Action Shots

OK...I know I am supposed to take pictures daily and then post them but Sunday I was unable to post the below action shots.  The family went to hang with Kris's old roommates from college.  Good times!!!  It is amazing how much all of the kiddos have grown.  We all had a great time and they had a small inflatable pool and I thought I would try out getting action shots.  I got quite a few cute shots.

This is Chloe. She is just so super cute!

Lauren is watching the kiddos run around and wishing she could join them.

Rebekah and her son, Nicholas just chillin'.

This is Wes caught in mid flight.  

This is Ryan caught in mid flight.  I LOVE the look on Wes's face.

This is Audrey caught in mid flight.  This shot makes me wish I was a kid again!

And, just to prove that I am taking pictures daily...below is a shot of Audrey with her trusty back pack full of books.  She is running around the play room telling me is going to school.  I love her enthusiasm for school.

Piggy Bank Fun

Well, today is the first day of me trying to be more structured with my day by doing projects that should teach the girls a little something.  I started doing this more for me than the girls because free play was driving me crazy.  Today went well, and I had a lot more fun with the girls and I have to say...I got more hugs.  And to top it off...Audrey and Lauren took a afternoon nap!  Go MAMA!!!  

So, below are a couple of shots I got of the girls while they were playing in their room with their piggy banks.  They love turning the banks upside down to get the money out just so they can put the money back in.  I also tried to teach Audrey the different types of coins and tried to keep Lauren from putting them in her mouth.  I cant believe I got any pictures at all.  

Audrey sorting her money.

Lauren with her piggy bank.

Independent Play.  I just love it when this happens.

Photographer's critique...the last 2 shots I had to do some processing with these shots which means I did not get it right out of the camera.  I am still working on trying to keep my eye on the viewfinder information so I can get the exposure right.  My photography class is over, now I just need to keep practicing to get it right and that I get it right like it is second nature.  UGH...I have so far to go!

Beautiful Morning

Texas, August, and 68 degrees do not typically go together, but they did this morning and it was wonderful.  So the girls, Kris and I went outside to enjoy the morning.  I got to play with my telephoto lens while enjoying my family outside.  

This is a photo of Kris and Lauren.  She is trying so hard to walk around.  She will come up to you and grab your hand and off you go walking with Lauren.  I know this time will pass, but until then, I will keep working on trying to capture the perfect picture.

I just love her smile...

This is Lauren after she climbed up the stairs by herself and actually slid down the slide all by herself!  So proud!!!

Growing Girl

Well, today was so laid back and easy.  The girls were in a good mood and played so well together.  I am recovering from my surgery, even though I do feel a slight pain when I have to pick up Lauren, but thankfully it is getting easier each day.  

The big news in Audrey's world is that we got our old computer up and running for her to play games on.  She is loving it.  Of course, she can only play games when Lauren is sleeping because Lauren wants to play with anything that Audrey is playing with.  You know, typical sibling stuff.  

From a photographer's standpoint this computer could not be in a worse place.  It is right next to a window that the afternoon sun just beats down through.  As you can tell from the photo below.  I had to crop part of her head out of the picture because it is so blown out...in other words NO RECOVERY!  

This next shot is a bit better. One of the many pieces of advice that Karen Russell gives is to walk around your subject to get different viewpoints in order to find the best composition and being in a corner, next to a window, well I could only do so much.

Check out the mouse control.  Seriously, she is only 3 and has mastered the mouse already! Amazing!
Finally, I have been thinking about this shot for a couple of days now and I think it would be a bit better if Audrey was in the back ground.  Maybe when Lauren wakes up, I could bribe Audrey to let me take her picture to make this a better story telling picture.  But this is what I got so far.  Can you believe how much she has grown?

Happy Friday everyone.  We hope you all have a great weekend.  - The Beaulieu Girls

Hands

Well, I started off taking pictures of Lauren just to see what I can get.  No objective.  Just shooting to see what unfolds.  Karen Russell says that you have to be an observer and get to where you can see when a magical moment will unfold and hopefully capture it on camera.  So, I got this shot.

Then I thought, how about I focus on Lauren's hands.  Baby hands are so wonderful.  They work so hard to manipulate the world around them.  So, below are some other shots I got with Lauren's hands as the focus for todays shots.

I just love how she curls her toes when she is concentrating.

I also love the little dimples in her hands where her knuckles will be one day.  

And lastly, I love it when I get catch light in her big, beautiful eyes.

Quiet Time

For well over a year now, Audrey has had to do quiet time on the couch while watching a movie.  This really has been a blessing for me because it gives me a little time during the day when I can work on the computer or work on little to dos around the house.  Today was the first day that Lauren joined her.

Lauren's face really shows that she is really into the movie.  Do not worry it not a scary movie it is Toy Story 2 and  I am sure there will not be any permanent brain damage...I hope!  

From a photographers point of view, I really wanted to get some pics in bad lighting again and I really wanted to work on my story telling via a picture.  I am happy with this result but I really think I got too much of the couch in the picture but I did not want the window in the shot because it would really mess up my exposure.  I guess I will relocate them next time to improve the composition of quiet time with the girls.  

Well that is all for today.  I hope you have an amazing day!

Gymnastics

When I was a little girl I got the opportunity to be in gymnastics for a year and I LOVED IT!  Of course, you could say I am living vicariously through my daughter by having her in gymnastics and you would be right!  I just love seeing her do forward rolls, swinging on the bars, jumping on the trampoline and walking across the balance beam with out assistance because she really does has the balance of a cat. But, as a photographer I keep thinking to myself...What was I thinking???  This gym has the WORST lighting ever!  But, to be a good photographer, you have to be able to overcome even the worst of conditions.  I cant say that I did that but I gave it my best shot.

Audrey on her toes...

For some reason, I just love seeing young kids talk with each other.  

TaDaa! 

Like I said, they all need work and I even did some post processing and they still are too dark and grainy.  This I am sure it is because the ISO was up sooo high just to get Audrey in focus.  Bad lighting is never good for pictures...

Lauren's Rough Day

So, poor Lauren started out today with falling off of our bed on to the hard...hardwood floors.  Ouch!  She tried and tried to recover from a fall like that but it was followed by falls, frustrations, and more falls.  While giving her a bath tonight she fell on the same area of her face again!  The below pictures captures the type of day she was having...

So, I was trying to capture her dress up in a creative way that didnt involve her looking at me because she was not in a good mood.  I feel this may need work, but I like that I was trying to do something different instead of just taking pictures of the girls.

PS
Sorry for the no post on Sunday.  The girls went to hang out with Pappa and Nanna right after we got back from church.  Then once they got back it was dinner, bath time, bedtime and no camera time...so sad for Mama

Playing in the Back Yard

OK...so I know that I am supposed to take pictures everyday to get better at taking pictures but after I posted yesterday, the girls, Kris and I went outside so I can work on my class assignments and I got some really cute shots of the girls.
First up is Audrey, with these shots I was working on panning.  Panning is when you take pictures of moving objects by moving your camera at the same rate of speed as the subject and then taking pictures while moving your camera.  The intent is to have the subject in focus while the background should be blurry because it should look like it is in motion.  Keep in mind, I have never done this before and you will see feet that are cut off in the pictures but I was concentrating on Audrey's eyes and trying to give her room in the frame to look like she still had room to move.

Love this face...so HAPPY!!!

Big First...Lauren climbed up the slide all by herself and this is her progress.

A little underexposed and a little out of focus but you can see the accomplishment in her eyes!  Good Job Lauren!

Have a great day...

Happy Friday

First of all, I must send a warm thank you to my mother in law, Bonnie.  She came over today and loved on me by giving me the opportunity to get out of the house to get a mental break from taking care of the girls.  She is SO GOOD to me!  I want to credit her loving on me helped me to taking better pictures today of my girls!
First up...Lauren.
It is definitely HOT here and a breeze makes it bearable and thank God there was a breeze this afternoon.  I got Lauren outside and even though she is so ready for a nap she was happy to be outside.  I was really trying to work with the sun light to create a Halo effect with Lauren's hair.  I think I still have work on that effect but I did get a couple of cute shots.

This one you can see how tired she was...

Now it is Audrey's turn...
Sid the Science kid has an episode about birds building nests and she has been wanting to build a nest ever since that episode.  So, since Lauren was napping I had Audrey go outside and pick stuff a bird would use to build a nest.  She was so excited.  She first sorted all of the different items then she built the nest herself.  Notice the flowers, this was to make the bird's nest pretty.

Then we must make a bird that would live in the bird's nest.

Finally, the bird that will live in the bird's nest.

I love my girls!  Happy Friday everyone...

Girls at Play

There are so many toys out and I feel really out of control.  I really think I am about to loose my mind.  Maybe that is the reason why my pictures are so random because there is so little structure in the household right now.  I honestly feel that me taking some pictures was accomplishment in itself!

This is just a small portion of the play room and notice the toys everywhere...This is mess is driving me crazy.

Even Lauren's hair is crazy.  Thank God she so cute in order to pull it off!

Yes, that is a tent in the play room.  The girls love it but I am having a hard time loving it because Audrey loves putting all of her toys in it and then it is like pulling teeth to get her to help getting all of the toys out of it.
Needless to say...rough day!

Fill the frame

Well, I just found out I have another 4 weeks of light duty which translate for a SAHM...crazy talk!  I was told not to pick up my dear Lauren for 4 long weeks.  I will do my best but I am sure I will give in from time to time.  So, what is a girl to do...take pictures!  One of my favorite photographers is Erin Cobb.  She does such a great job of taking pictures of children and is a true inspiration to me.  One of her many suggestions is to fill the frame, so with that challenge in mind I tried it out on Audrey.  Of course, she is becoming a non-cooperative subject...ugh!  Well, at least I got a couple of cute shots before she went into hiding.

And yes that is my Iphone.  A mom has to do what she has to do to get a cute shot every now and then...
Have an amazing day! - The Beaulieu Girls

Catch Light Challenge

Recovering from surgery is really waining on me.  I am feeling stir crazy and really lazy.  I know it is apart of the healing process is just to sit around and let my body do its thing, but seriously, it is driving me crazy.  So, today I decided to focus on getting catch light in my photos.  Catch light is the reflective light from a light source such as a window, sky or even a bright lamp and this reflective light can be seen in the subject's eyes.  It is what makes subjects look alive and engaging.  I only got one shot out of around 20 photos but at least I got one.  I guess I really wanted to challenge myself.  Below is a picture of Lauren playing with her gear in motion toy and take notice of the catch light.

Please excuse the fuzzy part in the left bottom part of the picture.  That is part of my leg that I accidentally got in the photo.  Like I said before, I am trying to get better and it really takes making A LOT of mistakes.
Have a Blessed Day!  - The Beaulieu Girls

Lauren at Play

 So, today was really a laid back kinda day.  No agenda and since I am recovering from surgery the kiddos are really doing A LOT of free play.  Below are a couple of pictures because I hard time picking which one I liked the best.  They all need work but I will only get better if I post daily and I will just try again tomorrow.

This is Lauren playing with her record player that really only plays 5 songs.  Audrey used to play with this same toy when she was younger.  Although, there has been a few times lately I have seen her play with it.  We have gotten our money's worth out of this toy.  I have been working on my custom white balance setting on my camera and I was really happy with the way this picture turned out.

Again, this is Lauren playing with a different toy and the lighting is a bit different and so I needed to reset my custom white balance setting.  The only problem was, I should have moved to the other side of her because most of her face is in the shadow.

Lastly, this is Lauren looking through the toy bins and I love this shot and unfortunately it is out of focus!!!  UGH....This makes me so frustrated...but again, try to do better tomorrow.  I just love the movement of the photo and the look of discovery on her face.  Super cute!

Well, we hope you all have a great evening and look forward to seeing what tomorrow lies ahead.

Trial Run

Hello,

This blog is started in hopes of becoming a better photographer.  My hope and desire is to take at least one photo a day and post it.  Of course, I will try to critique it but also give a story behind it to make it at least somewhat interesting...I hope it is interesting.  Also, this blog is mostly for my family and my girls to see stories of our daily life as well as to show and tell my family what is going on with us.  Let's just hope that it sticks as a habit!  So, with out further ado...below is my first picture of the day!

This Audrey playing with her toys.  This game is called "Pick and Put".  Basically it is taking toys and picking them up and then putting them in something else.  Once that is done, then she does the same process all over again.  She has been playing this game since she was a baby.  I just love how she never grows tired of this simple game. 

Critique: I really like how the toys are in focus while everything else is out of focus.  I just wish the stroller was located somewhere else.  But it kinda plays into the story.  I also like how the toys are in the proper third of the picture.