Pink Sky After Sunset!

I love it when the sky turns pink after the sun has set!  It was getting dark very quickly, so I had to hurry and get some shots, while there was still a little light.  If only I had noticed it sooner!  I took these from my back deck on May 27, 2010. 

The wind was blowing so a couple of the branches are a little blurry!

The dark clouds add a little drama!

I just love the pink sky in this one!

The clouds are covering Saddle Mountain in this one.

                                                      I really love the clouds!

Please hop on over to SKYWATCH FRIDAY to see more beautiful skies around the world!

Creepy Crawly Things!

I'm having so much fun with textures and overlays from Patti Brown's collections over at Kaleidoscope.  Check out her blog here!  I love how textures can add an artistic look to a creepy crawly image!

This poor caterpillar was blown off this leaf, by a huge gust of wind, right after I took this shot.  It was hangin' on for dear life, as I was snapping pics in between gusts, but our storms are pretty powerful, so it finally lost the battle and fell about 4 feet to the ground.  (Photo taken Sept. 2009)

This is a little risky of this fly don't you think?  Don't worry though.....the spider didn't get him!  This was the first pic I took with my 50mm 1.8 lens the day it came in the mail!  (Photo taken 9-3-09)

I wish I would have been fast enough to get a shot of this grasshopper, when he was upside down. He was a funny little thing to watch and boy was he fast!  (Photo taken 9-3-09)

Ewww.....I don't like spiders, but I don't mind photographing them!  (Photo taken June 2010)

This grasshopper blends right in with the colors in the background doesn't he? 

(Photo taken 9-3-09)

                                                               (Photo taken 9-3-09)

Learning To Use Actions in Photoshop!

I've always wanted to learn how to use actions in photoshop, so I was so excited, when I ran across Amanda's online workshops over at Everyday Elements.  I can't say enough about Amanda and how helpful she's been to me!  I've already learned so much from her and I must say.....her tutorials are awesome and I LOVE her actions!  I highly recommend her All About Actions class, if you want to learn how to install and use actions, in Photoshop.  Click on the links above to check out her blog and the other classes she offers!

(My daughter Kasey)  I ran Amanda's Deep Clean action and then I ran her Soften and Sharpen action, just to soften her hair a bit.  (This is my first attempt at editing with actions)

I ran Amanda's Deep Clean action + Soften and Sharpen + I also ran CoffeeShop's B&W Classic and Bittersweet Vintage on this pic.  Rita over at CoffeeShop has a lot of actions and tutorials also, so you might want to check out her blog too.  Oh and I also added a texture, used the soft light blending mode and turned the opacity way down, then erased it on her face and skin.

(Tori and Billy)  Amanda's Deep Clean + Soften and Sharpen + CoffeeShop's Perfect Portrait only to define her eyes a bit. Just so you know.....I didn't need to use all three actions.....I was just experimenting with them and I mostly only used the Deep Clean action. 

I also added the Golden Sun Glow overlay to give the background a little glow of color.  You can check out Patti's textures and overlays at Kaleidoscope.  I'll be talking about her textures in a future post.

I added Pioneer Woman's Sepia Tone action to this one and I love how it turned out! Check out the link to see her actions and tutorials. 

I'm having so much fun with actions and now I'm so excited about Photoshop!

Calling All Photographers Out There In Blog Land...

 If you've ever thought about teaching a beginner's photography class, but just haven't known where to begin, you need to check out the Photographer's Kickstart Program.  Jessica Grieves is the author and designer of the Kickstart Training Module, which will equip you with all of the materials you need.  This is a great opportunity to generate some revenue and also help out mom's in your community, who want to learn how to take beautiful pictures of their children!  For more information about it or if you'd like to enter the contest to win the Kickstart Training Module, go here.