Friday Freebies--More Storyboards and Phototemplates

by Kristina

This week I stumbled upon an article from SheKnows  on the Best Photo Inspiration by and for Moms.  If you have not seen this article, you should definitely go check it out.  I am already a huge fan of Shutter Sisters &  Clickin Moms but the blog,  Project Alicia was one that I was not familiar with.   Anyway, I went and visited her site and have to say, I am now a new fan!

Her blog is beautifully designed and is full of inspiration and ideas for photographers and scrapbookers.  She provides tutorials, challenges, link-ups and freebies.   So much great stuff!

Speaking of freebies, I found this terrific photo layout on her site and there are many others.....just click here to see all of Alicia's wonderful layouts.

When I saw this layout below from her December collection,  I knew it would be perfect for my recent photo walk (minus the original title).

I was inspired to go out on a neighborhood photowalk after reading my friend Lissa from Laf Custom Designs blog.  The idea is to go and explore your neighborhood with your camera and share a little piece of where you live and the beauty it offers.

With this in mind, I headed out with my local friend who recently purchased a new SLR camera.  She is learning the features of her new baby and wanted a few "in the field" tips.  Since I love talking about anything that has to do with photos, I was happy go on a walk with her near the rail road tracks and talk ISO, Aperture and Shutter Speed.

I love this little area of our neighborhood because it combines the ruggedness of the metal and rocks along the tracks with the beauty of flowers and greenery including palm trees and pine trees (yep, we live in California).

Be sure to check out Laf Custom Designs too and join her neighborhood link up!  Fun!

Every Photographer Needs Fingerless Gloves--My New Knitting Obsession

After seeing a pair of fingerless gloves made by one of my new photography friends (thank you Lisa), I have been on a knitting kick.   Finally the basket of untouched yarn that has been sitting in my closet for over four years (I went through a felting phase) is taking on new life as fingerless gloves.

Frankly, I never really thought of myself as a fingerless gloves kind of gal.  I questioned whether or not I was hip enough to wear them.  But then I realized (through my chic and savvy photography pals), that not only are these gloves stylish, they are perfect for snapping pictures on cold days.  Seriously, what better way to keep your hands warm and your thumb and fingers free for adjusting the settings on your camera.   Fun and functional!  And really.... no matter what your age or style--you CAN pull off the look.

As far as knitting goes, the great thing about this project is that you do not have to be a serious knitter to make them.  If you can make a scarf, you can TOTALLY make a pair of these fun hand-warmers (yes, I did say "totally"---I'm a product of the 80's and these have a Madonna mixed with the homespun goodness of your Granny flair)!

I find that the key is chunky yarn and big knitting needles.  With those two elements, you can whip up a pair in an evening. Here is a great Youtube video from Howcast that will get you knitting and purling up a pair in no time.

How To Knit Fingerless Gloves on Howcast

Or if you want to skip knitting but are still willing to get your craft on, you could always try making a pair the "Upcycled" way.  Basically you take an old wool sweater, felt it (by washing it in hot water in your washing machine) and cut off the sleeves.   Here is a link to a great tutorial on The Cottage Home that will get you rooting through your closet looking for old sweaters.

Hmmm......maybe we will do a giveaway on the blog in the upcoming weeks.  I've got another pair in the works.....think purple with a big flower button.

JOIN US FOR A VIRTUAL PHOTO WALK!

This past Monday we announced our partnership with CSAUG, the team of Steve Dolan and Sally Cox.  We are excited to present our first Virtual Photo Walk with them.

What is a Virtual Photowalk?

It’s a social photography event where photographers get together to walk around, shoot photos, and generally have fun with other photographers, or even solo. Since our readers are from all different parts of the world, we want to invite you to participate and share your photogaphy stories and techniques.

Our First Theme

Our first theme for inaugural Virtual Photo Walk is:  OUR TOWN.  The goal with this theme is to take up to 3 photos of your town from whatever perspective, angle, nuance or emotion you want to convey.  Once you have picked your 1-3 photos, here's what's next:

1. Between now and Friday April 15, Upload them to our free Flickr Pro account by linking here. 
2. The first time you link to this site, you will need to read our rules of engagement and "join" the Virtual Photo Walk group we created.
3. Upload your photos in a batch, if possible.
4. If you're not familiar with Flickr, here's a good tutorial to get started.
5. You will be able to add a description about your photo.  We would love it if you could capture the following details about your photo(s):
6. Did you use any post processing techniques?
7. Did you do anything unique to capture your shot?
8. Tell us what you like about the photo, - such as, "it made me laugh," "I like the composition" and whatever else you like about the photo.
9. We encourage everyone to view each other's photos and give friendly, constructive feedback.  Something that tells more of the story about the photo.

And let us know what you think.  Keep the dialogue going and give us suggestions on future themes.  We can't wait to see what shots you've got!

MOMS WHO CLICK teams with CREATIVE SUITE ADOBE USER GROUP

Moms Who Click is extremely excited to announce we are partnering with the amazing team of Steve Dolan and Sally Cox (<- click the link to read about their background).  They manage the Creative Suite Adobe User Group of San Jose, consisting of well over 1000 members.  
 

Steve and Sally created Creative Suite User Group of San Jose to provide professionals in San Jose and surrounding areas a venue for networking and learning about the latest in Adobe Software. Their monthly meetings  feature a prominent guest speaker who will focus on tips/tricks, integration between Adobe apps, and streamlining your workflow for more efficient business practices.  While they do meet in person, they often run virtual online classes we hope you will be able to take advantage of.  Check out this link to their site that has a number of tutorials.  Check out their calendar to see when they will have webinars about Adobe products.

This coming Wednesday be on the look out when Moms Who Click and Creative Suites Adobe User Group introduces our first Virtual Photowalk.  Our Virtual Photowalks are a photographic journey designed to inspire creativity and develop skills. Many photographers participate in something simlilar like the 365 Challenge we are in the midst of.  But we wanted  to carry on a greater sense of community and creative inspiration and hope our Virtual Photowalks will provide that. 
What is a Virtual Photowalk?

It’s a social photography event where photographers get together to walk around, shoot photos, and generally have fun with other photographers, or even solo. Since our readers are from all different parts of the world, we want to invite you to participate and share your photogaphy stories and techniques.

Uploading your pictures (we will provide a Flickr site to upload your photos)

Details about the camera settings and constructive feedback keep us motivated and help us grow. When you upload to Flickr it will capture details about your camera that we will enable us to understand more about each photo such as:

• Details on camera settings, what ISO, what f-stop, was it manual, aperture priority or progam mode

In addition to that:

• We will ask you to share your processing tips - did you use a Lightroom Preset (and which one) or is it straight out of the camera? Or is it HDR?  
• Let us know if you did anything unique to your shot. You are given 100% creative freedom.
• If you're new to photography and don’t feel qualified to offer constructive feedback, step out of your comfort zone. You may not yet be up on the technical stuff, but you can give a bit of detail on what you like about the photo – ‘it made me smile’, ‘I like the composition’ etc.  Or ask a question, like what time of day did you take the shot, did you use a filter, etc.  
• Get the conversation going with something more in depth – we’ll all take something away from the discussion.

We will announce the theme of our first Virtual Photo Walk this coming Wednesday.  We're very excited, stay tuned!