Found these two little pretties on a photoshoot last week too!  Best find ever.  I do believe they are using the force on each other.  Peter looks a little worse for the wear — must be all that force coming his way….

quick to answer a couple questions left in comments and my email.

1.  How do you get your photos to look the way they do?   I am no Photoshop expert.  In fact I am a frequenter of You Suck at Photoshop.  The link is to a random one — some are better than others.  They are not meant to teach photoshop, but I’ve learned a lot by watching.  Check it out.  But my one word for you is CURVES.  Use the little black dropper first thing and then play around with them until you like your photo.  Also, adjust everything on a separate layer so you can turn them on and off as you wish.  I also enjoy playing with the saturation levels of the colors (again, on a separate layer) and adding color washes (mostly browns.)  I’m not sure how you are supposed to add a color wash, but you can do it several different ways.  Curves, selective color, and adding a layer of fill and adjusting the blending and opacity.  I have the full version of PS, I’m not sure what Elements has available to you.  Also, if you take pics with a digital camera, you should do some sharpening of your pictures.  That’s about all I can think of off the top of my head.  I have been playing a lot lately, because that’s how you get better.  But mostly I love when I can just take a good picture and not have to do a thing to it.  SOOC (straight out of camera) is best.

2.  How do I get on your calendar for photos?  Contact me.  Books@CleverReader.com  Or you can leave a comment.  Though the last two people who have left comments asking about booking a session have done so anonymously so I have not been able to email them back.  Please leave your email address in the comments — no one sees it but me.  I’m pretty full for the fall.  Have some openings in winter (and they really make great shoots!  So colorful on that white or dead brown background.)  I am booking up fast in the spring.  Also, if you are a current/past client and you want your photos for Christmas, I am imposting a STRICT November 15th deadline for Christmas cards.  If your shoot is later in November, we can talk.  I just want to make sure I can get everyone’s cards back to them in time to write them for the holidays.

3.  You never posted the color photo of the black and white and we were supposed to vote.

vote away.  I’m voting color all the way!

Sweet dreams!

1.  Do you take photographs for people you don’t know/people in the area/for a living?  Yes, sort of.  I actually have a non-photo related day job, but love photos best, so please contact me and we can work out a time.  Beverly, you commented on my blog about this a month ago, but didn’t leave me any way to get in touch with you.  email me.  Joelle, I tried to reply to your request for a fall photoshoot, but your email bounced.  Please add me to your approved sender’s list.  I have a few openings left for the fall if anyone else is interested.  Also, I typically have winter openings.  People don’t jump all over those, but they make really cute shoots.

2. Your photos always look really rich. Do you do something to them?  Sometimes I “juice” them up a big in photoshop with level control.  Most of the time I try to leave them alone.  Depends what lens I’m using.  I have one lens that I adore but leaves my photos flat.  Must actually take a photo class one of these days…

3. What do you do with all your photos? Do you print them with a photo printer or do you print them with an online service, or do you leave them on your computer?  Some I leave on my computer and some I have professionally printed.  I do not typically print them on my printer.

3.5.  (oops, I forgot about this one in the camera section…)  How do you get your photos blurry in the background.  Large aperture, small number.  Or there’s probably some way to do it in photoshop, but I’m really quite awful with that program.  Check this out. It’s a riot.

4.  What camera do you use?  I have a Nikon D200 and a cruddy Sony point and shoot.  I would like a Canon Powershot to replace the Sony.  I have had two of them in the past and they’re little power houses.  Everyone needs a camera that fits in their back pocket.

5.  What type of camera equipment would you recommend to someone just starting?  I am really not trying to dodge this question, I just don’t know how to answer it.  I get it a lot.  A LOT.  Are you looking to take nice pictures, are you looking to start a business (no clue on that one, I’m still working on my own…), are you looking to get pictures of your kids all the time, are you looking to take nature photos (maybe speed doesn’t matter…)  I think to totally start from scratch I would recommend a camera that fits in your pocket.  Why?  Because you can take it with you everywhere and you have it to take pictures of every situation.  The more pictures you take, the better you get.  See above for my Canon Powershot lusts for this use.  if you’re looking for an SLR I happen to like Nikon.

6.  What’s your favorite color?  I love color.  Any will do.  I tend to really gravitate towards red though.  I love reds with browns.  I also really like reds with blacks, whites, and greys.

7.  What’s your least favorite color?  I’m so disappointed in myself for even having one. I love color so much.  But for some reason I’ve never been a big fan of lavender.  It happens to look stunning on my mum though, and I love it on her.

8.  What time do you go to bed?  Are you supposed to go to bed?  I was not aware…

9.  What time do you wake up?  Whenever someone drags my body out of bed.  It’s typically a few hours after my head hits the pillow.  I have a smallish child who likes to bounce up and down on me yelling “Cock-a-doodle-dooooooo!  It’s time to wake up!”  It’s really not the most pleasant way to awaken.

10.  Are you still scrapbooking?  I really don’t want to say “no” to this question as I love it so much, but I have not had time to do it in MONTHS.  I shall get back to it soon.

11.  How many photos do you take a month?  Really depends on whether or not I have a client/photoshoot, get together with friends, etc.  I take at least 100 photos on the slowest month.  I can take upwards of a thousand depending on.  I delete photos.  It’s necessary.

12.  How many photoshoots do you do a month?  Depends entirely on clientèle, family schedule, day-job work schedule, etc.  Because my family comes first, my calendar is pretty slim for shoot dates.  Email me if you are interested.

13. where are you from?  Mars?  Born in CA, moved to CO, moved to NH.

14. do you do art with oliver?  I do more art with Oliver than he’d probably care to admit.  He’s art-ed out with me sometimes.  But apparently he LOVES it at school.  He made this lovely piece for me last week during his “first (?!?!?) art class”.

15.  How many kids do you have/what ages/where are they?  3 kids, two of them are step-children, though I lucked out big time in that department.  Not hearing about the step children has nothing to do with them “not being mine” but thanks for bringing that up.  You do not hear much of them because they are both older and moved away from home.  Jeremy graduated from college in the spring and is currently at medical school.  He is 22.  Andrew has been on the blog a bit more — he graduated from high school this spring and is currently at Annapolis (the Naval Academy.)  He is 18.  Oliver graduated preschool this spring and is currently attending kindergarten.  He is five.  First day of school picture:

16.  Are you in the middle of a divorce?  NO!  Seriously.  It seems everyone is reading this into my MIA post (where it talks about a divorce absolutely NO WHERE) and either has not read the follow up post or is going to continue to email me this question to annoy me.  I thank you all for your concern about my family, but Peter and I are happy. thankyouverymuch.

Alright, Lori (with no website or blog?) sent this to me in the comments.  I’m tagging Sweet Cameron because inquiring readers want to know.

Tag! For your FAQ!
1. Where is your cell phone? HUH?!  What’s that?  Oh, it rides around in my jeep for emergencies.  I’m not even sure it still works.

2. Your significant other?  sleeping.

3. Your hair? where is my hair?  hopefully on some needy-child’s head.  I donated it.  Perhaps the “where” from question number one was not supposed to carry through to all these questions?

4. Your mother? is my best friend

5. Your father? loves my child.

6. Your favorite thing? my family

7. Your dream last night? I think it involved rain.

8. Your favorite drink? Tazo Passion tea.  mmmmm

9. Your dream/goal? to get my photography business going a bit more.  To be able to find the time to teach some more scrapbooking classes.

10. The room you’re in? “the office”  It’s kind of a hallway.

11. Your hobby? hmmmm, taking on too much.

12. Your fear? best not to voice these…mostly I’m happy go lucky.

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? The mother of a happy 11 year old and the wife of a happy husband.  Step-monster to a USNA alum and step-monster to a doctor.

14. What you’re not? fake

15. Muffins? Pistachio
 
16. One of your wish list items? Canon Powershot 890IS

17. Where you grew up? Colorado

18. The last thing you did? Look through a gazillion emails for questions for the FAQ.

19. What are you wearing? Jammies.  I always steel Peter’s army shirts and a pair of cotton tie pants I bought when I was pregnant.  That’s actually kind of depressing if I think about it.

20. Favorite gadget?  Nikon D200.

21. Your pets? A turtle named Yertle.  Some fish that won’t croak so we can get rid of the GROSS aquarium. No, I cannot flush them before their time.  and yes, we continue to feed the fish and wash the aquarium.

22. Your computer?  Used too much.  Takes away from life…yet it’s such a good resource and great way to stay in touch with friends and family that are farther I’d like.  further?  I’m no english major.

23. Your mood?  happy

24. Missing someone? too many someones always.

25. Your car? Car?  no-no. jeep.  through and through.

26. Something you’re not wearing? make-up.  perfume.  never.

27. Favorite store?  UH?!?!  Any art store or scrap shop or camera store. But they’d be way better if someone gave me money to spend in one!

28. Like someone?  yes.  many someones.

29. Your favorite color?  we covered this above.  The world just would not be the same place without them all.

30. When is the last time you laughed? About an hour ago when I was putting Oliver to bed.

31. Last time you cried? actually, the last time I laughed.  Oliver had me in tears tonight he was so funny! 

Alright, my brain is tired.  Feel free to comment if I missed yours.  Sweet dreams!

edited: 

HAPPY GRANDPARENTS’ DAY!!!!