I guess it's like the doctor

...that doesn't take care of herself.... I am the photographer who doesn't do family pictures. The last picture we had done with all five of us was when we left the states back in 2002! And my how the kids have changed!

However, I've made myself a promise to work on this problem. So had everyone get ready and set up the tripod. This is what we came up with. (Thank God for the timer on my camera.) I added some different coloring and a little glow and blur. Tell me what you think of the processing.

Trying out some Textures

Just playing around with some textures. I think I like them. Let me know what you think.

The Girls

Outtakes

I set up the studio in the house to play around with my 3rd light that had arrived... Riley didn't want anything to do with it but Kate and Abby played along... we had lots of fun... and of course, what is a photo shoot without some silly "outtakes?!"

The S Family

Mrs. C asked me to take photographs of her beautiful family. They all looked so nice and were so much fun to spend time with. You can see just by looking at these pictures how much they all love each other. They too are getting ready to leave England. I hope these photographs can be a reminder of their time here and of just how little their little girls are. They do grow up so fast!

Trying new techniques...

Look Mom! No hands!

On one of my favorite photography sites http://www.ilovephotography.com I found an incredible photographer in New Zealand that uses his flash in such a unique way that allows both the sky and the object of the picture to be exposed correctly.

Think of pictures where the subject is too dark with the sky looking beautiful or the subject looking just right with the sky being completely blown out when you know there was a beautiful blue sky with fluffy white clouds when you snapped the shutter. He was kind enough to share his technique on the site so I decided to try it out on the kids in the front yard. My technique still needs some work but I think I'm getting the idea... and I'll never get better if I'm not out there shooting and trying to expand my comfort zone. Go check out his site and you will appreciate how great these type of pictures can look....

http://www.stateofthenation.co.nz/

My Three

I took all three kids out to get some pictures of them together. Kate and Riley are so accustomed to my camera in their face that some bribing was necessary to get them to willingly participate. However, Abby thought it was good fun to pose for photos so I was able to get lots of her. It's good to have a photographer for a step-mom when you have a myspace page! :)

Chaplin D

My friend Lisa's Chaplin had orders and was down to his last few weeks in England. She wanted to present him with a framed portrait along with a key verse. She asked me to attend the service and get some shot of him in his element during his last service here at Lakenheath. I never did get to see the finished product all matted and framed with the verse but hope that this gift is a great reminder of his time here and all the people he got to know along the way.

We are leaving early!

I haven't updated here in a month. A lot can happen in the amount of time. Abby has come and gone. We miss you sweetie and hope you are enjoying Frontier Days! And our orders got moved up to October 1st. (Originally we were leaving in March '09 and then it was changed to December and now October!) We found out as soon as we got home from our vacation so Jason and I have been cleaning out all the clutter and deciding what to ship now and what to save for later. It has been a long month but I am happy to say the movers came today and our house is much emptier than it was. However, because we are not leaving until October I kept all my studio equipment to be shipped out later. So I still have the ability to do indoor and outdoor sessions. If have talked with me about scheduling a shoot but we haven't set a date, now is the time to do it. I will continue to take appointment through the month of August and into the first week of September. Just shoot me an e-mail at judyrichardsphotography@yahoo.com if you want to get those pictures done before I have to pack up and leave for good. I have had a few shoots since I updated last. Plus, I worked hard to take lots of pictures of the kids while Abby was with us. Enjoy and hope to hear from you soon.