Category Archives: I *Heart* Faces
I ♥ Faces – Yellow
I was so excited to see this weeks theme for I Heart Faces pop up on Facebook tonight! I knew the perfect picture. Last month I was running typical Mommy errands and found a beautiful field of yellow wild flowers. That weekend, after nap time, I snatched up my daughter and headed to the field. She was less-than-thrilled, but I snapped anyways. Turns out, it was a good thing that I did as just 3 days later the city mowed the fields down. I literally had tears in my eyes. I was angry that they could do that. You see, this dress that my daughter has on will never fit again. It’s not just any yellow dress. It belonged to her GiGi (my Mom) and it was made my my Mom’s Aunt Sarah, my namesake. So, the dress is roughly 57 years old. (My mother keeps EVERYTHING!) The doll that is hidden is also special. It is made from a pillow case that my Dad’s grandmother hand tatted – so it’s easily 80 – 90 years old. I was just sick that this is the only shot I got. At the same time, I love it. It is truly priceless to me. I really need to get on the ball and have it printed and hung, just need to figure out where! So, here’s my entry for week #21!
Be sure to check out other great photos by clicking on the camera below!!
I Heart Faces – Fix-it Friday #48
It’s been a while since I was able to participate in an IHF Challenge! This little girl was adorable and I just couldn’t resist putting down the books and playing in Light Room! You see, I’m a new lightroom convert. I’ve been using it about 3 weeks now and I’m slowing catching on. Sure, I have my moments where I kick and scream and threaten to beat my computer, but honestly??? It’s soo much easier! (Thanks for teaching me Andrea Joki!) The only thing I used photoshop for was to dodge the eyes and resize for web!
Here’s the image I started with….
And here’s what I got after about 6 minutes of editing….
And what I did…
In Lightroom…
1. Adjusted white balance using her sclera for a neutral starting point.
2. Adjusted exposure to +87, it just needed to be bright!
3. Cropped to 5×7
4. Exported to CS4
In Photoshop…
5. Used small brush at 10% to dodge eyes
6. Resized for web
7. USM
I Heart Faces – Textures!
I’m excited to be able to participate in the I Heart Faces challenge this week. I’ve only starting playing with textures and I can already tell that I have a new-found love!! This sweet baby boy belongs to my bestfriend and as I was proofing her gallery, it just spoke to me. It screamed out for special texture. Honestly, it’s the first time I’ve done something like this on a client’s image – and I think I’m hooked! I hope you all enjoy!
-Sarah-
There are some amazing entries. Click on this to check some of them out for yourself!!
I ♥ Faces week 48 – Sweet Dreams
It’s been a while since I was able to participate in the weekly challenges at I ♥ Faces. School has kept me very busy. But, when I saw this week’s theme my heart skipped a beat! I took this picture of my daughter a few weeks ago while visiting my Nannie (her great-grandmother) She had fallen asleep on the living room floor – so peaceful. I adore having a daughter and even her big brother is quick to tell you that she’s a Princess. I think the truth is that I love it when she’s sleeping because it’s quiet 
I have received a few emails asking about my settings: d300 sb800 (1/4 power bounced 45 degree angle behind me)
ISO 1600 90mm f5 0.1 sec. (I was resting the camera/lens on the floor)
Fix-It Friday #16
Alright, so I’m a day late on this, but I love playing so better-late-than-never here!!!
1. Ran a Defog – USM @ 20, 60, 0
2. S curve using curves layer
3. Skin Casts Blast by MCP. Used bye bye shrek & blueberry. Both at 100%
4. Dodge around eyes @ 50%. USM
5. Warm up by Child’s Play
6. Cindy’s Periwinkle Haze
7. Burned midtones @ 80%
8. Crop
See more great “fixes” by clicking here!
I Heart Faces – Week 21
I was so excited to see this weeks theme! It couldn’t have come at a better time as my little girl turns one on Thursday! I’ve been planning to do these pictures for a couple of weeks now! I had originally planned to show them when I did her Happy Birthday post, but here’s a sneak peak just for this week’s I Heart Faces entry! Keep an eye out on my blog for more to come!!
Want to see more? Click Here!
Special Thanks to Misty @ MG Studios! I used her lights, paper & cake! It’s awesome to have a friend who is so willing to help you learn! She’s awesome in the studio and a great friend! Thanks MG!
I heart Faces Fix-it Friday #15
This weeks fix was fun to play with, especially since the little girl was adorable!!! Here’s the original image….
The steps I took in cs3…..
1. exposure fixer-upper (Childs Play) at 74%
2. skin cast blasts (MCP Actions) blueberry @ 41%, shrek @ 37%, mellow yellow @ 100%
3. Phaunt’s eye pop & sharpen @ 60%
4. MCP powder your nose to mask some of the noise in the shadows of her face
5. Slight burn around the edges
6. Resize/Sharpen for web
This picture was too adorable not to play around with some more. For my black and white, I used the medium black and white from Simple by Sarah Actions. For the third image, I used a freebie action I picked up somewhere – Cindy’s Periwinkle. When I use that one, I do a slight burn around the entire picture to bring back the shadows and give the face depth.
I Heart Faces – Week 20!
I was soo excited when I saw the theme for Week 20! I immediately had the perfect image ready to go! I took this of my little brother last year just before he graduated from High School. Our house faced the East and we were able to witness the most beautiful sunrises! I truly miss living in the panhandle! We were up bright and early to capture this shot, but it was worth the missed zzzz’s! Except for a slight crop and resize, this image is SOOC and one of my favorite pictures I’ve ever taken!
Want to see more great silhouettes? Click this button!
Fix it Friday #12 {Friendswood, Tx Photographer}
This one was a little more difficult for me – I would have preferred to have stared with the RAW file as under-exposed images are easier to correct in ACR. But I have what I have, so this is what I did! (I used some random actions I’ve acquired over the years, so I’m not exactly sure of some creators)
1. Crop and stretch canvas using tutorial by MCP Actions
2. Lighten Darks Atn – Presto
3. Sunshine in your hands atn by Phaunt
4. Exposure Fixerupper by Childsplay
5. Eye pop & sharpen by Phaunt
6. Subtle color atn x2 by Indie Actions
7. Fixed hots spot on the cheek by using the patch tool
8. Magic Skin by MCP Actions @ 64%
9. JPG deblocking by alienware – 100%
10. Slight burn around edges
11. resize & sharpen for web
Want to see some more great fixes? Click the button below!
I Heart Faces – Week 16 {Friendswood, Tx Photographer}
I typically hate self-portraits – see that triple chin? That is the BIGGEST reason! I was taking pictures tonight of our new “home” for the next several weeks and was letting Madeline depress the shutter. I chimped and realized that this would actually fit into this weeks theme. I didn’t participate last week – was feeling too sulky! So, here’s my self-portrait/reflection – that’s my ugly mug you see in the front of my 17-55mm – trust me, the lens is looking better today than me! If I had known this shot was happening, I would have at least put on some makeup
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