A Lesson in Photography

Here's a lesson for all you aspiring photographers wishing to capture your loved ones in their full glory. I've noticed some common mistakes (er, um . . . improvements), so I'm imparting my wisdom, whether you like it or not!

If you're trying to capture images of your children or other subjects, it is best to follow the cardinal rule that closer is better. DO NOT USE YOUR ZOOM FOR ANY REASON! Try taking pictures as close to your subject as possible. This has two primary purposes: (1) the light entering your shutter will match the light on your subject, and (2) you add drama by filling the entire frame with your subject's face. Try to avoid full body shots (unless you're capturing their cute clothes) - this only makes your subject look unflattering, and NEVER cut off your subject's chin. The general rule is that anything to the middle of brow that is missing is fine - people have a hard time trying to mentally replace a chin.

Here is one picture that shows the differences I'm talking about:

Before:

Notice the numerous distractions (forget the expressions) and how everyone (meaning the adults) looks like we're beached whales.

After Photoshop (cropping) - remember, this simple trick can be done IN the camera:

Notice that most of the distractions are gone. You're forced to look at the subjects in the picture, and not all the contemporaneous stuff going on elsewhere.

Also note that your mind fills in the missing gaps (i.e. the top of the cap, arms, hands, etc.).

If you follow this simple trick your pictures will be 100 times greater than they are now. Plus, you'll save a ton of time using Photoshop to fix other problems.

You may call me Doctor Taylor

Not to brag or anything, but I'm done with school!! Graduation was Saturday, and my family joined in the festivities (if you can call it that). We had a great time, and I'm thinkful for everyone's support.

My yard is better than your yard

Here's a few reasons why my yard kicks your yard's butt:

1. Our sweet garden with tomatoes, peppers, squash, strawberries and basil

2. Our yard has a killer compost pile to feed our sweet garden

3. Your bermuda grass will never beat my luscious soft and supple fescue

4. I have this . . .

5. This . . .

6. And THIS . . .

7. And finally, my yard has this everyday

My Mother's Day...

 

Was Fabulous! We went to church & spent the afternoon doing things I enjoyed. Jeff was wonderful! He helped Hannah come up with a list of 10 reasons she loves me, he took the list & pictures of the kids & made into a 5x5 hardback book that I will have & cherish for years to come. He also made a fantastic grilled dinner of burgers with grilled onions, asparagus, & corn on the cob. I loved having a day to relax & just enjoy my family! Thanks Jeff, you made it a great day & doing laundry on top of everything else, was the best!!

 

 

 

Yes, I really did spend the afternoon jumping on the trampoline... and I LOVED it!

This Is My Mom...

 

She is one of a kind! A real class act! There is no possible way I could put into words what an amazing women she is & the example she has been or the things she has taught me. It would take up way too much room on this blog & I still wouldn't do her justice.

I can tell you that I love & appreciate her so very much. It is wonderful to be a mom myself & to have the chance to see what silent service she has given all of these years. I find that with each Mother's Day I appreciate her more & find myself in constent amazement. She is a strong & beautiful women, inside & out, and I thank her for all she has taught me & continues to teach me. I hope to try to carry on her wonderful qualities & pass them on to my children. Happy Mother's Day, I love you!!

I hope that all the other mother's out there have a wonderful day as well! Keep up the good work, it really is a tough, thankless job! Just know that the world is a better place because of good mother's.

I went for a run this morning... it was rough, & I don't think it would have been all that much easier if I didn't have 50 lbs worth of kiddos in the stroller.

Going out of town for 3 weeks, to a higher altitude, with a baby who doesn't want to sleep, & catching a nasty cold of sorts, makes it really hard to do much running while on vacation. And failing to do the running running in during the trip really doesn't help that firt run back at it! But maybe I just need an excuse or two.

Facts about 3-year-olds

Fact: 3-year-olds cannot throw a rock through a hole in a fence without it missing the hole & bouncing back & hitting you in the head.

Fact: The above mentioned rock can't hit a 3-year-old in the head without cutting it & causing a large amount of gushing blood.

Fact: 3-year-olds don't handle gushing blood very well, & they really don't like the idea of you wanting to touch the site of the blood. All of this causes hysterics.

Fact: Hysterics often cause 3-year-olds to pee their pants.

Fact: The above mentioned scenario are a sure fire way to stop a really good day of potty training. They cause 3-year-olds to want to be coddled, changed back into a diaper & wrapped up on the couch to watch a show.

Potty Training.. Round 2

We made an attempt at potty training Hannah back in February... and it wasn't a success. We opted to not make it a battle & wait a bit longer. We still left up the potty charts & we even asked if she needed to go before putting her in the bath, & she would go every now & then. While we were in SLC she took more of an interest & used the potty often. It was very helpful to have all of her cousins around & they are all potty trained. I still didn't really push the issue, I would ask if she wanted to still wear diapers & she said she was going to wear panties when we got home. She changed her mind by the time we got home, of course!
Yesterday was an annoying diaper day. Every time Hannah peed she wanted her bum changed! We went through way too many diapers. So this morning I was changing her & opened the diaper drawer to find that it needed to be restocked. I told her there were no diapers in there & asked what we should do (assuming she would say to go find some in the cupboard or go buy some at the store.) Well she shocked me by saying she would wear panties & she ran to her room & got a pair. She did great this morning! She would go in & go before I got around to asking.
She did have one accident, that was partially my fault. We were outside playing & I went in to put Milo down for his nap & forgot to get her to go potty. I had heard what sounded like her yelling, so I came out to see that she was playing just fine, so I went back to getting Milo down. When I came back out she had found a can of bug spray so I quickly informed her that wasn't something she should play with, & noticed she had it all over her & she had washed her little car with it. I told her we were going to need to take a bath. When I bent down, I placed my hand on her bum to find it wet. I asked if she had an accident, she said she yelled for me but I didn't come. She then told me not to worry, she covered it up so I wouldn't step in it! (Isn't she sweet?!) This afternoon she even went Home Depot with Jeff & didn't have an accident. Jeff is really thinking this is it, I'm not getting my hopes up because it's only day #1. We have had day 1 before, but I know we are making progress, & that's all that matters. Hannah is a lot like me & I know that potty training is going to be a control thing & I will wait & make sure it is on her terms & in her control, otherwise she will pee her pants just to prove a point or because she's mad at me.

It's Good To Be Home

Going away is fun, but it sure throws off a person's routine, & in our case it threw off routine of 3 people... well 2, (Milo struggles with sticking to any kind of routine for more than a few days, we are working on that!) But I love being home most, because I have Jeff back! He does bath time & gets Hannah to bed. It makes for a much smoother evening, rather than me flipping a coin to see who I'll put to bed first & hoping that my choice is the correct one (as I mentioned before, Milo isn't sticking to structure like I would hope, so some nights he made it hard on me.)
So having Jeff help out allows for a happy home, that is calm & gives us time for a quick after bath photo shoot.

 

 

 

 

Harmony's Wedding

My younger sister, Harmony, got married to Jason on May 1st. The wedding was held at The Point, which is at the Huntsman Cancer Institute. It's a great location with fabulous views of Salt Lake. We failed to take any pictures of the event, but it was a beautiful event & Harmony looked Fabulous! I fell in love with her photographer, Courtney Ryan, after looking at her bridals. I can't wait to see all of the great shots from the big day. I did go over to their website & saw a little peak here(Sccroll down to the 5/1/08 entry.)

One Long Day of Flying...

And we are finally home! It sure stinks when you don't realized you have 2 layovers, rather than one! We had what felt like a long day, but we survived & we are home. We had a great time in Utah, but it's great to be home.

I'm so glad my parent's put up with us for 3 weeks. That is a long time to have house guests. Especially if one of them is a 3 year old named Hannah. She wasn't on her BEST behavior... she was a bit distructive. Let's see, she peed on the carpet (this was on purpose, because she was mad at me.) She broke a bunch of terra cotta pots in the backyard. (She didn't act along on this one... she had help of 2 other 3 years olds, it didn't take all that long & I'm not sure of how many pots were destroyed.) And there may have been a mess she created with 12 bottles of nail polish. Things were learned there... First, she can make a sweet pair of pink gloves for herself if given enough polish. Second, if you have a 3 year old house guest, you may not want to store the nail polish in the same room as the house guest. Third, don't consider yourself lucky if your 3 year old takes a 3 hour nap... go check on them sooner!! Hopefully my mom will still let us come visit in a few months.

We had all kinds of crazy weather in Utah. I don't know if I want to go back to Utah in April, we have better weather here (sure you get a tornado or two.) But it was fun to see everyone, especially the newest family membet, cute little Alex. And to be there for the weeks leading up to Harmony's wedding.

The wedding was beautiful & it's exciting to think that she & Jason are starting the next chapter of their lives together.