Fix-It-Friday - again!

Well it’s time for another Fix-It-Friday from I ♥ Faces.  Today’s challenge was a lot of fun, and I really like the results.

 

Here’s the original photo from Hotomom.  What a cute young lady!  Head on over and check out some of Hotomom’s photos.  She’s got a really cute family!

 

Now here’s my fix for this photo.

1) Opened the original and adjusted the exposure, added a little warmth, and rotated the photo in Lightroom 2.5.

2) From there, I went on to edit in Photoshop using an “Eye Pop” tutorial from Jessica Sprague.  I also used the healing brush to take away a few blemishes.

3)  At this point I went back to Lightroom 2.5 and used an adjustment brush to smooth the skin.

4) I also adjusted or added clarity, vibrancy and a post crop vignette in LR.

5) The scrapbook page was made for “Pink Lemonade” from Jessica Sprague also!

 

I really enjoy Fix-It-Friday.  It gives me an opportunity to practice new techniques and make the ones I know better.

I have a son, and he’s all boy!  When Beth was pregnant with RJ, I did nothing but buy girl clothes, but that’s another story for another day!

 

Halloween 2009

Well, it’s come and gone.  Now it’s time to skip Thanksgiving and go straight to Christmas.  Can you believe the speed this year has?  It’s moving along like an out of control snowball rolling downhill toward the depths of Hades!!!!!!

Tradition is something that all families hold dear.  For us, heading to my Mom and Dad’s for Halloween is one of those traditions.  With RJ being older, I thought we were all but done with the idea of schlepping through the neighborhood dressed as who knows what, begging for candy!  Heaven knows, I don’t need candy in my house at this time!!!!!!!!

Well, as much as I thought we were finished, RJ decides that we need to go.  Not for him mind you, but so we would not hurt his grandmother’s feelings.  Every year, Mama Jo makes a big pot of chili, and RJ has loved it from the get go.  When we get there, Mama Jo ask if I brought my camera, then says, “Oh, wait minute, is your arm attached to your body?”  Kind of like the old proverbial question, “Does a bear @%$ in the woods?”  I can’t believe it, she wants me to take her picture!

For years, I’ve told everyone that my mother (and her 2 daughters) were witches.  No one would believe me.  Now I have proof!  Here she is, in all of her glory mixing a cauldron of potions!    You got to have at least one ghost picture on Halloween! 

RJ said he was to old for the ritualistic begging of candy!  Those were his exact words…”ritualistic begging:.  When did my boy grow up?  Anyway, when Mama Jo gave him a bag of “seed candy”, he was off to the races.  Heck, she even gave him a Jeff Gordon football jersey to wear for his costume.  It was funny, I was taking pictures and the neighbor boy came over for his candy.  RJ asked if I was ready, and I told him no, I was staying here taking photos.  The neighbor Dad told him to come on, he could go with them.  RJ said he now understood what it was like having a younger brother.  He then politely  but firmly said “DON’T WANT ONE!”

Now, I believe this is one of the best pictures I have taken of my mother.  She looks as if she is in her element (dressed for the part and all!)  But there is a reason, she has never asked me to take her picture before… 

And this is it….

Sorry Mama Jo, I couldn’t resist dragging out an oldie but goodie!

Home is where the heart is!

The other day, I had to make a run over to Baptist Hospital.  No, I wasn’t sick or in too much pain, I needed to visit the Protein Queen (aka: Recovering Fatty) , and pick up some supplies!  You see, I’m just like one of these guys you see standing on the corner with a sign that says…”Will work for food!”  Only I do computer/blog work for protein :) 

  I had also picked up RJ from school, so he went with me.  When we left, we found a parking garage near by, and thought it would be a great place to take pictures from.  So, we grabbed the camera from the trunk, set up the tripod, and started snapping photos.  The boy was like a kid at Christmas , running around hollering at what he found from his perch on high!  The highlight, he found his school.  He proudly proclaimed that his school was 15 miles away and he could still see it.  In truth, it was less that a mile from where we were!

I love color, there I said it.  I’m not a black and white type person.  This is a renovated Government Housing Project near RJ’s school.  Heck, these house’s look better than mine!    Just a simple parking garage at Baptist hospital.  It was the angles and lines that drew my eyes to it.

But in the midst of filth and grime, in the center of all that is wrong with the world, one light shines through.  God’s grace is always there to embrace us, to love us, and to shower us with beauty!  Right there, on that cloudy day, the heavens opened, and He proclaimed that He is still there and on His throne!

I love my city!

Have a wonderful day!

May your day be filled with…

Fall Colors 2009

I made a point to ge out of the house yesterday.  My main goal was to track down some beautiful fall colors.  It seems that it’s just about the right time of the year here in Tennessee to see those leaving just a changing!

 

So, here ya go!  I thoroughly recommend that if you have a hobby, or something you enjoy doing, go Nike on it. 

“Just do it!”

  

 

View Full Album

 

Just click on the above album to view all of them!

How to throw a rock in the lake!

That’s right folks, my son has regrettably agreed to demonstrate the technique needed to “throw a rock in the lake”.  You too can learn this skill just by following his patented throwing strategies.  If assistance is needed with perfecting your skills, RJ is available for a fee!

Winner, winner, chicken dinner……..

……well, not for me!

I did not win, nor was I an Honorable Mention in the photo contest I entered the other day. It was the one for “Breast Cancer Awareness Month” from I ♥ Faces.

You know, there is one part of me that says, “Geez Scott, did you really expect to win?” Not really, because there are some really good, no let me scratch that statement. There are some really great photog’s that entered. I mean some of the shots blew me away! But then some of them were really boring! Click here for the winning entries and honorable mentions.

I guess I’m a little biased with my shots. When I posted this shot, I really felt good about it. I could feel the emotion of the runners, but more importantly how the woman in the pink hat felt.

Then again, sometimes it’s nice to be shot down so to say. No, I did not expect to win, but I did expect at least an honorable mention.

What does this type of rejection do to a person? 1of 2 things is going to happen…

1) I’m going to sit on my butt and never enter another contest again. In fact, I’m never going to take another picture again!

or

2) I’m going to pick myself up, dust myself off, and start snapping pics right away!

Well guys and gals, the answer is #2. In fact, this afternoon, I plan on taking RJ to watch his old football team play. And you just know my camera is going to be in my hand.

Then later this afternoon, or tomorrow sometime, I plan on driving around and getting some fall foliage shots. The leaves are just about at their peak, or just beyond, and I’ve been waiting for this time of year!

So, be prepared for some new photos and reflections from me…

"PINK WEEK” Photo Challenge

~Racing for the cure~

This week's challenge over at I ♥ Faces is "Think Pink" in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. My next door neighbor is a Breast Cancer Survivor, so this has hit home really hard.

Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins (With Cream Cheese Frosting)

Recently, during my searches for anything to do with photography, I came across a truly remarkable blog…The Pioneer Woman. 

This woman does everything you can think of!  She is a homeschooling mom, who entertains and throws dinner parties you would not believe.  How do I know this?  Cause she post photos of the said events, hence photography! 

She post some of the most interesting and tantalizing recipes I have ever seen.  What does this mean to me?  That I must deconstruct the recipe and make it weight loss friendly if possible. 

I saw this one the other day and thought it would go perfect for a meeting I had at work.  I was right!  By the time I got to take a picture, there were only 2 left.

Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins (With Cream Cheese Frosting)

Muffins:

1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup Splenda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1 heaping cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional!)
2 tablespoons Splenda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease 24 mini muffin tins.

Sift flour, Splenda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Cut in butter with two knives or a pastry blender until all incorporated. In a separate bowl, mix together pumpkin, evaporated milk, egg, and vanilla. Pour pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture. Add raisins. Fold gently until mixture is just combined. Pour into greased muffin pan—batter hardly ever fills all twelve unless you keep it down to 1/2 full. Sprinkle generous amounts of cinnamon-sugar over the top of each unbaked muffin.

Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool. Ice with cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1/4 cup softened I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter
4 ounces fat free cream cheese
1/2 pound powdered sugar (I took Splenda and ran it through the blender to make my own!)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all ingredients on high until soft and whipped. Spread onto completely cooled muffins, or place into a large pastry bag with a large star tip and go crazy!

Store in fridge, as icing will soften at room temperature.

Photoshop weekend!

This weekend it has been really cold in Nashville.  I mean it’s the coldest day we’ve had since last winter.  Geez, the thermometer is reading 36 degrees this morning.  That’s just plain cold.  In fact, coffee is not really helping either!

Well, this weekend I’ve been playing with Photoshop again.  Man, this is one wicked program!  Since the weather has turned chilly, I decided it was a good time to design this years Christmas card.  Now, I’m not gonna show you that one yet, but I will share with you what else I have been working on.

storyboard sto'ry·board' v. A panel or series of panels of rough sketches outlining the scene sequence and major changes of action or plot in a production to be shot on film or video. 

I could not be prouder of my son and the progress he has made with his music!  In one short year, he is becoming a great cello player.  The way he can listen to a song and then play it on Betty (his cello), is amazing.  He has now started playing guitar as well. 

Dad, this one’s for you…he saw the guitar I had given you oh so many years ago and asked if he could play it.  Every Friday he packs up his guitar for lessons at school. 

I have truly been Blessed!

C Ya!