Shooting in the fog is similar to shooting in the snow. They both require a bit of over-exposure in the camera. Otherwise the images all come out muddy and dark. We spent the day in San Francisco at Crissy Field. The fog gives the City even more character than it already has.

In an effort to improve my photography skills and success as a photographer, I've been reading as much as I can about the subject. There is so much helpful information on the internet, but I'm finding my local library to be a wonderful resource too. I'm learning that being a successful photographer is only partly being an awesome photographer, the other part is running the business.I just started a book called Fast Track Photographer by Dane Sanders. In it he talks about selling yourself as the photographer as opposed to just trying to sell good pictures. My first thought was the name of my business which is "Covington Street". This is the street I grew up on, the place where I have so many rich, wonderful childhood memories. Since memories are what I capture with my camera, that's what I named my business. But most photographers go by their own name, so enough of my anonymous web presence. I'm going by my own name now.

If you're interested in reading this helpful book, you can get the ebook for free by using the code "smuglove". This was a special deal through SmugMug, my image hosting company.
This photo is of the temporary memorial set up across from the Lafayette BART station. They display crosses and the total number of soldiers killed since this war began. The hillside started with white crosses scattered across it, but it's now getting crowded, too crowded.

Might Oak

We are surrounded by the magnificent trees where I live. Beautiful Creation.

I'm working to turn my little office into a studio. This will require some lights and a backdrop. I've only just begun shopping for this and don't really know what to get yet. But there are so many cute babies that need their picture taken, I must get set up.

I've been playing around with Photoshop brushes and actions. There is so much out there, actions and brushes...so exciting and fun. Best of all, they are free. There are actions and brushes for purchase, and I will probably buy some one of these days. I need to find out if the ones I must pay for are worth the money.
Photoshop actions are a preset serious of steps that are recorded. They create different effects, such as turning a color photo to black and white, bumping up the contrast, softening the photo or changing the color to some surreal, awesomeness that makes you look like you're working on the set of 300 (the movie). I've gotten some great tips and tricks and free actions from this blog: http://coffeeteaphotography.blogspot.com/
There are also some really cool actions at totallyradactions.com- I haven't bought any yet, but I signed up to get a few freebies which are great.
As for brushes, they are bitmaped images that you stamp onto your project in Photoshop, using the brushes pallet. There seem to be an endless variety of these available. I just type in "free Photoshop brushes" in my new favorite search engine,

and an endless list of options for free brushes is available to download. Fantastic!
I've been renting many books about Photoshop and photography at our local library and it has proved to be a valuable source of useful information. Who knew! The library! Fantastic! You just don't know what you don't know.

I made this collage for my Grandma who recently passed away. She was a beautiful woman and I loved putting together the old photos of her past.

New babies!
Little Sean was a week old for this shot which matched the one I took of his big sister at this age.

Little Dominic does not like touching the grass, so we had to improvise. The puzzle piece ended up making a really cute addition to this photo. He was about to get his first haircut.

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Brenda & Jeremy were married at Valley Community Church and held their reception at Shannon Community Center. It was a fun wedding to shoot since I was friends with sister's of both the bride and groom. My favorite part was the ho-down Brenda and the bridesmaids danced at the reception.
Clicking on the photo above will enable you to see the rest of the photos from this wedding. I was the second shooter for this one so the pressure was off and I could enjoy the event as a guest too.
I rented the 70-200mm F/2.8 Canon lens for this so I could try it out. It was heavy. I loved being able to shoot inside the church from the balcony, zoom in and not need a flash. It worked well, but it was difficult to carry around all day. The first shooter stayed up front with (I think) a 24-105mm. Maybe I can experiment with that one next. I like being as unobtrusive as possible when photographing events. I get totally irritated when photographers run the wedding.

Brittany's Memorial

I was asked to photograph the funeral of my sister's sister-in-law who passed away suddenly at the age of 18 after a life-long battle with Mitochondrial Disease. It was a beautiful ceremony and Brittany Wilkinson touched a lot of lives in her time here on earth. She worked hard to raise awareness for Mitochondrial Disease. Click here to visit her website.
This was the first funeral I've photographed. It was very emotional being the one clicking the shutter as someone was laid to rest. They released doves at the graveside which was a touching and significant moment.

Brenda & Jeremy's Wedding at Valley Community Church, Pleasanton, CADuring the reception, the bridal party did a Hoe Down for everyone. It was a lot of fun. The reception was at the new Shannon Park Community Center in Dublin.
I have not yet finished editing this wedding, more to come soon.

Quarry Lakes in Fremont, CA- July 2009
This wedding was at Quarry Lakes in Fremont, CA. I love shooting outdoor weddings and prefer using natural light whenever possible.
Towards the end of the reception, the newly married couple stepped away for a few moments when the sun was getting low in the sky to shoot these.

This was the first wedding I've shot since 2006. I've been out having babies for awhile. I didn't realize it had been that long. It was a fun day. This was George's cousin's wedding. Jessica was a beautiful bride.
To see more of this wedding, click here.