Bring on the Eyes!

Now that my wonderful weekend with Nick has ended, I am sad, but also happy to have my time to myself back. It's always so hard when he comes home because we have to run around and make sure we see everyone (family, friends, etc.) in a matter of a few days, which definitely gets tiring. It's also hard because with him being away all of the time, I am very used to being able to do whatever I want. Whenever I want. This is not the case when he is home because we want to spend all of our alone time actually hanging out - different than a couple who sees each other all of the time.

So anyway, as much as I didn't want Nick to leave, I am excited to work on some things that I really need to get done. My cousin's wedding invitations for example. They are basically done and now that there are only a few minor changes to make in order for them to be printed, I'm putting it off until the last minute. More about these in a later post - when they are printed! And assembled ;)

As for today's post, I have an amazing picture of my niece that I have made even more amazing - if that was even possible because she is perfect to begin with!

The first photo below is the before, which I actually cannot take credit for capturing. It just so happened that the few minutes I actually let Nick use the camera on Sunday he was in the perfect position for this shot.

The second photo is the after shot with cropping and actions applied. I did a series of things to get the look I was going for. First, because Addy has gorgeous blue eyes, I wanted to make them stand out more than they already do so I applied the 'Bring on the Eyes!' action from PW. Next, I wanted the photo to be black and white so I applied the 'B&W Beauty' action. However, I didn't actually want the entire image to be black and white. I wanted her eyes to stand out and be blue. How do you do that you ask? Well, I made sure that I was on the black and white layer in my photoshop file and then clicked on my eraser, selected the corrected size circle and erased out the B&W area from Addy's eyes to reveal the blue. The result is what you see below! Also, just an FYI, if you apply the 'Bring on the Eyes!' action and then the 'B&W Beauty' action on TOP of that, you will still have brighter eyes, just in B&W form so it really is worth it to layer actions.

SOOTC


ACTIONS: 'Bring on the Eyes!' and 'B&W Beauty'

New Posts on the Way

Thanks for the feedback, Caili. :) I was actually thinking of posting a 'how-to' on these amazingly delicious STUFFED (working on getting that part right) s'mores cupcakes that I made over the weekend. When I get another chance to make them (possibly this weekend...), I will most definitely post a 'how-to' because EVERYONE needs to know how to make them.

Also, I will be doing more photography posts in the very near future, hopefully outlining how I utilize PW's action sets.

In the meantime, however, please ponder the logos below. I am FINALLY starting my own etsy shop (site not yet ready) to sell my photography, stationary, monograms and invitations. If you are checking this out, please take the time to provide feedback. It's MUCH appreciated!!!!

We Believe!

Photo: 'We Believe The Movie'

Ok, so this is a shameless attempt to get a song by my cousin's band into a movie. It called 'We Believe The Movie' and is about the Chicago Cubs. There are currently 30 songs in the running to be in the movie, but only one winner will make the cut. Please go this page on the 'We Believe The Movie' website and vote for them!

Their band name is Inchworm and the song in the running is 'Silent Observers'.

Keep your fingers crossed that they win!!!!!!!

P.S. My cousin is the drummer.... he's awesome!
P.P.S. Please vote early and often ;)
P.P.P.S. Click on the star farthest to the right to give them 5 Stars!!!!

Thanks!!!

Oh, and one more thing:
GO CUBS GO, GO CUBS GO! HEY CHICAGO, WHAT DO YOU SAY? THE CUBS ARE GOING TO WIN TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lusting for Le Creuset

With the weather warming up, I am once again finding the desire to be domestic. I wandered onto the Sur la Table website today looking for a cover for the fancy knife I got for Christmas. Much to my disappointment, I did not find the knife cover, but was welcomed by something beautiful on the main page.

I have been in love with Le Creuset ever since the first time I laid eyes on one of their pieces. The enameled finish, the steel, the stoneware. In all forms, it is beautiful. To cook with Le Creuset, is to cook with a high quality product that just makes you smile while using it. Or at least that's what I imagine it would be like because I don't yet own one.....*sigh*

However, after spotting this stockpot for a mere $39.95, I think it might be time for me and Le Creuset to unite in cooking harmony :)

Le Creuset Enameled Steel Stockpot - $39.95 at Sur la Table

photo: Sur La Table Website

Oh, and of course I also spotted another Le Creuset gem I've got my eye on. It's an adorable little spice jar that I'm thinking I could use for sea salt. Because it's so pretty, I can leave it out on the counter where it would be most useful, and not have to worry about trying to hide it.

Le Creuset Spice Jar - $17.95 at Sur la Table
photo: Sur La Table Website

Now, I just need to decide on a color. I'm debating between cobalt and caribbean blue. But I also really like the red.....

i am a posting MACHINE

Ok, so I CANNOT stop playing with these Photoshop actions. I had this picture, also taken at Houston Zoo, and decided to try applying some actions to it. After trying a few different things, I came up with the two options below, which are just the beginning of endless possibilities. I mentioned before how easy actions are, but something else really cool about the actions is that you can modify the layers once the action has been applied. Soooooo, even though these are Ree's actions, they are mine, too because I modified the layers to give them the effect I wanted.

I think either modified option below could look really cool in a black wooden frame with a cream photo mat. I also really like the SOOC shot, but I think it's harder to put full-color photos on the wall and make them look right. But that just might be me.....

Thoughts?!?!

ORIGINAL: Straight-out-of-Camera (but cropped)

ACTION: Soft & Faded
ACTION: Sepia

Looking a Little Jaundice?

So when I was happily applying actions to my photo from yesterday, I thought I had enhanced it by applying both the Fresh & Colorful and Warmer actions. However, the more I look at the final photo, the less I like it. I think it looks like I accidentally gave my poor little niece Jaundice. But I also don't know if I like the original photo either - it seems to be a bit on the reddish side. I think I'm going to rework the photo, maybe only trying the Fresh and Colorful action and see what I come up with...

I might even try some other actions as well, probably just one at a time for now though. I think I was getting a little ahead of myself with this layering business.

Anyway, stay tuned for what I come up with next. And even though I only have one follower (thanks, Kelly) and one other reader (thanks, Caili), if you have any tips, suggestions, etc. let me know. I would loooooooooooooooove some feedback because sometimes I am my own worst enemy and look at my work with a more critical/ judgmental eye than other people do. So tell me, what do you think??????

I looooooove me some Photoshop actions!

As much as I like to think I can "design" and am "creative", I always seem to struggle with one of the best design programs out there. Photoshop. It might be all of the different options and me never having taken a class or reading the manual, but I'm just not the biggest fan. I MUCH prefer working in Illustrator and InDesign. HOWEVER, as I mentioned in my last post, PW's Actions are the GREATEST! And even to someone who is not the most well-aquainted with Photoshop, the actions are E-A-S-Y, which is the best part. You can apply an action to a photo just by pressing the 'play' button. And Ree has even made it easy to remove an action if you don't like the effect by pressing the play button on another action that's sole purpose is to undo already applied actions. Genius. I've been spending a lot of my free time lately playing around with all of the different actions on all different kinds of photos. I've even LAYERED actions. Ohhh. Ahhh. I know. Crazy.

I've also been working on cropping my photos, trying to create the most eye-pleasing composition. I don't know if this is the best crop for this photo, but I really liked it and didn't know what else to do with it because of the white column in the way.....

ORIGINAL: Straight-out-of-Camera (SOOC)

ORIGINAL: Crop

CROP with ACTIONS: Sunshine, Fresh & Colorful, & Bring out those eyes! (at least I think those were the three actions I used....)

What do you think????? How would you have cropped the picture? Oh, and that's my niece. Isn't she just the CUTEST?!?!?!