A quick Monday morning post...

Stop on over at http://qbranchltd.blogspot.com/ where I have been featured in the weekly artist blog. I met pastperfect through Photographers of Etsy and I am very excited that I was chosen for this weeks blog! You can check out their esty stores at: http://pastperfect.etsy.com and http://qbranchltd.etsy.com


Happy Holidays! I have new images that I am going to try to post later this week... it's that crazy time of the year, no time to get anything done!

My first feature in an Etsy Treasury!

Thank you to Xenya of http://www.xenya.etsy.com who put one of my photos in her treasury, it's my first one!

Take a look if you get a chance, it expires Wednesday (12/10)...

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=25683

2009 Calendars are Here!

I am excited to offer in my etsy store a 2009 calendar featuring my HDR cars. Each of these old and forgotten cars have a story of their own to tell. I hope you have a special someone in your life who would love to look at these cars each month. Each shot was taken in HDR format which gives the full range of textures in the shadows and highlights. I took each shot with a Canon 40D DSLR camera. Then scanned into Photoshop and adjusted.

Every page has has been printed the same GLOSSY premium Fuji Crystal Archive paper and chemistry that my other prints are printed on. Each month measures 4" x 6" and they all sit in a clear jewel case for display. The jewel case also can be used as storage for the prints. Included is 13 pages, the cover and 1 page for each month in 2009.


This will make a perfect Christmas present for the car lover in your family. They work perfectly in a study or office or you can take them out of the case and place them on your fridge... whatever strikes your fancy :)

Old Rustic Cars in HDR

Well I have been busy working on photographs! Here are a few of the latest shots that I have been working on I also took these shots and made them into a 2009 calendar which I will be selling in my etsy shop. They should be ready this week, I'm waiting on the processing to get done and then I will have them up for sale. I'll post some photographs of them on here and a link to the store if anyone is interested in them! I know they will make great christmas presents for me this year!

I spent some time driving around where I live and found some wonderful old rustic barns and automobiles. I LOVE shooting anything old, rustic and broken down. I just think it has so much character! Below are just some of the cars that I came across. The barns I have not gotten a chance to work on yet but I will post the barn images once I do get them done.




I found this old Plymouth on one of the back roads by my house. I took a ton of images of it because I thought it was so cool looking! The above image is my favorite shot.














I think this tire shot is my second favorite.


The seats were just springs... so cool!








This truck has a funny story, 2 years ago on our wedding day my husband and I took some of our wedding photos in front of this truck... we went back 2 years later for some shots and the date we wrote in the dust of the truck is still visible! I had forgotten all about it!

Photographers of Etsy

I have just been inducted into the "The Photographers of Etsy (PoE) Street Team". This group is dedicated to getting the word out about the talented photographers on Etsy. They are a community of photographers who support one another by sharing experiences, techniques and helpful tips and tricks.

I am very excited about joining and I hope that it helps me get more photographs out there for everyone to see!


Check out the photos I have for sale by clicking on the Etsy image below:

Holga Images!

Here are some of the images that I took with my little Holga camera... for those of you who have not heard of a 'Holga' before let me give you a description. A Holga is a cult toy camera with plastic lens and case. This cheap camera uses 120 film and makes marvelous fuzzy photos with drop-off around the edges and light leaks. It has a fixed shutter speed (1/100), plastic lens, ineffective adjustable f-stop switch (f11 I believe is what it shoots at)... it's minimalist-ness is what makes it such a great little camera and why there are so many who love them. It's just the photographer and a box with no gadgets and gizmos in between the two. Below are my most resent Holga shots click on any of the images to make them larger...


An old broken hut on the beach in Tulum, Mexico.

A palm tree I saw while walking down the beach in Tulum, Mexico.

A beach house that I believe someone lived in. - Tulum, Mexico

Fishermen in Tulum.

I went to a Pirate Festival in Wentzville, MIssouri and they had belly dancers!

More belly dancers.

This sculpture was in Laumeier Sculpture Park in St. Louis.

I came across this barn while on a drive through the New Melle, Missouri area.

This truck I found along the same drive in New Melle, Missouri.

Damask Pink and Black Wedding Invitation

I just wanted to post some photos of a wedding invitation I just got done working on. You can also find it in my Etsy store. Keep me in mind for any events you have coming up, I'll help in any way I can!

I'll be posting some Holga photos from Mexico soon.

a little about Etsy...

This post is two-fold... first I wanted to promote my etsy shop and try to get as many sales as I can and what better way to do that than on my own blog?! Then the second is to explain to those of you who don't know of Etsy what it is all about and how it is going to change the way you shop.

We've become used to a world where what we buy is determined by what products are stocked by a handful of chain stores, but there are signs that may be changing. The future could be one of thriving cottage industries and skilled artisans lovingly producing custom-made wares. —  That is the vision of Etsy, a U.S.-based Web site that describes itself as "an online crafts fair." But unlike your local Sunday-morning market, Etsy's crafts fair has some 200,000 stall holders, who have this year sold just under $50 million-worth of their homemade goods.

The site was conceived and launched in 2005 by Rob Kalin, a carpenter, among other things, who was looking for somewhere to sell his work online. At the time, the only real outlet was eBay, but Kalin was looking for something different, something that would provide a place for small-time artisans to sell their creations. And Etsy was born...

 The three-year-old site, where people buy and sell homemade arts and crafts is hitting a chord with people who are tired of the ordinary and the mass produced. They are an online marketplace for buying & selling all things handmade who's mission is to enable people to make a living making things, and to reconnect makers with buyers. All of whom have a vision to build a new economy and present a better choice:

Buy, Sell, and Live Handmade.


Thank you for my quick soapbox... please click on the image below to get linked directly to my Etsy store and create a log in while your there... trust me, you'll love it!




Sources:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/09/18/craft.revival/
http://images.businessweek.com/ss/08/09/0929_most_influential/22.htm

HDR Images!

Sorry it's been so long since my last blog. I have been busy with HDR imaging! I went to a class taught by a great photographer by the name of Ben Willmore. You can check out his blog at: www.whereisben.com and his website at: www.thebestofben.com. He taught me a lot about HDR images, how to take them and how to bring them into photoshop and get some really amazing results! I have been taking a lot of my shots in HDR lately and have been fairly happy with the results. Below is just a small amount of some of the shots that I have taken and then brought into photoshop to play around with.  I am going out shooting again this weekend so we will see what I find. 

I just turned some of my Holga film into the lab yesterday so when I get it back next week I'll post some Holga shots. I don't remember all that I took b/c the film spans about 3 months but I know that Mexico is in there and my friends beautiful daughter Sophia is in there. So we'll see if I got anything good!

2008 Halloween Invitations!

Well I just got done designing the invitations for our 2008 halloween party. These were so much fun and I am so happy with how they turned out. I bought some manila envelopes and printed the "X-Ray Film Do Not Fold" and addresses onto them. Then I created a fake x-ray which I printed on transparency film. The x-ray points to a crack on the skull and states "death caused by blow to the head with a tire iron for not attending our halloween party". Ha ha! I think that I have watched one too many 'Bones' episodes :) Then behind the x-ray is a medical record form which I played on words between it being a medical form and the information for attending the party. The 'medical form' reads:

Date Of Admittance: (Date of party)
Cause Of Death: Death caused by blow to head with a tire iron

Please answer the following questions to the best of your ability:
Please arrive by: 5pm | 8pm | 11pm (8pm circled)
Please come in your: lingerie | costume | birthday suit (costume circled)
Don’t forget to bring: libations | pumpkins | teddy bear (libations circled)

Name of hosts: (our names)
Party Address: (our address)
In case of emergency (or to RSVP), please notify: (my email and cell number)

I realize that by attending this party I am responsible for any
and all fun I will incur and/or drunkenness that may ensue.
I understand that I am to come in costume or I will be liable for
any consequences or ridicule that may occur.
Date:
Signature:

Spooky Halloween Invitations!

It's that time of the year again... I love halloween! I created this invitation last year when I threw a costume party at my house. Both the invitation and the party turned out great and I am throwing another party this year! Although I am going to come up with a different invitation design, one that is not as time consuming to assemble :) 

I'd thought I share this one with you since I loved how it turned out. It is also up for order on my etsy site. The direct link to it is: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15258779