My tip for the Love Your Shot! Link-Up this week?…look for a unique point of view. Don’t be afraid to look silly while photographing your subject! For my photo below, I was practically laying down on the side of a country dirt road. Of course, I had a spotter to make sure I wouldn’t get run over (thanks, Mom!). I’m so glad I tried this different angle…it would have been a completely different shot, had I been standing up…capturing more of a traditional landscape with fields and mountains in the distance. I love the simplicity of this photo, the grass against the blue sky gives it just the right amount of contrast.

Do you have a tip you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you, so click on over to Love that Shot and link-up your photos!

My husband, Steve loves to fish. He loves angling almost as much as he loves football…almost. It’s more of a hobby for the off seasons, but he loves it nonetheless. He loves the thrill of the fight…the anticipation of having the BIG one on the line…ummm…maybe next time, Steve!

Photo edited in Photoshop, using Photo Veils from Love that Shot.

This photo sums up what my summer was all about…relaxing and enjoying the outdoors with my husband. It’s just too funny…I had to post it for both of these challenges this week…

Have you seen the giveaway going on over at Love that Shot? We have a special treat for you this week! Our brother, Ren makes these gorgeous leather cuff bracelets and we’re giving you the chance to win one! Just click on over to Love that Shot for the details! And good luck!

I was looking back through my photos from the summer and I can’t get over how many I snapped at the Classic Car Cruise in July. Total count = 1,573. Wow, now that’s a lot of photo-takin’! As I was browsing, I found a few that I’d like to edit…and several that I should just delete! That’s the thing with moving cars…you have to expect that you’ll end up with some blurry ones.

I pulled this one out to edit for two reasons: one, it’s a photo of a Mustang and that in and of itself requires a second look, and two, the composition caught my eye. So here’s my Sweet Shot of the week. Do you have a favorite photo you’d like to share? Click on over to my friend Darcy’s website and share your Sweet Shots!

Photo edited in Photoshop, using Photo Veils from Love that Shot.

It’s that time again, time for the Love Your Shot! Link-Up. This week I’m featuring the color red…it’s happy, exciting, and dynamic…and it’s my favorite color. What better way to feature red than with a red rose…

Whenever I’m shooting flowers, I always look for opportunities to combine them with man-made materials, such as wrought iron fencing, gates, or wooden structures. Including these elements in the composition adds contrast and gives it a unique quality. I shot this photo in the evening and wanted to experiment with adding just a touch of grain to my photo. I used a very high ISO of 1600. My exposure time was 1/100 sec. with my f-stop set to f5.6. I love the results! And with the addition of a vertical texture from my Olde World Collection, my photo was complete.

How do you experiment with your photos? Do you try different settings that are outside your comfort zone? Do you like to combine different elements or experiment with unique compositions? We’d love to hear your tips, so click on over to Love that Shot and link-up your photos!

A business just isn’t a business without these little guys. Last night, I put the finishing touches on our new Love that Shot business cards. They’re at the printer as we speak! Although Michelle and I do most of our business interaction online, on occasion we have the opportunity to meet a few photographer peeps offline as well. So it’s always a good rule of thumb to carry a few cards with you, just in case. You never know when an opportunity will come up…and now we’re prepared to whip these little beauties out at a moment’s notice!

The photo above shows the front view of the card, as well as the back view. Cards have been printed full color on heavy-duty 15 pt. card stock, with a UV gloss coating to give the cards a bright vibrant finish.  Visit Overnight Prints for more information.

I love this. It’s simple. It’s colorful. And it takes me back to my very first drawing class in college when I was assigned to draw a still-life, an apple not unlike this one.

I worked for hours and hours on that drawing…I took critique from the professor like you can’t believe…I struggled with my confidence…but I was driven to create the best drawing of an apple this world has ever seen (oh, to be that young again)! In the end…I had a drawing to be proud of. One that would go on to win a 2nd place ribbon in a drawing competition the following summer. Needless to say, it will always be my favorite!

So when this apple fell from a tree at my Great Aunt and Uncle’s 60th Wedding Anniversary celebration a few weeks ago…I couldn’t help but snap a photo, making this week’s Sweet Shot a very Sweet Memory as well.

I edited this photo in Photoshop, using my new photo textures from the Olde World Collection at Love that Shot. For more information about these textures, please click here.
Also, click on over to Sweet Shot Tuesday for more photo inspiration!

Birthdays for me in the past were a little bittersweet. You see, I’d look forward to this day all summer, dreaming of all sorts of birthday goodies…ice cream and cake…oh, the cake! But lurking just around the corner would be the end of this sugary-sweet dreamland…the end of August meant the end of summer, which meant it was back to school time. And even though I would sometimes look forward to school starting (crazy, I know!), I wasn’t that into giving up my freedom…sleeping late, hanging with friends, the usual kid stuff. So, I guess there’s one huge benefit to growing up…there’s no longer the threat of school starting, and I can be that kid again! So you can bet I’ll be sleeping late, hanging with my husband, and eating all the sugary sweetness I can find. Because hey, you’re only a kid once, right?

I’d like to share this special day with all of my amazing friends…we’re giving away a set of my Olde World Collection Photo Textures over at Love that Shot. And I’m going to give you all an extra entry! Just click on over and tell me about a favorite birthday memory of yours, and good luck!

Here I am, my senior year of High School…dare I say…eleven years ago!

Have you ever wanted to take a walk back in time and visit an era that’s long been forgotten? Well, if I had the chance, you can bet I’d go back to the Nineteen Forties.  It was so much more simple back then…time didn’t fly by so fast and there was just a certain charm to…well…just about everything…the way of life, the automobiles, the fashion. Oh, the fashion…what I wouldn’t give to go back and gather up a few pairs of those Forties-style heals. But that’s a bit off subject…

This last weekend, my family and I took a walk back in time and experienced a quieter side of life….and I discovered a new love…Vintage Boats! As you all know, I absolutely love shooting vintage cars, so when I heard about a Vintage Boat Show held in our area, I was overflowing with excitement! I’ve never had the opportunity to shoot vintage boats before, and I was anxious to experiment with this new subject matter. As soon as I hit the docks, I was unstopable. I found my groove and lost myself in a forgotten era…

Photos edited in Photoshop, using Photo Veils and Textures from Love that Shot.
Click on over to Sweet Shot Tuesday for more photo inspiration!

I’m in the market for a new lens. That’s right. It’s time to upgrade. But there are so many choices! How am I ever going to choose? Do I go with one that helps me get up-close and personal, or do I choose one that lets in more light? Help! I’m always so inspired by my fellow photographers…so let me ask you…

I would love for you to share your answers with me in the comments section below…and you’ll really make my day if you leave me a link to a photo or two that you’ve shot with your favorite lens. What can I say, I’m a visual person…I love pictures! Here are a few lenses that I’m looking into…