Week 26 • “Pets” Photo Challenge!

In honor of the Twilight Saga's 3rd movie Eclipse, release this week, I find it only appropriate that I put use  one of the photos of one of my cats.  She was named after Rosalie from the Twilight series.  She's a gorgeous cat and I love her face.  She's a beauty and originally was to go to a Siberian cat breeder, but it fell through.  Now, she's one of my three cats.

To view incredible "Pet" photos from others, click on the camera:

Week 20 - "Faces & Flowers" Photo Challenge

This week, at I Heart Faces, it's all about faces and flowers. Your photo must have a flower (or flowers) in it somewhere (fake, real or painted on... anything goes!) and a human face. The special guest judge is the bold and brilliant photographer Peta Mazey. 

There are a ton of entries already for this week's challenge.  I'm excited to finally be getting one in.  It's been weeks since I've successfully submitted one.  I wasn't going to miss this deadline -- not no way, not no how!!!  This is one of my highlights for the week and I love to share my photos with others.  I also love to hear back what others thought and felt of my photos.  Feedback is important -- gotta have my comments... 

This has become my sister's favorite photo of herself.  I think it's pretty.  That was taken during the Bluebonnet shoot I did of part of my family (the ones that are around and special), but not only was it a fabulous shoot and grouping of photos, my mom actually likes her's!!!  That's the third photo she's complimented this year of mine!  And there haven't been many others that she's liked without adding what she would do differently.  I know there are many of you who understand how difficult it can be sometimes to get some people to like your photos you had done of them...some individuals can't enjoy their photos of themselves.  I was elated that she actually liked her photo and also added in that it happened to be one of the best photos she's had taken of her.  Holy COW!!!  Yay!  I'll have to add that photo onto my blog to share.  It made my day to have such a compliment come from her.  :o) 

Thanks for checking out my photo!!! 

To see more stunning photos of Faces and Flowers, click on the camera below...

Added Addition to -- Week 17 - “Smiles” Photo Challenge!

***Okay, so I wasn't able to actually get this submitted in time.  A change in the submission process and my thinking it would 'be really quick,' but hadn't realized the actually uploading to the site had changed...  Oh well, I'll figure it out in advance and submit my next entry with more buffer or bumpers (like those blue ones that used to get blown up at the bowling alleys...  :oP).  I won't miss the 'Week 20 - May 17 - Flowers' challenge!  That will be a good one that I can enter in one of my favorite photos.  There has to be a flower in the photo: alive, dead, fake (or faux -- I should say!), but nonetheless, a flower.  There is also the requirement that a face needs to be in the photo -- somewhere!  Hence the I ♥ Faces group blog topic.  Keep an eye out for it!!!***
 ~ 5/6/10 ~
 

So Big!!!

More to come!

Tidying Up the Computer = Disaster

So, I've temporarily been AWOL from posting photos (and I HAVE photos!!!) that I've done recently.  I need to get them completed.  In my last post (a couple weeks ago), I had mentioned that I was having to play "tidy up the computer" (if only it could've been like Mary Poppins with a snap of the finger, turning the job into a game) I realized through finding it before and trying to ignore the situation and then having Jason point out to me after he did a diagnostic on it...  Alas, I have a problem with the hard drive.  Word to those reading this, be careful what you decide to delete when cleaning up your computer.  You may accidentally delete an important file disguised as "just some file you never use" and make it difficult for you computer to actually do it's job, requiring you to have to take everything off and do a wipe of the whole computer.  :o)  Oops!  Hey!  It's a Mac and it's 4.5 years old -- RUNS GREAT!!!!  Well, until I laid my hands on it, taking it upon myself to get rid of the things that aren't necessary or used...

Sadly, since the "discovery" or rather having it confirmed that I had hard drive issues...I've been attempting to clean out files and put them all onto an external hard drive.  It's almost complete, except I really worry about the possibility of not getting all of my files off...  That would stink to lose something and not have a back-up, especially if it's one of my loved photos that I've done and not made copies or backed up onto a CD/DVD.  If that happens, hopefully, I don't remember the photo.

SO!  Just a reminder to everyone -- RUSH, think you are always trying to remind everyone of this -- back up your computers!!!  You never know when you might have something happen to those hard drives or even have someone steal the computer, or heaven forbid (even WORSE!), have me get on it to clean it up!  Rush Limbaugh announces on his shows about Carbonite and backing up your computers of all your photos and important documents in preparation of the day IT WILL happen!  AND if you want to go there and do it, Rush says to use "RUSH" code and receive 20% off your order/subscription.  Not bad!

Back to the original thought process, I have photos and many very ADORABLE ones of a cutie patutie (sp?)!  And some of my family and Jason that I took right after church a few weeks ago.  All recent with this outbreak of Bluebonnets.  I LOVE this years flower season!!!  I still NEED - yes! it's a need, to get the one photo of the Bluebonnet field and a Texas Longhorn in the middle of the field patch.  Unfortunately, the times that I had seen the Longhorns out in the Bluebonnets, it's either been when I don't have my camera on me, coming home from work and right before the light has disappeared or it's been raining and I shouldn't risk my camera in the rain...  The last time I did, I might have caused my camera to act out of frustration with the environments that I have pushed it through.  I have two tripods that have given up and quit on me b/c of the environmental stresses I have put them through...  Water and metal just don't seem to mix...  So, I being mindful that I don't want to lose my camera and it's had much love through the adventures I've taken it on.  I've shot over 20,000 photographs with it.  My first digital camera -- cell phones don't count in this instance, just with one of my film photography professors... :o).  It'll always be a special camera, like my first film SLR that I bought after I graduated from high school.  ANYWAY!!!  I haven't completed my computer issue as of yet.  I've got a group of photos taken of Ashley, Kevin, and their little "K".  I hopefully will be posting several of those photos today.  Stay tuned!!!

***Disclaimer:  All things that have been mentioned in this posting should not be done at home or without supervision of a computer nerd.  Results may vary between individuals! ***

Bluebonnets -- RK Moments

Here's one of my latest photos taken with Bluebonnets.  Hannah is so photogenic.  I don't think she realizes that, but may start believing me...  ;o)  I have tons of others to add to this one, but first, it's cleaning up the computer to allow space to upload all the others...  Ugh...  Computers are soooo much fun when you have filled them to the max and just getting online is difficult without it saying that you haven't anymore space on your hard drive...  

More to come!!!  It's fun and exciting to be really getting back into my photos and camera.  I've really missed it!!!!  

I ♥ Faces "Dramatic B&W"

Here's this week's IHeartFaces theme
"Dramatic B&W".

Yay!  Always a fun area to play in.  I started in b&w in high school and have a special love of it.  It will show any mood you desire.  

This is my sister's senior portrait that I took and she has absolutely loved it.  I admit, I love it, too!  

If you'd like to go and check out other entries that are "Dramatic B&W", click on the camera.

Bluebonnets!!! The 1st of More to Come

It's exciting to see more and more Bluebonnets popping up around the area.  I missed seeing those last year...  We didn't have many if any, but this year we have tons popping up in all sorts of places and it's AMAZING!!!  I love Texas and the springtime!

Spring!!!

Spring is here!!!  And the flowers are coming out.  I'm ready to get my photos moving.  A couple nights ago, my aperture setting on my Manual Mode for my camera stopped working...  I was devastated!!!  I had bought the 5 year warranty on it and that expires in May -- thankfully!  BUT!!!  That would've meant no camera for the time being while Canon had it.  No pictures could be taken and I would miss the springtime photo shoots that people would want with the Bluebonnets and other Texas wildflowers.  They're absolutely gorgeous this year!  Thanks to all the rain and the cold weather we've been having this winter.  :o)  It was well worth the cold, wet winter for a beautiful palate of color for spring!!!!  Back to the camera issue, I ended up taking a ton of time looking online to see if anyone else had a similar problem with their Manual Mode aperture wheel and I found one guy had that problem when he first got the camera 5 years ago.  He ended up having to send it into Canon to get them to fix it.  I decided that I would try a reset on the camera by removing all batteries (including the internal memory one) and the lens, wait a minute and then put everything back and turn it on, reset my settings, name, date, etc...  By the lack of hair on my chinny chin chin, I held my breath and started it up, set all my times, dates, etc and went to the Manual Mode.  IT WORKED!!!!  I was thrilled and sooooo excited!!!  I ended up calling Jason to tell him the fabulous news -- well, I woke him up...being it was 12:30 am...  BUT I was so excited that it was working again!!!!  He was happy for me and then I let him go back to bed.  I had been beside myself and worried about not having a camera to use...  But, I'm happy to say my camera is in excellent working order and I'm ready to get some shoots going with the Bluebonnets and other amazing wildflowers.  

That pink flower photo I took two nights ago, that's when I found my camera not working.  My latest and greatest of my works of art.  My point of view of the world and life, shown through my eyes.

My I ♥ Faces "Would Be" Entry

Okay, so I missed the chance to enter this weeks challenge for "Focusing on Angles"; however, I still had a photo that I would've entered that I'll still go ahead and post.  It's a funny angle.  Crazy Brother #2 decided to get in the way of my camera as I was taking a photo of Brother #5.  Here's the crazy brother of mine!  I'll find another photo to add to this one with similar personality showing through...  Different person, but linked!

"Bundled Up" - I Heart Faces

Here's my entry for this week at I Heart Faces.  It was the cutest photo and I couldn't help but add it.  

For more fabulous "Bundled Up" photos, visit:

I Heart Faces -- Hilarious Out-takes!!!!

Best Friends will still be Best Friends -- EVEN for Prom!

I loved how he was with my sister.  Very natural and goofy.  He made the face in the first one, I started cracking up, immediately she knew what he was up to and I caught her reaction.  Classic!!!

  

To see more FABULOUS photos, check it out:

Week 8 - “Hands-On Fun” Photo Challenge!

 

Now THIS is what I call "Hands-On Fun"!!!!  I love it!  It's tender, loving, peaceful -- not to mention, just plain good, hands needed, fun!!!!  What guy wouldn't want to be in his place at that very moment?!?  

This was a shot worth the wait!  They were completely relaxed and natural.  No intrusions or distractions.  Ladies, look how in control she is with the simple, yet quite precise touch of her hand...  Let's take note and apply it to our own "Hands-On Fun" relationships!  I enjoyed this couple and had a ton of fun doing their engagement and wedding shoots.  I'd been friends with the guy for several years before this, we had both moved to the "top of the mountain" and I was tickled pink when they requested me to be their photographer!  He had some difficulty trying to track me down, but they were quite happy with the end results.

Check out more awesome and fun photos from this week's "Hands-On Fun" challenge!  One of my favorite photographers is the guest judge for this challenge and I'm excited for her, but also wish her the best with the decisions she gets to make.  Go check be ART!!!  I love her work and admire her love of her family and the fun style she has!!!   To see everyone's photo entries, click on the camera!

 

I Wanna Dance!!!!!

I loved this wedding!  This couple and their families were such a fun group!  The dance floor was crowded and I had many dancing photos to choose from.  BUT!  I loved this one!  The bride had such a good time right before this dance with this little guy coming to give her a kiss on the cheek...she swooped him up and started dancing!  HE LOVED IT!!!  So adorable!

Check out i ♥ faces for more great shots and blogs!  

I Heart Faces -- "We Heart Kisses" Photo Challenge

Just one...  Much too hard to pick just one!  But after much dilemma, I came to a decision and chose this one! 

Enjoy!