I had so much fun photographing my exuberant little munchkin. Weeks before, I told him that I will be taking pictures of him and he said he's going to pose for me, lol! He was actually excited and I think he had fun in the first ten minutes of the session, lol! Well, kids lose interest easily so I'm not actually surprised. But I did manage to get a few good shots of him including some goofy ones.

As some of you may have known, I have developed an interest in photography since last year. Like many people, I consider myself a self-taught "photographer". I use the word photographer very loosely for I know I have still so much things to learn when it comes to this art. I can't help but be very proud of myself though of the things that I have learned and how far I have come after just a year of thorough Youtube watching and immersing in any tutorials and books I could take my  hands on. A year ago, I absolutely know nothing about shooting outside of "Auto" mode. I wasn't even interested in DSLRs back then because I thought they are very intimidating and only the professionals should have them. But something in me sparked my interest in learning about DSLR when my 3-year old boy then accidentally dropped my cheapo Canon point and shoot during our family Christmas picture taking, lol! I vowed I would do everything in my power to learn the basics of photography before even considering which DSLR to buy first. And I did! After 3 months of constant reading and watching videos, I thought I am ready to get my hands dirty. Hubby bought me a Canon T3i. Eventually we upgraded lenses and some accessories. The rest they say is history. I  mean I don't claim to be a great one but I think I did good considering the circumstances.

Now a little over a year after, I've realized that I wanted to concentrate on Portrait Photography. I have done free sessions for friends and because I am ambitious, lol! I thought I would like to slowly build my name out there as a portrait photographer in our town, lol! Seriously though, I am currently building my portfolio hoping to get more experience. I thought I'd start low and cheap as I build up my clientele at the same time hone my skills and artistry. I am really excited on this one. I have made a few bookings already and I just can't wait to photograph babies and families this year. So I have designed some flyers as part of  my marketing strategy for this year. Hopefully this would have a great turn-out!

Seven years ago today, I married the love of my life in a very small, intimate Christian wedding, witnessed by my sister and her family and my father-in-law. Like most married couples, we've been through ups and downs during our 7 years of being together. It's part of being married I guess. Two distinct individuals living together striving to have common goals in life, there sure have to be some adjustments to go through. Getting married is easy, staying married is an ongoing process. And I am proud of us for reaching 7 years. We survived the 7-year itch, lol!

I thought instead of sharing the same old wedding photos from 2007, I'd like to have some recent photos of us taken on the day that we celebrated our 7th year. So here we are, braving the crazy, windy Fall weather here in Montana, lol! Just to have some photos of us together which clearly we haven't done in a long while. So I set up my T3i with my new 85mm f/1.8 lens on my tripod, chose the 10second timer option ('coz I couldn't find my remote) then ran back and forth to my focused spot until we got at least 2 decent shots, lol! Whew! Yep, it was hard work considering the brrrrr weather but totally worth it!

Inspired  by Pinterest ideas, I glued 7 "copper" pennies (copper being the symbol of 7th anniversary) on a piece of paper representing the years that have had significant meaning to our lives. When I first saw this, I thought it was cute and very thoughtful so I decided to give this to hubby as one of my gifts for him. And guess what, he loved it!

Umm, the photo below?!? Just me, wrapping up the session with a solo shot in the comforts of our living room, lol! Couldn't take the "chill to the bones" weather anymore.....but I had to have a solo shot, right? LOL!

I sometimes have a tough time remembering how old I really am because the husband always tells me that I am 29, lol! Well, I was 29 when I first met him but that was like what 9 years ago, phew!

But anyway, I am now a year older and wiser hopefully, lol! These photos are taken by my hubby on my birthday. I initially didn't plan to have a birthday shoot but my mom kinda suggested that I should have one..just.. you know.. to have updated pictures on my FB page, lol!

As I've mentioned in my earlier post, the husband did give me an expensive brand spanking new lens. Probably not expensive to the professional photographers standards but to me, since I am just an amateur hobbyist, my Canon 85mm f/1/8 prime lens is an expensive, excellent portrait lens that I own so far. I could not stop raving about how sharp and great this lens is. I really love it despite the fact that I would need quite a lot of room to use this thing. This is like a perfect outdoor portrait lens for me. Below are a couple of shots using this lens.

Last month, I had a wonderful opportunity to witness this year’s Vigilante Parade here in Helena which is one of the longest-running high school parades in the nation. The parade was originated in 1924 by Helena High principal A.J. Roberts, whose goal was to replace several activities that had “gotten out of hand,” including Skip Day and Senior-Junior Fight Day.

The parade started around noon-ish so instead of eating lunch, I went down and watched the parade and took pictures. The young minds of these HS students are so brilliant, creative and so full of life. It got a little crowded especially when the parade was in full swing, so I find a sweet spot away from everybody's way. I stood on an elevated part of a building where I can see the floats and participants without having to deal with heads obscuring what could have my great shots.

I used my medium telephoto lens (55-250mm) and I thought that was the perfect lens for that shoot. Not only had I gained an insight on the rich history of this town but I was able to enjoy photography and captured colorful pictures. So hope you enjoy some of the parade highlights as shown below:

 

For someone like me who had just ventured into DSLR photography as a hobby, I was on a serious hunt for a camera bag. Initially I wanted a roomy, nicely-padded, waterproof bag that could hold a camera body, 2 or more lenses and other accessories. I know that I would eventually invest on better lenses so a big camera bag like the Canon 2400 SLR Gadget Bag for only $32.00 was what I wanted right off the bat. I was quite happy with its price and quality. I love the padded adjustable dividers which allows me to customize it to my equipment. It has a durable shell, with rugged water repellant nylon fabric and a shoulder strap with non-slip, adjustable shoulder pad for carrying comfort. I actually don’t have that much gear and accessories yet but I think the bag is big enough to house all my current gear and probably more should I decide to get more lenses, external flash and what not.

However, I could think of one con with this bag though. It looks too geeky and flashy for me, lol! It screams “Hey, I got expensive stuff worth mugging in here” so I really wasn’t too comfortable lugging it with me wherever I go. I stopped taking my camera with me for a while because there were just too many things to pay attention to in every morning dash to Caleb’s preschool and my work. But now that days are getting warmer and spring is almost here in Montana (not quite but it’ll eventually get here, lol!), I want to carry my camera with me everywhere so I won’t miss any opportunity to shoot good pictures of flowers, bugs, and possibly birds on my break time....so my quest to find me a small, handy but still can give my camera the best protection it needs continues!

I find these holster type camera bags really cute and not too bulky. I decided to get Case Logic SLRC-201 SLR Zoom Holster on Amazon for only $28.00.  I didn't expect much of the quality considering the cheap price but much to my surprise, this cute little thing really exceeded my expectations. My T3i with my longest lens attached to it fit snugly and comfortably. I like how small and easy to carry this bag is.  

The interior has memory foam which serves as a padding and the water-proof EVA base which allows the case to stand up on its own is a bonus. Obviously, I can only carry one lens attached to the camera with this bag and store my extra memory cards, batteries and filters in the three zippered compartments but that's the whole point of getting this bag. I want it to be my perfect everyday easy-travel camera bag.

Another thing that I love about this bag is the hammock system as you can see in the picture below. My camera does not sit on the bottom of the case, it's actually being suspended by this sort of an ingenious suspension system which added a superior impact protection. Ok, I know I sounded like this was a paid endorsement but it's not. I happen to just simply love this purchase and I want to brag about it, lol!

For now, I am really happy with my camera bags. But in all honesty, I am really drooling over the Epiphanie camera bag collection. They look girly, stylish looking camera bags that you wouldn't even think of them as gadget bags. But for $165.00? Nah, that would have to wait! My money would be better off spent on a professional lens than a bag, lol!

Photography isn’t exactly a low-cost hobby but it doesn’t have to break the bank either. I think one of the cool things about having a DSLR is the ability to switch lenses. My Canon Rebel T3i came with the 18-135mm kit lens and while this lens performs pretty good for a beginner like me, I know that I’m going to need the 50mm f/1.8 a.k.a. “Nifty Fifty” as part of my “learning curve” arsenal. So just a couple of weeks after hubby got me my new camera, he also bought me the 50mm f/1.8 lens that I was wanting to have. Oh boy, how I love this lens! It’s staying in my camera until hubby can get me the 100mm f/2.8 macro that I have been drooling over, lol!

The reasons why I love this lens so much apart from the fact that every amateur photographer should have a 50mm lens in their bag are the following:

1. It’s cheap!

For $99.00 at Amazon, it’s a no-brainer. Don’t let the price tag fool you. This affordable lens easily outperforms any kit lens offered in the market. It is great value for your money and definitely worth it as a first lens investment.

2. Great for low-light photography!

While I like to practice shooting outdoors, let me be honest by saying that since I’m a working mom, I shoot indoors with my 3-year old son as my subject, most of the time. I love capturing him in his most natural element, that is in his playroom while he’s busy destroying his toys, lol! Or goofing around with his other favorite person in the world, his Daddy! The downside to shooting indoors is the amount of light available to capture great pictures. With the wide aperture of f1.8, especially coming from a typical kit lens which is usually f5.6, this lens gives me 3 stops or 8x more light coming through the lens opening. Basically, what this means is I’d be able to use a faster shutter speed and avoid camera shake. Now if you have taken pictures of your kids, you know why it’s important to shoot fast. Kids at this age can’t and won’t sit still. They are on the move all-the-time! So for me, shooting wide open is a must!

3. It’s lightweight and small!

I like taking my camera with me wherever I go. And I’m not going to lie, I wasn’t too keen about drawing much attention to myself by lugging around a fancy camera with a long and heavy lens. At 4.6 oz., this lens is ultra-lightweight which makes it a perfect walk-around lens.

4. Super sharp!

Prime lenses are lenses that have a fixed focal length like the 50mm f/1.8. Meaning they don’t zoom! Prime lenses are usually inherently sharper than zoom lenses. They say you truly haven’t experienced a tack sharp image until you have shot with a prime lens, especially for the price. I was greatly impressed with how sharp and crisp my photos came out using this lens. I mean, I am not an expert by all means, but I have truly noticed a huge difference with the quality of my pictures when I’m using this lens as compared to my 18-135mm kit lens.

5. Killer Bokeh!

What is bokeh? The term comes from the Japanese word “boke” which literally translates as “blur”. So basically, bokeh is the quality of out-of-focus or “blurry parts” of an image. This is particularly useful when you want to isolate your subject by rendering the unimportant elements of your photograph like the background “out-of-focus”. This makes your photos visually appealing and more professional-looking. Bokeh is rendered by the lens, not the camera. A lens with a large maximum aperture like f/1.8 yield more pleasant-looking bokeh than your regular zoom kit lens.

6. It’s versatile!

The 50mm lens is a great street shooting lens, not too wide, not too long. Mount on a cropped camera body like my T3i, it can also be a great portrait lens, just long enough to remove distortion from your subject’s face. On the more expensive full-frame camera body, 50mm focal length yields a “normal” perspective and field of view similar to what we see from our very own eyes.

7. It’ll make you a better photographer!

Since this lens doesn’t zoom, it forces you to be creative with your shots. It makes you zoom with your feet, walk around your subject and explore different view angles thereby improving the quality of your composition. In short, it forces the photographer not to be “lazy”, lol!

There you go! Now you know why I am in love with this lens. :) As a matter of fact, when it starts to feel springy here in Montana, I’m going to take my family outdoors for a spring family portrait. I am excited! In the meantime, below are some of the shots I have taken of my little boy using the 50mm lens.