Last week I blogged about one of my favorite lenses, the Canon 16 – 35.  It’s a great lens, but like with any wide angle lens you will get a bit of lens distortion on the edges.  Nicole asked if I had ever tried the lens distortion tool while editing, but I hadn’t.  I didn’t even know if Photoshop had one!

Flash forward to this past weekend.  The good people at Adobe were kind enough to send me a copy of Adobe Lightroom Photoshop 3 to try out for myself.  As it was loading I was reading about all the new features and one of those features was a lens distortion tool.  It’s super awesome because you simply pick what lens you were using and it is fixed automatically.  The have most Canon, Nikon, and Sigma wide angle lenses to choose from as well as a couple of Sony and Tamron lenses.

Here is the original image taken with the Canon 16 – 35 2.8:

Here is the corrected image:

The change is subtle, but I think it looks great!  You can really see the difference when you look at the block wall in the background.  See how on the original image it curves up on the sides (on the top and bottom of the wall).  On the corrected image it’s just a straight line.  Pretty cool and it was so easy!

I’ll be doing a full review on Lightroom when I get to know how to use it and work it into my work flow.  But, I am really impressed.  Especially with the noise reduction.  Wow!  It’s amazing!

I don’t like flash, but it’s necessary for weddings.  I haven’t used a flash for a family shoot in probably three years.  For weddings, here’s what’s in my bag:

3 Speedlites (2 580EX and 1 580EXII) – I use one camera flash and two off cameras.  If you want to know how to use off camera flash I suggest you take the same workshop that I did this past Spring – Off Camera Flash workshop with JVS.  I went specifically for the wedding lighting, which was a very small part of the workshop.  But, it really helped me understand my Speedlites much better.

Lots and lots of rechargeable batteries – I think they recycle faster than normal batteries.  And it’s also environmentally friendly and more cost efficient in the long run.  Make sure you label the batteries with the date you bought them so you know when it’s time to eventually retire them.

3 Quantum Turbo Batteries (one for each flash) – Do you ever have that problem when using your flash where it will take one picture and then it won’t fire again for 10, 15, 30 seconds?  You end up missing the shot!  And that stinks.  With the Quantum Turbo batteries your flash will have extra power and will recycle much faster.  It’s a bit cumbersome and you have to wear it on your pants, but the new version is much lighter and it’s totally worth it to not miss the shot.

I love the natural look when using 3 Speedlites for the dancing shots

I don’t usually do a lot of off camera flash for portraits, but when you’re stuck in a dark casino you have to do what you have to do.  These were taken at the Wynn Las Vegas last year.

Off camera flash is also great for ring and detail shots

For my everyday shoots (engagement, family sessions, etc.) I carry my Shootsac.  The Shootsac is great, but it only carries 3 lenses and maybe your keys and chapstick.  For weddings I need something more substantial.  In addition to my Shootsac (which I carry the lenses that I know I will need right then and there, plus my phone and extra batteries) I also use the Airport Airstream Roller from Think Tank.  I love this bag for some many reasons.  Let me count the ways:

1)  It fits in the overhead compartment on airplanes.

2)  It has a lock.

3)  Not only does it lock, but you can also lock it to something.  That’s rad when you’re shooting a wedding and you need to leave it for a few minutes.  As someone who is super paranoid about getting her gear stolen, that’s cool.

4)  It has a special compartment for my laptop that can also be locked.

5)  The dividers inside the bag can be rearranged.

I’ve just about outgrown this bag, but will be upgrading to the Airport International next.

And if you order through this link to Think Tank, you get a free gift with your order over $50.  How rad is that!  You can get an awesome gift like the Pixel Pocket Rocket, which is my fav!

This week (and maybe next) I will be doing a feature on all the equipment I carry in my camera bag (and Shootsac) with explanations of why I use it and examples.

First up, the 100mm Macro.  The Macro lens isn’t a necessity, but it sure is a lot of fun! If you’re shooting weddings it is the lens for shooting ring shots and details.  I have used it on some newborn sessions, but honestly, it gets so close it kind of scares me.  Too much detail in a person isn’t always a good thing!  I use the Macro for ring shots, jewelry, and detail shots at the reception.  Here is a shot from my wedding yesterday of the Bride’s Grandmother’s crystals that she wore.

I love ring shots.  Always something fun to do if a reception is dragging a bit.  Here’s one of my favorite

It’s just a great lens for capturing the really small details that you really want to focus on and isolate.  At weddings it’s sometimes the small details that mean the most.  Here is a ring that was the Bride’s Grandmother’s engagement ring tied to her bouquet.

There is a newer version of this lens that I’m dying to get my hands on!  Looks beautiful!  But, really for as often as I use this lens (not very often) it’s just not worth the money at this point to buy the new one.

I’m not going to be jumping on the film bandwagon that a lot of professional photographers seem to be jumping on anytime soon.  But, I did have a lot of fun with my Diana camera while on vacation in Maui.  I bought the Diana a few years ago.  I took a roll with it and got frustrated because I couldn’t figure out how to load the film.  I thew it in a cabinet and got it out again last year when we went to Hawaii.  Those pictures turned out horrible!  So, back in the cabinet it went.  I took it to Seattle and didn’t use the whole roll so I decided to take it on vacation this year to see what happened.  And I’m so glad I did because I love the results.

The thing I love about film is that you have to concentrate every time you click the shutter.  It’s a challenge.  And it’s exciting waiting to see the results.

I love the Diana because it’s unpredictable.  And because it makes me look artsy when I’m really not.  It’s just the inherent light leaks of the camera and the film advancing when it’s not supposed to.  The pictures just make me happy.

Here are a couple of my favorites.  You can see the rest on the DrewB Blog.

And one from Seattle

I stole the next guest blog from Julie Carson’s blog, Joy’s Hope.  If you don’t already read Julie’s blog then stop what you are doing right this very second and put it in your reader.  Now.  Julie is a mom to three of the most adorable and fun children I have ever had the pleasure of meeting.  When she’s not busy being Super Mom, Julie is coming up with fun crafts and inspiring projects that make life beautiful.   She’s fun and funny and I’m very lucky to call her my friend!

I love this picture.
For so many reasons.

It’s weird.
I love weird.

But most of all because it reminds me of a moment.  A simple moment.  But one that I will hold dear to my heart as time goes on.

I was snapping pics of the girls.  Just sort of practicing.  Learning.  They were playing.  We had just spent a few hours in the car and they desperately needed to get their wiggles out.

Lucy was being wild.  Or Lucy was being normal.  Same diff.
She fell.
She needed me.
As she ran screaming, I clicked the shutter one last time, with my left hand and the camera at my hip, expecting little.

I scooped her up, got the requisite band aids and went on with our day.

When I loaded the pictures on to my computer this one surprised me.  I hardly even remembered taking it with all of the crying and the drama.

But here is my tough little girl, in her favorite shoes and favorite pants, running to me.  Actually needing me.  It is beautiful.  I am thankful it captured a moment.  A moment that won’t always be.

She will outgrow the pants.  She will outgrow the shoes.  But she will never outgrow the need for her mama.

70% chance of rain on Saturday.  Nothing I can do about it, right?  I promised my boy a train and he’s getting a train and we will ride on it whether it’s raining or not and we will have fun!  He’s so excited for his party!  And for all of his buddy’s to come over.

I’ve been crafting away all week.  Tissue balls will be the end of me!

Luckily I have an awesome friend who did all of my sewing for me.  Because me and sewing machines don’t really get along.

I think I will leave them up all year!  I love them!

Happy Friday!

This week I am trying to be crafty and finish all the details for Brayden’s big 2nd birthday bash on Saturday.  Crafty is not my thing.  Me and crafty don’t really get along.  So, I may be blogging a little less while I’m honing my inner crafty girl.

While we’re on the subject of Brayden’s birthday party can everyone stop what they are doing right now and do an anti-rain dance.  Weather.com keeps playing with my emotions and one day it will say it’s going to rain and the next day it’s not.  Today it says it’s going to rain and I don’t like that.

Thanks.

While looking through my images from a shoot last week I came across this image.  I saw that it was out of focus so I marked it to be deleted.  But, I came back to it and realized that I love it.

Technically, it’s all wrong.  But, I love how Halley is out of focus and it shows her movement.  And I love how the only part that is in focus is her hand holding her little sister Lucy’s hand.  Remember that not every image has to be perfect for you to love it.

If I were possibly thinking about traveling to one location outside of California to do some shooting this summer where should that be and why?  I’m thinking about taking a long weekend and going somewhere new to shoot.  I’m looking for a place that’s totally different than Orange County.  I want barns, old buildings without fences, and no beaches!  Please leave a comment with a location suggestion if you’d really be interested in booking a session.  I get emails asking me to travel all of the time, but I want to see if the interest is really out there.  The shoot can be whatever you want it to be.  Family, engagement, head shots, just because, whatever you want!

When Brayden was 10 months old we went to our good friends wedding in Ohio.  I was so looking forward to taking pictures of B there.  Barns!  Cornfields!  Long, empty roads!  And then I got sick.  I was so bummed.  But, I still ended up going out and making my poor baby freeze while I tried to get a few shots.  Can you believe this is the same kid?

I’ve gotten a few emails recently asking about me and how I got started in photography.  It’s not a very exciting story and I really don’t like writing about myself.  I can write about a lot of things, but when it comes to myself I get writers block.  Because I’m pretty boring.  So, I’m jumping on the bandwagon and opening up a Formspring account.  You can go there and ask whatever you’d like.  Want to know what my major was?  Where I went to school (you should ALL know that!)?  What it was like to work at MTV?  What my training in photography is?  Why I want to be best friends with Britney Spears?  Go on over and ask a question and I’ll do my best to answer them.

I’m warning you.  It will probably be boring though.  Because, like I said, I’m pretty boring.

On another note, we had our first traumatic injury yesterday.  B ran into the side of the door and ended up with this (taken with my iphone).

I didn’t think it was going to be that bad.  He runs into things all the time.  But, when Chuck told me not to look I knew it was bad.  I almost threw up when I saw it.  It scared the crap out of me.  How am I going to deal with having a crazy boy and all the injuries that come with it?  If I couldn’t stomach a knot on the head how I am going to deal with blood and (knock on wood) broken bones.  Ugh.  This is the part of being a mom that I do not enjoy.