Photographing Family

Ryan’s very generous friend, Mark, loaned us his incredibly awesome camera, a Canon 7D, for a couple of months, and we returned it recently.  Sniff, sniff.  But we finally took the leap and purchased our own DSLR, a Canon EOS Rebel T3i.  Since both my sister and Mark own Canons, it makes sense for us to own one as well, in case we want to share lenses at some point.  Along with our Canon body, we also purchased an EF 50 mm lens, a small GorillaPod tripod, and a a remote control.

Though I am the one who initially mentioned upgrading to a DSLR for blogging purposes, Ryan jumped on the bandwagon soon after and, in true engineering form, now knows much more about photography than I do.  I have taken a one-hour Alt photography course and a two-hour “course” from Mark, and I am still very much an amateur.  The technical side of photography is extremely difficult for me, and I feel like I’m learning to drive all over again.  If you know me, then you know what an adventure that was!  But I’m not giving up, and I’m having a wonderful time taking lots of practice pictures.

Here are a few of a recent weekend, taken by both Ryan and me.

Ryan captured this rare moment, of a very calm Rhys.

Another photograph by Ryan, depicting James at his best.

Ryan’s shot of beautiful cherry tomatoes, ready to become a sauce.

My sister and her new baby boy.  I love when newborns stretch like kittens.

My sweet nephew, the proud older brother, enjoying some yummy cake.  I promise I didn’t touch up his eyes at all!

Tiny baby feet.  Is there anything more precious?

These photographs were so much fun to take, and the hardest part is choosing which to show here, since I want to post them all!  Stay tuned for more pictures as I continue to play with my new toy.

**Side note: I decided to spread my blogging wings a little bit more, and finally joined Twitter!  Better late than never, right?  You can follow me over on the right, thanks to my lovely new social media icons, courtesy of Carrie Loves.  And I’m also getting my feet wet with LookSoup, a new online community for people who love fashion.  I hope you’ll check it out!