sweet light!

So a lot of people ask me how I get such great color. Well the answer is simple... yummy light! What is yummy light you ask? Well, you know that soft yellow-orange glow that you get though your bedroom window when you wake up in the morning? That is sweet light. Delicious to take pictures in! When I see that kind of light I start frantically looking for my camera. Even in winter you can get very nice soft light. All you have to do is look for it.

BEFORE EDIT

AFTER EDIT


What I did to make this picture pop!
I use photoshop CS3
1. Adjust levels (this makes your dark's richer and your lights lighter.)
2. Adjusted hue/saturation to get rid of the redness in her cheeks.
3. Ran "color explosion" from MCP actions. Painted it on her dress at 30% opacity
4. Ran "Pro Retouch" action from Totally Rad actions. Painted on skin at 25% opacity
5. Ran "eye doctor" from MCP actions
6. Ran "touch of light/touch of darkness" on face to light it up a bit more. (this site has all of her free actions! All of them are really good!)
7. Ran "high definition sharpening" action from MCP actions (free as well)
8. Added a texture layer mask on top to give it that extra pop.

And done!!

You can not rely on actions to do all the work. Remember the picture straight from your camera has to have nice lighting and good color. Editing is just for enhancing something that is already good. Hope this helps!

Look for more "blue prints" to come!

More pics from the same photo shoot.

I got this AWESOME dress and headband from another talented friend of mine! She is such a wonderful seamstress! Thanks a million Ang!! Contacted her and get one of your own!!

Growing up is hard to do!

MY BABY BOY is three months on Sunday! Wow has the time flown by!! He is just a little sweetheart and we all can not get enough of him! The kids and I will do anything to make him smile and coo. But really...look at this face!! Wouldn't you?!

I {heart} this picture!! I have been having so much to with texture. I never knew they could be so addicting!

Yes they match!!! How much cuter can you get?!

Baby Blessing

We blessed Porter a few weeks ago, and it was so special. Kurtis did a great job and was totally inspired. I love that my cute hubby holds the priesthood and is able to give our kids such nice blessings. Porter looked dashing in his little white tux that Caleb wore when he was blessed. (Thankfully the dry cleaners were able to get all the yucky yellow stains off of it!)
We were also blessed to have Kurtis's Dad and wife Debbie, and my brother Jacob join us. After church we had a yummy dinner of Photo Soup and salad and mixed berry cheesecake for dessert. Thanks to all of you who came to the blessing!

Hannah got her first CTR ring in church and just HAD to have it in the picture. :)

Porter is not too happy, but we made it work!

Grandpa and the kidos!

It was cold, but defintally worth it!

I have not been taking too many appointments since I had the baby, but friends are always an exception! It was SO cold outside, but the light and snow were just beautiful! By the end of the session we were frozen!

At the end of the day...

all I want to do is sleep.
shhhh

life is good

...when your daughter will pose for you in some yummy, yummy winter light. She looked so stinking cute! She found all her new summer clothes and just had to wear them! I think that we all are missing the summer sun! But it is hard not to when it is 30 below!!! That is right people -30!! (At this moment we are enjoying some nice 30 degree weather, so we really can't complain, but that day we could!)

and


...when you baby is no longer sick! Porter is feeling better, and we a enjoying all his smiles! I love when they start to smile, it is just so rewarding. But it is a sign that he is getting bigger which makes me sad.

My poor little Porter....

is sick!
I hate when little ones get sick, it is just so sad! He has a really bad sounding cough and a stuffy nose. Each breath he takes sound so heavy. My poor sweet little man. Get better soon, please.

what to do, what to do?

I always struggle with black and white. I LOVE bright, vibrant color and have such a hard time turning a beautiful color picture black and white.

The reason why I am even bring this up is because I want to print 20x20 pictures of my kidos for my basement. My basement is mainly black and brown/tan....so what do I do? Should i print them out in B&W or color? And even a bigger questions is WHICH ONES??!! I have so many cute pictures of them.... man why do I have to be SO stink'in good?! ;) (that is why there is no picture of Caleb yet.)

These are the picture that I think that I am going to print. Tell me what you vote!
B&W
or
Color

Happy happy birthday!

I asked the kids a series of questions today to see what they really thought about Kurtis. Here is what they said!

What does dad do when he goes to work?
Caleb: He chops off peoples pimples, and other gross skin stuff.
Hannah: He helps people who are sick...skin sicknesses I think.

How old is daddy turning today?
Caleb: 30 years old, now THAT'S OLD!!
Hannah: 29 of course!

What do you like to do with dad?
Caleb: Play Lego Star Wars and football.
Hannah: I like when he plays games with me.

What is dad's favorite food?
Caleb: Crab, I know that he likes crunchy stuff.
Hannah: Salad

If dad would get anything for his birthday, what would it be?
Caleb: a phone computer, so he could look up skin things.
Hannah: Cake

What is your favorite thing that dad does for you?
Caleb: I like it when he helps me make my bed.
Hannah: When he prints out a coloring picture for me.

If dad was a superhero, which one would he be and why?
Caleb: Doctor Man!! Because he is a doctor.
Hannah: Batman- because he likes bats.

If dad could go anywhere for vacation where would he go?
Caleb: Yellowstone
Hannah: Go to the store to get more money.

What is dad's favorite sport?
Caleb: Golf
Hannah: All of them

When it comes to resolutions

I AM REALLY GOOD AT MAKING THEM, BUT NOT ALWAYS KEEPING THEM. I'm not really one who makes a "list" of things I want to accomplish in a new year. Sure, I make many mental lists, but they are always changing. This year, as people are blogging about it, talking about it, teaching about it....."it" got me thinking about what I wanted to do about it! I mean, sure, we all wish we had a thinner waistline, better hair, that we drank more water and consumed less chocolate, that we could manage exercise early in the mornings, Pilate's in the afternoons, and a little Zumba in the evenings. I thought about the many things I had already put down on my mental list....things like: get this baby fat off, be more patent with my kids, watch less T.V., build up my food storage, take more walks, organize my closets, take better pictures, and study more. All of these things are important to me, but are being put on the back burner if you will. I want to first focus on what maters most.

President Thomas S. Monson says that what matters most to us usually includes those close to us....FAMILY. He asks us to love our family. We should never assume that they know of our love, but rather, we need to let them know.

"Never let a problem to be solved, more important than a person to be loved."

Wow. Never has a statement hit me so hard. I thought about all the times I tried to solve a "problem" when the more important matter that should have taken my time and attention was the person behind the problem.

This year I want to try a little harder to respond to my problems with greater LOVE. When my kids are grouchy, disobedient, sassy, whiny, stubborn....I am going to try responding with just some good ol love. I believe that this will work better than what I have tried in the past, which I won't mention... :)

Now I would like to give a special thanks to those who matter most to me...

To my wonderful husband who has shown me great love though out our years of marriage. Thank you for showing me what matters most. I know with out a doubt that you love and cherish me.



To my little Caleb, you always have a way of knowing when I am sad and respond to it with a hug, a kiss, and an "I love you." Thank you for your random acts of kindness toward me. You are such a wonderful example to all that meet you. I love you.


To my sweet Hannah, thank you for always making me laugh! You are the life of the party. I love your "special notes" that I get from you that are always addressed To mom, From Hannah. Thank you for being my little shining light in the darkness. I love you.



To my mother, who brought me to this world, who taught me how to love and how to be loved. Who let me cry in her bed until I feel asleep. Who waited up for me when I came home from a date. Who was there when I got married in the temple. And who always, always reminds me that I am loved. Thank you mom, for all of the other many, many more things that you have done for me.


To my father-in-law, who always sends me kind and inspiring emails.
To my Mother-in -Law Who in loving memory, reminds me everyday by her life lived what should matter most.


To all of my wonderful grandparents, who remember each one of my kids birthdays, who know when we need a call, and who always smother us with kindness when we visit. Thank you for your love.


To my brothers, who played barbie soda shop with me, who played house with me, who jumped on the tramp with me and who now play these things with my kids. :)

"Despite the changes which come into our lives...
may we fill our days, as much as we can, with those things...
which matter most."