Christmas Challenge #45

Christmas Journal
One of my favorite parts of the Christmas season is the Christmas tree with all of it's beautiful ornaments. This year, I especially liked the ornaments. :-) Enjoy!

My sister helped with the final one by telling me when the ring was in the focus box.

Challenge #42-The Sky

Challenge #42

This week we'll do a *somewhat* simple challenge. Submit 1-3 images at the end of this week of creative images of the sky. These can be edited/tweaked,cropped in any way. Hope you have fun with this one!

This week I was actually inspired by a challenge that Erin Jo did back in July. (Check out her stars and stripes!) I loved her stars and decided that I wanted to be cool like her, so I put on my warm clothes, and my dear sweetheart drove me out to the country to get some shots of the stars.
Without further delay...here is my entry!

Challenge #39: Shooting Blind

This week I thought I'd do a bit of a technical challenge to see how well we know our cameras, and what we can learn from doing something a little bit different.

The Challenge:

Shooting Blind

The subject matter is completely up to you, but you are only allowed 10 shots. For 5 of those shots you can look through your view finder. For the other 5 resist the urge and shoot them without the use of your viewfinder or screen. Sometimes when a photographer is working a unique location it can be hard to get the shot you want because you're eyeball can't go where the camera can. This is an exercise to help you learn how the camera can be an extension of your eyes.

Submit your favorite photo from each set of 5.

I almost didn't do this weeks challenge, but as I was taking pictures of a project that my class is doing, my eye stopped on a fabric backdrop that my kids were using to put pictures of themselves flying in the sky. I decided to use it as my challenge. Since I had kids working as the time and the last time that I chose personal photography over my classroom management, a student was bitten by another student, I didn't take mass amounts of time on the project, but I do really like the 2 pictures that I chose.

This was the favorite one from my blind shots.


Here is my favorite from the looking set.

Extra! Inspirational words challenge #36

The Challenge:

Submit and photograph or series of photographs representing/interpreting your favorite poem, line from a book, Bible passage or perhaps even something you've written.

The Rules:

1.) 1-5 photographs B/W or colour

2.) Tweaking is allowed

3.) Submit by this weekend if you can.

4.) Make sure you post the inspiration behind your photos as well as it's source.

I know I already did the inspirational words challenge, but I heard that someone really liked this pic and wanted to see it with a Bible passage, so here it is!

Make Up Nature out of focus! #20

The Rules:

1.) B/W or Colour Photos

2.) Please submit only 3

3.) Photos must be of nature and MUST be out of focus

4.) Photo submissions due between Friday, June 14 and Sat., June 15.

Oh and 5.) no tweaking please!

I am only submitting 1 for this challenge. I accidentally took a picture while camping that was way over exposed and I liked the effect. I played with it a bit today, but didn't have a ton of time, so I am only submitting 1 photo.

Catch Up! Challenge #5 Anatomy and Human Form

Challenge rules: Submit 1-5 photos exploring anatomy and human form. THIS IS NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!!!!!!!!

Challenge #37 Hot and Cold

Well, I was camping in the fall this week, so there wasn't much heat. I had to go with symbolic heat. Here is my entry:



Sara and Brad are newlyweds. Their temperatures may be cold, but their love is hot!

Challenge #36 Inspired by words

The grass withers and the flowers fail, but the word of our God stands forever.
Isaiah 40:8

Challenge #33 Imperfection

I realize that I am SUPER late on this challenge, but I didn't want to get out of the habit of doing challenges now that school has started again.

So here is the challenge:

The Rules:

1. Tweaking is allowed for this one.

2. Feel free to submit 1-3 photos of your interpretation of the challenge.

3. Photos due Sat. September 19 (as usual MckLinky will stay open till Tuesday the 23rd).

Have fun!

I went on a hike this week along the river by Wauwatosa. There was a spot in the river where there was a metallic film on the water from a piece of metal debris. Since it was not supposed to be there, I considered the water less than perfect.

Challenge #31: A Brand New Day!

A Brand New Day!

Use these words as inspiration for a series of photos (3-5 pictures)
The sky/sun should not be the main focus of your photos
B/w or color
Editing is not allowed; however, you may crop your pictures as you see fit.

At first I didn't know what I wanted to do for this challenge. I WANTED to do a sunrise because I had a sunrise date planned with my boyfriend, but that was against the rules. Last night, I went to bed with my camera so that when I woke up, I could capture the brand new day. You can tell how excited I am for the new day to begin!

Challenge #30: Shapes in architecture

This week's theme:

SHAPES IN ARCHITECTURE

Search out and find a:

1.) Circle
2.) Square
3.) Triangle

Rules:

1.) B/W or Colour
2.) 3 photos, or all shapes in one (if you can manage!)
3.) No Tweaking
4.) Photos due by Sat. Aug 29 (MckLinky will stay open till the 1st of Sept for late posters.)

Have fun!


I have 2 pictures where I found all 3 shapes.

Challenge #28 BIG and small

This week's theme:

BIG and small

Rules:

1.) One photo and one photo only.

2.) B/W or Colour is fine.

3.) No tweaking please.

4.) Photo submissions due by Sat. Aug 15 (MckLinky will stay open till Aug. 18th for any late posters.)

Have a great week!

This picture was taken in the Wichita Mountains on top of Mount Scott. I chose to show BIG and small by comparing the massive mountains to a seemingly large rock.

Challenge #27 I love, want, and wish....

This week's challenge is:

FILL IN THE BLANK

I Love........

I want........

I wish for.......

Rules:

1.) Please submit three photos by Sat. Aug 8th.

2.) You may pick one fill in the blank and submit three photos for it, or do one photo for each fill in the blank.

3.) B/W or Colour

4.) Tweaking allowed


Mine this week don't really go together as a series. I just filled in the blanks, but here they are!

I love.....

...relaxing by the lake.


I want...
...to teach in a school where I can teach about Jesus.

I wish...


...that I found more time to practice my guitar.

Challenge #26 BLUE!

This week's challenge is brought to you by the colour BLUE!

We're going to go on a little treasure hunt this week.

Rules:

1.) Go out into your community/city/town/street and search for things that are blue.

2.) Submit three photos (Colour of course) by Sat. Aug 1st.

3.) Tweaking is allowed.

4.) Try to create a set of photos as apposed to just three random pictures. Think about how they all work together to create either an idea or a feeling.

5.) HAVE FUN!

I was really happy when I saw this challenge because I fortunately have a blue pet. He did NOT feel like being photographed, so I was happy to find many blue things when I went camping this weekend.

Photo Challenge #24

I was so excited about this challenge when I heard what it was. I realize that I am SUPER late, but I just got back from a service project called the ASP (Appalachia Service Project) Their mission is to make houses warmer, safer and drier. Our team consisted of 5 AMAZING high school kids from the United Methodist Church of Whitefish Bay and 2 adult leaders (I was the mean leader) Luckily while I was there, I took my camera and was able to document a day which worked out great for the challenge. I had 2 different venues in my day. First is the work site where we are doing underpinning on a trailer and building stairs. Then we went to the picnic at the lake. Enjoy!

Challenge #24

Pick a day this week and tell us about it using your camera.

Rules:

1.) Submit as many or as few photos as you'd like.

2.) B/W or Colour

3.) please no tweaking

4.) Photos due Sat. July 18, 2009

These are the painted boards that are going to be the studs in our framing.


Dear Kelsey had a beautiful injury while installing them.

After they were installed, we put insulation behind them.



This is us sitting on the stairs that we built.


Picnic Pictures!

Circling up to bless the food. (Methodists often hold hands in a circle to pray)

Leonard and his dad Leonard.


This is one of the children from the families that we worked with.

This is Kat the ASP staff person playing a game that Richard had made up.

Challenge #22 Old, New, Borrowed and Blue

Okay onto this week's challenge! As many of you know Wedding season is upon us. This week we have a wedding inspired challenge based on that old little rhyme that brides often stick to when planning the details of what they will wear. I'm sure you are all familiar with it:

Something Old,

Something New,

Something Borrowed,

Something Blue.

The Rules:

1.) Four images

2.) Let's steer away from images that actually have to do with weddings, use your imagination with this one. Let's get outside the box a little.

3.) B/w or colour

4.) Photo Submissions due by Sat. July 4th.




My take on the challenge
I was really excited to find something old, new and blue, but I had a really difficult time thinking of how to portray "borrowed" in a photograph. Then I realized that I borrowed books from the library. I enjoyed the book pictures from the library and decided to make it the wedding rhyme at the library.

Photo Challenge #21 Water!

WATER!

• Submit 5 photos of water- in any way, shape, or form
• Tweaking IS allowed.
• Have submissions in by Saturday, June 27th.

Since it was SO hot out on the day of my picture taking, I wanted to get pictures to feel cold. That's why I chose ice. I did two pictures sets for this challenge. The first set used ice in the pool in my back yard. I was excited to see how the photos looked and went to open my back door to check out the pictures on my TV. OOPS! I had locked myself out.

In the 45 minutes (on a 90 degree day) that I had outside, I was suddenly inspired by the blue bowl used to transport water to the outside and did a whole second shoot that I liked MUCH better. I did do some tweeking with contrast and saturation to make the ice look as COLD and REFRESHING as possible.

I present to you my series for the week:


Cool as Ice

Photo Challenge #19 Light

I tried to stay away from the Weekly Photo Challenge when my camera broke, but I just couldn't do it. I took the plunge and bought a Cannon Rebel DSLR and I love it! I have a ton to learn, but here is my first attempt at a photo challenge with the SLR.

The challenge:

Pick an object, pick a window in your place of residence and photograph that object at different times of the day at said window.

My Object: I chose an object that I've had for many years and have always cherished...No, wait. That's not true. I just went to Good Will and picked out something random.

Rules:

1. Your object can be anything really, someone's head, a glass jar...whatever you'd like, just make sure it's the same thing in every photo.

2. At the end of the week you will have to Submit 6 photos-three sets of two images.

3. Photograph your object at three different times of the day. * One photo is to be the same angle (so you'll have three total that look the same but that were taken at different times) and for the second photo of each set try and use the light available in the best possible way.

4. Please no tweaking since this is an exercise in light.

5. Submissions due between Friday, June 5 and Sat., June 6.

6. B/W or colour

7. If this is confusing leave a comment and I'll try and clarify!

Em will probably laugh when she reads this one since she knows I love the morning light that comes in through my windows. You'll find it's amazing what you can accomplish with just a little natural light!

Have fun!

*Since I teach all day, I really only had morning and night, but there is a dramatic change in light as the morning light comes and moves so I captured two different stages of the morning light and one from the evening.

Lighting 1: Full Light!
Since there was a bright beam of morning light on my subject, I decided to get close to one tiny detail and the illuminated glass beads would make for a nice blurry background.

Lighting #2: The morning light is going away and hitting the subject at a different angle. Since it did not have as much direct light, I decided to switch to B&W and get the detail of the beads of the necklace.



Lighting #3: Now the light has gone away. Since there was no light coming in from the window that I was shooting from, I changed the angle to get the light from a window in the next room.


I hope you like it! I had fun with the new camera, but I am looking forward to your experience and telling me what I'm doing wrong.