Self Portrait Week 25: Not in Full Color

It's been a tough week, full of extended family drama. My inner light isn't shining as brightly as usual. But this CameoRoze is rising above the thorns and still reaching for the sun. It's just ... my colors have dimmed.

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

Sometimes a self portrait has nothing to do with my physical body.
Metaphors are more expressive and accurate.

Lessons In A Rose Garden

Life circumstances feel a little prickly lately.

But if I just continue to climb up the stem, I'll find a gift waiting at the top.

In fact, an entire bouquet of living gifts!

Hold your head up, Margaret. Keep reaching toward the light.

Self Portrait Weeks 23 & 24: Phoning It In

I've been under the weather for the last two weeks. Last week, coughing and hacking, I attended my daughter Jodie's university graduation. After the ceremony, after the party, after the sunburns, we took some time out in the hotel room. That's where I snapped this selfie: Graduation Afterglow

This week, the coughing and hacking continued. Doctor says it's a virus, so I just need to rest, drink plenty of fluids, cough up gunk, and wait for it to go away. I spent a lot of time in a prone position. That's where I snapped this selfie: Calling In Sick

Ready for a new week! Hopefully, one where I have much more energy.

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

When you don't feel good, it's hard to be creative. It's even harder to pick up your "big girl camera." Thank goodness our phone's camera is always just an arm's length away.

Self Portrait Week 22: Ready for My Close-up

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

Sometimes I'm just not all that inspired to try something new. This was a study in looking directly into the camera lens to make contact with the audience. It was also a lesson in cropping. I added a little extra tension by cropping right up to the edge of my eye.

Self Portrait Week 21: Jo On The Road

I drove my daughter Jodie back to Oregon on Wednesday.
We stopped to take a pic with my selfie stick.

It sort of looks like my unicorn horn is about to pop out of my forehead. The doctor said it wouldn't grow back after the surgery, but once a unicorn -- spreading cheer, keeping Voldemort alive, and pooping rainbows -- always a unicorn.

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

• On a sunny day, find some shade.
• Use the modeling tips you've learned for group shots: friendly contact between subjects; have arms in natural positions but angled away from the body; tilt heads toward each other.
• Ignore the other folks at the rest stop when using a selfie stick.
  It doesn't matter what they think.
• Have as much fun with your daughter as you can in the few precious hours you have together.
• Oh. And don't forget to turn on your phone's Bluetooth.
  And your selfie stick's power button.  [Doh!]

Hood River Bridge

I took Jodie back to Oregon today. I'm spending the night in Hood River. This was my view on my evening walk. A good way to end a travel day.

Self Portrait Week 20: The Baker

This week I made cake for my daughter's wedding.

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

I didn't learn a lot this week, photography-wise. I did need to manipulate the f-stops about +2.5 so that the sunlight in the background would get blown out and the subject would be lighted correctly. Even so, I had to use a fairly high ISO which made the full-size version of this photo a little grainy. In post-processing, I lightened up the face an extra bit, and cloned out a cabinet.

My favorite part of this photo is how the dripping white cake batter lines up so well in the white blown-out window.

Another thing I learned? Three pieces of copier paper can quickly be made into a chef hat.  

Self Portrait Week 19: Basking

I paused to feel the light on my skin

Then stopped to consider who was watching me. (No one)

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

Inspiration hits at the oddest hours. I took this photo late at night when I should have been sleeping. Sometimes you have to dare yourself to get a little uncomfortable. "Hiding" inside a wig and behind a pop of lip color helps. So when photographing people, be a little playful and take some risks.

This photo was taken indoors in a mix of incandescent and fluorescent light: an overhead bedroom light, a small lamp to the right/front of the subject, and another small lamp on a dresser to the back/left of the subject. I was standing in front of a white door. The white balance on the camera was set to incandescent, so I had to fix the colors in editing. For a more timeless look, I converted to black and white.

It was a good thing I learned to click the wired remote shutter button with my toe a couple weeks ago. It came in handy this week.

Self Portrait Week 18: Bed o' Phlox

The phlox in my backyard is in full bloom. So pretty. A floral pillow for me.

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

I bought myself a selfie stick and tried it out for the first time today.

The photo was taken late in the day in the shade where the light wasn't good. The focus is soft. My glasses have too much reflection. But sometimes it's not so much about the "pretty" as about just learning to use the tools.

In editing I flipped the photo upside down ... I like the angle better this way.

Aged to Perfection

My husband and I had dinner at Outback Steak House the other night. This was printed on the coaster.

I thought they were talking about ME!

Cheeky, I know.

Self Portrait Week 17: Purplexd

It's Lilac Bloomsday across the border in Spokane, Washington. The purples are bustin' out all over

and, from what I can see, having a good time doing it!

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Photo Lessons I learned:

This week was another study in tone-on-tone. Makeup, wig, clothing, and accessories were all shades of purple. I tried for some long shots, but once again, it was the close-ups that worked for me. 

I also wanted to see what a portrait would look like if taken with a telephoto lens. I set the camera up about 10 to 12 feet away from the subject and zoomed in. My settings were:

f 5 ... 1/40 sec ... ISO 3200 ... 155mm

I'm still trying to learn how to pull light into a semi-dark room without having to use such a high ISO. I wasn't successful with that this week. I used a key light with umbrella, a back light shining up on the backdrop, window light as fill light with a reflector to the right in this photo. I like the way the light in back gave my hair some rim lighting.

Another thing I learned was how to trip the wired remote with my toe when both hands were busy in the photo!

Emily's Afghan

Back in January, my niece Sarah had her first baby, Emily (just like my mother's name!)
I crocheted a pretty afghan to welcome her to the family.

I used Caron's Simply Soft yarn in this lilac with an accent of white stripes.

Before sent it off to Washington, I let my babydoll model it, wrapped in warmth against the winter cold.

The pattern is one I modified from an afghan I found on Pinterest. It's a row of two double crochet / chain stitch, followed by a row of single crochet / 2 chain stitches. In the white rows, I substituted two single crochets for the doubles. It makes for a nice cohesive pattern.

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Inspired by Lisa Lately via Pinterest:

Self Portrait Week 16: Wigging Out

My daughter Jeanne came over to play in the rain with me today. We dressed up in wigs, and took a phone selfie on the deck. She chose hair my dark color; I chose hair her natural brown color.

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

Today I taught Jeanne how to  use a verbal command to take a photo. My phone didn't like her voice. Her voice command could never get the shutter to click.

The biggest lesson this week was in photo editing. Jeanne is really good at it. She showed me several ways to play with levels and contrast and other tools to make all the various shades of black in this photo pop instead of getting lost in one big black blob. So the shirts and the hair and the umbrella each have their own tone. Goodness, I have a lot to learn ... and trying to cram so much into a single session makes my brain burn. She was incredibly patient with me.

Basking

My tulip is fully open, soaking in the sun. Splendid!
Can you see the heart at the center?

Fruition

The tulip by my front door bloomed yesterday. I love watching the transformation and the way the late afternoon light plays on the petals.

Promise

On the precipice

Self Portrait Week 15: Twenty-four Years

This week Dale and I celebrated our 24th wedding anniversary. My gift to him was a joint photo session.

We do have our fun!

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Photo Lessons I learned:

Dale was a good sport and played along with posing ideas. One thing I learned at the Parks & Rec seminar I took a couple weeks ago was that necklaces can be a tricky component to portrait photography. They like to go wonky. I learned this first hand in this photo session. Many of the photos were marred because my pearl necklace was askew.

I set up the lighting much the same as the last two weeks: backlight on the wall, key light with umbrella, fill light, and a reflector. I learned that things need to be modified when there's more than one person in the shot. I had to deal with some sharp shadows. We changed the lighting a bit between the first and second photograph, plus I had to tweak it some more in editing. The camera was on a tripod and I used a wired remote shutter and a custom white balance.

F 6.3 ... 1/25 sec ... ISO 800 ... 55mm

E-motion

A photo essay from the photo shoot earlier this month.

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 Photo Lessons I learned:

 I like the story this tells: a woman working through a dark spot in her life, striking out, being isolated, and feeling trapped by her own emotions. The negative space in the fourth photo adds to the feeling of isolation. I captured the look of pain in the eyes of the final photo.

Potential

Almost there ...

Self Portrait Week 14: Feeling My Age

When I grow old

I shall wear purple

and marvel at the blue veins

that creep prominently up my hands.

When I grow old

my glasses will slip down my nose

so I'll chain them to my neck

in case they fall completely off my face.

When I grow old

I'll tape my thumb in place

when I sprain it

then rest my chin upon a cane

as I gaze out the window at spring blossoms.

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Photo Lessons I learned:

I had such fun creating this self-portrait! I love the way I look so much like my mom here.

This week I set up my home photo studio in our dining room. I took the picture as morning light streamed through the east window (on the left). I added a reflector on the right to add some fill light. I used a mirror propped on a chair by the camera and tilted it up to add more light to my face.

I found this great wig at a thrift store. On half price day, it only cost $1.50!
(I actually found five wigs, so there's more fun to come).

Unfortunately, I really did sprain my thumb this week and I had my doctor check it out. I've also developed a pain in my knee when I kneel too quickly (no more genuflecting for me!) Plus there's a small benign cyst bulging on my chest wall that's bugging me. So ... I was beginning to feel my age this week, and thought I'd capture it in a funny photo. This one makes Dale and me laugh and laugh. He says that even if I start looking like this, he'll keep me around.