New things...

So I bought a tripod...I'm pretty excited.

It was an early birthday present for me...from me. Well, I haven't really had time to practice with it and I really have no idea how to shoot at night, hence the tripod. So I took a few minutes to play with it tonight. Still hate that my camera sucks with a high ISO (film speed, the higher the number the more light it takes in. ex; 200 = sunny, 1600 = night.) Anyways, the nicer the camera the less grainy a high ISO picture looks. Mine isn't the nicest, so my pictures look super grainy. Oh well, one day I will hold a Nikon D300 in my hands, one day. I won't even think about the full-frame sensor D700. There in lies depression.

I also bought my tripod because I keep toying with the idea of doing a 365 Project. Which basically is to take a self portrait every day for a year. I don't know if I am brave enough to do it. That's a lot of exposure for someone who would rather be behind the lens. But we'll see. Here are a few of the pics I took tonight. I'm not too impressed with myself, but I thought I would share anyways.

Look Ma! No blur!!

Here I am playing with the timer on my camera...

ps. I'm this close to finishing a photography blog. I also ordered business cards...It's about time I get serious with this thing...

Kasey and Chris...the wedding

So, two weeks ago I shot Chris and Kasey's wedding. It was so much fun. I just love this couple and their families so much. It was my first big wedding. Lots of people, and lots of things to take pictures of. I am really proud of them. I still have quite a bit to learn, and I noticed some things that I need to fix for next time, but still, I'm pretty proud of myself. The wedding was so beautiful. They were married in Kasey's parents' backyard. Her dad and brothers have been working so hard on it the last few months, and you could tell. It just looked amazing. So without further ado...

Kasey's aunt put all the engagements and bridals on a piece of wood and modge podged it. It was the coolest thing I've ever seen. No frames, no glass. It was really cool. It was also really cool to see my pictures all over the place. I actually wanted to steal one and hang it on my wall.

I love this family...seriously, they are awesome...

These are all the girls from CEU. They all played on the basketball team together with Kasey. Jaynie was the one who told Kasey about me, and started the ball rolling...

This is Kasey's brother, sister-in-law, and nieces. I think this is the best expression on a newborns face, that I've ever seen...

Kasey's sister, Bailey made the cake. Her very first one, and it looked professional!

I love that they are basically palming each other's face. They are both basketball players, hence the large hands. This was also hilarious, because it got up noses, down dresses. Yep, it was violent.

I'm just so glad and grateful that I was able to be Kasey's and Chris' photographer. It was such a great experience and I loved every minute of it!

Paris: Day 14 part deux

So here is the last part of the day after Versailles. It was such a LONG day. I'm pretty sure I only sat down once or twice at Versailles, and then twice on the train back to Paris, and then maybe a few times in the Louvre. It was crazy, and I slept WELL that night. We were able to go to the Louvre because it was the one day they were open until 10, I think. It's so huge and there are so many things to see, that we just narrowed down what was essential. The Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, Venus de Milo, and for me especially, Michelangelo's the Dying Slaves. No pun intended, but I've been dying to see one of his works since I read The Agony and the Ecstasy.

So I'm sure I mentioned how much I love the bridges in Paris. I do, I love them. The two things I really wanted to do in Paris was see the bridges and walk along the Seine. I got to do the bridges part, but I really didn't get to walk down near the Seine due to extenuating circumstances,

Seriously, just looking at this picture makes me want to go back, SO BADLEY!!

That is the kind of boat we were on for our night cruise. See the banks of the Seine? That is where I wanted to walk. Under the bridges...sniff...I guess I'll just have to go back...

This is the beginning of the Tuileries Gardens, right in front of the Louvre...

End of the gardens, almost to the Louvre...

I still think it's crazy how the overcast day made all the colors pop...It's interesting how the French during the period where these buildings and monuments were all built loved colored marble...I had never really seen so much colored marble before.

Lady Athena has mold all over her, hence the picture...another weird thing, we left Greece, but kept on running into Greek iconography all over the place...

Is it bad that I had a fleeting thought about Tom Hanks and the Davinci code walking up to the Louvre? So lame the hair of Tom...

These pictures were all taken in the courtyard of the Louvre...

You can see the Eiffel Tower from the Louvre...

Inside the pyramids...

Such a pretty sunset...and you don't get to see this view of the courtyard that much...It's my favorite, I decided...

I'm not going to lie, the Venus de Milo was a little bit underwhelming. Maybe it's because we had just been to the National Archeological Museum in Athens and saw way cooler things there...

Winged Victory was awesome, though. She is amazing. I loved her so...

Then we were walking down a hall, and I had no idea where we were, and I looked over and saw this painting...I was like wait a minute! That looks like Leonardo Davinci! We must be close to the Mona Lisa...

Sure enough,  we turned into the next room and there she was. Basically has the whole room to herself. I know a lot of people think she's overrated, but I thought she was beautiful. But then again, I love renaissance art.

Look, here I am with the worst hair EVER! This is what happens after 12 hours in the rain with no hat, hood, or umbrella. Awesomeness abounds...

These are the dying slaves by Michelangelo. I was so excited to see them. He is my favorite artist, hands down. He was a genius with marble, it's insane how beautiful his works are to me. So worth it. Now if only I could get to Rome to see the Pieta, I could die happy...

So there is the last half of that day! I get exhausted looking at all the pictures, but who am I kidding, I'd do it again in a heartbeat...