17/52: The Winstead Family

So, this week I'm back at it, snapping away, and I couldn't be happier!!! I had the privilege of taking some family pictures for a friend this weekend, and can I just tell you...I was SO nervous!!!!  Taking pictures of adults is one thing, but this request came with children and, despite having three myself, I was terrified!! All I could think of is the stress I fell every time I go to have pictures taken of our crew. I never get all of my children looking at the camera at the same time, someone is always a grouch, and I end up looking like a frazzled mess!

Well, I have to tell you, that was so NOT my experience this time! Being behind the lens is WAY less pressure and LOADS more FUN!!!! Taking pictures for a friend was an added bonus! Noah and Austin reminded me so much of my boys that it was uncanny! They were hamming it up, despite Nicole and Jonathan's best efforts to contain them, while I just moved around from spot to spot, behind the camera catching little shots and enjoying every single minute. It was, by far, more fun and less stress than I imagined it would be! Check out the images, and feel free to leave comments or critiques. I, of course, noticed lots of things that I could have done better or differently, but I'm so happy with the results, especially the images that really captured their personalities and the spirit of that day.

This may not be a "mantle worthy" picture, but I just couldn't help myself. Noah was a HOOT during the pictures, and this is just one of the many faces of Noah. I LOVED it!!!!

Happy snapping,

~ Melissa ~

16/52

Soooooo, I've been MIA the past few weeks. I had a dissertation proposal, a final exam, and a few end-of-the-semester assignments to finish up. One assignment stands between me and freedom from school...it's due May 1!! I decided to take a little time to snap some pics this morning. My middle child was dressed for class picture day at preschool. He was too cute not to get a few quick pictures of. Praise the Lord for the shade in our neighbor's drive way, because our drive was a straight up sun fest. Haha!!!

In the first two he's saying "PRAISE THE LORD"!!!! In the last two, I got him to pause his morning worship long enough for a smile :)! I love this kid. He is so funny and so creative, and he's bold and fierce and NEVER afraid to be who he is!! Awesomeness right there!

12 and 13/52

HEEEELLLLPPPPP!!!! Someone that knows more than I do, PLEASE tell me what I was doing wrong!!!!

So, I have been pressed for time this week. In an effort to get my clicks in, I snapped some pictures of the kiddos this morning. They look awful! Grainy and poorly focused. Not at all what I typically produce.

It was a dreary day outside, but I used my expodisc to set my exposure and get my WB correct. I then took the pictures like normal, sitting in our living room. For each picture, I can tell you what the specs were. I was on a single focus point, which is what I typically use when I am trying to catch good images and want to control the focus. (SHOULD I TRY ANOTHER FOCAL SETTING???) I also remembered to increase my f-stop value when more than one kiddo crammed into the picture. I will say that I noticed that the grain lessened in the pictures where my daughter was right at the window, which is also when the ISO went down. Needless to say, getting this right will be my focus for the coming week!!!

                ISO 6400   f/4   1/160                                                          ISO 2500   f/4   1/160

         ISO 640      f/1.8        1/160      

                  ISO 1000       f/1.8       1/160

I took this picture later in the afternoon, and tried to pay more attention to my exposure and all the little details. I think the focus is still a little off. The problem is that I'm so occupied with finishing up the end of the semester, that I haven't been keeping up with the photography part. I just hope this sweet friend can see the beauty that I do in these shots!

ISO400     f/1.8     1/80