Showing my skills....

Over at Everyday Elements, today's the day to show off your photo-editing skills!

Before:

And here is the after:

Basically I changed the colors a bit so the highlights had a bit more green and the shadows had more blue.  After that I ran a couple of duplcate layers on soft light, making sure that things didn't get too contrasty.  Then I ran the CoffeeShop cross-processing action, desaturated a bit, did some selective sharpening, and added a vignette.  I hope you like it!

unexpected enchantment

Take Some Time Out (Day 12/31)

Stripping Down (Day 11/31)

Preparations (Day 10/31)

what remains (day 9/31)

The very last bloom on our beautiful butterfly bush.

keeping it simple (finding the light)

Day 8/31

After the Fall (Day 7/31)

leaves and yucca

Subtleties (Day 6/31)

I love the way the afternoon sun pours onto our wine cabinet.

Little Reminder (Day 5/31)

Morning Light (Day 4/31)

Today's assignment for PictureFall:   Capture a peaceful moment in my usual morning routine.

Things are pretty hectic around here in the mornings.  Sometimes a little peace comes between bites...... 

Beauty Challenge (Day 3/31)

Get Comfy (Day 2/31)

I have read great books in this chair, napped cat naps, nursed my sweet baby, perused the internet, eaten quiet dinners, entertained great friends, sipped on wine, stared at the ceiling, stared at the fire, taken countless pictures of my toes while trying to master the art of on-camera flash :) , and all with the ease of a loved woman living a life full of love.

Quintessential Fall (Day 1/31)

floating

Picturefall has begun!  Today I had to find the perfect leave to symbolize the beginning of my favorite season of the year.  

Finding the Light

So I just started Deitra's Finding the Light workshop!  (http://thelightworkshop.wordpress.com)   I am taking the course as a non-participant, but already I've gotten so much out of the information.  The first assignment is to capture what's called "dramatic backlighting".  Seeing as how my only model right now is a wily 15-month-old, I decided to use some inanimate objects to practice the technique.  What do you think?

 

Apples and LAAFFs

Happy Labor Day Weekend!  This weekend we celebrated by attending two very different community festivals, the Apple Festival and the Lexington Avenue Arts and Fun Festival (also known as LAAFF).  One festival is an autumn harvest celebration while the other celebrates all the freaky diversity Asheville has to offer.  Let's see if you can tell which pictures goe with which festival.  (Both were marvelous, by the way.)

Mish Mash

So... due to the lack of other material to share (or produce, for that matter), here is another self-portrait of MOI.  Mama said there'd be days like this.

And, to top things off,  is any blog post complete without... litto bitty baby TOES!!!???

Cheers and love!

Autumn is on the way....

...and with it has come a few beautiful, sunny, cool days.  Jemma and I visited the Carl Sandburg house a couple of days ago to visit the goats and soak in the gorgeous weather.

Through the Window

Woke up Saturday to a rainy day..... and I mean it rained allllll day long.  We spent the morning playing and reading, and then Jemma napped one of those deep three-hour rainy day slumbers.   While she was sleeping, I took this shot through two panes of glass and a screen door.  I suppose I could have been out there dancing in these puddles, but my baby girl was dancing in her dreams and I didn't want to miss a moment of her reverie.
   

 

Reflection

I am uploading this one to share with my Shutter Sisters today, on the topic of Reflections.  If you have the chance, you should be looking through this website (with every chance that you have).  What an amazing group of talented ladies they are. 

Caterpillar meets Alien Teddy Bear?

Not sure what the heck this guy thinks he is, but he seems cuddly enough, 

and I love the tiny droplets of dew on his back. 

Glamour Shots

A big THANK YOU to Mal and Zac for tolerating me and my camera this weekend.  This is just a handful of the shots I took, but I like these the best.  Aren't my niece and nephew just gorgeous? 

Picture Fall!

I'm gonna do it, so wish me luck!  The challenge doesn't begin until October and it's only 31 days long, so hopefully I can see this through until the end.  (I tried the 365 Project and lasted a whopping 4 days. Ha!)  Anyway, if anyone is out there, perhaps you'd care to join me?

Bath Time!

Jemma, (almost) 14 months enjoying her bath (and one of Mama's favorite times of day.)

Hands On!

I was lucky enough to spend a few hours with Jemma, along with my friend Susan and her son Liam at the Hands On! Interactive Museum yesterday. 

Liam and his mom sharing a story together in the Hands On! nursery.

Jemma enjoyed a jaunt through the pint-sized grocery story.

Liam looks a little overwhelmed by how many groceries Jemma wants to buy!

Jemma has three ducks in her lap, but apparently the one Liam has is the only one for her.

The Loves of my Life

Certain is it that there is no kind of affection so purely angelic 

as of a father to a daughter.

~Joseph Addison 

 

Sharing a cuddle (9 days old)

Daddy's little girl (7 months)

Minor league spectators (1 year old)