Piper in the Kitchen

The many faces of my little shadow in the Kitchen...
Piper.

Now you see it, now you don't...

Yum, is there any more?

YAWN !

And here she is telling me, OK you... I've had enough of the flashy flash in my eyes!

One Image, 4 Effects

Here is the sweetest little face around... well he'll only be in town for a few days, but then he'll be the sweetest little face in CA. I love LOVE love this photograph, his little expression is soooo sweet and natural. But I felt it needed a little tweaking. Here are a few edits I tried. I really don't know which one is my favorite. I hope you like them!

WARM

SLIGHTLY COOLER

SEPIA

B&W

ORIGINAL

Piper's Snoring

There is something about the sound of my dog snoring that brings a kind of calming feeling over the day... when she's snoring my world is calm...

Christmas House at Night

It snowed a lot at home, about 12 inches I think... I know Piper (my dog) had a blast until her pampered little tooties got too cold, then she wanted in. But at night, when the yard and the bushes are covered with snow and the Christmas lights are on... it's one of the most beautiful things.... I love Christmas lights.

365 Recipe Adventure thoughts

Thoughts... Click here to go to my cooking page.

365 Recipe Adventure

Hello everybody out there in blogger world... As you all know, well those who actually read my little blog, I love photography and have photographed a few recipes... Well this is all going to change come the new year.

You see the other day I watched the movie "Julie/Julia" and fell in love with cooking all over again. And it was just the inspiration I needed to get me out of my little photography rut. For some time now I knew I needed a project and I knew it had to involve photography, but that was all I was working on. That's not much for this girl who has a hard time making up her mind. But I do love to cook and bake, so here it is...

I will attempted my very own spin on the Julie/Julia project. I will Cook or Bake 1 recipe for every day of the year and photograph the steps along the way. That will be 365 recipes. My mission is to learn how to cook/bake new dishes I've never tried before. They can be recipes for Breakfast or Lunch or Dinner or Desserts or Snacks or Appetisers. Some of the recipes I make may be ones I have made in the past, but most recipes will be ones I've never tried w/o the help of others.

The only thing I ask of you guys is your support, your comments, and maybe even some suggestions on new recipes. You see I will not be following one book, rather I will be following my cravings and your wonderful suggestions.

I think this will be a fun learning experience for me and I hope it will accomplish two things... 1st (and most important) it will further expand my knowledge of photography, and 2nd it will help me become a more rounded cook in the kitchen.

Here are my only rules....

1st. Because I am limited to "how" I can cook a meal, all recipes must be able to be cooked/baked in/on : (Gas)Oven, (Gas)Stove, CrockPot, Pressure Cooker, (Charcoal Webber) Grill, and the dreaded Microwave, and heck if it is a dish that only needs to "set" I have a fridge and a freezer !

2nd. I do not have a fancy KitchenAid Mixer, nor do I have a food processor that can chop up more then one "vegetable" at a time, I'm terrified of those large deep firers burning down the house, and sadly I just got ride of my rusted old Wok....

3rd. I may buy a new kitchen "tool" here or there IF my budget allows, but it will have to be simple.

4th. I will try ALMOST anything

5th. I will post 365 recipes, they may, however, not always be posted every day, I will allow myself to skip days if need be, or if I am out of town/not feeling well. All I need to do is hit 365 different recipes by the end of the year.

6th. The dates for my 365 Recipe Adventure will be from January 1, 2010 until December 31, 2010.

So there it is... I've made my decision... no backing out now.... I'm actually very excited, and I can not wait to see and taste all the new dishes! Oh yeah... I forgot to say... The recipes will not be posted here, rather they will be posted on my "If yours doesn't look like this... you did it wrong" Cooking by Pictures blog. I will post a link here to that block for each recipe.

I hope to hear from you soon.... :-)


P.S. There might be some "give aways" or "surprises" along the way !

Nachos

So the other day I was craving nachos... not over the top "SUPER NACHOS" just simple nachos... It was pouring ice rain out side and the only means of transportation this Jersey girl has are 1. 11 year old, rear wheel drive (non working ABS), Mustang; 2. 600 or 1000 cc Yamaha Motorcycles; 3. Walk. None of which are ideal transportation in the winter, especially when it's pouring ice rain.

So there I was craving Nachos... I mean REALLY craving them. Not for the cheese or the chips.. wait did I say "not for the cheese"??? That's a first. Anyway, I was actually craving the cilantro. Ever since my trip to Isla Mujeres, Mexico back in April when I dove deep in to all the local foods of the island, I have fallen in love with cilantro. Yum, it's so fresh and clean, and I can eat it right off the stem if I'm in the mood.

That was that, I wanted nachos come hell or "ice" water. Now, I don't have jalapenos on hand regularly but I always have HOT sauce so I knew I was OK on the "heat" part of the nachos. Off I go to the kitchen craving a simple Mexican snack when low and behold I find every ingredient I need! What are the chances of that? This hardly happens in my world, with a limited budget of $50 to get me through each week, having random "exotic" foods around the house is a rare sight. But there they were, all pretty and happy. And I was happy too...

I found chips, shredded cheese, hot sauce, cherry tomatoes, and fresh cilantro.

So I laid out some chips on a plate, piled on the cheese and melted it in the microwave until it was melty, then tossed on the tomatoes, shook some hot sauce all about, and then topped it all off with some fresh cilantro. YUM YUM YUM.

Here are some cellphone pics... I was not in the mood to grab and set up my camera on this day... but these will do... for now.

Oops a little close

That's Better, yum!

See, very simple.

I ♥ Faces - Fix it Friday #39

I love me some cowboys... so this Fix It Friday image was a nice surprise for this Jersey girl. I hope you like it.... For other talented photographer examples please click the "Fix it Friday" logo below.

Here is a cool lensbaby effect on top of color correction and boost.

Just a basic Color and Contrast adjustment and Crop

Color and contrast adjustment

Boost and Blur

WESTERN

B&W

ORIGNAL

Christmas Gift Ideas Part 2

Wow, what a few minutes of searching can lead to.... not only a big time waster but it can also lead to finding a bunch of fun gift ideas for the photographer in all of us. I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE these picks. They are fun, and happy and different. And I believe that is how I like to live in my photography world.

"Funky" Neck Straps

These straps are AMAZING and if you read up on reviews on them, they seem to be very well made.

"Jill.e Small Yellow Camera bag"

How adorable is this yellow bag? I just want one SOOOOO bad. I can see myself Jet setting all around Jersey (tehehe) with this fashionable bag strapped on my shoulder.

"Digidude Camera Mount"

Now this little number just rocks my world. Seriously folks how FRICKEN cute is this little guy! (And he has lots of friends, check out the site!)

"White Balance Lens Cap"

This little "fool you" lens cap/white balance tool for your lens is just A-MAY-ZING ! I have not had the pleasure of using one, but look at how cool that is!!!! I would love to get my little paws on this for a test spin!

I hope you all liked my fun camera gear picks.... I'm sure I'll find some more over the next few days...

DISCLAIMER :
Please note, none of these sellers know who I am, I am not receiving any money or gifts or freebies for posting these items, I am just posting a few of my favorite things. If you like the item and want to buy it, I have linked each photo to it's respective web page... Please remember I am in no way connected to these items other then the fact that I like them.

Christmas Gift Ideas

OK, so it's that time of year where we all seem to go... WHAT?!?!?! only 14 more days until CHRISTMAS !!!!!

OK breath... it will be OK. There are many options... for one, most of the stores are packed full of sales this year and packed full of stock. Second... FREE shipping. Yes my friends so many stores are offering FREE shipping. And not just on the 1 to 2 weeks delivery option... but some are actually giving away the 2 to 3 days shipping ! Keep searching, you have a few days left to order those last minute on line gifts. And remember my Jersey friends... if you order from a store in NYC, like Adorama or B&H, not only will it ship over to Jersey like on that same day, but you will not have to pay sales tax !!!!!!

So far I've finished 90% of my shopping but, I have to say, I did almost all of it yesterday on line. I hope every one likes their gifts, this year I was budget limited but still managed to find some gems.

Today I'm going to list a bunch of items I would LOVE to receive or buy myself for Christmas.... Hopefully this will spark some ideas for any of you who are stumped for gift ideas for your friends and family this Christmas.

Click each photograph to go to the item's web page. Please note, none of these sellers know who I am, I am not receiving any money or gifts or freebies for posting these items, I am just posting a few of my favorite things. If you like the item and want to buy it, I have linked each photo to it's respective web page... Please remember I am in no way connected to these items other then the fact that I like them. Now on with the show....

HOW CUTE IS THIS !!?!??! (Stocking stuffer ideas anyone?) The little vintage tag reads 'Vous êtes mon destin' which means 'You are my destiny'... Like... Awwwwww




These make me feel all warm and toasty from my toes up to my head. The North Face Boots... let me count the ways I love thee..
Personally I'm tired of chopping onions, and I have yet to attempt to thin slice veggies... this would help so much, I love it!
Let the drooling begin.... Any Nikon camera above the D40 I would love and cherish with every click of the shutter.

Christmas Storyboards

OK, it's been a week since I've posted anything... But I thought I would throw up a Christmas Storyboard I was working on last week. There are so many options and different elements that can be added to one of these...

Here is one basic example

Fix It Fridays = Week 38

WOW I had a lot of fun doing this one. I didn't use ONE preset action made by anyone else. Here is what I did. I adjusted the exposure brighter, I boosted the saturation and contrast, brightened up his beautiful eyes, softened the skin, cropped it down a bit, and added a little bit of a burnt edge. I think that's it. I hope you like it. Thanks I ♥ Faces for another wonderful "Fix it Fridays". For other amazing photographer/photoshoppers versions of this cutie little guy... follow the I ♥ Faces link below.

AFTER

BEFORE

Storyboards

I just found a bunch of fun pre-made storyboards for photography. I absolutely love these. Shoot me an email or an IM or a call.. which ever your fancy... and I'll create a special one just for you ! Here is an example I created tonight....

The Sky

The sky was amazing this morning. IT was beyond words. Right out of Armageddon. But alas my memory card was at home in my PC.... NEVER EVER AGAIN will I remove my memory card unless I'm exchanging it for another one. I've missed out on 2 yes 2 amazing photo ops in the last 2 days.

More to post coming soon... Enjoy this wonderfully warm December day....

Christmas Shoot

Here is a wonderful little model... every time I see her she is all set to pose for the camera. I think I captured her well this time. Last year I blinded her with my hot studio lights.... this year I had a much MUCH smaller set up... Zip Bam Boom, we set up, snapped up a bunch of shots, and we were done.... And I absolutely LOVE how they came out... I hope they do too.

Cutie Pie Little Baby

Here is my first new born photography attempt. Look at those wonderful eyes and that soft new baby skin!

Yesterday's Shoot

Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to photograph the cutest little girl. She was a super little model too... she didn't cry or fuss too much... I will post photos soon... I just have to sort though all of them and do some finishing touches on them... I learned a lot... I know I went in there was a monster of a list of shots to take... and I believe I accomplished about 80% of what I wanted... not at any one's fault but my own... I just darn forgot... I must remember to look at my lists... check it twice and all that jazz. But I think all went very well...
:-)

I ♥ Faces Fix It Fridays #37

Here is a cute little girl in the fall leaves. This one was tough for me because I kept struggling with her face being out of focus... I just don't know how to sharpen it up with out it looking so "edgy". But what I did do to the image was, flip it, boost the red and yellow, boosted the contrast, and not to much more... I hope you like.

ORIGINAL

AFTER

OK, I always do this... I make one edit and then I go back for more.... here are a few more edits.... If I were to do all these over I would probably move the girl out of the center of the frame... I think she ended up there when I was trying to get away from the tree... oh well next time...

SEVENTIES

BOOST

YUM! - Holiday Foods

One of my favorite things about the holidays from November through January is the food... here is my first post on, what I hope to be many, of my favorite holiday foods.

I absolutely love these Cranberry Bliss bars from Starbucks.... I could eat one, ok two EVERY day ! They are sweet and cranberry tangy great! Sorry for the "so so" photo, I was quickly trying to grab a snap shot at my desk before I devoured the last bite.... and before someone walked up to the desk ;-D

Photoshop Fun : Fixing "Halo"

Ok this probably is not the best way to get rid of a halo effect.... but it works for me in photoshop. 1. turn on your clone tool, 2. select part of the background only a few pixels away from the "halo" and then clone all the way around the subject. 3. be prepared to be there a while. :-)

Here is an example from The Pioneer Women's web site.

ORIGINAL

Removed "Halo"

Darkened up the silhouette