro lens and things that aren't. Oh, who am I kidding, everything is more interesting at macro level.

 So yeah, I would say rocks look pretty good close up. I hope you liked these, because I have been taking lots more. Up next: the obligatory flower shots.

Making of the Winterroth Christmas Card

We are on our third outtake of our Christmas card around here. I have been hating all of my photos lately and the noncooperation of this family is incredible. I mean, in one photo I actually caught Jake mid spit up (I'll spare you that one). All were either grainy, overexposed or just blurry. I am still not totally happy with the final one we chose, but I was darn tired of taking photos. That is why I made a commitment to myself in 2013 to educate myself more on taking perfect (or as close as possible) photographs. I don't want to forget these moments and what my cuties looked like. 

The best of our first shoot. Overexposed! I was shooting with a remote at the fussiest time of day for these kids, so really if I had done a better job of getting my settings right, this would be our Christmas photo! 

Second try: Elise looks good but Jake is so blurry! Wah- lets try again!

My third and final shoot was of them laying down. I thought that might be better because then Jake would be more comfortable. Well he was....

and I caught this gem. It cracks me up every time I see it. I thought she was exaggerating but then I saw the clump of hair he managed to pull out. Oops.  Anyway, the one I chose is still pretty grainy, but I am pretty happy with it. I hope it looks ok printed. 

Here is the one I used. Not perfect, but it kinda describes our life right now. Exhausting and fuzzy yet fun. What is your favorite favorite Christmas photo?

Playing With Light

While I had Jacob "posed" for his 3 month shots, I decided to play with light. This is a concept I have been working with in my photography that I find really difficult. Good photographers look at how the light hits their subject when composing their photograph. Usually my photographs are made from a quick opportunity and I don't have the chance to think about light too much. But Jake is stuck where I place him, so I got a chance to look at light and where it was hitting his face.

Here is what I ended up with:

 

My personal favorite. Mostly because I can see myself really well in his eyes, which means I got something right in the settings!

 

I only shoot in manual mode, which is a struggle in itself. They say practice makes perfect, so here I am- practicing away. In a few short months this guy will be moving like his sister, so I better get my shots in while I can. Do you have any critiques or useful tips for me? I am a willing student.