having a little fun with ISO :: photography

I took a little me time this evening. Yep, I said it.  Not only did I say it but I actually did it.  Kissed the little munchkins and headed out for a while to do something I enjoy.  For all you mothers out there, you can relate to how difficult this is to do.  To step away from our day to day tasks of helping, nurturing, preparing, and in all ways caring for others to devote time to ourselves.  A 1 hour massage or manicure (oh that does sound lovely), a much needed hair cut, a little retail therapy, getting together with a girl friend or, in my case, some time to play around with my camera.

Something I have been wanting to mess around with more and more is bumping up my ISO when I am shooting.  You probably would recognize this most from film photography.  When making an everyday film purchase, you probably made your choice based on the ISO (200, 400, 800 and so on). This rating was directly related to the level of sensitivity the film had to light.  With digital photography, the idea is pretty much the same as with film.  You might bump up your ISO to affect your camera's sensitivity to light.  The lower light situations (indoors or at night) might call for a higher ISO so you can keep your shutter speed higher while still allowing enough light into your image.  The risk is that it will increase your noise causing photos to be grainier than with a lower ISO.  That said, I don't believe this is always bad and in fact tonight when I went out to play around that was what I was looking for.  I wanted to create some photos that had some grainy character.  It was a blast and I can't wait to get back out there and mess around some more.

Here are a few of my favorite shots from tonight. 

 

The Olympic Mountains.  So beautiful!

 

Poulsbo Waterfront Marina. I love these.  They just scream of having a story to tell.  All the many adventures that each of these boats has been on.  So invigorating.

 

and my favorite color shot . . . the blues were so beautiful.

 

 

I encourage all of you out there, especially you parents who rarely make time for yourselves, to do so this week.  Find 30-60 minutes where you can sneak away and devote some time to you, to something you would enjoy.  You might just love it so much you do it again the following week.  Who knows......







greenhouse in process :: kopperskogen

A few years now . . . OK, five years if we are really counting . . . since we built our first garden and I believe it is truly time to step it up a notch.  I am not sure my husband was super ecstatic about this but being that he is completely fabulous he didn't complain one bit when I exclaimed last fall that in February of 2013 we would be building a greenhouse.  And he knew when I said it that what I really meant was that in February, he would be building a greenhouse.  :) 

The adventure began in late fall as we began collecting all the necessary building supplies. Acquiring windows free through both Craig's list and a house remodel we knew about, a wall hung sink from a garage sale, tile for the floor and behind the sink from the Habitat store, beautiful pine tongue & groove for the walls from another house remodel we knew about, misc. building materials from a friend who owns a local contruction company, and so on.  Every time I would find something new or get a new idea for this most fabulous greenhouse, my husband would just smile. Adding the sink wasn't a big deal since he already knew we would have to have misters in there for the plants. However, when I suggested a hot/cold hose bib he quite quickly replied that there would not be any hot water out there. I tried the lip but it didn't work.  That is quite alright.  I am very happy with only cold water if that is what I have to work with.  I am going to have electrical, so I could always put a coffee pot out there to heat water should I need some warm water for something . . . .

We began discussing design ideas and after some sketching have come up with something that will look like this:

The slanted roof will be in the direction of the sun so that the plants can get maximum sun exposure throughout the day, especially in the winter.  Originally we had discussed a 11'x13' structure but once staked out I (rather we) have decided that a 15'x17' is much more what I was imagining.

The area is all staked out and this weekend we will be purchasing and planting the posts and hopefully (depending on weather) pouring the concrete floor....Stay tuned.  As we progress I will definitely be keeping you filled in.

foulweather bluff nature preserve :: family

Explored a new area this afternoon with the girls and hubby.  Foulweather Bluff Nature Preserve out in Hansville.  We followed a beautiful trail through the woods that led us out to this fabulous beach where we explored, laughed, walked hand in hand and enjoyed some perfectly wonderful family time together before heading home to a glorious bowl of Picky Palate's Slow Cooker Beef & Barley soup.

 

 

What walk through the woods isn't complete with a jump of a rock by everyone. :)

 

Loved watching them explore the beach and haul around the driftwood they discovered.  Reminded me of the many trips to the beach I took with my family as a little girl.  All about making memories.