Monthly Archives: March 2008

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Bluebonnets!!!!

March 31, 2008 – 6:56 am

The bluebonnets have arrived!!!! EARLY Sunday morning, Nhi, Chloe, Grandma Le and I drove to Brenham to take pictures amongst the Texas wildflowers. It was an overcast day with just peaks of sun but the flowers were in full bloom and it’s only the last weekend in March. Can you imagine what this field will look like in the next two weeks when wildflower season ‘peaks’??!!

I have something very special planned for new and current clients so watch the blog for an announcement!

Here are two images for Nhi to look at ’cause I KNOW she’s checking the blog for her sneak peek! :-P

By janellelynn | Posted in Families | Comments (3)

Stephanie and Jason’s Sneak Peek!

March 30, 2008 – 6:07 pm

 Yesterday we shot the wedding of Stephanie and Jason.  A full write-up with slideshow coming soon but here is a quick sneak peek to wet Stephanie’s appetite.  (I KNOW she’s checking! ;-) )

By janellelynn | Posted in Weddings | Comments (1)

Nikon D300 and Grid Spot

March 27, 2008 – 10:06 pm

What a great day! Today, I came home to two boxes waiting for me to tear into them. It was better than Christmas morning I tell ya!

Hubby and I are contemplating buying a new camera body to add to our arsenal and have been debating between the Nikon D300 and the Nikon D3. So, before buying anything BIG we usually rent the equipment and give it a test run. This weekend we’re shooting the wedding of Stephanie and Jason and rented the D300 (along with the Nikon 24-50mm f/2.8) to see what they could do. (I must give a shout out and big thumbs up to LensProToGo. Hands down, they are THE BEST camera rental service out there. GREAT customer service AND it’s easy to make reservations.)

I am thoroughly impressed by this camera. . .and lens! It locks focus super fast and I especially like the many focus points I can choose from. Oh! and the noise levels on this camera are 10 times - NO - a 100 times - NO - a 1000 times better than the D70 and D200. The above picture was taken with a D70 at ISO 1600. Even with the smaller file and resolution you can still see the noise on the dark areas of the image.

In addition to the camera and lens, today my new softbox and grid spots arrived!!! As you all know, I’ve been hard at work trying to utilize all of the knowledge I absorbed at the OneLight Workshop last week. See the setup:

The setup images above were taken with the D300 at ISO 3200! Check out the 100% crop:

Amazing, huh?! A perfectly usable file! The noise levels in the 100% crop look a whole lot better than the noise levels in the D70 image above. I CANNOT wait to shoot with this camera this weekend. I’m especially interested to see how it does in a dark reception hall.

Anyway, I fell in love with these grid spots at the workshop last week and had to have them. I love the way they direct a spot of light directly onto the subject. Problem is, if it’s not placed just right the light emitted from the flash winds up in some funny places. After spray painting my hardly used lightsphere black, shooting over 50 images of moving the light around and ALOT of cheese (you’ll understand when you see my model below) I LOVE what I was able to accomplish.

 

 

I’m loving the play between light and shadow in the images! The images are lit entirely by the flash and you’d never guess that all the ambient lights were on in the room. Cool, huh?

Now, I need a human model (other than my hubby) to try this technique out on. Any volunteers???

p.s. We have a reservation in to rent the D3 in June. :-)

By janellelynn | Posted in Personal | Comments (2)

Project OneLight

March 26, 2008 – 12:28 pm

So, as everyone knows I hosted the OneLight Workshop last week to take my portrait photography to the next level. Well, it was easy to take amazing shots with Zack setting up the lights but on my own - not so much.  Since last week, I’ve immersed myself in understanding the concepts Zack taught and I’m ready to put my new skills to use! (other than having Hubby and the pups sit in one place while I shoot frame after frame. :-P )

I have a super modern and urban location picked out - all I need is a ‘client(s).’  In particular, I’m looking for a cute girl (or couple) with great style and generally comfortable in front of the camera.  By comfortable, I mean the client(s) should be able to take direction and be up for anything.  This would be perfect for a high school senior!  For their time, they’ll get a CD with the high-res proofs and I think I’ll throw in a sheet of wallets too!

Leave a comment if you’re interested or know of someone who would be perfect for this project!

 or e-mail me!

By janellelynn | Posted in Personal | Comments (2)

Springtime

March 25, 2008 – 6:43 pm

 

 

 

 

Springtime. . …Buds are starting to form, flowers are beginning to show their colors amongst all the green. . .

in our household, spring is also shearing season. Check it out:

 

Before:

and after a visit from Bubbles Grooming:
aren’t they adorable with their Dumbo ears??!!!

Have a great day!

By janellelynn | Posted in Personal | Comments (2)

OneLight Workshop

March 21, 2008 – 8:51 pm

Whew - What a busy week!!!! The past few days I had the absolute pleasure of hosting Zack Arias’s OneLight Workshop here in Houston. Photographers from Texas, Canada and Florida came out to take their photography to the next level and learn from Zack’s philosophy of using one light. Not the sun, but one flash. It’s been a busy two days (went all the way past midnight last night) and was well worth it.  A HUGE thanks to my Hubby for being our part-time chauffeur, babysitter, mover, food person, drink fetcher - all-around helper.  I could have never pulled this off without him! I’m so excited to explore this new facet of my photography and am excited to share it with you guys! A few images:






By janellelynn | Posted in Personal | Comments (2)

sometimes life gives you a swift kick in the pants. . .

March 11, 2008 – 8:34 am

Our Beloved Josie

November 2001 - March 9, 2008

 

Fierce. Independent. Stubborn. Loyal. Protective. Brave. Mischievous. Cunning. Sneaky. Smart. Sweet. Loving. Caring. Snuggable.

Beautiful.

+ + + + + +

Rainbow Bridge

Author Unknown

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together…

+ + + + + +

And in the words of Forest Gump, “That’s all we have to say about that.”

By janellelynn | Posted in Personal | Comments (2)

Election Results

March 6, 2008 – 8:56 am

Hey Guys,

The Texas Democratic primaries/caucuses concluded in the wee hours of Wednesday morning (2am) and will likely take a week to tabulate the final results! Jan and I got there at 7:00pm and did not leave until 11:30!! It was a total nightmare! Late primary voters were allowed in the building until 7:15, and in total >200 people had to vote on 8 machines. What a joke!

In addition, the election judges there were TOTALLY unorganized, and frankly didn’t really know what they were doing. This is not to mention that we were standing out in the freezing cold for ~2.5 hours. For the most part, people took it in good humor, but there were  some that started yelling, making phone calls to campaigns, and some that simply had to leave and go home. This latter situation, I consider entirely unfortunate, b/c it could have been prevented. Someone screwed up.

 At any rate, as everyone knows, Clinton edged out Obama 51%-48% in the primary; however Obama has a pretty good lead in the current caucus totals. Overall, the night went as expected, yet the Clinton camp is optimistic it can overcome its current deficit, and take over the nomination. However, I consider this pretty unlikely. On a side note, an advocacy group (which is to remain nameless) may sue pending the outcome of the caucus results. I’ll bet my dog Buddy that if Obama gets the caucus lead, they will move ahead with this baseless and frivolous lawsuit only to throw yet more tax dollars away. So in summary, we are both feeling pretty good bout how things stand right now, but both agree that the caucuses have to go. It makes no sense why we have to vote twice, it was run poorly across the state, and it serves no purpose. Ok that’s all for now. Have great day folks!

see http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/primaries/results/state/#TX for a breakdown of election results

-Hubby

By hubby | Posted in Personal | Comments (1)

Houston Barack Obama Rally

March 4, 2008 – 3:17 pm

Hey Guys!

Janelle and I attended the Michelle and Barack Obama Rally last night at the GRB Convention Center, and came home totally psyched! After waiting in the cold for a couple of hours and waiting inside for another 2 hours, they finally came out. It was so nice to see people from all walks of life there united in a cause for change. Both Janelle and I believe this country is in dire need of a new direction and public officials that actually represent “the people” and feel that Barack Obama is the best person for the job. His speech was inspiring, full of truth, and conveyed the message that we all need to get out there, participate, and work together to rebuild the USA to what it once was and inspires to be. Anyway, we hope everyone goes out there, and does their part. Who else is going to do it!?!

-Hubby



Barack Obama rally from janelle lynn photography on Vimeo.

By hubby | Posted in Personal | Comments (1)

Election Day!!!!

March 4, 2008 – 10:29 am

Today’s the day fellow Texans!!!!!  Get out there and make your voice be heard!!!!  Don’t forget voting today is a TWO step process - vote first THEN return to your polling place tonight for the caucus.  2/3 of Texas’ delegates are awarded to the winner of the Primary and the remaining 1/3 delegates are awarded during the caucus.

We attended the Obama Rally last night and were inspired by his vision of change and hope.  More on this later as I’m editing the images and video.

Go out and vote!

By janellelynn | Posted in Personal | Comments (0)