December 30, 2010

analytics

Yep, I am up at this weee hour of 4am, while on vacation. Actually have been up since about 2am. Why you ask, because I was rear-ended a couple of weeks ago and tonight for some reason my fingers keep going numb while I was trying to sleep and my neck is completely messed up. So, I am sitting here in the dark playing on the internet. Thank you Apple for the light up keyboard. I heart my apple probably about as much as Jess loves John. Speaking of Jess or friends rather, I was cruising my blog and noticed that there is a new tab; I am not sure how new it is... but I have never noticed it before, and I LOVE it! It is the Stats tab! YAY!

On that note, I would like to thank Sarah, you didn't even know you were doing it, but, you are sending all kinds of traffic to my blog! The runner up is my straight talker Jess. And my third place finish goes to Cristina.

Thank you ladies for being loyal readers. Most importantly thank you for being an amazing friend.

Now that I know people are actually reading, I might post a little ditty more often. eh, we'll see. Heres to a new year!

December 17, 2010

Frosty the Jerel Man




Every year at work we have a door decorating competition, my awesome boss, allowed us take a silly picture of him to decorate his door. We made good use of the picture, at least I think so. Here is a look at the door we made. Yes, it is 3-D.

I'm A Snow Man! (sung to the music of Soul Man)

Taken with a camera phone. Picture credits: Felice

Here is a song that Mike - one of my coworkers wrote to go along with our fun:

Comin’ to ya on a snowy road

Good lovin’ I got a sleigh load

And when you get it, you got somethin’

So don’t worry, cause I’m fallin’

I’m a snow man

I’m a snow man

I was brought up on the North Pole

Learned how to skate before I was old

I was educated of good stock

When I start fallin’ I just can’t stop



And in case I have not said it enough, I LOVE my job and I truly love that we work hard and play hard!

December 16, 2010

Cool finds!

I have a couple of friends that are pregnant. I am beyond excited for them, so I thought I would share a couple of really cool finds to hopefully assist them in the planning for the next or first peanut to join their family.


Pottery Barn Kids
Did you know that they give you a complimentary design consultation to assist in the planning of the room. They also provide this service for updating your child's room.


The SidekickTM Original Joy


I think this is fantastic! It is a baby carrier and diaper bag all in one! To say I love this would be an understatement; yesterday Baby steals had it featured for $59! I know some people do not like to wear their baby; but I, on the other hand am a total baby wearer! I wore Emma everywhere, and daddy wore Emma everywhere. My baby carrier was truly amazing when my bird bladder would kick in and OH no! Where am I going to put Emma? SCORE, I have my baby carrier on. Not a problem.


A couple of other cool websites:

Kid Steals

Mama Bargains




December 09, 2010

tipping my photography hat


I might do more of these photography posts because they were make me think back to my basic photography days of when I was studying photography at SHSU.

Here are some quick tips that I came across in a photography magazine that I picked up for free at my favorite local photo shop, Precision Camera on Lamar.

  1. Darker -medium to dark background
  2. Depth - spot foreground, middle ground and background (a full wall of ivy is beautiful but does not make an movement for the eye)
  3. Dense - avoid background that have hot spots of sunlight and shadow
  4. Design - look for leading lines, patterns and diagonals in a location
  5. Diverse - try to find one location that offers multiple perspectives
Keep in mind all of these are just tips. You are your own designer, so bend and break the rules as you see fit for your composition.

December 07, 2010

A touch of photography... Just for Jess

I have a friend with a new DSLR Camera (Digital Single Lens Reflector). She is a little overwhelmed by all the features as any person would be, this includes a professional or just a hobbyist. These cameras are loaded with amazing features including, internal filters, an endless array of lens, in camera editing, instant start up vs delayed start, on screen built in rule of thirds, swivel LCD screens, auto focus, face detection, just to name a handful of options.

I will start with the basics, while shooting in Auto mode. Things to consider when taking a picture.

First, the rule of thirds, what on earth is this? This is the way you will begin to look through your view finder on the camera - the goal here is to line up important aspects of the composition at the intersection of these lines. Here is an example of how it looks through the view finder.

The grid line is the rule of thirds. Having an image in the center of the photograph is OK, however, once you get the hang of using your composition this will make your pictures stand out. Using this rule allows the eye movement to follow a natural flow around the picture. It creates a virtual hierarchy.

Don't be afraid to move in a little closer. In some situations you don't have the perfect angle and you just go with what you are given. However, when shooting people go ahead and zoom on in. Think about the goal of the picture you are about to take, is it for the background or the foreground? If it is for a cute little head shot of your little girl then get in close so you can capture all that detail.

My recommendation enjoy the Auto mode on your camera for awhile, it is a great catchall that when the lens is opened the camera's internal brain does a few quick calculations based on lighting and speed of the object in the lends and triggers the best capture for that element.

A good tip for shooting on a bright sunny day or an overcast day - use your fill flash.