Barbara's Digital Photography Blog

Fix it Friday's April 15, 2011

2011-04-15T12:12:00.001-04:00

Man oh Man, it's been a LONG time... but I thought better late then never to get back to posting photos on the blog... here is today's "I (Heart) Faces" Fix it Friday project.

CLICK HERE

Original

My "Fix"

Black & White

Fix it Fridays # 78

2010-11-19T10:28:00.000-05:00

Boy, it's been a while... I found my old favorite photography blogs and wouldn't you know... it's Friday, you know that that means????

FIX IT FRIDAY !

ORIGINAL

My first Edit... simple, clean...

Edit 2, Attempted tilt-shift... but I like it...

Edit 3, This is kind of old school with a boost...

Edit 4, Faded grainy effect...

Before and After - Bugs

2010-07-07T11:46:00.002-04:00

Sun Tea !

2010-07-07T11:28:00.003-04:00

Check out this refreshing recipe on my food blog !

Good Times

2010-05-19T09:40:00.003-04:00

Even in a shady dive bar you can have fun... especially if there is a lot of vodka involved.... But oh no, I was good girl ;-).... yeah, actually I was being good.... because I was a designated driver.

Anyway, amongst all the group shots and silly poses and happy couple shots... I managed to grab a few "play" shots.... here are a few to hold me over until I finish going through the roll.

(wait did I just say roll? How many of you out there even know what I mean by a roll? Knock Knock Knock is this thing on? When was the last time you used a "roll" to photograph an event?)

Birthday Girl

2010-05-19T09:36:00.002-04:00

Last Saturday I went to a Birthday Party, a "Black & White" party. We all had to wear masks when the Birthday Girl arrived. I don't "do" masks... but thankfully I had my camera and I was taking photos... so I got out of it. But I do have to say, the Bday girl had some cool masks to wear!

Here is one of my favorite masks.

NJ Farms

2010-05-14T09:18:00.002-04:00

I still have a thing for photographing Farms. There is something so comforting about them. I love how they are all so different too. Yes there is usually a barn and a (tall round cylinder thingie which I can't think of right now) and they all have interesting doors and windows. Some have cows, some have sheep, some have miniature donkeys! But I also love the colors... the big red barn nestled on lush green land rich with life. And the smell. We all know what I'm talking about... that smell... yeah THAT smell... but you know what??? I kid of like it. Now I'm not saying I'd want to bottle it and wear it around town, but I like how it reminds me of horseback riding lessons as a little kid. Ahhh Memories....

Here is a quick shot of a random farm along Rt 23 in NJ I took a quick snap of from the car.

Mother's Day Drive

2010-05-14T08:50:00.002-04:00

This past Mother's Day I took my mom out for a drive up to NY. We had a great time, laughing all the way. Here are a few images from the drive.... this is Rt 97.

Coffee in the office.

2010-05-13T11:33:00.005-04:00

The other day I decided to post a little something in the "kitchen" area at work about coffee cups. We (very much including me) have been so wasteful with the paper coffee cups. I mean seriously, I would go through 150 cups in a 10 week span !!!! (FYI that is just over $13 worth of cups) Yeah.... $13 does not seem like all that much money, but times that by the amount of coffee/tea drinkers in the office and you see my point.

I posted a sign up above the coffee pot, with some dialogue on how much I've saved the office by bringing in my own (non disposable) cup in to use every day.

I'm not sure if my little note has made any change in my fellow coworkers, I'm hopping a positive one... I'm hoping it will bring change for some...

So that's my little story about my small effort to do my part to save the department a little money, and maybe the environment a few paper cups.

It's Lilac Season!

2010-03-29T20:46:00.002-04:00

You do not understand how happy I am that there are Lilacs blooming right outside my 2nd story bedroom! Do you know what this means??? In about 2 weeks I'll have the most wonderful spring lilac smell just billowing in to my bedroom! (Take that Yankee candle!) OK seriously I absolutely love Yankee candles... I think I have about 10 in my room that are either lilac or vanilla... seriously... someday I'll have to take a photo of them!

But, for now, I'll post this wonderful little Lilac bud to hold me over....

Growing Heart

2010-03-29T15:07:00.003-04:00

Here is a simple growing heart... I'd do more shading and special effects... but you get the point... Can you tell I'm finally having "fun" in class! I loves me some PhotoShop!

FYI... I just realized how hypnotic this can be to some... because sometimes I find myself just looking at it for a solid minute w/o realizing it... HA! Then other times I look at it and it causes very high anxiety... and then I have to get up and leave the room and do something, anything, but something has got to be done! LOL fun with PhotoShop !

Bouncing Ball Pt. 2

2010-03-29T14:55:00.003-04:00

So here is my bouncing ball... with some more fancy movements ....

I'm liking this simple PhotoShop animation!

Fix It Fridays - 48

2010-03-26T07:36:00.004-04:00

Here is a quick edit I did this morning with today's "Fix it Fridays" It's simple, and if I was home using my full blown version of PhotoShop I'd do a whole lot more... but I like how simple this is...

I was wondering... I normally use the full version of PhotoShop... I got right to the unsharp mask... Is there anything like that in PhotoShop Elements? I guess I can do some web searches too... but if anyone wants to throw out suggestions, that would be greatly appreciated!

Edited with a simple Border

No Border

ORIGINAL

For more wonderful edits of this little cutie pie.... click the "I ♥ Faces" above.....

Bouncing Ball !

2010-03-24T15:08:00.009-04:00

BOUNCY BOUNCY BOUNCY !

Today in class... actually I'm in class as we speak (Shhhhhhh) we learned how to create a "bouncing ball" in photoshop. I can't (at the moment) go in to the how too or all the details... I just wanted to post this here... I was very proud of my first attempt at a bouncing ball...

Flood of 2010

2010-03-14T00:05:00.000-05:00

This rushing water you see here is slamming it's way through Bloomingdale NJ. Usually this is a small stream only a few feet wide and a few feet deep.... Today it's well over 40yards wide and lord only knows how deep. I was lucky to get out when I did, because the water had started to flood streets and homes. I found half the town evacuated up to the highest point in town.

Mother Nature.... Don't mess with her!

Just to get an Idea of how high this wave was... I'd say these last few photos show the wave of water hitting that tree at about 15" high !!!

Jazz Night at the Vineyard

2010-02-28T17:20:00.003-05:00

I had a great night at one of the local Jersey vineyards last night. Good friends, good wine, good Jazz.... No photos of my camera shy friends... and that's OK, I got some good artistic shots.... I will definitely go back... Mmmm they had some good brick oven pizza too...

I ♥ Faces - Fix it Friday #44

2010-02-21T14:11:00.004-05:00

Another challenging Fix it !

ORIGINAL

Lightened, Boosted and Cropped

Slightly Different Crop

Black and White with Round Edges

CLICK LOGO!
Check out I (Heart) Faces' website for more amazing examples of this wonderful little photo!

I ♥ Faces - Fix it Friday #43

2010-02-12T20:37:00.004-05:00

Another AWESOME photo from "I ♥ Faces" "Fix it Friday" This one was fun....

This was my first edit... simple adjustments to make it look more natural.

Then I thought I'd go a little "acid" ....

I don't know what to call it, I just happened by mistake... but I totally LOVE it...

Here is the original photo.

You can find other wonderful photo edits
here :

Fresh Motz and Fresh Basil YUM

2010-02-12T08:43:00.003-05:00

Check them out on my food blog:
Fresh Motz and Basil Grilled Cheese

Pigs in Two Blankets?

2010-02-12T08:39:00.001-05:00

Check them out on my food blog:
Pigs in Bacon in a Blanket

Reminds Me of Summer

2010-02-12T08:37:00.001-05:00

Check them out on my food blog:
Teriyaki Beef Skewers

Foot Ball Krispies

2010-02-12T08:34:00.002-05:00

Check them out on my food blog:
Coco Peanut Butter Rice Krispes

Snow Day Part II 02-10-2010

2010-02-11T09:27:00.006-05:00

I Think She Likes It

This is how Piper enjoys the snow... Run Piper RUN !

Snow Day 02-10-2010

2010-02-11T09:08:00.006-05:00

Here are a few images brought to you by the Snow Day :-)

This is my view from my backdoor. I don't have a wide angle lens anymore, so sad... I really need to invest in one... Sooo the widest I can go is 50mm, sigh.... But I think I still captured the depth of the snow... After this image was taken I believe we got about 3 more inches of snow.

This is when Piper investigates my shoveling... and usually messes it up. I think she's secretly laughing at me. Usually she's following behind me while I shovel, messing it up as I work... I will circle my 20'x15' deck at least 3 times cleaning up after her... it's quite hysterical.

"WINK" I promise I won't runny away if you just let me off the deck to run free...

"WINK WINK"

OK, seriously, are you going to stop taking photos and just let me run.... If you could see her front paws, they are literally hanging off the edge.

This view is from my garage looking up at the front door. I'm just about to shovel here, and I really rather go walking and photographing... but the driveway must be shoveled. I would have ventured out around town by foot to photograph, but alas... I had home work to do...

Here is Piper happy and content after a long day of running around in the snow... happy to be inside, happy to not have to shovel like her master does, happy that she's sitting on an Oriental rug, happy she just had dinner, well... she's a happy dog, what can I say :-D

Piper Play Time

2010-02-10T19:44:00.003-05:00

AKA Piper Wants to Play Now While I Work.

Here is my sweet little mutt Piper. The other day I was editing a bunch of photos, it took hours... So piper decided it was play time... and this is what happened.

First she brings me her toy...

Then she plops it on the keyboard...

So I pick it up and throw it for her, but she's a quick one, and brings it right back...

And she plops it right back on the keyboard...

So I toss it again... quick like a whip she brings it back...

Plops it right on the keyboard and gives me a sweet look...

Then she gives me a big smile saying "come on, you know you want to throw it!"

So I play the game and throw it for her... and bam... she brings it right back...

See... literally PLOPS it right down on the keyboard...

Awwwwwwwwwwww How can you resist this cute face !?!

So of course I had to do this.

Man I love that crazy mutt....

(p.s. During this little play session I accomplished giving the dog exercise and as for photo editing... I got 0 photos edited :-D )

Mango!

2010-02-05T07:09:00.002-05:00

I like this stuff!

Archery

2010-02-04T13:08:00.003-05:00

Here are some photos from about a year ago... that's what I'll be doing tonight... only... not at stuffed animals... at paper targets for All Girls League Night...

=

Pulled Pork !

2010-01-23T11:13:00.002-05:00

MmmmmmmmMmm Click here for the recipe !

I ♥ Faces - Fix it Friday #40

2010-01-08T14:01:00.004-05:00

Here is a handsome little birthday boy. I felt I needed to remove the clutter, the people in the background, and the lighter on the table. I feel this brought the boy in to the main focus a bit more. Click the "I ♥ Faces" link at the end of this post to see other photographers wonderful editing examples.

"Lens Baby" Effect

B&W

Color

Original

Ice Cream Sandwich Cupcakes

2010-01-07T15:47:00.002-05:00

Check out my "Cooking By Pictures" blog for more details on these little yummy custom cupcakes.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM !

2010-01-07T14:06:00.004-05:00

Today is my Mom's Birthday... I put together some cupcakes for her last night... here are a few.... I can't wait till she comes home from work for the cupcake surprise...

Piper in the Kitchen

2009-12-30T15:21:00.003-05:00

The many faces of my little shadow in the Kitchen...
Piper.

Now you see it, now you don't...

Yum, is there any more?

YAWN !

And here she is telling me, OK you... I've had enough of the flashy flash in my eyes!

One Image, 4 Effects

2009-12-27T21:09:00.006-05:00

Here is the sweetest little face around... well he'll only be in town for a few days, but then he'll be the sweetest little face in CA. I love LOVE love this photograph, his little expression is soooo sweet and natural. But I felt it needed a little tweaking. Here are a few edits I tried. I really don't know which one is my favorite. I hope you like them!

WARM

SLIGHTLY COOLER

SEPIA

B&W

ORIGINAL

Piper's Snoring

2009-12-22T22:52:00.004-05:00

There is something about the sound of my dog snoring that brings a kind of calming feeling over the day... when she's snoring my world is calm...

Christmas House at Night

2009-12-22T08:37:00.002-05:00

It snowed a lot at home, about 12 inches I think... I know Piper (my dog) had a blast until her pampered little tooties got too cold, then she wanted in. But at night, when the yard and the bushes are covered with snow and the Christmas lights are on... it's one of the most beautiful things.... I love Christmas lights.

365 Recipe Adventure thoughts

2009-12-17T11:17:00.003-05:00

Thoughts... Click here to go to my cooking page.

365 Recipe Adventure

2009-12-16T07:48:00.005-05:00

Hello everybody out there in blogger world... As you all know, well those who actually read my little blog, I love photography and have photographed a few recipes... Well this is all going to change come the new year.

You see the other day I watched the movie "Julie/Julia" and fell in love with cooking all over again. And it was just the inspiration I needed to get me out of my little photography rut. For some time now I knew I needed a project and I knew it had to involve photography, but that was all I was working on. That's not much for this girl who has a hard time making up her mind. But I do love to cook and bake, so here it is...

I will attempted my very own spin on the Julie/Julia project. I will Cook or Bake 1 recipe for every day of the year and photograph the steps along the way. That will be 365 recipes. My mission is to learn how to cook/bake new dishes I've never tried before. They can be recipes for Breakfast or Lunch or Dinner or Desserts or Snacks or Appetisers. Some of the recipes I make may be ones I have made in the past, but most recipes will be ones I've never tried w/o the help of others.

The only thing I ask of you guys is your support, your comments, and maybe even some suggestions on new recipes. You see I will not be following one book, rather I will be following my cravings and your wonderful suggestions.

I think this will be a fun learning experience for me and I hope it will accomplish two things... 1st (and most important) it will further expand my knowledge of photography, and 2nd it will help me become a more rounded cook in the kitchen.

Here are my only rules....

1st. Because I am limited to "how" I can cook a meal, all recipes must be able to be cooked/baked in/on : (Gas)Oven, (Gas)Stove, CrockPot, Pressure Cooker, (Charcoal Webber) Grill, and the dreaded Microwave, and heck if it is a dish that only needs to "set" I have a fridge and a freezer !

2nd. I do not have a fancy KitchenAid Mixer, nor do I have a food processor that can chop up more then one "vegetable" at a time, I'm terrified of those large deep firers burning down the house, and sadly I just got ride of my rusted old Wok....

3rd. I may buy a new kitchen "tool" here or there IF my budget allows, but it will have to be simple.

4th. I will try ALMOST anything

5th. I will post 365 recipes, they may, however, not always be posted every day, I will allow myself to skip days if need be, or if I am out of town/not feeling well. All I need to do is hit 365 different recipes by the end of the year.

6th. The dates for my 365 Recipe Adventure will be from January 1, 2010 until December 31, 2010.

So there it is... I've made my decision... no backing out now.... I'm actually very excited, and I can not wait to see and taste all the new dishes! Oh yeah... I forgot to say... The recipes will not be posted here, rather they will be posted on my "If yours doesn't look like this... you did it wrong" Cooking by Pictures blog. I will post a link here to that block for each recipe.

I hope to hear from you soon.... :-)

P.S. There might be some "give aways" or "surprises" along the way !

Nachos

2009-12-14T12:19:00.004-05:00

So the other day I was craving nachos... not over the top "SUPER NACHOS" just simple nachos... It was pouring ice rain out side and the only means of transportation this Jersey girl has are 1. 11 year old, rear wheel drive (non working ABS), Mustang; 2. 600 or 1000 cc Yamaha Motorcycles; 3. Walk. None of which are ideal transportation in the winter, especially when it's pouring ice rain.

So there I was craving Nachos... I mean REALLY craving them. Not for the cheese or the chips.. wait did I say "not for the cheese"??? That's a first. Anyway, I was actually craving the cilantro. Ever since my trip to Isla Mujeres, Mexico back in April when I dove deep in to all the local foods of the island, I have fallen in love with cilantro. Yum, it's so fresh and clean, and I can eat it right off the stem if I'm in the mood.

That was that, I wanted nachos come hell or "ice" water. Now, I don't have jalapenos on hand regularly but I always have HOT sauce so I knew I was OK on the "heat" part of the nachos. Off I go to the kitchen craving a simple Mexican snack when low and behold I find every ingredient I need! What are the chances of that? This hardly happens in my world, with a limited budget of $50 to get me through each week, having random "exotic" foods around the house is a rare sight. But there they were, all pretty and happy. And I was happy too...

I found chips, shredded cheese, hot sauce, cherry tomatoes, and fresh cilantro.

So I laid out some chips on a plate, piled on the cheese and melted it in the microwave until it was melty, then tossed on the tomatoes, shook some hot sauce all about, and then topped it all off with some fresh cilantro. YUM YUM YUM.

Here are some cellphone pics... I was not in the mood to grab and set up my camera on this day... but these will do... for now.

Oops a little close

That's Better, yum!

See, very simple.

I ♥ Faces - Fix it Friday #39

2009-12-12T18:33:00.007-05:00

I love me some cowboys... so this Fix It Friday image was a nice surprise for this Jersey girl. I hope you like it.... For other talented photographer examples please click the "Fix it Friday" logo below.

Here is a cool lensbaby effect on top of color correction and boost.

Just a basic Color and Contrast adjustment and Crop

Color and contrast adjustment

Boost and Blur

WESTERN

B&W

ORIGNAL

Christmas Gift Ideas Part 2

2009-12-11T13:04:00.010-05:00

Wow, what a few minutes of searching can lead to.... not only a big time waster but it can also lead to finding a bunch of fun gift ideas for the photographer in all of us. I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE these picks. They are fun, and happy and different. And I believe that is how I like to live in my photography world.

"Funky" Neck Straps

These straps are AMAZING and if you read up on reviews on them, they seem to be very well made.

"Jill.e Small Yellow Camera bag"

How adorable is this yellow bag? I just want one SOOOOO bad. I can see myself Jet setting all around Jersey (tehehe) with this fashionable bag strapped on my shoulder.

"Digidude Camera Mount"

Now this little number just rocks my world. Seriously folks how FRICKEN cute is this little guy! (And he has lots of friends, check out the site!)

"White Balance Lens Cap"

This little "fool you" lens cap/white balance tool for your lens is just A-MAY-ZING ! I have not had the pleasure of using one, but look at how cool that is!!!! I would love to get my little paws on this for a test spin!

I hope you all liked my fun camera gear picks.... I'm sure I'll find some more over the next few days...

DISCLAIMER :
Please note, none of these sellers know who I am, I am not receiving any money or gifts or freebies for posting these items, I am just posting a few of my favorite things. If you like the item and want to buy it, I have linked each photo to it's respective web page... Please remember I am in no way connected to these items other then the fact that I like them.

Christmas Gift Ideas

2009-12-11T08:36:00.008-05:00

OK, so it's that time of year where we all seem to go... WHAT?!?!?! only 14 more days until CHRISTMAS !!!!!

OK breath... it will be OK. There are many options... for one, most of the stores are packed full of sales this year and packed full of stock. Second... FREE shipping. Yes my friends so many stores are offering FREE shipping. And not just on the 1 to 2 weeks delivery option... but some are actually giving away the 2 to 3 days shipping ! Keep searching, you have a few days left to order those last minute on line gifts. And remember my Jersey friends... if you order from a store in NYC, like Adorama or B&H, not only will it ship over to Jersey like on that same day, but you will not have to pay sales tax !!!!!!

So far I've finished 90% of my shopping but, I have to say, I did almost all of it yesterday on line. I hope every one likes their gifts, this year I was budget limited but still managed to find some gems.

Today I'm going to list a bunch of items I would LOVE to receive or buy myself for Christmas.... Hopefully this will spark some ideas for any of you who are stumped for gift ideas for your friends and family this Christmas.

Click each photograph to go to the item's web page. Please note, none of these sellers know who I am, I am not receiving any money or gifts or freebies for posting these items, I am just posting a few of my favorite things. If you like the item and want to buy it, I have linked each photo to it's respective web page... Please remember I am in no way connected to these items other then the fact that I like them. Now on with the show....

HOW CUTE IS THIS !!?!??! (Stocking stuffer ideas anyone?) The little vintage tag reads 'Vous êtes mon destin' which means 'You are my destiny'... Like... Awwwwww

These make me feel all warm and toasty from my toes up to my head. The North Face Boots... let me count the ways I love thee..
Personally I'm tired of chopping onions, and I have yet to attempt to thin slice veggies... this would help so much, I love it!
Let the drooling begin.... Any Nikon camera above the D40 I would love and cherish with every click of the shutter.

Christmas Storyboards

2009-12-11T08:34:00.002-05:00

OK, it's been a week since I've posted anything... But I thought I would throw up a Christmas Storyboard I was working on last week. There are so many options and different elements that can be added to one of these...

Here is one basic example

Fix It Fridays = Week 38

2009-12-05T19:29:00.006-05:00

WOW I had a lot of fun doing this one. I didn't use ONE preset action made by anyone else. Here is what I did. I adjusted the exposure brighter, I boosted the saturation and contrast, brightened up his beautiful eyes, softened the skin, cropped it down a bit, and added a little bit of a burnt edge. I think that's it. I hope you like it. Thanks I ♥ Faces for another wonderful "Fix it Fridays". For other amazing photographer/photoshoppers versions of this cutie little guy... follow the I ♥ Faces link below.

AFTER

BEFORE

Storyboards

2009-12-03T18:21:00.004-05:00

I just found a bunch of fun pre-made storyboards for photography. I absolutely love these. Shoot me an email or an IM or a call.. which ever your fancy... and I'll create a special one just for you ! Here is an example I created tonight....

The Sky

2009-12-03T07:39:00.003-05:00

The sky was amazing this morning. IT was beyond words. Right out of Armageddon. But alas my memory card was at home in my PC.... NEVER EVER AGAIN will I remove my memory card unless I'm exchanging it for another one. I've missed out on 2 yes 2 amazing photo ops in the last 2 days.

More to post coming soon... Enjoy this wonderfully warm December day....

Christmas Shoot

2009-11-28T20:00:00.002-05:00

Here is a wonderful little model... every time I see her she is all set to pose for the camera. I think I captured her well this time. Last year I blinded her with my hot studio lights.... this year I had a much MUCH smaller set up... Zip Bam Boom, we set up, snapped up a bunch of shots, and we were done.... And I absolutely LOVE how they came out... I hope they do too.

Cutie Pie Little Baby

2009-11-24T19:57:00.000-05:00

Here is my first new born photography attempt. Look at those wonderful eyes and that soft new baby skin!

Yesterday's Shoot

2009-11-23T08:57:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to photograph the cutest little girl. She was a super little model too... she didn't cry or fuss too much... I will post photos soon... I just have to sort though all of them and do some finishing touches on them... I learned a lot... I know I went in there was a monster of a list of shots to take... and I believe I accomplished about 80% of what I wanted... not at any one's fault but my own... I just darn forgot... I must remember to look at my lists... check it twice and all that jazz. But I think all went very well...
:-)

I ♥ Faces Fix It Fridays #37

2009-11-20T17:26:00.006-05:00

Here is a cute little girl in the fall leaves. This one was tough for me because I kept struggling with her face being out of focus... I just don't know how to sharpen it up with out it looking so "edgy". But what I did do to the image was, flip it, boost the red and yellow, boosted the contrast, and not to much more... I hope you like.

ORIGINAL

AFTER

OK, I always do this... I make one edit and then I go back for more.... here are a few more edits.... If I were to do all these over I would probably move the girl out of the center of the frame... I think she ended up there when I was trying to get away from the tree... oh well next time...

SEVENTIES

BOOST

YUM! - Holiday Foods

2009-11-20T10:53:00.003-05:00

One of my favorite things about the holidays from November through January is the food... here is my first post on, what I hope to be many, of my favorite holiday foods.

I absolutely love these Cranberry Bliss bars from Starbucks.... I could eat one, ok two EVERY day ! They are sweet and cranberry tangy great! Sorry for the "so so" photo, I was quickly trying to grab a snap shot at my desk before I devoured the last bite.... and before someone walked up to the desk ;-D

Photoshop Fun : Fixing "Halo"

2009-11-16T17:52:00.004-05:00

Ok this probably is not the best way to get rid of a halo effect.... but it works for me in photoshop. 1. turn on your clone tool, 2. select part of the background only a few pixels away from the "halo" and then clone all the way around the subject. 3. be prepared to be there a while. :-)

Here is an example from The Pioneer Women's web site.

ORIGINAL

Removed "Halo"

Darkened up the silhouette

Speaker and Tuner Cake

2009-11-16T09:39:00.007-05:00

Here is a cake that I am very very proud of. I took a few shortcuts... of which I do not think I'll share... but I believe it came out exactly how I visioned it. 12hrs and multiple trips to the local cake decorating shop and it was finished, packed up, and on it's way to the party.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the night.
"I thought that was a cake in front of two speakers"
"Did you get that from Ace of Cakes?"
"Come on... is that a Cake Boss Cake?"
"YOU made that?"
" I think you should go in to the business of making cakes"

I've heard that last one before a few times, and like my good friend Erin always says.... I just giggle whenever someone tells me that. What most people don't know is that I used work in a bakery when I was younger... I was there for 6 years. When I left I never wanted see, or touch, or eat another cake ever again in my life.

But you know what. I do miss it, I loved being in the bakery and making cakes, and pies, and cupcakes, and all sorts of Italian pastries (which I could never say properly for all the little Italian grandmoms who would come in and ask for a canol or ganol or cannoli ( HEHEHE ) I'll never say that on right. But I go on.... anyhoo Since I've been cooking more and baking more these days I do miss the old bakery... and to be honest... I would love to run my own bakery business.... but for now I think I'll just make cakes on the side... for anyone willing to have one of my cake creations.

And to no further audu... here is my latest cake... The "Happy 50th Surprise Party Speaker and Tuner" cake. (BTW it was YUMMMMMMMY)

Piper in Fall

2009-11-13T09:13:00.002-05:00

I love my piper girl.... She however hates my camera. I must start photographing her w/o flash... maybe someday she will sit still and look in the lens... but who am I kidding ;-)

I ♥ Faces Fix It Fridays #36

2009-11-13T09:08:00.004-05:00

Here is my Fix it Friday post. This one was a lot of fun.

ORIGNAL

B
C
D

I ♥ Faces - Fix it Friday #35

2009-11-07T10:50:00.003-05:00

Here is my latest "Fix it Fridays" from I ♥ Faces web site. This one was a lot of fun. I did two versions... Simple and Urban. I hope you like them. Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ I always seem to have the worst luck uploading my web site to the I ♥ Faces page... I hope they don't kick me off for good ! :-)

BEFORE

AFTER

URBAN

"The Best Dinner I Have Made Yet"

2009-11-05T20:29:00.005-05:00

MMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

I will make this meal again.... soon... and I will post the recipe.... I promise... But for now this will have to do... :-)

Got to love Halloween

2009-11-02T21:22:00.002-05:00

Halloween Cake 09'

2009-11-02T12:58:00.002-05:00

Yeah, I know you have already seen my cake.... but I thought I would slap up another shot of it... I have a few hundred... of course... but I thought this was a fun....

I also have a step by step on how to make the cake.... I will be posting that up soon.... or should I leave that a mystery? Muhahahahahah........

Halloween Cake 09'

2009-10-31T13:58:00.002-04:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYBODY !

I ♥ Faces - #34

2009-10-30T18:53:00.004-04:00

Here we go again... it's FRIDAY! Do you know what that means ??? Another fun "Fix it Fridays" from our friends at " I ♥ Faces ". I loved this one, I had fun editing it. I hope you like it too. :-)

AFTER

Black & White

BEFORE

Piper Halloween

2009-10-30T18:27:00.002-04:00

Here is my joy... my puppy.... my loyal pet who lets me torturer her... if only for a few minutes at a time. See.. Piper knows my camera now, and as soon as it goes up in front of my face she will look away. BUT if you taunt her with her favorite treats she will look, if only for a moment... then come tearing right at you to attack you for the treat.... But she's a good girl... if only a few moments at a time :-)

Halloween 09 Cake toppers Pt 1

2009-10-30T10:21:00.005-04:00

FINALLY... here is a photo of one part of my cake toppers for the 09' Halloween cake... Mind you... I have no lights on in the room and it's only lit by the light of my monitor. More pics to come soon!

Halloween Cake

2009-10-28T07:58:00.002-04:00

I spent a good few hours making my Halloween Cake Toppers yesterday. And guess what? I totally didn't photograph a moment of it !!! What? Who? Where? Yeah I was shocked as well. But not to fret, the cake isn't made yet, so I will photo document it from now on. Oy... Where was my head yesterday?

Anyway... Back to work....

Fall

2009-10-26T19:44:00.003-04:00

I love the Fall, don't get me wrong. All the beautiful colors, all the wonderful smells, the cool crisp air..... the leaves... ugh the LEAVES.... I love the leaves... on the tress... not on my lawn. "Half of these leaves are not even mine !!!!" Yeah Yeah we've all said it, but in my case it's true.... at least for the front lawn.... As for the back... OY! Just imagine maple tress and oak trees all over a 1/4 of an acre. ugh... Beautiful yes... but if you had to rake "this" (pictured below) 2 to 3 times a season... you too would run away run away.....

Thirsty Puppy

2009-10-25T17:16:00.001-04:00

Creating Actions

2009-10-25T11:03:00.001-04:00

I finally learned how to create my own "Sharp Eyes" and "Soft Skin" Actions in Photoshop.... one more step closer to being self reliant in photo editing and a huge leap farther away from relying on other people's actions or tutorials ! More on this later..... Right now I'm off to rake the leaves...

Chocolate Truffles

2009-10-24T19:07:00.001-04:00

CLICK HERE FOR MY RECIPE FOR CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

Textures - Vintage / Rounded Edges

2009-10-24T10:42:00.006-04:00

Today, thanks to "The Pioneer Woman" I learned how to do a quick "rounded edges" effect on photographs. I Love this effect. Here I used one of my go to photos for editing. I added 4 (home made) texture layers and then rounded the edges. I like it, and I hope you do too.

AFTER

BEFORE

Fix It Fridays = Little Boy

2009-10-23T18:36:00.005-04:00

Here is my attempt to "Fix it Fridays" latest photo. I like this fix, it's subtle. I found the grainy parts to be a bit of a challenge, and so I used a few pre made actions from other sites..... I used a "darken this" to calm down the bright spots. I used Pioneer Women's "lovely". I softened the skin a tad. I brightened up some of the hair and his shirt. Over all I think it came out well. I may try some other styles like, vintage or B&W. But I like how this one came out.

AFTER

BEFORE

Fall Leaves

2009-10-23T17:07:00.004-04:00

With all the beautiful fall leaves out there who could resist. I will be on a hunt for more leaves... oh yes I will... I hope you enjoy. :-)

Textures - Tree Eye

2009-10-19T19:16:00.006-04:00

Here is another way textures add to the transformation of an every day object. I found the tree bark on a textures site... I believe it was free, there was no comments to say otherwise... The eye on the other hand is a found image from the web. I do not have the link to the site... But I'm not using this for sale or for any other purpose then for my leaning how to use textures.

I think it came out kind of cool... I need to work on adding eye lashes and maybe defining the brow above the eye... but still it's pretty cool in my book.

I ♥ Faces - Pink Week

2009-10-19T05:39:00.004-04:00

Here is an old photo of me and my best friend Timarra. I believe this was at one of our "girls nights out in". We all met up at one of our mutual friend's house for some good food and good drink and good laughs. Timarra and I have been friends for 12 years, we met in college at Seton Hall University. My.... time does fly. The next day after our girls night I was scanning through all the photos taken the night before and I came across this one. I played with it a bit and absolutely loved it! I then decided to play with the tint... I have to say, this pink version is my favorite. I hope you like it !

Textures

2009-10-18T11:03:00.004-04:00

Well, This weekend I did not give myself an assignment to shoot. So... in keeping with my theme this week, I will be photographing textures. I like working with textures and I want to build my own stock pile of them. I like that there are lots of "free" ones on the web that I can use for personal or commercial use. But who knows where your getting these images from, and who knows if these "Free" ones were stolen from someone who requested acknowledgement for it's use. Ugh... who wants to get caught up in all that mess. So... I'll be toting my camera around all day (and all week) on a mission to collect my very own textures.

The above image is from www.IHeartFaces.com, I'm only using it as my example of the use of textures... I do not claim the rights to the original photo, and I'm only using it for learning purposes.

I will post a few here as I collect them.

HAPPY SHOOTING EVERY ONE !

I ♥ Faces = Fix It Fridays = Beautiful

2009-10-17T21:15:00.005-04:00

Here we go again... I really liked this one, and I didn't use any pre made actions !!!! But I do wish I knew how to create my very own "burned edges" but here it is.

BEFORE

AFTER

Here is my 2nd favorite edit that I did. Here I did use the "Pioneer Women" "Burned Edges", I really need to learn how to do this myself.

I ♥ Faces = Fix It Fridays = Tutu

2009-10-17T20:39:00.006-04:00

Ok I'm a bit hooked on this new site I was introduced to by a friend of mine. It's the "I "Heart" Faces" website. Tonight I felt a little inspired to play with "fixes" of lights and darks... this was a perfect photo to practice it. Looks good to me, but I may need more tweaking... what do you think?

BEFORE

AFTER

Textures

2009-10-15T17:48:00.006-04:00

Today I was reading one of my favorite photo blogs. They posted about textures... so yes to copy them... I will post about textures now too. Only because I finally learned how to do simple texture effects, and well I think I did a pretty good job. There are so many ideas running around my head now for creative works later on down the line, but here is my very VERY first try at using textures.

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

I ♥ Faces - Excited !

2009-10-12T10:50:00.004-04:00

I hope this post is counted, I think I messed up on my first try. But here it is anyway. A friend of mine mentioned the "I Heart Faces" photo challenge to me the other day, and suggested I enter this photo. I think it fits in just perfectly.

You can't get any more excited over a pumpkin in a pumpkin patch then this !

Halloween CUPCAKE

2009-10-12T10:41:00.006-04:00

Today one of the ladies in my office brought in Halloween cupcakes... or should I say CUPCAKES. These things are MONSTER size, pun intended! But they are oh so yummy. I decided to grab a quick shot of the cupcake to show you the size but the photo does not do it justice. For scale, it's about 5" across it's diameter. YUM ! Here is a long awaited new addition to "What's on My Desk" The Holiday addition.

A. Burge

2009-10-11T15:14:00.004-04:00

Here is the sweetest little boy of my friends Micah and Cory. We went pumpkin picking and grabbed a few shots. What sweet heart he was... I think he wanted to take home all the pumpkins that were bigger then he was !

Pineapple-Mango Salsa

2009-10-09T13:46:00.003-04:00

For the full recipe of this Pineapple-Mango Salsa, click HERE.

Wild Things

2009-10-08T08:39:00.008-04:00

I'm not a big fan of the "Scary Movies" in fact, I run away, run I tell ya! With the same fear and speed as I do from Santa, and the Easter Bunny, or any other over stuffed, over fluffed, over "clowned" holiday character who dares to come near me. I could go on and on... but I won't... for now.

Yeah... this pretty much sums up how I feel inside when I used to think about this book, or the Mall Santa, or the Mall Easter Bunny, or clowns.... ugh I hate clowns.

So you see, one day....when I was a little girl I received this book, I believe from a teacher. It was called "Where the Wild Things Are". I read this book, nervously, all the way to the end. I put the book down. Looked around my room. And freaked out. EVERYTHING scared me. My mirror, my bed, the basement... well...every part of my house that was dark... I blamed it on the book for many years. The "wild things" were always in my mind, and they always ruffled my feathers. I really don't remember the story all that much, other then the little boy in the white footy PJ's and the crown, and then the "wild things". I don't remember if the story had a happy ending, or if there was really a lesson to learn.... All I know is that I did not want anything to do with it ever again.

Many years had gone by and I had since forgotten about this book, the unsettling images, and the scary dark places in my house. I was happy, care free, almost out of my "afraid of the dark" feelings until a month ago. Wouldn't you know it.... someone had to go and make a movie out of that very book. As I sat there watching the movie trailer all those old feelings came rushing back.

But now that I'm older, and I do know it's a children's story, I fell that I need to do something about this. I think the most perfect therapy for me and my fear of this book is to go see the movie. Yeah, call me crazy, a little weird, which ever, but I feel that this could be the best therapy (on the cheap) I need to get over a lot of little things that plagued me as a child. Those little things like this fear of this book, which I locked up in a little box, threw away the key, and stored far far far in to the back of my memories. But now that I'm an adult I feel I need to face these fears and get it done and over with.

And that's my little story about that. :-)

Movie Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcBPzqxBnRU

NJ Barns, more

2009-10-07T19:10:00.004-04:00

Here are a few more shots from my North Jersey Barn photographic outing.

no your not seeing double... I just couldn't decided which one i liked... one reminds me of the "drive by shooting" but the other is less... jarring....

NJ Barns

2009-10-05T09:45:00.006-04:00

Still in the photographic mood yesterday (Sunday), I decided to travel in to the west. Well, West North Jersey :-D You'd be surprised, that is if you are not from Jersey, how many farms and barns are out there. I LOVE barns, and horses. I could photograph them all day.

So I hoped in the old Mustang and headed West down Rt 78, then jumped over to Rt 519 and headed north. This is one of my favorite motorcycle roads, but it also has a bunch of farm land as well.

Here are a few of my favorite shots of the day... I have a few more, to be posted later.

I took this photograph as I drove past the church, not a recommended practice! You will crash ! Ok so I did not crash, but... I did swerve... and if someone was on the shoulder they would not have been for to much longer. But needless to say, with out looking through the view finder I think I grabbed a pretty neat shot!

This one has to be my favorite of the day.... Because it just looks way to perfect.

Only in New Jersey could you happen upon a photographic moment like this one.

Morning Dew

2009-10-05T09:38:00.005-04:00

Sunday I woke up and looked out the window... rubbed my eyes and tried to look again. Still nothing.... I could not believe it, there was nothing but white... Half a sleep I tried to move "more" window curtains out of the way... still nothing. Then I thought the window was all fogged up... nope no fog on the glass... Scratched my head a few times and realized FOG! AMAZING FOG. I grabbed my gear and headed for the car.... but then reality hit me and I realized I needed to do my morning "chores". Back in the house.... fed the dog, walked the dog, chatted it up with mom, ate some Honey Bunches of Oats with Almonds (best cereal ever). Then headed out. Not much fog was left but there was a lot of morning dew. Here are a few creative grass shots I snapped up quick before the sun light burned all the dew drops away.

Random Note

2009-10-04T14:34:00.001-04:00

Random Note:

I decided to put a "Don't like" button along with my "Awesome" and "I like"

Because well... you may not like it... :-)

Fall 09'

2009-10-03T17:32:00.002-04:00

One more from the other day....

Fall 09'

2009-10-01T19:36:00.006-04:00

Here are a collection of "Fall" images I have captured this Fall. I love all the colors of fall and I can not wait until the leaves turn... But until then, here are a few shots to hold us over.

Bloggin'

2009-09-30T19:00:00.002-04:00

Wonders what the world will look like on December 22, 2012?

And why did 10 minutes of one "History Channel" make me wonder... what if.....

Bloggin'

2009-09-30T07:23:00.005-04:00

GOOD MORNING WORLD !

I'm in a good mood today. Not sure why. Maybe because I was a sleep before 10pm and slept solid until 5am when the alarm went off. Who knows, but I'm running with hit.

I need some photographic inspiration.... or I need to go on a photographic adventure.... If this Sunday has nice weather I want to go adventuring around Jersey and photograph a theme. I was thinking maybe a farm theme, since it's close to fall the colors around those red barns should be amazing.

Anyone out there have any other good fall suggestions? My friends and I are doing a Corn Maze, but not for another 3 weeks ! Oy... long time away... So I need to keep busy.

Anyway, that is my Bloggin' thought for today...

P.S. Did you see the sunrise today? It was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING... no I did not have my camera with my... why you ask? 1. I'm an idiot, 2. it was still set up for my macro/product photography set from the other day, 3. I had just picked up my car from the shop last night so nothing was in my car..... Anyway... it was beautiful... the clouds looked like they were on fire.... but this was around 6:45am....

Scallop Cups

2009-09-29T19:35:00.002-04:00

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL RECIPE FOR
SCALLOP CUPS

Product Photography

2009-09-27T20:25:00.004-04:00

Today I woke up, it was raining.... Bla.... That is how I felt. I needed something to do, and I wanted it to revolve around photography. Searching the web for inspiration I found that I really was drawn to the "infinity" background in most product shots. So off I went to the art supply store to buy supplies.... I decided to build my very own light box.

No... I didn't take photos of me making it... why? I have no clue... But I did grab a few shots of random things in my room. Because I know you all want to see my grungy sneakers... here you go...

I think by my last shot here... I figured out how to "white" the background. They still need some work... But I think it's a good start.

My Morning Drive

2009-09-25T12:30:00.005-04:00

The sky was on fire this morning as I pulled out of my driveway, well it looked like it was.

It was beautifully colored from deep blue to yellow to orange and. Part of me really wanted to stop and take some decent photos of the sky, but I was already a few minutes behind schedule so I had to keep driving. Being a little late, I took the short rout to work. This rout to work puts me on one long road that twists through a small "mountain" called "South Mountain Reservation". It's a nice ride in the AM, but it has way to many stop lights. However it does have one added bonus... it brings you up high enough to see NY. Well... some of the tall buildings are NJ buildings, but you can see a bridge (not sure which one) that, I believe, brings you to NY... yeah.... somewhere in NY... maybe near the city.... ANYway.......

Before I made it to the twisty part I knew I had to get out my camera and set it up while the car was not moving. So I grabbed my camera (at one of those many stop lights) picked some settings for low light and hoped it was set right.

I knew exactly where I needed to be to get the "money shot". There is this one little section of the road that, for a split second, you can see this amazing city skyline way out in front of you, over the trees. As I took the last bend and came around to the highest part of the road, I raised my camera up with my right hand (good thing I drive an automatic!) and started snapping... click click click, click.... I whole bunch of shots went off. I placed the camera down and continued to drive....

At the next stop light I grabbed up my camera to look at what I captured. Not bad I thought.... not bad at all for not looking through the view finder and driving at the same time....

Here is what I captured... (cropped just a little bit to bring the skyline in better view, no color editing done on this image.)

Hacklebarney State Park

2009-09-20T16:23:00.002-04:00

Today I woke up early and decided on going for a hike. I found Hacklebarney State Park on line, plugged the address in to my trusty GPS and headed out early. I had a great day. Here are some photos. Next time I go I will concentrate more on hiking, but it was way too beautiful not to snap a bunch of shots. Here are a few from my hike.

Piper's nose

2009-09-17T22:33:00.005-04:00

So here is a my Piper's nose. Big, black and always cold and wet. But did you know that it smells too? Not just "sniff sniff sniff" but that it itself has a "smell". Now... one would think that it would be icky..... because lets face it..... where do dog's noses go? Yeah that's right you all have that same yucky image.... but put that on the back burner and put a lid on it. Because you will never guess how sweet and wonderful my dog's nose smells like!

It smells like pancake syrup !

Don't ask me... I don't know how she does it.... but it sure does. I don't ask how, some mysteries in life are meant to be left as just that... a wonderful maple syrup scented mystery.

:-)

09-18-2009
Side note on Piper's nose.... I should mention that it's not the black spongy part of her nose, but the top where her fur is more like peach fuzz. That last 1/2 inch spot right before the "spongy" part of the nose. It always smells sweet.

Piper has random smells... the normal dog smell, the wet dog smell, the " damn dog you need a bath smell", but my favorite is her maple syrup nose and her corn paws. But I'll cover the corn paws another day.

HUGS and Funny Faces

2009-09-14T22:14:00.002-04:00

I just love this little boy... And the cutest thing about him... besides missing his two front teeth.... he gives HUGS ! Sweetness !

Matt & Alla

2009-09-14T08:21:00.004-04:00

When spending yesterday morning photographing the kids, I grabbed a quick snap shot of mom and dad.

Flowers

2009-09-10T10:02:00.003-04:00

The other day I working in the yard, pullin weeds and stuff. I had planned on chopping down this vine I planted near the deck on the back of the house. Because it looked dead and sad and there were no flowers this year. As I approaced the vine to start chiopping I did a once over to check it all out. And low and behold... there was 4 flowers blooming on the vine. I'm thinking it knew what I was up to and thought "if I bloom some flowers maybe she'll let me live to see another summer"

And well I decided to let it live one more summer, but the vine did get a hair cut.

Eggplant Rollatini

2009-09-03T09:18:00.004-04:00

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL RECIPE OF MY
EGGPLANT ROLLATINI

Some back story of me and Eggplant :

Now, up until a few months ago, I never would have EVER taken a bite of this dish. I swore that I would not like it. Call it a childhood thing? Yes maybe it was. But I was standing strong! STRONG I tell ya! I was never going to eat eggplant.

Then one day I ordered take out with a friend. I ordered the lasagna, he ordered the Eggplant Rollatini..... I have to say the dishes did look the same, and these two really did. So I started to eat what I thought was my lasagna. It seemed like there was something different but I thought they may have forgotten the meat... then it hit me... I WAS EATING EGGPLANT !!!!!!

But wait...

It was actually good.... Then 2 seconds later our dishes were changed back... Needless to say I was a changed girl.... And I haven't looked back!

ANYWAY.... Here is my recipe for Eggplant Rollatini.

Sisters Pt. 2

2009-08-31T22:14:00.001-04:00

Peach Cobbler Pt. 3 of 3 - Maple Drizzle

2009-08-28T14:33:00.003-04:00

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL RECIPE OF MY
MAPLE DRIZZLE