This is my lesson for this week – no flash low aperture (1.8) and 1600 ISO. Back in the old days I took some sports pictures with 800 but 1600? I guess digital is different it is a little grainy but nothing I couldn’t fix – this one was straight out of the camera. As far as Miss Crabby Pants not even sharing Pizza with Sissy made Mary happy by 7:30 she was having a complete meltdown!
This will be another day I am glad Jim doesn’t read my blog. As if I don’t have enough to do I am now in “planning mode” do I need a new stroller, just take the one I have or rent a Disney stroller? Do I need a new camera lens for the night time shows (I really need to disable Google)? Already figured out I need a new backpack that will carry my camera & computer together. I think I need a new camera bag for the park and a bigger memory card. Where will it end?
I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day…. and the best girls in the world
I finally got all of the scrapbooks in the cabinet in the living room. That way I worry less about Mary looking at the books unsupervised. It also keeps them dust free. It’s hard to believe that is 25 years of our life together.
Be sure to pick someone you don’t like to handle your estate. I have come to the conclusion Grandpa didn’t like me as much as I thought he did.
The classes are really starting to make sense! This is me taking a picture in manual mode with me actually knowing what all the settings mean and adjusting them. I have been shooting on manual with “Sheila’s settings” for about a year and a half with no knowledge of how they worked or why she used them. This week I am finally starting to get it. In my class we can’t use a flash so we had to adjust the f stop, aperture and ISO to the correct setting. Is it the best picture I have ever taken – no does she look truly crabby - yes am I starting to understand how to use my camera – YES!!
OK I have to say it Lisa had a great idea about using the dual mode of JPG and RAW on my camera you totally can see how much the RAW format keeps that the JPG does away with. The picture of Courtney was pretty much unusable in the jpg format but with a little tweaking in RAW it was the Saturday picture of the day! I am convinced now definitely the way to go. I will probably continue to shoot in both for a little while but will be converting to RAW quickly. The three classes are going well I am pretty much done with the photo editing. I think I will take it easy in the Digital Scrapbook class this week I am not really interested in making an annual that spans a year – hello I have been doing that since 1984! So that just leaves the photography class I am learning a lot in all of them really just enough to be dangerous and realize I need some new software, a new memory card etc.
Dad asked about Courtney – all is well with her, nothing really new except for that trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life thing. She starts Spring Break this week I am hoping that means the upstairs will get painted so we can get new carpet. We still do not have everything put back together from the toilet overflowing just before Christmas. Before anyone starts with “oh poor Courtney has to paint over Spring Break” I am going to remind all of you when I had Spring Break we never went anywhere and spent the week getting ready for all the dog show people to come to the house. So yes a work week for me as well. Also Courtney is the one who flooded the house!
I have to leave in 15 minutes to take Mary to the Doctor (yes again) but this was what I thought when I was getting ready and driving to work this morning No Dad it does not involve anyone naked - it is a setting on my camera – (OK now Dad has clicked the X and is checking to see if Maria’s blog has been updated.) So for the rest of you I am seriously deciding whether to change the setting on my camera from JPG to RAW. It takes more disk space and I will need to edit each one in Photoshop as they just don’t automatically show a picture on the computer like a jpg. Now if my husband read my blog he would say “This sounds like more time and more money - seems like a bad idea. In fact if you have more time I can think of several things you can do for me and if you want to spend more money… there are more rifles I could use.” OK now we lost Jim . Now for my diehard readers the reason I am considering this so strongly is the larger file size means there is so much more to it than a jpg where this and that gets lost in the compression. Think of it this way if its half the size I am losing a lot right? Any of you who really know me know I am always on the quest for the perfect picture. In the old days I would shoot up rolls of film for one awesome picture of Jim skiing which by the way doesn’t look so awesome now. This photo editing class has my head swimming, every picture I see in my books I now think – what if I had edited that one a little more? Now is has come to me - my legacy is 50 scrapbooks that one of my great grandchildren are going to complain about not having room for… I am wondering why I do this? Are all my scrapbooks going to end up in an attic, or a basement or worse the trash? Great now I am depressed…
At the risk of sounding like one of “those parents” would it be possible to watch American Idol without anyone saying “suck” because I really don’t think my 2 year old should repeat it 5 or 6 times while listening to Kelly Clarkson sing who by the way should be a role model right? I do sound like one of those parents don’t I?
The last two nights have been a nightmare with Mary she doesn’t want to eat dinner. She only ate applesauce on Monday night and (after an hour of bugging her) yogurt on Tuesday night. I can hear my Mom saying “she will eat when she’s hungry - don’t worry about it”. Jim told me the same thing last night, saying I need to recognize she is strong willed and not let it affect me or take it personally when she won’t follow my schedule and won’t go along with “my plan”. He didn’t come right out and say it but his tone kind of implied I am a little too rigid! In fact he sounded like he didn’t really like going along with my plan either.
As many of you have pointed out I can hardly get a picture of the kid without a pacie that is because she has become even more attached to her pacie. What used to be just a bedtime and car thing seems to be turning into a good part of the day thing. In that my goal in life is peace and harmony in my home right now I am willing to let it slide. Jim of course is even softer than I am with “it needs to be her idea” . He said he will be harder on her when he needs to be so far the only evidence I have seen of this is when she was having a fit and flinging yogurt at his computer he actually yelled at her and she of course crumpled into a heap on the floor. Of course he was right there to pick her up and tell her Daddy wasn’t mad at her she just couldn’t throw yogurt at his computer – oh man where are the people that raised Courtney?
Could he really be 13 – I can still remember so vividly waiting to hear if he had been born. Thinking back what a scary situation thank God for the Dr. who made the call to do the emergency c-section without waiting for the OK from the insurance company. Luke if you are reading this we love you, your card and gift will be late, I just sent it yesterday! Today’s song in honor of Lucas “Boy named Sue” the one Lucas was singing in his head while pitching a perfect game – yes I have my mother’s knack for recalling strange things but forgetting why I walked into a room.
I have to change it off Google News – I just saw 9 million “responsible” homeowners are getting bailed out. What kind of deal is that – oh I know the kind of deal I am going to get to pay for. I better get back to work so I can!
After spending two days at home last week and again yesterday (Mary ran a fever all weekend went to the Dr - ear & sinus infection) my house would be spotless, laundry done etc. Nope it looks like a tornado hit it. I have spent every spare second trying to work (yes my real job that helps pay the bills) from home since surprisingly the work doesn’t stop just because Mary is sick! Remember I took those two classes that started this week have I done anything on them – nope! Did I also mention I also lost my voice so for those of you who have called that is why you have not heard back from me.
