Happy Fall

This weekend the family & I took a break from it all and headed to the mountains in Central, PA, to a little slice of heaven nestled somewhere in Rothrock State Park . . . a place we call Diamond Valley.   It’s not on a map and there is no cellphone or internet.  

And as much as we love this little get-a-way, it has also become known as the Dogs’ vacation.   It’s a place where our dogs can run, and run. . . and run . . . and swim, and roll, . . . and run .    

There is also no itinerary.  There are just  long walks in the woods,  canoeing around the pond, or searching for critters such as frogs, salamanders, and snakes (that parts not for me … although I am always nearby with my camera to document the find).. and I have heard there’s the occasional bear :-0   When the day is done and the body’s exhausted from all that fresh air and exercise, we all pull up a camp chair and keep warm by the bonfire, make smores, and look for shooting stars.  

It’s not glamorous and it’s quite frankly a lot of work and quite exhausting…but it is that weekend that, for this family, comes only once a year and we would not  trade for anything.

Truly a perfect first Fall weekend…

Open for Business!

The weather cleared this weekend and I was finally able to do a practice setup and breakdown of my photography booth.  The goal:  To see if I could do it all by myself. Goal accomplished!   Granted, I didn’t set any speed records on the time it took me to set up and there were more than one duh moments setting up the tent, but I  pulled it off.   What do you think?

I think it could use a little tweaking here and there;  a little more color maybe,  a real art bin,  something on the side walls.  But, all in all, I think I am ready to open for business.   Hope to see you at the art festivals.   Oh, and for you out of  towner’s here’s my card . . .

New Project

My new project is setting up a studio/work space.   Challenge #1:  My new room has red walls.  I know, I can paint.  In addition, it also has a three-sided ceiling which poses some limitations.  I really like the room and its red walls, so I am thinking about hanging sheets, a curtain-like effect.   One plus, the room does get more natural light throughout the day.  The red walls also pose a challenge when working on my photos; I am usually limited to working at night with the lights off to avoid any red color cast.  All things considered maybe it would be easier if I just painted.   Challenge #2:  A very tight budget!   I’ve gotten a few creative ideas from http://www.diyphotography.net.  Any additional comments/ideas would be welcomed!  I’m glad to know I am not the only photographer out there that just can’t pick up their B&H catalog and start ordering. 

 

I guess for now it’s a good thing I like to shoot a lot of macro ~ it doesn’t take a lot of space and I already have almost everything I need.   I think I’ll give this a try:  http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/07/how-to-diy-10-macro-photo-studio.html 

courtesy of strobist.com

I’ll be sure to post my success/adjustments/failures to hopefully help anyone else out there trying to get great indoor shots on a tight budget.  And while under construction, I’ll be taking advantage of the beautiful fall season and continue shooting mainly outdoors.

Catching up

School is out for summer (can anyone name that tune 😉  That reminds me, I need to check and see what grade I got.  I have since moved on to getting ready for the 5K showing.  I’m running a little behind, but