Evie Kutler {6 Month Portraits}

It is so much fun documenting babies as they grow, especially when they are friends of the family.  We have had the great opportunity of following little Evie since she was in the womb, then newborn, then 3 months and now she's getting big at 6 months old!  This was one of the easiest 6 months sessions we have ever photographed and Evie was all smiles and sunshine for the entire shoot.  The afternoon was definitely a scorcher, but that just made it more comfortable for the beautiful baby skin portraits.

Audreana Gallegos {2012 Senior}

Audrey Gallegos, without a doubt, has one of the most contagious smiles ever!  On Monday this week we had a great time traversing the Ann Arbor countryside and city limits with her for her senior portraits, hitting 5 different locations within 3 hours.  Whew - but her smile never faded!  She has such a fantastic serious look too though, so we had to coax a few no-smile poses from her, just to vary the look.  :)

Audrey is the first 2012 ignited Photography Senior Model we have photographed yet this year and we spent extra time getting just the right look for her.  Enjoy these teaser images from our session together and stay tuned for our other iP Senior Model's (Elizabeth Hunt and Erik Porchik) teasers to be posted soon!

~ Kevin & Heather

Frugal Friday - Sunglasses

I was on the road early the other day heading east on the freeway when I noticed something surprising and interesting...if I had to guess, I'd say that only about 25% of the drivers had sunglasses on.  Of the other 75%, about half had their sun visor either up and the other half down, but both were squinting to see where they were headed because of the bright sun light.  The thing I found most interesting...actually funny...was the fact that there were even a few people steering with one hand and holding the other hand up, arm fully extended, to block the sun from their eyes.  Why?  Sun glasses can be so cheap anymore and come in so many different styles.  Fun, funky, stylish and practical - why not invest in a pair?

Photographer or not, we are all pretty much left in the dark without our eyes, so we have to make sure we protect them as best as we can.  Be smart (frugal!) now and hopefully you will be blessed to miss the joy of cataracts later in life.

Of course any type of sunglasses will do the job.  There are fun ones... 

 Diva (or Divo) ones...

70's ones...

Heck, they can even be broken sunglasses (just ask Heather about her pair).

Just remember to protect them, God only gave you one pair.  Be frugal with your eyesight and take care of those eyes!

~ Kevin

Behind the Scenes with Sam Cullen

Welcome to a quick behind-the-scenes tour of our portrait session with Sam Cullen.

Sam hired us a week ago to photograph her senior year dance individual portraits.  Here we will give you a little taste of what it's like to spend an evening with Kevin and Heather Autry.  Enjoy!

How we got the shot:

We set up our strobe at about a 45 degree angle to camera right.  Typically we use our 24x36' softbox attached to our strobe, but the wind was too gusty this evening.  Even without it we were able to acheive the look we were aiming for.  After we decided what sort of 'look' we wanted with this image, we used our lightmeter to get our camera and strobe setttings just right the first time.  We ended up with f11 and a shutter speed of 1/100 at ISO 100 and strobe at aproximately 1/3 power.

Gear used:

Camera - Canon 5D MKII

Lens - Canon 24-70mm f2.8

Light - White Lightning x3200

Lightmeter - Sekonic L-358

Editing:

Cropped

Slight contrast boost

How we got the shot:

With this next shot we wanted a bit more of a dramatic look, so we changed our settings to f14, shutter 1/100, ISO 100 with strobe power just over 1/3 power.  Our strobe was set at about 45 degree angle to Sam again and we had her jump away from us as we shot.  We metered to strategically capture the gorgeous setting sun.  To heighten the perspective, I took this image while laying in the grass.

It's always fun sharing the shot to show the beauty of the imagery right in the camera.

Gear used:

Camera - Canon 5D MKII

Lens - Canon 16-35mm f2.8

Lighting - White Lightning x3200

Lightmeter - Sekonic L-358

Editing:

Slight vibrance boost

How we got the shot:

Getting down and dirty is all part of the job.  At this location however, it was awkward dodging all of the goose "gifts" - hazards of the job.  (lol)  With this shot it was getting later so our aperture could be quite a bit more open: f3.5, shutter 1/160, ISO 400 and strobe power at about 1/16th.

Gear used:

Camera - Canon 5D MKII

Lens - Canon 16-35mm f2.8

Lighting - White Lightning x3200

Lightmeter - Sekonic L-358

Editing:

Levels adjusted

Cropped

How we got the shot:

Sam's good friend and fellow dancer, Alissa Maedel, was on hand for inspiration and for her technical eye.  We were glad she was there because although I LOVE dance, I am not a trained dancer and couldn't instruct Sam on her form.  Photography we can do.  Dance, not so much.   

Our gear, editing and set-up for this shot were all the same as above. 

~Heather

Frugal Friday - In a Jam

Nothing says summer to me like fresh, sun-warmed strawberries, straight from the garden.  Mmm mmm mmm!

A few weeks ago was peak strawberry time here in Michigan so the kiddos and I went strawberry picking at a great little U-Pick Farm we love in Belleville, MI (the heart of strawberry country around here).  Even better - my mom and my sister's family met us there!

The kids had a field day and were stained pink from head to toe with super ripe and juicy fruit - you could tell they were in strawberry heaven!  We picked a few quarts of berries and easily ate half of them within the next day or two.  We could have easily eaten them all, but I strategically saved a bunch of the berries to make homemade Strawberry Freezer Jam.  Making this jam has become a yearly tradition, and not only is it super sweet and super delicious, it is also a super frugal way to use up fresh strawberries.  The recipe only requires 4 simple ingredients, and easily could supply you with a year's worth of jam (if you have the proper storage).

If you have the opportunity to go strawberry picking, I highly recommend it.  Supermarket strawberries may be large and pretty to look at, but they don't even begin to compare with the taste of garden-fresh.  Plus, if you have children, a spouse, a significant other, or even a stranger from who-knows-where, picking your own fruit can provide great memories and great, healthy playtime outdoors.  Have fun, be free, and be sure to frolic through the strawberry fields!

STRAWBERRY FREEZER JAM:

• 2 cups crushed fresh strawberries
• 4 cups sugar
• 1 (1.75 ounce) package dry pectin
• 1/2 cup water

Mix crushed strawberries with sugar, and let stand for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, stir the pectin into the water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and boil for 1 minute. Stir the boiling water into the strawberries. Allow to stand for 3 minutes before pouring into jars or other storage containers.

Place tops on the containers, and leave for 24 hours. Place into freezer, and store frozen until ready to use.

Yields: 4, 12-ounce jars

Recipe can be easily doubled.  For a thicker set, use slightly under-ripe strawberries.

Around here, each jar of homemade Strawberry Freezer Jam ends up costing about $1 for a 12-ounce jar (not including the cost of the container).    Fun and frug-la-la!

ENJOY!

~ Heather