Sabby Ann

On our recent trip to Indiana, we stopped at the Bonneyville Mill (Bristol, IN) to see the Dahlia Gardens there. They had several varieties, all in full bloom, and absolutely beautiful! Here are just some of the dahlias they had:

Over the past year or so, we’ve had a few lenses & camera accessories die. One of Eric’s lenses was badly scratched, another was dropped (causing the shutter blades to fall out of place, rendering the lens useless). My flash, which is probably four years old, died earlier this summer.

The scratched lens still works, but there’s the obvious problem with using it. The lens with the broken shutter can be sent to a repair shop & likely fixed ($150?). But my flash is dead - Eric suspects it has just reached the end of it’s life cycle, as they only have so many “flashes” before they wear out.

A few years ago, I loved just having my Nikon D-70s with a single (slow) lens & the on-board flash. The body was slightly bigger than I wanted, but it was a good first DSLR. Now, I use a D-80, and it works just fine for my purposes! I’ve tested out Eric’s D2X & D3, and I still think both of those bodies are just too big for me.

I’d really like to get some faster lenses & a new flash. I liked my SB-600, and I’ll probably replace it in kind - I don’t need something super powerful, and the smaller size is really important to me. I can’t stand using the onboard flash anymore - I hate the shadowing that it casts, since I can’t soften the light or keep the flash centered when I turn my camera sideways!

And some fast glass is also a must. My lenses are okay, and since we shoot exclusively Nikon, I can use all of Eric’s lenses - but we don’t exactly share well (especially since we often shoot together). My primary lens is a Tamron 17-50mm (1: 2.8), but it’s been rather flaky for the past couple years (the camera doesn’t recognize that it’s connected, so I constantly have to unmount & remount it). It’s tolerable for just casual photography, but it’s absolutely horrible for event & nature photography - it never fails that the moment I want to take a photo is when the camera won’t recognize the lens, and I have to take a few seconds to fix it (causing me to miss the shot!). Unfortunately, the Tamron lens retails for $460, while the Nikon version (a 17-55mm f/2.8G) is $1375. I hate using the Tamron, but I’m not sure that I want to shell out that much. Perhaps I’ll buy a 50mm or 85mm fixed lens as an interim fix?

 Eric & I, along with the rest of the family, spent yesterday afternoon at the Howell Balloonfest, an annual 3-day festival centered around hot air balloons.  There was the usual assortment of carnival rides, an arts festival, a medieval village, skydivers, entertainers… and tons of carnival-type food. They also have dozens of hot air balloons, and in the evening they make a big show with all of ‘em taking off. 

Several of my favorite bloggers have been posting photos and/or patterns of sewn fabric bags lately. Purses, grocery/market bags, and now even a camera bag!

I’ve been using reusable grocery bags for several months now, and while I love ‘em, they’re rather expensive. The cheap ones (the $.99 bags that you see hanging near the checkout) I keep tearing, and the nice canvas ones are all in the $5-10/ea range… and I’m not about to spend $100 just for grocery bags!

Well, unless I can turn it into a craft project. Then it’s money well-spent on a hobby, with an added benefit of being useful at the end. I spent a few hours browsing the clearance-rack fabrics at Jo-Ann’s, and came home with quite the collection! I’m also thinking that I will dissect some old blue jeans and use those as well.

I found a few patterns for free online, and a another pattern for sale, but decided to just disect some paper grocery bags and create my own patterns. I prefer the more box-style bags that have a real bottom (more like a paper bag, with long straps), and it seems like I can get one bag with 0.5 yards of fabric, or with one yard if I line the bag.

I’m now thinking that I might have to use some of the fabric I bought and re-purpose it for a camera bag. Commercially-sold bags are, well, rather boring in appearance. I guess most male photographers wouldn’t want to be seen carrying a floral or paisley-patterned bag?  :)  

Anyways, Natalie Norton, a Hawaiian photographer, posted a link to some super cute bags on her website (with a free giveaway contest!).

The bags are actually custom-made by Wicked Stitch Designs. I don’t think I’d be willing to spend $100 to buy one, at least not until the photography business takes off, but I’d definitely take a stab at trying to make one myself….

Although I’d originally planned to do some yardwork today, it was a bit too chilly to motivate myself to work outside. Instead, Eric & I decided to take a drive through the countryside. We saw a few silos standing amongst old foundations (with the buildings haven long since burnt to the ground), and stopped to take a few photos. 

When I got out of the car, this was the first thing I saw. It was clear that it’d been there awhile, as there was no “meat” left, no foul odors, and no flies/maggots. There were actually 3 ribcages + LOTS of fur. My guess is a local hunter decided that this was a convenient location to skin & field-dress deer. 

There was a barn next to the silos, with what looked like a feeding trough coming off the back. I guess I’m not sure whether this was, at some point, actually for feeding/watering livestock, or if it was used for something else. I’m rather clueless when it comes to farming and raising farm animals… 

There was also one other barn still standing and in decent shape. There was a piece of equipment stored in there, and a few bales of hay (or perhaps straw, I always get the two confused!) inside. 

The combination of extra daylight and warmer temperatures provides ample opportunities for evening walks. When the dog comes with me, I can’t really take pictures of wildlife - but when he stays home, the camera comes out. Here are a few ‘wildlife’ photos, taken last summer at Heritage Park in Canton, Michigan. 

There were tons of frogs along the banks of the water! 
I just couldn’t resist taking a few shots… 

This guy was big and scary, and rather territorial, 
so I hightailed it outta there right after I snapped this. 

Nothing special here, this pair just liked to chirp a lot.
I think they were keeping an eye on the hawk too…

I followed these lil guys around for a good hour,
until Mama finally led them out of the water. 

A couple of years ago, when we purchased the first round of photography gear (Nikon D2X camera body, lenses, lighting kit, backdrop & stands, and some miscellaneous accessories), we tossed around the idea of turning photography into more than just a hobby. Eric had worked part-time for the university’s staff photographer while we were in college, so he had a pretty solid grasp of the basics… 

I, on the other hand, had no photography experience whatsoever. At that point, I was just using a simple point-and-shoot digital camera. And neither of us had any experience with wedding photography. But hey, why should that stop us? 

Fortunately, a close friend from school graciously allowed Eric to photograph her wedding. Her future uncle-in-law (a professional photographer) was shooting the main events, but Eric was able to take photos at the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner, while the bridal party was getting ready, and at the reception. He also took several during the ceremony (staying out of the way of the “real” photographer). The professional photographer was very friendly during the formal portraits, and even allowed Eric to plug his camera into the setup and take a few test shots. Since most wedding photography contracts have a “sole photographer” clause, the opportunity to get this sort of experience was especially valuable! 

Last summer, we started actively seeking out wedding photography gigs on Craigslist. Since we were looking to gain more experience and to expand our portfolio, we decided to set our initial price at only $200. We booked our first paid wedding, and then a second. A couple of months later, we landed a third wedding.  

This year, after having established a reasonable portfolio, I decided to start testing the waters. While I’m sticking with Craigslist as my source for leads, I’ve begun to play around with different price points. I know that summer is the busy season for weddings, and I suspect that we’ll be able to command a higher price during those few months. My next step is to work on business development - putting together a website, a printed portfolio, perhaps some promotional literature (a brochure?). Once that’s complete, I’ll look into a booth at one of the local bridal shows. 

I know that many professionals detest wedding photography, but so far I really enjoy it. Yes, it’s somewhat stressful: … a mere moment to capture those “once in a lifetime” snapshots …  the occasional bridezilla… a flower girl or maid of honor who hates having their picture taken… uncooperative weather… 12 hours of near-continuous standing… 

But it’s also so magical! We get to witness all the special and intimate moments. It’s not just the ceremony itself though. It’s the last-minute jitters in the dressing room. It’s seeing the mother’s tear-streaked makeup. It’s all the little stuff that makes it so enjoyable.