Powered by Blogger.

Welcome To My Blog!

Hi and welcome to the Amy Elisabeth Photography blog. This is the place where you will read all about my latest photo sessions, favorite print products I offer and random happenings in and outside of my photography passionate life! With this blog I hope you learn more about me as a photographer, my style, and what makes me, me!
If you like what you see and are interested in booking a session and would like more information, there is a link to my website in the menu above.
Enjoy viewing my photos and reading the stories I share here on this blog! ;)

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Meet Erin. Class of 2013

Meet Erin. Class of 2013.
I met Erin while photographing her team's tennis pictures this spring. One thing that I noticed right away about Erin is her beautiful red hair. And her fun personality!
She loves, loves, loves to sail and living on a bay leading to a Great Lake, she is no stranger to the waters. Quite an avid sail girl too, throughout the summer she helps to instruct a sailing class for youth. It is clearly her biggest passion!
And of course her session had to involve her sailboat. Oh yes! Something I knew would showcase her individuality!
We had a perfectly warm, sunny evening. Beautiful locations for her senior session. Thank you Erin for 1., not letting me fall off your sailboat and 2., being so amazing throughout your session!



DSC_1039web

web4

web3

web9

web6

web

web8

web2

DSC_0154web

web7





Monday, June 18, 2012

Color or Black & White?

9771-1web

I love this image. Absolutely love it. It just speaks "timeless" to me. And while I really like the color version, I think I am leaning towards the black and white image.

Which one do you prefer?

9771bw-1web

Friday, June 1, 2012

Congratulations Class of 2012!!

Class of 2012! Congratulations to all of you for making it to this point in your lives. High School Graduation! You did it. Be proud. And be proud of who you are!

Enjoy these graduation memories with friends and your family. Savor these moments of happiness!

As all of you begin this new journey in your life, remember to never lose sight of who you are. Be true to yourself. Stay positive. Keep smiling! And don't lose hope! Stay on that path to your dreams. But most of all, never give up trying!

Congratulations to all of you!!



Thursday, May 24, 2012

Meet Saidee ~ Class of 2012

DSC_0169blog

Meet Saidee. Class of 2012. With her long red hair, bright blue eyes, she is so beautiful! I absolutely loved this session with her. She has such a fun style, dressing in vibrant colors which accented her hair and eyes, not to mention her personality. Such a fun and happy, laid back girl! Her colors and clothing choice she wore brought these pictures to life. And those orange, suede boots? Love!!

Along with her session she brought her old fashioned bike and we incorporated it into a few shots, which turned out to be my favorites. I feel adding props to a session oftentimes will tell a story, describe one's personality, and for Saidee her bike showcased how fun she is!
Thank you Saidee for this awesome high school senior session!!! I wish you the best with all of your future plans after graduation!

DSC_0151blog

DSC_0142blog

DSC_0110blog

DSC_0031blog

DSC_0019blog

DSC_9995blog

Friday, May 18, 2012

Out Of Camera & After Editing

8537MaddySOOC-1

My children are probably my favorite subjects to photograph outside of our flurry of pets around our home. But my daughter is probably my most photographed participant. She helped me prepare some images for my photography class I held last weekend. She patiently let me take numerous images of her, finding the best lighting and those catchlights, or reflections in her eyes. Which I love!

The image above is how it looked right out of my camera and on to my computer's monitor. Exposed nicely. Sharp. How I like it. I shoot in RAW format which basically means this image was completely untouched by the camera. When shooting in JPEG format, the camera will sharpen, add contrast, saturation, etc to an image which is perfect for everyday shooters who may or may not use any type of editing software post taking pictures.
But I do use an editing software. Hey, sometimes that is what I love most about taking pictures. Enhancing them to something even more!

8537AfterMaddyWeb-1

I use an editing software called Lightroom which I have adjusted to and now love using. It has caused my editing workflow to speed up and cause my turn around time for editing sessions for clients so much faster. Which leaves me more time to take pictures of my kids!
In the picture above, I ran a preset which in seconds added saturation and vibrance with contrast and some added warmth. I sharpened the image and then I am done.

8537MaddyWebbw-1

With this black and white version, I ran another preset to give this contrasty, warmer look. I truly love pictures in black and white. Maybe it is my love of Ansel Adams photographic style. Or how black and white adds a sort of a dramatic, emotional feel to an image. Either way, currently I am being drawn to editing more of my pictures to black and white.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Photography Class ~ A Recap

This past Saturday I held a beginner's photography class at my home. 8 wonderful ladies attended who wanted nothing more than to move out of Auto Mode on their cameras, get the most out of their cameras and create better images. I was really excited to hold this class and teach them about Aperture, ISO, Exposure, and so on. For four hours I saw lot's of lightbulbs go off above their heads as they learned something new and "got it"! So rewarding for me as a photographer to be able to share my tips, tricks and photo recipes with others so they can learn to take better pictures. I feel many of them left the class Saturday evening feeling so much more confident about using their camera and excited to try what they had learned! And that makes me pretty darn happy!

All of these pictures shown below were taken by my extremely talented big sister who has developed her skills as a photographer in leaps and bounds!  I am so proud of her and love how we are able to share this passion for photography together. You can view more of her awesome work over on her website here and her own blog here.

4965cake1web-1

I had this awesomely, yummy cake made by Jennie's Cake Creations for my class. I sent her some ideas of what I wanted, mainly a vintage type camera cake. One of the images I sent her was how this cake turned out. I loved it! Not to mention it was very good to eat!! She is super talented and I highly recommend her for creating your cake for any occasion!


4972class2web-1

Inside my home we did some "classroom" time. We worked on how various settings on our cameras worked. How to clean our camera. I talked about prime lenses and zoom lenses. 

4969class3web-1

We moved on to how the Aperture ring in our lens brings more or less light into our cameras. How Shutter speed affects the speed of light entering our camera. What ISO is and how it works.

 5016class4web-1

We then moved outdoors and used these cute runway models to practice what we had learned. And these cute models happen to be my niece and my daughter. I am so proud of both of them for being so patient to model!

5025classWeb1-1  
I showed the class how to position your subject in sunlight. On Saturday it was a bit hazy so we didn't have real bright sun to contend with, but I kept my daughter at a 45 degree angle to the sun, turning her head a bit to ward off any shadows. We also moved the girls into some open shade and showed the class how this works well too.
 class6web-1

In this picture I was demonstrating how to do some backlighting, or shooting my subject with the sun behind her. And there is my funny niece photo bombing the picture. She cracks me up!

5027class5web-1

Here I am taking a test shot and letting others know what my settings were for that particular picture.
 5038class7web-1
This is my sweet daughter! I love this image!!

5051class8web-1

And my sweet niece who is so beautiful and will be 13 in just a few days!! 

I am so thankful to those who attended my class on Saturday. I would very much like to teach this class again. I loved having the opportunity to make this class happen!

Monday, April 30, 2012

Meet Jessica ~ Class of 2012

Meet Jessica. Class of 2012. She has these amazing green eyes that just sparkle in the light. Her smile is endless. And her personality is relaxed and happy. Someone you want to be around all the time. 
I met with her and her mom last fall in October and we had such beautiful weather for Jessica's senior photo session. She and her mom are very close to one another. Almost like sisters. Giggling together. Smiling and laughing. Talking about their family, school, and Jessica's plans for college. Their easy going way about things relaxed me. Jessica's natural ability to pose and smile in front of my camera created such beautiful images of her. I couldn't have been more thrilled with how these turned out.
Thank you Jessica and your mom for such a fun couple of hours together!

DSC_7745Blogedit

DSC_7749Blogedit

Yes, she is holding a snake. Her mom and I were screaming like little girls when we saw 
this snake slithering across the trail we were walking on. Yes, I loathe snakes! And it was quite apparent her mom is too! Jessica, full of confidence and fearless of reptiles, picked this snake up posing for a picture. Jessica, you are far more adorable than the creature you are holding!

DSC_7799Blogedit_edited-1

DSC_7757Blogedit

DSC_7697Blogedit

DSC_7653Blogedit

DSC_7615Blogedit

DSC_7610Blogedit_edited-1

DSC_7573Blogedit

DSC_7772Blogedit_edited-1

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Meet Andreas ~ Class of 2012

Meet Andreas. Class of 2012. Big smile. Super sweet. Did I mention funny? This session left me feeling thrilled, content and yet sad. Andreas had recently found out his dad was diagnosed with a dangerous form of brain cancer. This broke my heart. So much so and ironically because it is the same type of brain cancer my husband is facing. I had spoken with his mom before his session and learned of this cancer news. I was instantly taken back in time to when my husband was diagnosed, reliving everything she was telling me that was happening to her husband. I felt shaken. And angry about this cancer. Yet, I felt suddenly connected to Andreas and his family. I so wanted to reach out to them and tell them it would all be okay. 


During his senior session with me, we laughed. Alot. But we also talked about brain cancer. He had so many questions about it. What his dad was going through. What would happen next. Radiation. Chemotherapy. Emotions were riding high for him and I hoped all of my answers would provide him with some comfort, knowledge, and hope. 


His close friend Aneesha, who I photographed a few weeks before, accompanied us. She really helped Andreas feel more comfortable in front of my camera. I think her being there helped ease any nerves he was feeling about being photographed. And after about 20 minutes he loosened up and seemed quite comfortable posing for us!

Andreas has plans to attend Northern Michigan University in the fall and I am so excited for him.  I attended NMU for a short while myself and I think he will really love this college. His dad continues to heal and beat this cancer. Which makes me so happy for them. I can only imagine his dad feels extremely proud of Andreas!

Untitled-6


Untitled-1


Untitled-2


Untitled-4

m
Untitled-3


Untitled-5

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Photography Class May 12th!

7361bwMaddyWeb-1

This idea to hold my own photography class has been popping up in my mind alot lately. I have so many moms who come up to me and ask me questions about how to capture better pictures of their kids, pets, flowers scenery and on and on. I always love these questions. I love to help them in hopes they will take better pictures. But there is more to just pressing the shutter button on your camera and hoping it will magically take a perfect picture. Ha! Been there. Done that. We don't live in a perfect world do we? Sure, we can set our cameras to Auto Mode and let the camera do all the guessing for us, but we bought our fancy DSLR camera to take awesome pictures. Right? Why not learn what all those other buttons do? Why not be as awesome as our camera??

7326MaddyWeb-1

Of course you can learn how to move out of Auto Mode. Yet, it takes practice. Lot's of practice. And patience. Tons of patience. Trial and error. Learning to take charge of that black box in your hands called a camera. And learning to move away from having the camera choose all the settings for us. You own the camera. Why not really own that camera?

DSC_7702blog

Taking pictures is not rocket science. It is however about learning what I call photo recipes. Each particular photo situation involves a special recipe. Ingredients and skills. Lighting. Aperture. ISO. Shutter speed. Exposure. Oh my.

DSC_3082blog

With such an interest in photography all around me I have decided to share my talent. My passion for photography. With hopes to teach and guide others along so they can achieve more from their camera. Lose the red eye! The blasted whiteness of flash. Dark pictures. Blurry moments. Become a better photographer and take those pretty pictures. Make your friends jealous.

4265blog

On May 12 I have decided to hold my own photography class directed towards beginners with DSLR cameras(cameras with interchangeable lenses). This class will mainly be geared towards woman who want to take better pictures and move outside of that green auto mode box!


DSC_1541blog

I will be teaching about lighting, aperture, ISO, shutter speed and how all of these are used to create better pictures. Learn composition and taking a photo journalistic approach to your photography. I will share some of my photo recipes and how they worked for a particular pictures. I will share what type of lenses I use and how each of them works for various photo situations. And this will be a fun time! Not complicated. A chance to develop your photography skills. Take your picture taking to a higher level. And feel more confident about that black box in your hands!

DSC_5976blog

Class will be held on Saturday, May 12 from 1-5 pm. Cost for this class is $50 and will include notes from the class, hands on instruction, and light snack and beverage.
I will also be having some random giveaways through out the day!! Oh yes! You will love these giveaways!
If you would like more information on attending this class, please send me an email to dvmswife@aim.com

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Followers

Follow Me on Facebook!

Search This Blog


Rock the Shot


Actions To Make Your Photoshop World Go Round!

Network Blogs

wibiya widget

Our Blogger Templates Web Design

  © Free Blogger Templates 'Photoblog II' by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP