New Lens!

After my photography class I came home and immediately wanted to order a new lens for my camera. I HAD to have something other than the lens that came with my camera when I bought it so I ordered a Canon 50mm 1.8 lens from Amazon. The f-stop on it goes so low and its great to shoot portraits of the kids, plus I am loving the bokeh (that sweet blur in the background of the picture). The fact I can avoid using the flash helps with getting a more real shot and I don't end up with red or squinty eyes in my pictures. I am still learning how to adjust in manual mode and how to meter the camera, but I am loving how the new lens takes pictures. And with a 2 year old who loves to have her picture taken I can get lots of practice! As soon as she sees a camera she starts jumping around saying "cheese". Here are a few of the pictures I have taken with the new lens so far. With the weather finally warming up I am looking forward to getting outside to get some more practice with my new lens!

Photography class

Last weekend I took a photography class to learn how to use my camera. It was with one of my favorite photographers, Chelse Thompson who also takes all of our family photos. The class was a great way to be introduced to getting out of the auto mode on the camera and made me understand better f-stop and aperture. I thought I'd share some pictures that I took at the class! She has an amazing studio in Mendon, NY with lots of natural light so I was able to explore how to use that light and stay away from the flash.

After resetting the white balance on my camera:

Before resetting the white balance on the camera, notice the difference?

Taken with my kit lens.

This picture was shot with an 85mm lens with a focus to the center left.

Journey through Photography

As a mom with two kids I take a lot of pictures. Just over a year ago my husband and I upgraded to a DSLR camera and I am almost ashamed to admit I have only been shooting pictures with the kit lenses and on automatic mode (and sometimes on the portrait mode). This blog is the start of my journey as I learn and explore shooting photographs outside of the automatic settings. Follow me as I learn how to shoot photographs by manipulating f-stop and aperture and use different lenses. I just ordered a 50mm 1.8 lens for my rebel from Amazon and I am anxiously awaiting its arrival! It should be here tomorrow. I will be sharing pictures of my photography as I learn.