Happy New Year 2012
Happy New Year! For new years eve we went to the local beach to watch the fireworks, have a little picnic and watch the kids run around with their glow sticks and sparklers. It's always a lot of fun and I'm always up for a bit of sparkler photography!!
These shots were fun to make, especially as their glow sticks also created some colourful effects too!
I didn't use a tripod for these shots. These were all just hand held (or sitting down with the camera on my knees for support). Generally the exposures are around 1 second, using a fairly wide aperture (f2) and a high ISO. Of course if you wanted to create less grainy images, you'd shoot with a lower ISO (between 100 - 400) and use a longer shutter speed which would create a different effect again - the sparklers would be more continuous. That's why I love long exposure photography, there's so many options and ways to capture the light.
We all had so much fun creating different shapes... of course as the night went on, the crazier and more random they became!
Here's to a new year and wonderful times ahead!
- Rachel
Trick Or Treat!
(my kids enjoying a little Halloween fun!)
5 things...
Five things I'm grateful for today:
1. Flexible working conditions... being able to work on new things from home today rather than at Darkroom Door headquarters. I guess being the CEO has it's advantages ;)
2. Living so close to the beautiful 'Coast Track'. I walked for 1.5 hours this morning through the wildflowers and along the cliffs of the ocean. It's such a perfect way to start the day.
3. Being able to spend some time with a friend tonight... we're off to the movies to see The Help.
4. Sunny weather... our sheets are washed and on the line outside for drying. They're flapping away in the breeze. Great day to sit outside on the grass gazing up at the clouds!
5. Our new shoe cupboard. We've only had it a few days and already it's made such a difference! Gotta be happy with the little things, right?
Hope you're all having a great day. Thanks for stopping by my blog!
Rachel
Fairytale Shop in Amsterdam
Sprookjeskamer (Fairytale Shop) in Amsterdam. I found this store while wandering around the city taking pictures. It was snowing lightly and the streets were fairly quiet as many shops were still closed. The burst of red colour really captured my attention, plus the fact it all looked so fun with the red polka dots! I could have bought the whole store for my daughter! The inside was beautifully decorated, a real fairytale paradise with each corner full of trinkets, cute stationery, toys, clothes and the like. A great find!
Scrapbook & Papercraft Expo - Brisbane
What a whirlwind week it has been around here! Last weekend I taught workshops at the Scrapbook & Papercraft Expo in Brisbane. It's always a great show, lots of people, lots of goodies at all the cool booths to drool over and buy, and certainly lots of people to catch up with and meet!
All tutors at this show are given an area to display their artwork. Here's my space:
(please excuse the poor photography!)
I brought a bunch of cards to display in my area, mainly because that was easy to pack in the suitcase and it's what I've been concentrating on lately. I also had some wooden words that I had published in Scrapbook Creations magazine a few months ago. These were covered in Viva Decor products (Croco and Precious Metal Colour). So much fun to play with!
Underneath the letters is an accordion book that I had decorated with the Darkroom Door Venetian Collection. Here's a closer look at the other cards:
I taught three workshops a day over the three days, so I didn't have a lot of time to shop or see all the booths during the show, nor did I have any time to take any photos during the workshops! But we all had a lot of fun with our hands all covered in ink by the end!
I was staying in a hotel across the bridge from the convention centre, so I enjoyed walking past the ferris wheel on Brisbane River each night. The colours were so vivid against the black sky.
I can never resist a long exposure of a ferris wheel...
Lens: 24mm
Left image: f4, 1/10th second
Right image: f22, 4 seconds
Thank you to all of those who attended my workshops! I hope you all had as much fun as I did :)
Photography: Autumn Days
One of my favourite times of the year! We're just a few days into winter now,
so these beautiful leaves are disappearing fast.
Lens: 105mm f7.1 1/250 sec
Photography: Siene River, Paris
Taken while exploring Paris at dusk.
Lens: 50mm, f22, 2.5 seconds
Early morning
Early morning on the farm.
Butterfly Face Painting
Of all the face painting my daughter has received over the years, this is by far one of my favourites! A pretty butterfly for a pretty girl!
