Akiko and Blake, Best Friends

Yesterday, my puppy Akiko's cousin Blake came over for a visit and to play in the snow.  They had a fun time and I managed to get some action shots of them.  Blake is so black, it's really hard to get any kind of detail on her face!

They look like they are ferociously fighting, but they are just having lots of fun!

Ready...set...go!

Akiko nips Blake....

Blake nips Akiko back!

All hugs in the end!

Crossing a Bridge

This picture was taken at Everhart Park in West Chester last weekend.  I like the "X" repetition across the bridge from this point of view. 

Wishing everyone a happy start to their week!

Brushing with a Zebra

Today I had a lovely visit with my friend Laura (who also happens to have a great blog about writing).  Today was also the release of this week's Project 52 assignment: "Soothing Repetition".  We attempted to brainstorm some fun ideas of what that could be and came up with this picture.  Who isn't soothed by the repition of brushing their hair, especially with a fun zebra brush!  I think it's cool that from this picture you can't tell if she is brushing her own hair, or if someone at the photographer's persepctive is brushing it for her.

I should probably mention here that Laura is OBSESSED with zebra.  Take a look at one corner of her bedroom alone...adorable!

Anyways, stay tuned for more "soothing repetition" this week! 

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Papa-Paparazzi

Like I said before, I take lots and lots of pictures of my Shiba Inu puppy, Akiko.  Obviously, this time she got sick of it and held up her paw...she's totally ready for the paparazzi to start following her around!

I love the detail of her paw - it's so neat!

Shades of Gray - Part 2!

 I posted my favorite Shades of Gray picture yesterday, and today I am posting my husband's favorite! 

Week 3 - Shades of Gray

         

Here is my submission for Week 3 of Project 52: Shades of Gray.  I might attempt more later this week, but I thought this turned out pretty cool!

Photography Class - Week 1 Assignment

As I mentioned earlier, I am taking a Digital SLR Essentials class through Chester County Night School.  Our first assignment was to take the same scene from 3 different focal lengths, to help us get more familiar with what our lens "sees".  We were also supposed to have 1 object in front of another, to start to learn about Depth of Field.  Here are my 3 scenes from 24mm, 35mm, and 55mm (completely unedited).

I went with a snowy/Christmas theme!

Project 52

Through my perusing of photography blogs I have discovered Project 52. This is an online movement where photographers are given a unique assignment each week of the year to help broaden their creativity boundaries.  I guess this will be more like "Project 50" for me, since I am starting 2 weeks late!  This week's assignment is "Shades of Gray".  Hmm..maybe the snow that is coming tonight/tomorrow won't be such a bad thing after all!

I will be sure to post my results each week on here!  

Hanging on to Fall

Fall is my absolute favorite season, so I was so happy to see a couple small reminders of it when out shooting in Everhart Park this weekend.  It looks like these leaves are hanging on for dear life to the frail branches they cling to.

Puppy in the Wilderness

I am sure that my dog, Akiko, will be one of the main stars of this blog!  She is my 1 1/2 year old Shiba Inu.  She is about 19 pounds, and absolutely LOVES the snow and winter.  

This picture was taken at Everhart Park in West Chester, PA with my Canon EOS Rebel XS, and edited in Adobe Lightroom.

I had some trouble removing her leash from the picture in Lightroom, which is why you see some distortion around her back leg.  I need to smooth that over in Photoshop.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

I took this picture while working on a homework assignment for my Digital SLR Essentials class that I am taking through Chester County Night School.

My favorite part about this picture is that it looks like I am in the deep wilderness, when in fact I am right in the middle of West Chester, PA at Everhart Park.

Taken with my Canon EOS Rebel XS, edited in Adobe Lightroom.

Welcome to the World, Baby Madelyn!

My husband's brother Jason and his wife Jen just had their very first child, Madelyn Elizabeth.  They did not know if it was a boy or a girl, and they didn't share any names, so it was a big, fun, surprising day for the whole family!

I took this picture while at the hospital visiting Madelyn.  

These are now two Murphy grandchildren.  Colin (the co-star of the picture) is almost 3 years old!

This is also one of my first attempts editing photos using Adobe Lightroom.  I'm really pleased with how it turned out.

Welcome and a little about me!

I am a brand new photographer living in West Chester, PA. I have always been interested in learning more about photography other than the typical point-and-shoot.

My interest peaked while planning my wedding. I had amazing engagement pictures taken by Justin Gaynor. When I began my journey to search for my wedding photographer, I knew I was looking for a photographer who would take it beyond the typical "pose for the camera" pictures and add an artistic style to the day. Thank you to Nathan Desch for doing just that!

After my wedding (when I had a little bit more free time!) I decided it was time to finally learn more about the photography styles I love, and start to mimic them myself. A Christmas present from my WONDERFUL husband was a Canon EOS Rebel XS, with the standard lens that comes with it. I also enrolled myself in a Digital SLR Essentials class through Chester County Night School, to learn more about all of the basics.

So that brings to my here and now! I will be documenting my photography journey and welcome feedback along the way. I hope you enjoy looking at my pictures as much as I enjoy taking them!