Crash and Cry

That's it!! I've had it!! Once again...the world of PC's have gotten to me. It's amazing how a pile of metal and fancy green plastic can control your world. You find yourself sitting there staring at the screen. Waiting for the most impersonal mail to load up. Typed letters of chain mail and sales ad's for the local stores. One word...Junk. You find your self surfing the net for no apparent reason. The endless searches and history builds up. Computer is about to bust at the seams. Well....mine did bust. Some how..my pc gave up the ghost and now it's in oblivion. It seems that my operating system has been corrupted. I will be sending it to the pc doc next week for a little tweaking. I really want to just chuck it but unless I can come up with a couple thousand dollars for my new Mac..I'm up a creek without a paddle. So all Ps work has come to a screaming halt and now I find myself on a laptop I'm about to kill! So...any and all donations are welcome :) Here's to the PC world we live in *raises her cup of coffee and salutes it.

Costco Baby!!!

Wow! I just got some amazing news! Remember when I wrote about that photo shoot I did not to long ago. The family with twins? Well.....I just found out that they had their photos developed at Costco. I know....big deal...but it is. You see, they asked them who did their photos cause they thought they were awesome. I know, I know..big deal again, right? Well.....they wanted to use some of the shots for display! Yeah! My photos on the wall at Costco. It's a small feat but it's a big step in a ocean of possibilities. Ever feel like you can never get your foot in the door? I have felt like that most of my life. Nothing ever happens in my life concerning photos. But then...I've only been taking pics seriously for about 8 years or so. I can never remember exactly. The first time I got my hands on a SLR. It was so expensive to practice. My husband wanted to strangle me with the negatives. 7.50 a pop. And well...that first year I filled 10 mini albums that hold 100 photos. You do the math. That may not seem like much to some photographers, but it sure did put a dent in the pocketbook every week. It only got worse....thank goodness we upgraded to a DSLR. Welcome to digital world of photoshop and confusing mechanics. I was overwhelmed with it. I buckled down and learned the basics right quick. I learned on the fly. Snap a couple hundred photos and figure out the Ps stuff later. Before I knew it I had folders bulging at the pixel seams. I glued myself to my chair and fired up the PC. My husband groaned a little...well....actually a lot. But anyways....after many many tutorials and trial and errors, I go the hang of the new CS3. I fell in love all over..sorry Shawn.....I was riveted by the wonderful tools and the amazing filters. The possibilities were endless! And so, here I am today still glued to my Ps and smiling. I've come a long way in a short amount of time. I know I have much more to learn and many amazing photographers to look to. It's a world of color to explore. It's art.

Coffee Conspiracy

Fingers tapping the keyboard.....glance at the empty paper cup of Dutch Bros. It taunts me with it's blue lid and pink straw. Empty....empty.... darn my caffeine craving. I find myself not being able to drive by a Dutch Bro. without stopping. The smiling face of a cute young man, ready to help you with your caffeine indulgence. "Would you like whip cream on top." You find yourself saying "why not!" How could you refuse that college boy. Why is it that it seems that every employee is these little coffee stands are adorable or just simply charming? I think it's a coffee conspiracy. A ploy to get you to stop everyday on your morning commute. Or on the way home from a hectic day of buying diapers and toothpaste. They will get you. And so I find myself a victim of a caffeine sweetened conspiracy.

Dodge? Burn?

Hey everyone!

I was surfing the web one night and came across some great tutorials. I'm always up to learning more about my Photoshop. I learned how to play with these great tools, Dodge and Burn. What fun are these! I played and played with them until I got a photo that I loved. I was so excited about this that I wanted to show you all my results. I highly recommend trying these tools out if you have Ps. What fun!

A Little Recognition

I logged into Etsy today and had a convo. So I opened it and found that a memeber of Etsy put me in her blog! I followed the link and found a great blog. Her treasuries are great and i'm honored to be among one of them. I know that I haven't been very attive on Etsy lately...maybe i'm just looking for inspiration? I hope I find some soon. I have been busy with taking photos of familys and kids. I recently took family pics of a co-worker of my husbands. We went to the part, found some leaves and snapped away. I was a bit nervous cause they have twin 18 month olds. I was expecting a little crying. But the girls were angels, even if I couldn't get them to smile. They sat still and watched me make a fool of myself. I tried several tatics to get them to smile. They seemed to just watch me. I just know they were thinking.."wow, she's really a dork" hehe. Oh well. It was a great experience and I found the whole family to be great to work with. One of these days I will take those girls' pictures again, and I will get them to smile! :P The parents were thrilled with their photos and said that I might become there family photographer. Its one small step towards doing this for a living. One of these days I will have a studio in my backyard. A dream that I wont give up on. I have lots to learn. I hope to intern one day when my kids are in school. I think they will be the big stepping stone. This is something that i've wanted for some time now. And I'm a firm believer that you shouldn't give up on your dreams. Even though there are times that I have. I have had stones set in my path, people telling me I can't do it and those that think i'm crazy. I guess they're not that great of friends if they try to tear my dreams down. So wish me luck! One of these days..........

Starfish

My hubby and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary a couple weekends ago. It was wonderful. He surprised me and took me to the ocean. I didn't know that being lazy was such hard work! I recommend that everyone spend a weekend on the beach. It is so relaxing.

While on our little getaway we spent some time in Cannon Beach. Looking through all the shops, I came upon one with a million seashells! The selection was huge. I zeroed in on the starfish and had to get me some. I wasn't sure what I would do with them. When I got home I grabbed my cameras and went to work. I am really happy with the results. I listed them in my shop. I think these three would make any wall look amazing. It really makes me wish that my bathroom was in nautical.

Lucky Bullets

Howdy! I finally opened up a new shop just for my Bullet Key chains! I use to sell them from my Luminescence shop but it is now closed. I really hope these key chains hit the mark and make me a killin'. I sold quite a few last year for the holidays. I hope to do the same this year. I plan on finding some ways of putting bullets on necklaces.

It all started when my hubby bought a key chain with a bullet on it. I kept thinking that I could make those. I finally got my hubby to show me how his reloading stuff works. I had a blast. He secretly enjoyed helping me :) I hope to offer more then just the .44 and .45 caliber. I have bigger plans :) I may be aiming to high but I hope that it will hit the mark.

I was trying to decide what kind of slogan to put on my shop. A friend offered one and I laughed. It was "Save a rabbit, buy a bullet." I got a real kick out of that. And let me tell you, I think I will be full of puns with this shop. So direct your aim on this target and come in. You will be sure to find your aim true and the caliber a sure shot :)

Canvas!!

I have gotten my canvas!!! Through some trial and error and some printer issues.....I now offer a beautiful photo!! (not that is wasn't great before the canvas.....) :) After some photoshop work and adjusting the printer settings, I have a finished product. And I couldn't be more happy with it!! I think customers will be happy with it also. I hope to offer all my photography on this wonderful Canvas paper! Be sure to check out my listing in my Etsy shop.

Man Made Market

Eseering from Etsy contacted me a few days ago with a request. She wanted some info on me and my shop for a possible blog spot. I got the note today that she had spotlighted me! YAY! I am very excited. It's so nice when people take notice of your hard work. I thank her for adding me to her blog. Please go and take a look!!

Canvas at Last!

I am so excited to be getting canvas paper for my photos! I just ordered it today. I can't wait to see how my photos print on it. If they turn out as fantastic as I am hoping, I will be listing them in my shop. I searched forever for paper. I finally asked my sweet cuz, Vol.25, what she uses for her artwork. She directed me to a company that has the canvas paper. I took the plunge and bought it.


With the textures I am already using on my photos, I think the canvas paper will give it the final touch. So within the month, I should have some posted in shop! So be sure to stop by Artistic Image!

Little bit of this and a Little bit of that

Thats how I work with photoshop :) I take a little bit of this and a little bit of that. I like to play with curves and temperatures. Maybe a filter or two. Add some texture and you never know what your gonna get. It's my little Photoshop mixer. The problem is, is that I get to mixing so much that I can't remember how I got it! Good thing there is this little thing on the side to document all your layers :) My little cheat sheet. Well.....i've been playing some with a photo I took while up at my mom and dads. I came out with this variation. I'm not sure if i'm totally happy with it, so any comments would be great! Don't be shy. I don't think anyone can be a worse critique then me :)

Closing Luminescence

Well, I have decided to close up shop. My Luminescence shop that is. I want to concentrate more on my photography. I feel like i'm spreading myself to thin. It makes it hard to enjoy myself. I feel that my photography would grow if I put everything into. I am doing lots of research on styles and such. Trying to find my own niche. I hope you enjoy the transformation. And while your at it, stop into Luminescence and get you a hat or scarf at that great discount price :)

Old Junkers

I have an addiction to old rusty cars. The more rust, the better. I am always keeping my eyes out for old cars. I love the classics. If it's buried under brush or hidden behind the barn. I will find it :D I have several in my cross hairs. I intend to snap some shots as soon as the down pour stops. Gotta love living in Oregon :D So look for lots of upcoming Junkers and Classics.

Some Photoshoppin'

I have been messing around with some pics I took that I thought weren't any good. Photoshop goes a long way. I use to never think to highly of altered photos. My thoughts were "if you couldn't get the shot to look good through the eye of a lens, then don't bother" a so called purest if you will. Well, my thoughts have changed. I started with photoshop a while back and I have become totally addicted. You can distort, eliminate, change and manipulate all you want. Just think, the delete button at your will. Wish I had that in real life. Or maybe a little nip/tuck. Photoshop is there to help. :D The possibilities are endless. I don't think my imagination can stretch that far. I find myself surfing the web for tutorials. Wanting to know how someone did something. The process amazes me. I only hope to learn more every day.

Way to Long

I can't believe it has been so long since i've posted. Life is so crazy. I have kind of taken a break from everything to just breath. I've been working on some photos and hope to have them up in my shop. I've been thinking about hitting up my favorite cousin for a new banner for my blog. I love her artwork. Maybe she can help me out.....hint hint :) I just love her to death. She's like my own little sister. And to think she's pregnant! I can't wait to see what beautiful little baby she has. Boy or Girl. I wish I could be there for the arrival. Shhh, don't tell her but I thinks it's a girl :D I even found a cute little dress. I could be wrong though :D Anyways......I have been hunting down old cars and trucks. Trying to find my next target for Etsy. I just love working with rusted things :D I'm excited about it. I am going to be hanging some of my own work in my living room. I really need to decide which shots and what frames to go with. I can't decide between matting or floating...hmm. Anybody got an opinion? Well, I will try and post more often :)