I’m the type of person who likes to do everything myself.  I’m a control freak.  I want it my way or the highway.  Especially with my business.  But, there comes to be a point where you realize you can’t do it all.  You’re not super mom (or at least I’m not).  And you might just need some help.

With my photography business I like to outsource the things that I don’t like / don’t have time to do.  And one of those things is RAW processing.  It’s tedious and time consuming and I’m just not all that great at it to be totally honest.  In the past I have just shot RAW for my weddings.  I’ve used two of the big RAW processing companies and they’ve been okay.  My biggest complaint is that it’s just not consistent.  There are different people processing my images each time and it can be a bit frustrating.  Especially for a control freak like me.

If you follow me on Facebook and Twitter you probably heard me talking about editing a lot this past Fall.  Okay, fine.  I was complaining.  A lot.  I was drowning in my editing all while still nursing a newborn and taking care of my crazy 3 year old.  A very nice Mom*tog reader, Marissa Lynn, emailed me telling me that she wanted to help me.  To offer her services so I could start spending more time with my family.  See, Marissa is a Navy wife.  She’s the mom to a little girl and loves photography, but because they move so often she’s not able to really establish her business.  In the mean time she has started editing for other photographers just because she loves to do it. I decided to give her a try and I was so impressed.  She’s FAST, super great and accommodating, and her prices are so reasonable.  And she’s a mom.  So she gets that you would rather be spending time with your kids rather than sitting in front of the computer.  I’m so glad she reached out to me because her help has really freed up more time for me to spend with my family!  Really.

Marissa is looking to take on a few more clients and if you are drowning in editing like I was, I would really suggest contacting her.  Because she’s awesome.  And you’ll be happy to have more time to do what you love.

Check out Marissa Lynn’s website to learn more about her services!

Before Christmas I was invited to see a demo of the new Lighroom 4.  I’ve been dying to unveil the new changes to you, but had to keep my mouth shut until today.  There are some VERY excited changes that have been made, which I’m so excited to share with you!

Here are the highlights:

1)  One thing I use Photoshop for that I haven’t been able to do in Lightroom previously is album design.  If you like using Blurb to make albums, you’ll love that Lightroom has partnered with Blurb to make creating photo books that much easier.  In just one click you can publish your book to Blurb.

Included in the book module are professionally designed templates.  You can also add text.  It would be awesome if in the near future templates for specific photo labs and album companies were added as well!  But, the new book module will do for now!

2)  Another feature I am super excited about is the ability to play and edit videos from DSLRs, point and shoots and even smart phones.  Since I’ve been using my 5D Mark II more, I have been trying out video.  The problem I’ve been having is that my pictures always look way better than my video.  In Lightroom 4 you can make basic color corrections to the video including white balance, exposure, contrast among other things.  Hello?  How cool is that?  You can also trim your videos as well.  This is a feature I will be using a lot!  And you can directly publish the videos to Facebook and Flickr as well!

3)  Local editing adjustments have been added including the ability to do a local noise reduction and white balance, which is AWESOME!  There have been changes made which should also simplify the develop module.

4)  With a new map module you can now “geotag” your images and organize them by location.  This makes searching your images that much easier!

5)  Emailing images has been simplified.  With Lightroom 4 you are able to email images directly in Lightroom using any email account that you’d like!  It’s super easy.

There are many more improvements, but don’t take my word for it.  You can download the beta version of Lightroom 4 here… for FREE!  Go try it out for yourself and let me know what you think!  Have fun!

Earlier this week I started “sleep training” Kennedy.  That sounds much more hardcore than it really is.  I’m really just trying to get her to nap in her crib once a day.  So I can actually get something done while she sleeps.  On day one she screamed her head off for about half an hour.  After going in and comforting her 10 times and turning on the white noise app on my iphone she fell asleep for about half an hour.  Then she woke up.  Pissed.

Yesterday was better.  She actually fell asleep with no crying at all.  And stayed asleep for 45 minutes.  Begineers luck?  I’m not sure.  Keeping my fingers crossed that it works again tomorrow!

Canon 5D Mark II, 50 1.2

F 1.2, 1/125, ISO 1600

Some of my favorite images of my kids are when they are sleeping.  I always ask myself, is the shot worth the risk of waking them up?  If it is I:

1)  Wait until it’s close to the end of nap time to attempt the shot.  That way if they wake up it’s no big deal.

2)  Try to determine what my settings should be before taking the shot.  If they wake up or if their eyes open you can run out of the room really fast and hope they go back to sleep!  :)

3)  Turn off the flash!  That’s a sure fire way to wake your baby up.  You can see from my setting above that I had my aperture wide open and my ISO up super high.  I’m a little shaky (especially when my aperture is wide open) so I don’t like to go below 1/100 in my shutter speed.

4)  Turn the beep off!  Another sure fire way to wake your kid up!

5)  If they stay asleep during the first few clicks, they will probably keep sleeping.  Try a few different angles and adjust your settings if necessary!

In early December I bought myself an early Christmas / end of the year tax write off present.  I had been coveting the Canon 100mm 2.8 L Series lens for a while and I finally took the plunge and bought it.  Macro lenses are great for getting super, duper close up on your subject.  You’ll see macro lenses used a lot in nature photography.  It’s a prime lens, which means you can’t zoom in or out.

I’ve had the Canon 100mm 2.8 macro (the non L Series version) for a few years.  The only time I ever used it was for ring shots at weddings and it did it’s job.

The big problem with that lens is you basically need to manually focus it, which is fine when you’re shooting objects that don’t move.  It was a lot harder to use on things that moved, like my squirmy kids and the newborns that I’ve been shooting a lot more of in the past year.

The 100mm 2.8L is a totally unnecessary lens for most Mom*togs and even a lot of photographers.  It’s pricey.  But, I LOVE it.  It’s really fun, super sharp, and the focus is great.  My only complaint is that I wish it stopped down to 2.0.

I would highly recommend renting this lens if you have a new baby or even to capture the little details of older kids.  You’ll have a lot of fun with it.  The only problem is that you might not want to give it back!

PS  If you were interested in buying the 100 2.8L, there is a $110 instant rebate that ends January 7th!

Canon 5D Mark II, 100mm 2.8 L

F 2.8, 1/160, ISO 800

F 2.8, 1/100, ISO 1000

Whenever I talk about ISO I always suggest shooting at the lowest ISO possible to avoid noise (that yucky pixelation you get when shooting at too high of an ISO).  But, there’s an exception to the rule.  Sometimes shooting at a higher ISO can be better and lead to less grain.  Take this situation for example:

I shot this picture on a really dark and rainy morning.

This image was shot at 2.0, 1/125, and 800 ISO.  It was exposed properly according to my meter.  This is straight out of camera.

*** All images shot with Canon 5D Mark II and 50 1.2

When I lighten it up in Photoshop (with a simple levels adjustment) it looks like this.  Yucky, right?

Now, this image was shot at 2.0, 1/100, with an ISO of 1600.  Again, straight out of camera.

Look at the difference!  I overexposed this image in camera.  You can see when I zoom in on it, there is a lot less noise than the image that had to be lighted up in Photoshop.

At 1600 ISO

At 800 ISO

There is still noise in the image that is 1600, but I think it looks a lot better than the image shot at 800 ISO.

Depending on what camera you have, you will get noiser images at lower ISOs.  That’s why you pay so much for a camera like the 5D Mark II (among other features).

So, just remember, a low ISO isn’t always the best depending on your lighting situation!

PS  Have you been thinking about purchasing an UNmanual or an UNposing Guide???  I highly suggest checking back here on Black Friday!!!

I LOVE getting emails from all of you and I apologize if I can’t respond right away.  It’s hard to type with only one hand while holding a baby   I do my best to respond even if it’s a month later (which is so super embarrassing!).

Got this email a couple of weeks ago from Erica:

I just had my first photoshoot today with another friends child (3 weeks old) and I feel like I was all over the place. I have a deep interest in photography, shoot my kids nonstop, but feel as if I shoot by luck, and can’t find a place to start! I would like any advice you can give to me, as a beginner, a mom with a camera to finding my way!

Great question!  I had this problem when I started as well and this is, inadvertently, how the UNposes were born.

When I was a beginner I would have all these ideas that I wanted to try for shoots, but I would get to the shoot, get nervous, loose my train of thought, and then just freeze up and have my clients do the same thing over and over again in a new place.  I would kick myself after the shoot because I felt I didn’t have enough variety.

Then I started giving my UNposes silly  names so they were easy for me to remember.  Based on who I was shooting (couple, family with small kids, family with lots of kids, etc) I would pick 5 UNposes that I wanted to try on that shoot.  And the great thing about an UNpose is that it usually yields several looks rather than just one so I would get a lot of variety.
In addition, I would shoot different angles of the same pose.  Shoot straight on, from above, below, zoom in, zoom out, etc.  So I can get a lot of variety from just one setup.

I always go into a shoot with a game plan.  And then know that it’s going to change.  When shooting kids, your shoots are going to be super unpredictable and you have to learn to go with the flow and adapt quickly.  Kids never do what you want them to do.  And that’s okay.  You are there to capture that family’s essence and who they really are.  But, by at least having some sort of game plan you are able to stay focused and keep your composure even when the kids don’t!

I got an email from Jennifer a few weeks ago that made me LOL:

“Do you have must haves/ or ways you make yourself comfy while you shoot?
Hair up bangs back… anything like that?

ALSO! Im sure you get it all the time, but I absolutely LOVE your style, fashion wise! I think we have similar taste in clothes, I would LOVE to see some posts about FASHION for a Mom*tog on your site! Maybe? ”

It made me LOL because while I read it I was still in my pajamas… in the afternoon… wearing a nursing tank… that probably had spit up on it… and I’m sure I hadn’t showered that day.  Ha!  How’s that for being fashionable?

But, I really do like this question!  I choose the outfits that I shoot in based on a few criteria:

1)  Jeans have to fit comfortably so I can roll around and chase after little kids and have to have a high enough waist so I don’t have crack attack.  I wear jeans practically every single day so I believe in investing in a good pair.  My favorites are Citizens and Joes.  Because my pre pregnancy jeans are still a little tight I bought some Old Navy jeans (which I do not recommend because the zipper will not stay up!!!) to get me by until I loose that last 10 pounds (Halloween candy is not helping!).

2)  I have to be warm / cool enough.  There’s nothing worse than being on a shoot and being too hot or too cold.  Since the weather where I live can be totally different than where I’m shooting I often layer to make sure that I stay comfortable.

3)  I always wear tanks under my shirts.  This helps prevent said crack attack and helps prevent anything from hanging out up top when I bend over.

4)  I have to wear boots when shooting in fields.  I’m terrified of snakes.  Although I’ve only had one encounter I make sure to always wear boots so a) it won’t slither on my foot and b) I can stomp on it if it gets too close to one of my clients.  Because that’s what I like to think I would do if a snake tried to attack one of my clients

5)  I do like to try to look cute.  My goal is to look professional and put together while still being comfortable.

6)  My hair is almost always back.  I have a lot of hair and can’t stand to have it in my face.  My new fave hair style is the side braid.  I rock it almost everyday.  Because I’m too lazy to blow dry and straighten my naturally frizzy / curly hair.

7)  I like to accessorize with a cute camera strap or camera strap cover.  When I shoot weddings my outfits are so boring.  A cute pop of color in my camera strap and Shootsac cover allows me to show some personality when my outfit doesn’t.

Here are a couple of outfits from recent shoots:

Everything from Old Navy

My shooting boots were a splurge that I bought last year from Anthro.  I heart these boots!

One of my favorite shops is Ruche.  They have Anthro-esque clothes for way, way cheaper.  This was one of those days where it was cold and cloudy at my house, but wasn’t sure what the weather would be where I was shooting.  I wore my new favorite sweatshirt from Ruche.

See.  I told you I like the side braid   I wore my black sparkly TOMS with this outfit.  They are also my wedding shoes because they are so comfy and cute!

*** In a totally unrelated note I heard that TOMS is coming out with ballet flats in the Spring.  If this rumor is true I’m SO excited.  I love TOMS.  Not just because they are comfy but because they give back.

What are your must haves when you’re shooting?

Remember those super cute Superman pics I posted earlier this week?

Well, I have a confession.  That wasn’t the first attempt at taking those pictures of Brayden.  I took him out on Sunday morning and I should have known better.  I set myself up for failure.  He was tired and a little sick.  But, I’ve been so busy taking pictures of other peoples kids that I had to do Brayden’s pictures Sunday morning.

And this is what happened…

He cried.  A lot.

And screamed.

He screamed so loud that I was afraid someone would hear and call the police to report a kidnapping.  It was a major meltdown of epic proportions.

Brayden does not like to have his picture taken.  Which is very sad for me because I LOVE to take his picture.  And most of all, I love spending one on one time with him.  It broke my heart when he freaked out the way he did.

But, on Monday morning he surprised me and told me he wanted to try again.  I made him promise me he would have fun.  And guess what?  He did.  And I did too.

I’ve had to get creative about how I approach taking pictures with Brayden.  I want it to be a positive experience for him.  Here are some tips that have worked for us:

1)  Have the obvious bases covered:  Make sure the kid is fed and not tired.  Having a tired and hungry kid is setting yourself up for failure.  Obviously.

2)  Ask your kid what kind of treat they would like as their reward.  Promising them a toy after the shoot won’t work.  Kids need immediate gratification.  Make sure it’s something that’s not chocolatey or sticky.  Avoid suckers unless you want it in all your shots.  Because once you give them a sucker you can’t get it back.

3)  Ask your kid for input on the shoot.  For Brayden, he didn’t like the “old” buildings.  So I let him pick and choose where we would shoot.  Make them think they are in charge.

4)  Make it fun!  If you do your best to have fun and not be stressed about getting the perfect shot then your kid will (hopefully) have fun too.  Make it an adventure for them. I told Brayden that the area where we were shooting was Superman’s home.  We talked about where Spiderman lived and how Superman flew from building to building and fought the bad guys.  He got really into it.

5)  Make a memory!  I don’t ask B to take pictures anymore.  I ask him to make a memory with me.  I show him lots of pictures on the computer and talk about the memories I have from the pictures.  He loves looking at them.  When shooting I try to remind him that we get to go home and look at the memories we are making.

6)  If they’re not into it, put the camera down, give them a hug, and try again tomorrow.  It’s not worth them getting so upset over it.

I love Halloween.  Love it.

I hate taking pictures with flash.  Hate it.

So, what’s a flash hating, Halloween loving mama to do?  Take Halloween pictures before Halloween.

Last year Brayden was Peter Pan so I found a field with pretty light to help capture that Neverland vibe.

This year B is Superman!  So I went to my favorite go to alley for an urban, grungy feel.

*** I have NO idea where he got this look from, but I love it!

I get the fun costume pictures out of the way before Halloween with pretty light.  I bring my point and shoot for trick or treating for the snapshots.  Less for me to carry and worry about, which equals more fun and less stress!

I was asked recently in a blog comment how I choose what I will focus on in an image.  I focus on whatever I want the viewers eye to be drawn to.  Typically, this is the eyes.  I always focus on either the eye that is closest to me OR the eye that is closest to my center focal point in my viewfinder.  I’m a focuser and recomposer so I will focus on that eye with my center focal point and recompose.  I don’t have time to scroll through the focus points.  By the time I do that, the moment is over.

I love sharp, sharp eyes.  They make me happy.

Canon 5d, 50 1.2

F 2.0, 1/160, ISO 500

Then there are instances where I don’t want the viewers eye to be drawn to the eyes and I’ll focus on that instead.

Canon 5d, 50 1.2

F 2.0, 1/200, ISO 200

Here I wanted to capture Brayden’s little hands with the little army guys and dinosaurs.  Such a little boy toys to play with.

By really separating the subject from your background you are not just illustrating a story, but also making your picture something other than just an ordinary snapshot.

Next time you’re taking pictures take the time to really focus on what you want highlighted in your image!  Try to think out of the box!