30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 21

Chris and I just got back from the store to get our 4th of July food and drink supplies for tomorrow.  I'm sad Emily won't be here…because we'll be experimenting with drinks and she'd have loads of fun with us on that!  :-)  Anyway….it was beautiful when we first went out.  Sunny and hot, but beautiful!  But now its about to storm and I took advantage of this opportune moment to take the picture for today's challenge:  clouds.

Lens: Roboto Glitter

Film: Float

Lens: Roboto Glitter

Film: Float

Lens: John S.

Film: Blanko

Looks like we'll be getting a storm here in just a few…..

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 20

Today was 20 items on day 20.  It was a lot easier to find things than I expected.  Here is the picture and a list of things I chose:

Chris took both of these…but we think the bottom one looks like a picture from the 80's!

1. Currently reading "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen….I really recommend it!
2. The pink paper cutter I use when I craft.
3. The keys to my Fusion Hybrid! <3
4. My sunglasses.
5. A 3-Photo frame I got for Chris to put pictures of his old Hyundai in….he loved that car!
6. There are also earrings Chris got me for our first Valentines Day together on the frame.
7. My favorite season of Friends!
8. Favorite movie: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1.
9. Favorite book series: Harry Potter.
10. My Harry Potter wand from Ollivanders (I'm starting to see a Harry Potter theme here…haha!).
11. My MacBook.
12. The purple purse Nichole made me for Christmas last year!  I love it and use it all the time!
13. Mouse ears my parents bought when we went to Disney World in 1997.
14. My favorite pink water bottle from WalMart.
15. One of the many tiles I made on my girls crafting day.
16. My favorite tv show: Glee!
17. Mod podge….my saving grace while crafting!
18. Part of my crafting supplies that holds my pens, paint brushes, and scrap paper.
19. My cell phone (its kind of behind the Friends dvd box).
20. Sunscreen….my best friend over the summer! 

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 19

Thanks to Photo Booth, I was able to take the picture of something I am thankful for pretty easily.  I think the pictures are pretty self-explanitory.  :-)

(yea….we're crazy)

 (and cute!) haha

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 18

Yesterday I went and sat out by the pool for a few hours.  Even though I used sunscreen, my shoulders and back still got a little red but I'm lucky that its not bad at all.  The weather was beautiful, not too humid with a little bit of wind every so often.  I sat in the shallow end most of the time and read a book...so relaxing!

So here is my picture of a landscape.  I honestly think this is my favorite picture so far.

Lens: John S.

Film: Kodot XGrizzled

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 17

I've been kind of bad the last two days about my photo challenge.  Two nights ago, I went to the Leesburg Outlets with Sam and Regan.  We had a great time!  Sam and I both found really cute dresses for Julie and Reuben's wedding reception (yay!), and Sam and Regan also found some other cute outfits!  All in all, I'd say it was a good trip.

I was happy to go out because I really needed a picture of taillights, which was the challenge for that day.

Lens: John S.

Film: Kodot XGrizzled

Now, here are my two favorite things about this picture:

1. The red lighting is amazing.
2. I love how the red highlights the word visitor

What do you guys think?

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 16

The transition periods between spring and summer in Virginia can be kind of odd.  One minute it feels like a nice warm spring day, the next its so humid you can barely breathe.  Even though I absolutely love summer, there are times where I am just over it!  If it was 80 degrees without the humidity, life would be fantastic.

Okay, I think thats enough ranting for one day.  The challenge for today was playing with shadows.  I went outside (hence the rant from above) and decided to take pictures of all the trees behind the complex.  

Lens: John S.

Film: Kodot XGrizzled

Flash: Off

Lens: John S.

Film: Kodot XGrizzled

Flash: Off

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 15

Today's Photo:  Depicting Emotion.

Here is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  Can you guess which is which?  haha

Lens: Lucifer VI

Film Claunch 72 Monochrome

Flash: Standard

Lens: Lucifer VI

Film Claunch 72 Monochrome

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 14

As many of you know, I am deadly allergic to peanut butter.  As Emily knows, it is so important when a child has a food allergy to not be left out of what all the other kids are eating.  When I was in school, everyone always had peanut butter sandwiches for lunch.  Seeing as I couldn't have that, my mom came up with an alternative.  I had a packed lunch every day that included a sandwich, chips, and desert.  To make it look like I was eating what everyone else was, she made me a butter and jelly sandwich.  This is a memory from my childhood which was the subject for day 14.

Lens: Melodie

Film: DreamCanvas

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 12

Todays picture is of a bad habit.  I have a pet peeve that constantly drives me crazy: not refilling the toilet paper roll.  I hate having to use the bathroom, reaching for toilet paper, and there isn't any there!  So…here is my picture.

Lens: John S.

Film: Float

Flash: Standard

I'd like to say a huge thank you to Chris for making today's picture so easy.  :-)

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 11

I really wanted to take a picture of Chris's blue eyes for the challenge today.  But I really wanted a few different pictures of different color eyes in this post as well!

Lens: John S.

Film: Blanko

Flash: Standard

Anyways…here are pictures of my eyes, and my sisters.  I really liked her make-up today and I just took a picture of mine because I wanted an open one as well.

Lens: Lucifer VI

Film: Blanko

Lens: John S.

Film: Blanko

Flash: Standard

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 10

On Monday, we had people come in to the apartment to spray for bugs.  Gross, I know but one of our neighbors apparently likes to live in filth.  So over the weekend I had to pull all of our things out of the kitchen and put them in the dining room so they could spray.  I hated living that way, having to search the dining room for silverware, plates, glasses, etc.  It sucked.  Its so inconvenient and such a pain.

I started putting some things away yesterday, but wasn't able to finish.  Especially because I had to scrub all the cabinets first.  Here is a preview of what we lived with for a few days:

Lens: Lucifer VI

Film: BlacKeys B+W

Flash: Berry Pop

Lens: Lucifer VI

Film: BlacKeys B+W

Flash: Berry Pop

It was actually worse because I didn't take before pictures, these are the "halfway" ones!  Today's challenge was to take black and white pictures, so I hope you enjoy looking at my mess!  I can't wait to be done and have my kitchen/dinning room back!

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 8

I know that yesterday was Father's Day. Five years ago was the last time I was able to celebrate my father. Most people seem to just assume that their parents will always be there, but I know that to be false. I miss my dad every single day, and seeing father's day commercials every year only makes it worse. There is an ache in my heart that will never completely go away, and there are times (and days) where I just need (want) to be sad about it.

We haven't given my dad a place to permanently rest yet, and we keep his ashes in an urn in my mom's house. When he first passed, it was a great comfort to know that he was still in the house with us. Sometimes I would sit near the urn and stare at it, thinking that if I stared long and hard enough and wished enough he would walk through the front door. I miss listening for the key in the door so I'd know when to run downstairs and give him a hug. I miss hearing him laugh because if he was still here I wouldn't have to try so hard to remember it. I miss him coming in from working outside and being all sweaty and gross and chasing Sam and I around the house trying to rub his "stink" on us. I even miss him scolding Sam and I in the car when we couldn't agree on what music to listen to, and changing the station to something we both did not like.

I'm jealous of those who still have their fathers and mad at the ones who don't take advantage of it. I'm upset that I was a selfish teenager and didn't take advantage of spending all the time I could with my dad while he was here. I don't enjoy holidays like I used to because they'll never be the same again. I hate when people say it will just take time and things will get better. I don't want better, I want what I used to have. I want my dad and I want my family the way it used to be.

Soo…after all of that, I'm finally getting to the reason for the picture of day eight. It is supposed to be from a distance, and even though its not as far away as I would have liked it is so meaningful to me. My mom put up this small statue of a praying angel so we would have a place to go when we wanted to talk to our dad. My dad took forever to build this deck, and was so proud when he finished it. It was one of the spots he liked to work on the most. Actually, dad liked to work in the yard period….but I always saw him doing something by that deck. We believe he was working on the flowerbeds by the deck when he died, although we don't know for sure.

So in honor of fathers day and my dad, I wanted to post this distance picture. Dad, I love you and miss you every single day. I cannot wait for the day to reunite with you in Heaven. <3

Lens: John S.

Film: Blanko

Flash: Berry Pop

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 6

Today's challenge was to take a picture from a low angle. I thought about going outside and taking a picture out there, but I wanted to do something different….again. haha. It seems I'm always trying to go outside the box when it comes to this challenge!

One of my favorite decorative pieces on the walls of our apartment are candle holders I bought from Kohl's a few years ago. In the center of them, there is a collage picture frame that holds all of my favorite photos from Jessica and Romie's wedding in Arizona in 2009.

Lens: Jimmy

Film: Float

Flash: Berry Pop

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 5

Today's challenge was to take a picture of something green. The first picture is of the contact paper I used to cover my desk (its actually a much lighter green in person), and the second is the view off of my deck. Don't worry, I didn't set foot on the deck because the peanuts are still out there! :-)

Lens: John S.

film: DreamCanvas

Flash: Off

Lens: Roboto Glitter

Film: Float

Flash: Berry Pop

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 4

Today I decided to take a picture of my favorite place in our house. At first I thought it would be a picture of the bed because it is just so comfy, but when I really started thinking about it I realized that that is just my favorite place to sleep. My favorite place in the house is not my own, it is somewhere that Chris and I spend a lot of time together. I like to curl up and read, watch movies, and do craft projects in front of this special place. It is so special to me because there are a lot of memories of Chris, my friends, and my family tied into it.

So here is a picture of our couch. The second most comfy thing we own (next to the bed…haha!) and a place where we spend a lot of time together:

Here are a few "fun" pictures I took with the Hipstamatic App on my iPhone:

Lens: Buckhorst H1

Film: Float

Flash: Berry Pop

Lens: Tejas

Film: DreamCanvas

Flash: Berry Pop

Lens: Roboto Glitter

Film: Float

Lens: Kaimal Mark II

Film: Float

Flash: Berry Pop

Lens: Tejas

Film: DreamCanvas

Flash: Berry Pop

And here are some more pictures of all the love we've showed it over the past two years:

This was taken two years ago during a ridiculous snowstorm that held us hostage for a few days in the house (until Emily and I were brave enough to venture out). Emily came to visit all the way from California and from the looks of it, she and Chris were having a great time!

And when Chris and I lived in Seattle for five months, the couch made the trip with us!

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 3

The challenge for today was to take a photo from a high angle. I thought about standing on my back deck and taking a picture of someone walking their dog, but two obstacles stood in my way.

1. Chris spilled peanut shells all over the back deck so its a death trap out there for me! And..
2. The owner may think I'm a crazy stalker person snapping shots of them walking their dog!

So after I ran to Target for a quick errand (I bought two packs of Shout Wipes for $0.05!!), I got out of the car and saw this plant by our door and knew I just had to pull out my camera! And here is my picture for day three!!!

Additional Details:

I used the Hipstamatic app on my iPhone.

The Tejas lens caused the color effects in the picture.

The film used is called Salvador.

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day 2

I finally have internet on my computer! haha! For some reason my computer is being a little difficult and wouldn't connect to the internet at our house. But…I'm back and finally able to post my challenge for the day!

The challenge for day two was to take a picture of what I wore…so here it is!

Jeans: Old Navy Straight Leg

Black Undershirt: Target

Pink Shirt: American Eagle

30 Day Photography Challenge: Day1

After reading over the two lists of photography challenges I found, I realized I could not choose which one I wanted to do. While they were similar in many ways, they were also different. I fell in love with some of the challenges on both which gave me the idea to combine the two lists into one and that would be my challenge for the month!

We made a facebook group and I am extremely excited that there are a fair amount of people participating in it with me! I always feel I'll be more motivated to do something if I have others pushing me along. Today is day one, which means we had to do a self-portrait. I am forever grateful that Chris bought me my Macbook for Christmas two years ago, because there is nothing easier than using Photo Booth to take pictures of yourself! haha!

The nerd in me decided to do some research online to find out how others did self-portraits of themselves so I could get a few good ideas. I saw some really creepy ones (seriously, people are weird!) but then I saw some really creative, off-the-wall pictures that I fell in love with. Taking the advice of others, this is what I came up with:

For me, (now that I have a coffee machine), this is how my morning starts. I never thought I'd be the person addicted to caffeine every morning…but here I am! I blame my sister in lots of ways because she was the one who told me I needed a coffee machine for when she stays the night with us (thanks a lot Sam!). But…this is who I am now and I guess thats okay. haha!

Additional Details:

• I edited the photograph using iPhoto and the "fade color" tool.
• The "Team Sarah" shirt is from the McCain/Palin campaign (its comfy…don't judge! ha!)
• And in case you're wondering…yes I do drink my coffee out of a straw. I like my teeth pretty and white! :-)