Helping Mom's with Cameras

Almost once a week I hear from someone with a camera asking for help in learning how to use it. Next week I will be giving a talk at the Mothers of Multiples meeting on the subject in an effort to help these Mom's demystify the situation. Not that I am a technical expert believe me when I say I am so NOT, but I did go to school for photography and I did once learn all about reciprocity, and how to mix chemicals in order to print my own black and whites, I know how to load medium format film onto a spool in complete darkness, I can probably still fumble my way through a shoot with a 4x5 camera, things I thought I was not capable of ever so I think I have something to share with these Mom's. Today in this digital age, more and more people are buying cameras, cameras that are close enough to the ones I use to make my living to scare me but they don't have any idea how to use them beyond automatic. This is something of a problem in my industry because in alot of ways it devalues what we do, if you can do it yourself why would you pay me to do it for you kind of thing. I don't worry too much about that because I know that when the day is done my vision and my eye in the camera is what will get me a job and keep me happily playing with babies but I know its something photographers think about alot.

If I had one piece of advice for these Mom's with cameras, it would be this, use your automatic setting, its there for a reason. Do you really want to know about depth of field and white balance and gray cards and the reason all those buttons are there? Leave that knowledge to the professionals and when time and money allows have them make the beautiful pieces of art that you will line your walls with. What is better than having art of your own beautiful family and children? The automatic setting is there because it works. With just a few additional pieces of info you can document the awesome moments you see every day and keep the memories alive. Every day is a new day with a baby and the blessings are in the moments you get to keep in your heart and your minds eye.

I look forward to my very first speaking engagement, hopefully nerves won't get the best of me. See you on the 19th ladies!

Bows and Babies

I just had to post photos from this session, I had the best time photographing this baby she was only a couple weeks old and it was a free for all when she went to sleep we did everything with her. Enjoy as the snow leaves us and warm weather blesses us with it presence! Thanks Stephanie and Miss Ashley - your order will be here soon!

Global Warming - Really?

Well I've never believed in the global warming scare but now that I am sitting on 5 inches of snow AND in South Carolina in March I am hoping that some of the rest of the world will get it and see that Al Gore is an idiot. Sorry but he is! Anyway, last night at about 4:00 PM what had been a very very rainy weekend turned into a snowy one, when the rain that had been pounding us for 3 days turned to snow. Soon it was alot of heavy snow and the forecast became 2-4 inches. Then at 8:00pm, the power went out and stayed out all night. We played some charades (or at least our version of it) and lights out (already out of course)at 9:00 something. I awoke at 4AM thinking it must be morning. Freezing as I stuck my nose out from under the covers. Back to sleep and awoke to Dan almost leaving for work at 6:45AM, still no power, he must have wanted a hot cup of coffee and heat BAD! After the kids got up and we realized we couldn't survive here for long out of the bed we headed over to Uncle Tate's for some joe and heat. Finally after we decided to come home and try to tough it out at 10:30AM it came back on just before 11:00AM. Thank you lord!!!!

So here is what snow looks like in the south. Tonite is supposed to be only 17 so who knows what tomorrow will bring but 65 and 70 degrees by weekend and then IT BETTER BE OVER! This has been the longest and coldest and grayest winter in the 5 years I have been here and maybe just maybe people will start to see that its not getting warmer by any means and then after that hopefully before we are all broke and all the small businesses have gone out of business, people will realize that the government is the PROBLEM NOT THE SOLUTION!