Visions By Vicky - The Year In Pictures

Digitally Painted Flowers

2011-03-06T20:12:00.001-08:00

Day 65: Digitally Painted Flowers, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I took a photo walk in the backyard today looking for things to photograph. These flowers were hanging over our fence from the neighbor's yard and I took a couple of shots and this was the one I liked best.

In addition, to some tweaks in exposure and contrast, I also applied some digital painting effects (underpainting and watercolor) and added a canvas texture to the photo. I then added a Gallery Frame using Marcia's Frame Action which I've had installed in Photoshop for awhile so I'm not sure where I got it originally.

Date Taken: March 6, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Who says rehearsals can't be fun?!

2011-03-05T18:29:00.001-08:00

Day 64: Who says rehearsals can't be fun?!, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

This time of year Saturdays mean dance rehearsals for my youngest daughter. Today the dancers spent some time practicing a potential move during their rehearsal of the Mazurka. There was a lot of giggling and some clapping and cheering when they mostly succeeded!

Date Taken: March 5, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/2.0
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Another Friday night at Pickwick's Pub

2011-03-04T23:59:00.000-08:00

Day 63: Another Friday night at Pickwick's Pub, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Friday night, my husband and I had a wonderful night listening to Bob Cowsill and visiting with friends at a local pub. But wait, who's that with Bob? She was one of the patrons last night who got up and sang a few songs and harmonized on some others.

Date Taken: March 4, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/40
Aperture: f/2.0
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Days 59-62

2011-03-04T00:14:00.000-08:00

Oops, I haven't updated this in few days so rather than doing separate posts, I'll add a few pictures to one post.

Sounds of Sirens:

The Daily Shoot assignment for the day was Make a photograph illustrating a sound that catches your ear today. As I was driving to pick up my daughter from a play rehearsal I couldn't help but notice the sound of the traffic and then even more noticeably the sound of two fire engines with sirens blaring and lights flashing as they went by. I pulled over (which is more than most of the cars bothered to do), grabbed my iPod Touch (since I had no camera in the car) and took the shot.

Date Taken: February 28, 2011
Camera: Apple iPod touch
Exposure: 1/432
Aperture: f/2.4
Focal Length: 3.9 mm
ISO Speed: 80
Flash: No flash

Remnants of Valentines' Day:

These balloons were part of my daughter's Valentines' gift and they're in the office of our home. Nemo, our cat, is very afraid of them. If you want Nemo out of the room, all you have to do is move the balloons even slightest bit and he's out of the room like a flash!

Date Taken: March 1, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/1.6
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

World Spelling Day:

Every year in the Computer Lab, my students take part in World Math Day. This year not only was there a math day but there was a World Spelling Day and again, I had students take part. This photo was taken as my 6th grade class competed in this world-wide event.

Date Taken: March 2, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 201
Software: Roboto Glitter Lens, Blanko Film, No Flash

My Shadow:

The Daily Shoot assignment for the day was Make a photograph that features a shadow as your subject today. I took a few shots with my iPod Touch at the end of the school day and this was the one I liked the best so it's my shot of the day. And, yes, unfortunately, that is my shadow.

Date Taken: March 2, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 201
Software: Lucifer VI Lens, Ina's 1969 Film, No Flash

Glowing Rose

2011-02-27T22:30:00.001-08:00

Day 58: Glowing Rose, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was Make a photograph of something that is glowing today. Use any meaning of the word you like. My photo features a rose that one of my daughter's gave to me as a Christmas present a few years ago. It has a light in it that causes the rose to light up in different colors.

Date Taken: February 27, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/1.8
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Coppélia Rehearsal

2011-02-26T21:23:00.001-08:00

Day 57: Coppélia Rehearsal, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Saturdays between now and June will mean rehearsals for my daughter for the California Dance Academy Spring Recital. This photo is six of the twelve dancers who will be performing Waltz of the Hours from the ballet, Coppélia. The number will be performed en pointe but today was practiced in regular ballet shoes.

Date Taken: February 26, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/2.5
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Doo, doo, doo, lookin' out my back blinds.

2011-02-25T20:29:00.001-08:00

Day 56: Doo, doo, doo, lookin' out my back blinds., originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was Make a photograph featuring strong horizontal lines today.

If I had brought my camera to school today, I would have taken a picture of the bench outside of my classroom since it's made of horizontal slats. Since I didn't have a camera with me, I took some pictures of the blinds in my bedroom instead.

Date Taken: February 25, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/125
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired

Finding My Zen

2011-02-24T20:33:00.001-08:00

Day 55: Finding My Zen, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was Illustrate your idea of peace and harmony--or maybe just peace and quiet--today with a photograph. This is my attempt at illustrating peace and harmony.

I can often find inner peace and calm through music and this song, Some Good Years, just puts me in a good place. The harmony part? Well, have you heard The Cowsills sing? Definitely harmony!

Date Taken: February 24, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/320
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Learning Coppélia Waltz of the Hours

2011-02-23T20:24:00.000-08:00

Day 54: Learning Coppélia Waltz of the Hours, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Rehearsals have started for the Spring show for the dance studio my younger daughter attends. This year the Intermediate and Advanced dancers will be doing excerpts from Coppélia. In addition to having rehearsals on the weekends, the beginning Pointe dancers are rehearsing their piece, Waltz of the Hours, during their Pointe class.

If you're interested in what the dance looks like, you can check it out in this video:

Date Taken: February 23, 2011
Camera : Hipstamatic 201
Flash: No Flash
Software: Roboto Glitter Lens, Ina's 1935 Film, No Flash

Waiting for 5pm

2011-02-22T22:14:00.001-08:00

Day 53: Waiting for 5pm, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was Make a photograph today that illustrates of the act of waiting. I almost took a picture of the download progress of a PowerPoint I used with my 7th grade class today since waiting for things to download or upload seems to be a way of life for me. But it was no download picture, instead, I took this shot as I waited for 5pm and the time to go pick up my youngest daughter from her rehearsal.

Date Taken: February 22, 2011
Camera : Hipstamatic 201
Flash: No Flash
Software: Roboto Glitter Lens, Ina's 1935 Film, No Flash

IncrediBooth Me

2011-02-21T12:57:00.001-08:00

Day 52: IncrediBooth Me, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was Who are you? Make a self portrait today and show the rest of us what you look like. Rather than pulling out my 40D, I picked up my iPod Touch and used the IncrediBooth App to snap a few shots.

Date Taken: February 21, 2011
Camera : IncrediBooth

2/3 of the Rhythm Section

2011-02-20T21:32:00.001-08:00

Day 51: 2/3 of the Rhythm Section, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Band nights with Bob Cowsill and Friends is always a good time. The band lineup can vary slighly from month to month and this month's band included: Bob Cowsill (guitar & vocals), John Cowsill (drums & vocals), Robby Scharf (bass & vocals) & Timmy Bryson (lead guitar & vocals). The really fun part about band nights is the potential for guest artists to show up and sit in and this month was no exception with: Nelson Bragg helping out on tambourine for most of the night, Rick Rosas sitting in on bass for a few numbers and Vicki Peterson, who happens to be married to John Cowsill, adding vocals to The Boxer.

This photo showcases Robby Scharf and one of the guest artists, Nelson Bragg, who together with John Cowsill were a wonderful rhythm section for the night! The photo is in black & white not only because I like black & white photos but because the lighting is really low at this pub and were very red at the time which doesn't make for the best photos.

Date Taken: February 20, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/40
Aperture: f/1.4
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

If It's Band Night, It Must Be Snakebite Time!

2011-02-20T21:22:00.001-08:00

Day 50: If It's Band Night, It Must Be Snakebite Time!, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Once a month, I go to a Bob Cowsill and Friends band night at a local Pub. My drink of choice is a Snakebite. This month it was accompanied with a grilled cheese & tomato sandwich & fries which was just right on a chilly, rainy evening.

Date Taken: February 19, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/40
Aperture: f/1.8
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Lemon Tree

2011-02-18T20:17:00.001-08:00

Day 49: Lemon Tree, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

With the Daily Shoot theme of Make a photograph that features the color yellow in some way or another. and a lemon tree in the back yard, I had my subject for the day's photo.

Date Taken: February 18, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure: 1/30
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Bob Cowsill & Friends (& Family) at Molly Malones

2011-02-17T23:43:00.001-08:00

Day 48: Bob Cowsill & Friends (& Family) at Molly Malones, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

This one is a slight cheat because I did not take this photo today. I took it last night but since I already had a photo for the day at that point, I decided to share this one today anyway.

I have loved The Cowsills since I was 11 or 12 years old. It still amazes me today that I actually know them and that I am the webmaster for their website. Bob Cowsill's son is currently in a band called The Cocanuts and they perform every Wednesday at Molly Malones in Los Angeles.

This week, The Cocanuts billed their show as having a special opening act, The Cowsills. While it wasn't actually The Cowsills, the band did have four members with the last name of Cowsill: Bob Cowsill (guitar & vocals), John Cowsill (drums & vocals), Brendon Cowsill (guitar & vocals) and Ryan Cowsill (keyboards) along with Timmy Bryson (lead guitar & vocals) and Derrick Anderson (bass & vocals).

It was a fun night with great music but man is it dark in there. I shot at 3200ISO wide open at f2.8 with shutter speeds of 1/40 & 1/50 and the shots were still underexposed! I should have put my 85mm1.8 or 50mm1.4 lens on for some shots.

Date Taken: February 16, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure: 1/50
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 38 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

A Valentines' Rose

2011-02-16T23:29:00.000-08:00

Day 47: A Valentines' Rose, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

My husband gave me a dozen roses for Valentines' Day and when I read the Daily Shoot assignment for the day, Make a high key photograph today dominated by bright tones. I decided to use one of the roses for this.

I took a piece of white foam core board outside and set the rose in front of it so it was far enough away to not cast a shadow and took some photos.

Date Taken: February 16, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure: 1/250
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 51 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

The Moon on a Cloudy Night

2011-02-15T22:14:00.001-08:00

Day 46: Moon on a Cloudy Night, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

As we drove home today after school and my daughter's play rehearsal, my daughter asked if I had taken my photo of the day yet. When hearing that I hadn't, she said I had to take a picture of the moon because it looked so cool with the clouds that were passing by and/or over it.

So, we got home and I took out my camera and took some shots of the moon. It's hard to get a picture of the moon and have the clouds actually show too. I'll need to play with this some more on another day using a lower ISO and a tripod.

Date Taken: February 15, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure: 1/40
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Graphing Sweethearts

2011-02-15T22:09:00.001-08:00

Day 45: Graphing Sweethearts, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

As I was preparing to teach, I looked at the Daily Shoot assignment for the day which was Make a photograph featuring strong vertical lines today.

Aha, I thought, I'm graphing conversation hearts with 2nd & 3rd grades today and their sorting paper has vertical lines - my picture for the day!

Date Taken: February 14, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure: 1/160
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 42 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

The Story of a Southern California Sky

2011-02-13T22:32:00.001-08:00

Day 44: Story of a Southern California Sky, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was: Look up today and make a photograph of the sky. Cloudy, clear, or somewhere in between? Tell the story of your sky today.

The sky above our neighborhood told many stories today from pure clear blue to wispy clouds to heavier and darker clouds to an early rising moon and more in between. I took quite a few photos but picked this one because of the interesting cloud cover at the time.

Date Taken: February 13, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/16.0
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

And here are the other stories of the sky that I captured today:

My Favorite Pair of Shoes

2011-02-12T11:56:00.001-08:00

Day 43: My Favorite Pair of Shoes, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

If I had my way, I'd go barefoot or wear flip flops every day. Unfortunately, I can't, so these are my wear them every day shoes. Why? Mainly because they're easy to put on and take off and they're very comfy. As you can tell, I've worn them every day for a long time and they need to be replaced! Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find this shoe again and I have bought another similar shoe but it's not as comfy.

I took this photo to help out Brendan with his Big Shoe Project. Why don't you help him out too? Take a picture of your favorite shoes and submit it before Feb 14, 2011!

Date Taken: February 12, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/50
Aperture: f/3.2
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired

What's For Dinner?

2011-02-12T11:50:00.001-08:00

Day 42: What's For Dinner?, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was Sometimes what’s out of focus can make the shot. Create a photograph today where some/all of your subject isn't in focus. My first thought was too bad I had used Nemo as a subject yesterday. Some of the photos I took would be a good fit for this assignment but I didn't want to take more of Nemo or use a photo from a previous day.

I grabbed my camera and took a shot of what was available which happened to be dinner. We had comfort food: Macaroni and Cheese with the addition of tuna and peas. I think I need to go to the grocery store and restock the cupboards.

Date Taken: February 11, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/50
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Cat Profile

2011-02-12T11:43:00.001-08:00

Day 41: Cat Profile, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

It was after dinner and I remembered that I hadn't taken my photo for the day. I checked out The Daily Shoot for inspiration.

Nemo, our cat, was sitting on the back of the chair in the office which he often does when I'm on the computer. I pulled out my camera and took a bunch of photos of him and a few of the iPod chord.

I didn't feel any of these really qualified for the assignment of Change your point of view. Make a photograph from an unusual point of view today. but I liked the rather lion-esque look of Nemo in this one.

Date Taken: February 10, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 70 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Bourrées in Pointe Class

2011-02-09T21:27:00.001-08:00

Day 40: Bourrées in Pointe Class, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

If it's Wednesday it must be time for my daughter's pointe class. Since I hadn't taken a picture yet today, I took out my iPod Touch and took a few during the class. I didn't have any other camera with me so I took what I could get.

Don't know that a bourrée is? Watch the video below:

Date Taken: February 9, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 190
Flash: No Flash
Software: Lucifer VI Lens, BlacKeys B+W Film, No Flash

Preparing for the Day

2011-02-08T21:34:00.000-08:00

Day 39: Preparing for the Day, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

The Daily Shoot assignment for the day was We all prepare for things every day. Illustrate preparedness in a photograph today. I read this as I was making my To Do list for the day. Aha, I thought, I need to capture my attempt at preparedness for the day and picked up my camera to take the photo.

Additions were made to this list after the photo was taken and no, it didn't all get done.

Date Taken: February 8, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 44 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

The View from the Computer Lab Door

2011-02-07T22:57:00.001-08:00

Day 38: The View from the Computer Lab Door, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was Use a window or a door as a frame for your subject today in a photograph. I forgot to put a memory card in my DSLR this morning so I took this shot with my iPod Touch. We have a very pretty campus at school and the view out of the Computer Lab door is very nice.

I also took some shots through the windows at the Ballet Studio tonight during dance class. I liked some of those as well but ended up choosing this as my photo of the day.

Date Taken: February 7, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 190
Flash: No Flash
Software: Lucifer VI Lens, Kodot XGrizzled Film, No Flash

San Fernando Valley: Looking Toward Warner Center

2011-02-06T20:24:00.001-08:00

Day 37: San Fernando Valley - Warner Center, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I drove up to the Top of Topanga Overlook today to take some shots of the Valley. I had decided that I wanted to use a shot of the Valley as my picture today or I'm sure I would have gone with this one instead.

I've decided that I need to head back up to the overlook some night after sunset and get the lights of the Valley sometime.

Date Taken: February 6, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/13.0
Focal Length: 56 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Green Abstraction

2011-02-05T17:56:00.001-08:00

Day 36: Green Abstraction, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I headed over to The Daily Shoot and saw that the assignment for the day was Go abstract today and make a photograph that focuses on form and color rather than detail.

Now, I have a problem thinking abstractly. I am way too left-brained. My first attempt at this had me taking pictures of chocolate covered cherries and one of the hipstamatic shots was somewhat abstract and did emphasize a cherry color but I wasn't really thrilled with these.

I happened to glance out the window and notice the fronds on the fan palm under our lemon tree and went to get my camera and try again. I definitely feel that this is more abstract and focuses more on color and the lines of the palm frond.

Date Taken: February 5, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/2.0
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed : 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Want an Orange?

2011-02-05T16:26:00.001-08:00

Day 35: Want an Orange?, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

We have an orange tree in our backyard that has a lot of oranges on it. When I saw the Daily Shoot assignment for the day, Create a photo today that gives a sense of depth or dimension, I decided to use some oranges from the tree for this.

This shot probably wasn't the best at illustrating depth or dimension but I liked it so it was my choice from the photos I took.

Come on over & pick some oranges!

Date Taken: February 4, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/2.0
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Looking Upward

2011-02-03T20:58:00.001-08:00

Day 34: Looking Upward, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

The Daily Shoot theme for the day was Look upward today. Make a photograph with a low horizon and that emphasizes the sky. Technically this does not qualify because there's no horizon. Use your imagination, if there was a horizon, it would be low and it is looking upward & emphasizing the sky!

Oh, and about the flare, I have to admit that it was added in post processing. I did experiment with lens flare today and some of the photos I took have real flare. I just felt this needed something other than the branch and the blue sky.

Date Taken: February 3, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/7.1
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired

Uprooted by the wind

2011-02-02T22:20:00.001-08:00

Day 33: Uprooted by the wind, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was Pretend you're a stringer for your local newspaper today. Make a photo that captures something newsworthy to you. I really didn't think there would be anything truly newsworthy at school - or anything I could post since I can't post pictures of the kids - but I brought my camera anyway.

As I stood in the office for a few minutes, child after child kept coming in telling the secretary that a tree had fallen. It was really windy today and it uprooted one of the pear trees in the courtyard at school. Apparently, pear trees don't have very deep roots. No one was outside when it happened and it didn't do any damage to any of the buildings but it was definitely an attraction all day long!

Date Taken: February 2, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 85mm 1.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/125
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 85 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Do You Know What I Am?

2011-02-01T20:54:00.001-08:00

Day 32: Do You Know What I Am?, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

So, I hadn't taken my photo for the day and didn't want to use Nemo as the subject again (though I know I will in the future) so I decided to take some pictures of one of my favorite things.

It hangs around my neck on a lanyard along with my school keys every school day. There are days I just couldn't teach without it. My younger students think it's really funny and many of them think it's a pen. It's way more reflective than I thought it would be.

Do you know what it is? It's my USB flash drive! I have other flash drives but this is the one I use most of the time because I always know where it is since it's hanging around my neck. That reminds me, time to put it back on the lanyard.

Date Taken: February 1, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 85mm 1.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Aperture: f/3.2
Focal Length: 85 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Mouse & Keyboard and Mouse & Keyboard and ...

2011-01-31T23:50:00.000-08:00

Mouse & Keyboard and Mouse & Keyboard and ..., originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

When I saw the Daily Shoot assignment for the day was Make a photograph that features repetition., I immediately thought of the repeating computers, keyboard, mice, etc. in the lab.

Date Taken: January 31, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure Program: Manual
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 640
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

What's Wrong With This Picture?

2011-01-30T16:28:00.001-08:00

Day 30: What's Wrong With This Picture?, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today I virtually attended the EduCon2.3 session What's Wrong With This Picture? led by Dean Shareski & Darren Kuropatwa. During the session, attendees were charged with telling a lie with a picture or movie.

I failed at this completely with my DSLR. I could not get both my fingers & the palm tree in focus at the same time - not even close!

So, I tried it with my iPod Touch instead and wasn't thrilled with this one either. I'm never quite sure of the framing in the Hipstamatic app and this would be better if it were cropped. Oh well, I tried and I need a photo for the day, so this is it. Now I need to figure out how to really do this!

Date Taken: January 30, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 185
Flash: No Flash
Software: John S Lens, Pistil Film, No Flash

EduCon - Can't Be There? Attend Virtually!

2011-01-29T09:29:00.001-08:00

Day 29: EduCon - Can't Be There? Attend Virtually!, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today’s Daily Shoot assignment was Make a photograph that illustrates an aspect of communication.

I am spending much of the weekend virtually attending an education conference being held in Philadelphia. I would love to go to this one in person some day but until then I am so thankful that the sessions are being broadcast live and that many of them have collaborative documents, wikis, etc. to allow participation from those of us not in the physical room.

I took a photo of my screen as I was attending the Crafting Character session and adding my 2¢ to the Google Document for the session and keeping track of the EduCon discussions on Twitter. Now that's communication!

Date Taken: January 29, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 35 mm
ISO Speed: 1250
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

STOP!

2011-01-28T21:06:00.001-08:00

Day 28: STOP!, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today over at The Daily Shoot the theme was red. Red hot? Red paint? Or something else? You decide.

I looked around and took pictures of red items: Nemo's red toy mouse, part of the mini rose bush, red leaves and the stop sign on the corner. I liked this one best for the theme with the blue sky and fall (uh, winter?) foliage behind the stop sign. You just have to love the stickers, different shades of red and graffiti on the stop sign!

If you're interested in the other photos, you can see them on my Flickr account.

Date Taken: January 28, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/7.1
Focal Length: 33 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired (metered for the sky & used the flash to expose the stop sign while not blowing out the sky.)

The Curve of the Mouse

2011-01-27T21:45:00.001-08:00

Day 27: The Curve of the Mouse, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment was "Make a photograph that features a very distinct curved line or surface today."

I work around computers all the time and the first thing that popped into my head was the curve of the mouse. So, as I was waiting for the after school basketball game to start, I grabbed my laptop mouse & shot a few pictures and this is the result.

Date Taken: January 27, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Guess who has a cold?

2011-01-26T20:59:00.001-08:00

Day 26: Guess who has a cold?, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Yep, that's right, I've been infected. Last year I managed to escape but this year I guess I didn't wipe things down often enough in the lab or one too many students hugged me.

The Daily Shoot assignment for the day was: Make a photograph today with a central point of interest in it. So, I grabbed a piece of colored paper, set the tissues on it and snapped a few shots. Tissue anyone?

Date Taken: January 26, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/125
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Race To Nowhere Revisited

2011-01-25T23:17:00.001-08:00

Race To Nowhere, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

In October, I went to see this documentary and blogged about it on my teaching blog. Tonight, I went to see it again. Why would I do that?

When I saw this for the first time, I said in my blog post, "...wonder if I can convince my younger daughter’s school to have a screening of the film...". Tonight my younger daughter's school did have a screening, so I went hoping for some conversations. Conversations about the homework load and limiting the pressure when applying for colleges and helping our daughters to balance their lives, etc. Unfortunately those conversations did not occur. I did have a nice discussion with another mom and I'm sure that if I had approached the administrators that were at the screening, I might have had an individual conversation about these issues but I was hoping for a larger discussion.

I have had a short conversation with my daughter about the film and will continue to bring up the issues it raised but I feel that so much is out of our control. If the school culture doesn't change, if teachers do not change the amount of homework assigned, if colleges don't change the way students are admitted, things won't change. Do I think they should change? Absolutely. Do I think they will? Unfortunately, I don't see it happening anytime soon but I hope I am wrong.

Date Taken: January 25, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 185
Software: John S Lens, Pistil Film, No Flash

Monday Ballet Class

2011-01-24T22:05:00.001-08:00

Day 24: Monday Ballet Class, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

As I sat at the ballet studio, waiting for my daughter's ballet class to end, I realized I hadn't taken a photo for the day. I pulled out my iPod Touch and started playing with different lenses and film in the Hipstamatic App.

I liked the candid moment (and the why are you taking my picture look from my daughter) captured in this shot as my daughter and her friend waited their turn to try a combination. I still have trouble with framing in this app and need to research some things to see if I can fix that but it is fun to take pictures using this.

Date Taken: January 24, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 185
Software: John S Lens, BlacKeys B+W Film, No Flash

A Final Curtain Call

2011-01-23T21:56:00.000-08:00

Day 23: A Final Curtain Call, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Sunday I had the privilege of celebrating the life of Bill Erwin with those who knew and loved him. If you don't know who Bill was, check out the previous link or this tribute to Bill on an I Love Lucy fan site.

I will always remember the stories Bill would tell when the Cow-sillys, as he had dubbed us, went over to visit his daughter, Kelly. We all thoroughly enjoyed the time that we spent with him. Bill turned 96 this year and I can only hope that I am lucky enough to make it that far. R.I.P., Bill.

The stage is now dark and the final curtain has been closed but Bill Erwin will live on for those that knew and loved him both as friends and family and as fans.

Date Taken: January 23, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/5.0
Focal Length: 65 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

L.A. Saturday Evening Traffic

2011-01-22T21:26:00.000-08:00

Day 22: L.A. Saturday Evening Traffic, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I spent Saturday at the OC Cue Tech Fest. I brought along my point & shoot camera with the plan to take a few photos and then I never did. As I drove home, in the stop & go traffic on the 405 freeway, I took this photo of the line of stopped or going very slowly traffic in front of me.

Date Taken: January 22, 2011
Camera : Canon PowerShot A590 IS
Exposure Mode: Auto
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 16 mm
ISO Speed: 250
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Auto, Fired

Spring? Nope, Still Winter

2011-01-21T21:18:00.000-08:00

Day 21: Spring? Nope, Still Winter, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I have been on a stand under things and take pictures kick lately and this is one such photo. As I wandered around campus, I noticed that the trees in the courtyard all looked like spring rather than winter so I took a few shots.

Date Taken: January 21, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/200
Aperture: f/11.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired

Basketball Hoop From Below

2011-01-20T20:18:00.001-08:00

Basketball Hoop From Below, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I have spent the last two afternoons taking photos at basketball games at school. I can't share those on this blog but after reading the Daily Shoot assignment - How low can you go? Make a photograph today from a low point of view. - I knew I had to take this basketball related shot after the game was over.

I metered for the sky & used my on camera flash to light up the hoop and then I applied an HDR effect in Photoshop using this tutorial.

Date Taken: January 20, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/8.0
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired

A Lingering Flower

2011-01-19T22:51:00.001-08:00

A Lingering Flower, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

A sign of spring? Well, no - according to the calendar we're not even a month in to winter yet. I think this flower is just confused by the fact that it was 75°F for a high today and still about 66°F at about the time the picture was taken at around 4pm.

Date Taken: January 19, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/1600
Aperture: f/3.2
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed : 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Canon Lens Triangle

2011-01-18T22:12:00.001-08:00

Canon Lens Triangle, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Once again I turned to the Daily Shoot for inspiration. Today's assignment - Make a photograph with a triangular composition. I went literal with this and made a triangle of Canon Lenses. After I had finished and uploaded the shots to my computer, I realized that the 85mm was upside down for the shot. I decided not to redo it and picked the one I liked best of the bunch.

The lenses pictured are the Canon 28-135mm 3.5-5.6IS, Canon 50mm 1.4 and Canon 85mm 1.8.

I have been in to the retro, grungy type photos lately so I ran an Urban Acid action on the photo after I had converted it to black & white. Then I added some grunge overlays and the photo above is the result.

Date Taken: January 18, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 45 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

If you're interested, you can also see the black & white version and black & white with some different grunge effects but no Urban Acid version over on my Flickr account.

Soft Petals

2011-01-17T17:26:00.001-08:00

Soft Petals, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Again today, I looked to The Daily Shoot for an idea. The assignment was "Make a photograph with a soft look today."

I took some shots of the inside of my knock-off Ugg like boots and I see that Erin Berg had the same idea. I took some pictures of Nemo, our cat, and see that Vicki Lynn Clark and others had the same idea. I took some shots of my daughter's Pillow Pet.

I just wasn't really sure that any of them really conveyed soft. That's when I headed out to our rose bushes. There are a few "on their way to dying" roses left so I took some shots using a very shallow depth of field. I then processed these with very little contrast so that the whole photo would feel soft.

Date Taken: January 17, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/320
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

I shot with ISO 400 so I could get a fast shutter speed because there was a little breeze today and I didn't want to have motion blur.

Fly Me To The Moon

2011-01-16T21:07:00.001-08:00

Fly Me To The Moon, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Looking for inspiration, I headed over to The Daily Shoot and found "Today's theme is blue. Make a photograph dominated by the color or that otherwise illustrates the theme."

My first thought was to try to find someone crying or depressed and then tone the whole thing blue to illustrate a person being "blue". That's a tough one though and didn't think I could convince either of my daughters to pretend for this one. I also thought about taking a photo of our recycling trash can because the blue can is for recyclables only.

Then, I noticed how blue the sky was today and how there were just enough clouds to make it interesting and how the moon had already risen so I took some photos of the afternoon sky. On this one, there happened to be a small plane flying overhead at just the right time!

Date Taken: January 16, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/160
Aperture: f/9.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

edcampOC

2011-01-15T23:00:00.000-08:00

January 15, 2011 was the very first edcamp in California and I believe, in fact, the first one in the western US. I was one of the organizers of edcampOC and was in charge of creating the session board - both the one that would be up at the venue and the one online and I created the edcampOC wiki to share information at the event and to allow attendees to share their resources. This was an amazing day with lots of learning and sharing. Rather than choose just one picture, I'm sharing a slideshow of all of the photos that I took of this event. You can click on a photo and then use the Actions option to see the Exif info about the shot if you're interested in the technical details.

Getting the Session Board Ready

2011-01-14T23:59:00.000-08:00

Getting the Session Board Ready, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Tomorrow is the first edcamp in California and I am one of the organizers for this event. In order to schedule the day, a session board is created by the attendees using cards they fill about about the discussion they wish to have during the day. This is the blank session board (with one bright yellow index card on it just to check for size) that I put together. It was created using bulletin board paper and painter's tape to make the grid.

Date Taken: January 14, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 185
Software: John S Lens, Kodot XGrizzled Film, No Flash

My Morning at the DMV

2011-01-13T23:48:00.001-08:00

My Morning at the DMV, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

This morning we added another licensed driver to the family. Our oldest daughter took her driving test today and passed. Yikes! Does this mean we need to let her take the car out - alone?

And, yes, we did spend most of the morning at the DMV. Her appointment was at 10am but we went a little early and didn't get done until 11:30am.

Date Taken: January 13, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Aperture: f/16.0
Focal Length: 57 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

An HDR effect was added to the photo using the tutorial at http://garmahis.com/tutorials/fake-hdr-photoshop-tutorial/. I like it better on the photos I took of the palm tree but I had to use the DMV sign as my photo of the day because of the milestone it represents!

A New Rug for the Computer Lab

2011-01-12T21:17:00.001-08:00

A New Rug for the Computer Lab, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

One of my Christmas presents this year was this rug for the Computer Lab. I unveiled it for the first time today and it was a hit with the students! It didn't matter what grade level came in to the lab, everyone wanted to type their name on it. Kindergarten students sat down on it to type and the older grades typed with their feet.

Here's a shot to show where I've put it in the lab and to illustrate the true colors of it:

Top Photo Information
Date Taken: January 12, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 175
Software: John S Lens, Pistil Film, No Flash

Ahhhh, Diet Coke

2011-01-11T21:02:00.001-08:00

Ahhhh, Diet Coke, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I took a peek at today's Daily Shoot assignment which was Make a photograph today that features or uses a liquid as a subject. Since I was on my way to pour myself a glass of Diet Coke (a liquid), I decided to make that the subject of my photo for the day.

Rather than grab my 40D, I picked up my iPod Touch and I took this shot using the Hipstamatic App. A question for anyone else who uses Hipstamatic, is there are a way I can set things up so I can actually see what the resulting picture will actually include? Right now, I see only a small portion of the resulting image.

Date Taken: January 11, 2011
Camera: Hipstamatic 175
Software: Helga Viking Lens, Float Film, No Flash

All Ready To Skype

2011-01-10T20:22:00.001-08:00

All Ready To Skype, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I am one of the organizers edcamp OC which is being held this Saturday, January 15th. The last few days, I have been slightly panicking about how it will actually go on the day of the event. I am lucky to have an amazing PLN and one of them, Ann Oro, volunteered to Skype with me about edcamps tonight. Ann was one of the organizers of edcamp NYC and she was able to set my mind at ease a bit that things will all work out on Saturday. Thanks Ann!

This photo was actually taken after the Skype call and shows my Logitech webcam and me wearing my Logitech headset - oh yeah and holding my camera in front of my face.

Date Taken: January 10, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/200
Aperture: f/2.5
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Adding To The Vocals

2011-01-09T15:34:00.001-08:00

Adding to the vocals, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Is it cheating to add another photo from January's Band Night as a photo of the day? When I saw that The Daily Shoot assignment for today was Embrace the shadows today and make a photograph dominated by dark tones, also known as a low-key image, I knew I'd have some of those in the pictures I took after midnight at band night. Since I took it after midnight, it was taken on January 9th!

Band night almost always includes some guest artists. Last night was no exception. Scott Totten, who is in the Beach Boys Band with John Cowsill joined the band for a few numbers. He played Timmy's guitar while Timmy borrowed Robby's microphone to add to the vocals.

Date Taken: January 9, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/50
Aperture: f/1.4
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Band Night Fun

2011-01-09T15:21:00.001-08:00

Band Night Fun, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Every month Bob Cowsill and his band play at The Fox & Hounds Pub in Studio City, CA. January's band night was January 8th. Knowing that Bob's brother, John, was going to be the drummer I decided to take along my camera and capture some of the action.

If you've never been to this pub it's hard to believe how low the light actually is so I'm always happy when I'm able to capture anything without a flash. This is one of my favorite shots of the night which shows that it's not just the audience that has a good time on band nights!

Date Taken: January 8, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/50
Aperture: f/1.6
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Q: Who does "The Most Interesting Man Alive" go to see on Friday night?

2011-01-08T16:32:00.001-08:00

Q: Who does "The Most Interesting Man Alive" go to see on Friday night?, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Answer: Bob Cowsill, of course!!

There was a cardboard cutout of the Dos Equis XX spokesperson standing behind Bob last night at the local Pub so I just had to get this shot!

Date Taken: January 7, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/50
Aperture: f/1.6
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

January in Southern California

2011-01-06T21:25:00.001-08:00

January in Southern California, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

So, I had taken a picture at school of the mishmash of microphones that I have in the Computer Lab. It wasn't terribly artistic. As I drove home, I noticed the clouds moving in and the way the sun was lighting up the palm trees against the sky. That decided it; I needed to walk down the street and capture that for my photo of the day.

So here it is - just another January day in Southern California with a high in the mid 60s! Ah, that's why I live here.

Date Taken: January 6, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/200
Aperture: f/11.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Juggling Anyone?

2011-01-05T18:52:00.001-08:00

Juggling Anyone?, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Today, I did have something in mind to shoot but I ran out of time at school to do it. When I got home I was at a loss and didn't want to take yet another picture of Nemo. I headed over to The Daily Shoot for some inspiration and went with their suggestion of the day. Make an interesting photograph of something mundane and ordinary today.

These juggling balls sit on a dresser in our bedroom. I see them every day but never really notice them. So, I lined them up on a black Snuggie on the bed and took a few shots. This was the one I liked the best. It was post processed to give some "oomph" to the colors.

Date Taken: January 5, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/200
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Quadrulplet Nemo

2011-01-05T00:33:00.001-08:00

Nemo x4, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Since my family has grown tired of being photographed, our cat quite often ends up being on the other end of my lens. I took this photo as Nemo sat on my daughter's bed watching me on the computer hoping that I would feed him something.

This is the same photo with four different types of processing on it. Most of the effects were from actions that I ran and then tweaked a bit to get the effect I liked. The actions I used (but can't remember where I got) were:

Michelle's Vanilla Black & White
Midnight Sepia
Midnight Black
Urban Acid

Date Taken: January 4, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

At The Barre

2011-01-03T21:31:00.001-08:00

At The Barre, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Mondays mean ballet class for my younger daughter. These always start with exercises at the barre. This shot was edited using a Periwinkle Haze action and the addition of a grunge border.

Date Taken: January 3, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 56 mm
ISO Speed:1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Raindrops on Leaves

2011-01-02T16:23:00.001-08:00

Raindrops on leaves, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

It's a rainy, cold (for us anyway) winter day in Los Angeles so I went out to try to capture some raindrops. This was taken in my backyard with a Sigma 75-300mm 4.0-5.6 lens that only works wide open on my camera. The optics in this lens are not the best but I wanted a macro feel so it worked. The picture had lots of purple fringing especially on the big raindrop but this was easily fixed in Photoshop. I wish I hadn't blown out the raindrop but I like the feel of the photo anyway.

Date Taken: January 2, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Sigma 75-300mm 4.0-5.6
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/125
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 300 mm
ISO Speed: 1000
Flash: Off, Did not fire

Another Year & Another Attempt

2011-01-01T21:08:00.001-08:00

As the calendar turns and a new year begins hope springs eternal that I can take & post a picture a day during 2011. I am playing with multiple places to keep up with this. I'll settle on one (or maybe two) as the year goes on.

This Blog
My 2011 Photo Set on Flickr
My 2011 Calendar on Shuttercal

Good-bye Christmas 2010, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

My first picture for the year is titled Good-bye Christmas 2010. These are some of the Christmas lights hanging from the eaves of our home. I shot them purposely out of focus.

Date Taken: January 1, 2011
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm 2.8
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Week 46: Nutcracker Maid

2009-11-22T02:43:00.001-08:00

Nutcracker Maid, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

It's almost Nutcracker time for 2009! November 21st was the studio dress rehearsal - yes this means that this week's photo is a Saturday photo and not a Friday photo. My daughter has four roles this year: Russian Corps, Sugarplum Princess, Mouse in the Battle Scene and a Maid in the Party Scene.

Date Taken: November 21, 2009
Date Taken: November 6, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/125
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 35 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Exposure Mode: Manual
White Balance: Auto
Flash: On, Fired

There is only one more Saturday at the studio and then we're off to the Madrid Theatre for rehearsals and the performances. If you are in the Los Angeles area, I encourage you to come see the show the first two weekends in December!
And, even though this isn't a Friday photo, I did take all of the photos on this ad at previous Nutcracker performances except for the one of Drosselmeyer, Clara & the Nutcracker. Oh, and the tree isn't mine either.

Week 45: Donuts For Dads

2009-11-22T02:34:00.001-08:00

Donuts For Dads, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Book Fair at school traditionally opens with a Family Event. In the past, this has always been an evening event but this year the Book Fair opened with Donuts for Dads on Friday morning to kick off the Book Fair.

Date Taken: November 6, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/250
Aperture: f/32.0
Focal Length: 56 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Exposure Mode: Auto
White Balance: Auto
Flash: On, Fired

Week 44: Bob Cowsill Entertains

2009-11-22T02:14:00.001-08:00

Bob Cowsill Entertains, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

The first Sunday of November is St. Martin's Day at the church associated with our school. Bob Cowsill has provided the after service entertainment for a few years in a row.

Yes, once again a Friday photo not taken on Friday but it does start a new week.

Photo Taken: November 1, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/200
Aperture: f/3.2
Focal Length: 70 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Exposure Mode: Manual
White Balance: Auto
Flash: On, Fired

Week 43: Face of a Zombie Ballerina

2009-11-22T02:10:00.001-08:00

Face of a Zombie Ballerina, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

My youngest daughter dressed as a zombie ballerina this year for Halloween. This photo was taken just before going to the Middle School Halloween dance. Her makeup was done by my older daughter.

Photo Taken: October 30, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Exposure Mode: Auto
White Balance: Auto
Flash: On, Fired

And, here's a photo from the actual dance - actually, two photos. I combined a photo of the dance floor with a photo of a sign that was on the wall. It was very difficult to take pictures at the dance due to low, strobe lighting and a fog machine. I kind of like the effect of this photo but don't know if it will be usable for the yearbook.

Week 42: What's the pointe?

2009-10-23T16:14:00.001-07:00

What's the pointe?, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

The point is my youngest daughter just went "en pointe" in ballet this week. This has been a goal of hers for a very long time and she's absolutely thrilled that she's made it.

This photo was not taken on Friday but on Wednesday during my daughter's first pointe class. I then added some digital painting effects to the photo in Photoshop.

Date Taken: October 21, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/160
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Exposure Mode: Auto
White Balance: Auto
Flash: Off, Did not fire

And a few more to share ...

During Class

Pointe shoes come in all sizes!

After class - tired with aching feet but oh so happy!

And yes, I missed a few weeks - oops!

Week 39: Blessing of the Animals

2009-10-04T15:40:00.001-07:00

Blessing of the Animals, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Yes, once again this is not a Friday picture. I knew this weekend was going to be filled with family events on Saturday and the annual Blessing of the Animals service at St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church on Sunday so I decided ahead of time to share something from either Saturday or Sunday.

The first Sunday of each month is a special service for the families of St. Martin's and October is always the service honoring St. Francis and includes blessing of the animals. I take pictures every year at this service for the yearbook and this year was no exception. Most of the photos have students from the school in them so I won't share them on this blog but this one is of one of the dogs brought by a school family to be blessed today. Meet Snowball - he is 11 months old, very active and very friendly and spent most of the service trying to go meet the other dogs in attendance. He did stand nicely for his blessing though:

Technical Details for 1st Photo
Photo Taken: October 4, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/250
Aperture: f/14.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired
Program Mode, Spot Metering, Auto White Balance
I was alternating using Manual and Program mode due to lots of dappled sun and shadows.

From the hymn, All Things Bright and Beautiful (
Text: Cecil Frances Alexander Tune: Royal Oak) which was our opening hymn today ...

All Things bright and beautiful,
all creatures great and small,
all things wise and wonderful:
the Lord God made them all.

Week 38: Miley Cyrus at Staples Center

2009-09-26T15:14:00.000-07:00

Miley Cyrus at Staples Center on 09/22/09- Photos by: E Sedgwick

This week, I took my daughters to see Miley Cyrus at Staples Center in Los Angeles. I feel like I'm turning into an old fuddy-duddy after this show. Miley definitely puts on an entertaining show with many costume changes, lots of energy, great lighting, terrific backup dancers & band but sitting in front of us were a mother and her two daughters who were both 7 and under.

I couldn't help but wonder at the image that Miley was projecting with her tight corsetted tops or tank tops with her bra showing and short shorts and her dance moves. As the daughter of teen-agers, one just older than Miley, I understand that Miley is growing up but she seems to be moving herself into the world of Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan yet many of her fans are still in the tween and younger set. Billy Ray Cyrus was in the audience at the show and I can't imagine as a father watching my not even 17 year old perform some of the moves Miley was making in the outfits she was wearing. It would have been disturbing to me.

Okay, enough comments on the show - this is a photography blog so on to the photos. This is a collage of photos taken by my 17 year old daughter at the show. I don't even try to take my 40d into shows like this because most venues won't allow it. The photos were taken with a Canon Powershot SX100 IS which was set on automatic mode with the flash turned off. I think my daughter did a great job with these. It was hard to pick a few favorites.

Week 37: North Side of Computer Lab 2009-10

2009-09-26T15:12:00.001-07:00

North side of computer lab 2009-10, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Oops, I missed a week. Anyway, this week I spent some time finishing up the theme in the Computer Lab at school. This year's theme is "Going on Safari in the Cyber Jungle" so you will see lots of jungle elements in the room.

The north wall in the lab has a bank of cabinets above the computers. This year I am using these to display student work. Currently shown are K-5th self-portraits created in Drawing for Children (K & 1), Kidpix (2nd & 3rd) & Paint (4th & 5th). Under the cabinets you can see that the computers have monkeys on them with the computer numbers for this year to go along with the theme.

Photo Taken: September 18, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/5.0
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired
AV Mode, Spot Metering, Auto White Balance

Week 35: Happy Birthday E!

2009-08-30T01:15:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday E!, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Seventeen years ago on August 29th 1992 at 07:46am, we welcomed our oldest daughter to the world. She was 19" long and weighed 6lbs 3 ozs. and was almost 5 weeks early.

She amazed me then and continues to amaze me now and I cannot imagine how empty my life would be without her.

This week's photo was taken after my now 17 year old daughter opened the cellphone she wanted for her birthday. Now, if the activation would only kick in I'm sure she'd be ecstatic!

Photo Taken: August 29, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm f1.4
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/2.2
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Manual, Spot Metering, Auto White Balance

Week 34: 1st Grade Art & Computer Project

2009-08-23T23:00:00.001-07:00

1st Grade Art & Computer Project, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Near the end of last school year, our 1st Graders took photos in a park with some parent volunteers. They each took one photo from far away and one close up. The close up photos were then uploaded to the student's computer in the lab and each student created 4 different colorized versions of their photo using PhotoFiltre during computer class. The photos were then printed and transferred to a canvas by the volunteer art mom.

I was happy to be given one of finished pieces by the class. If you can't tell what this is, it's a photo of some roots of a tree. The upper left version is a negative image of the original, the upper right is a sepia version with a saturation boost and the bottom two are colorized versions using hue/saturation or other adjustments.

Date Taken: August 22, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 55 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Manual, Spot Metering, Auto White Balance

Week 33: California Dance Academy 2009 Open House

2009-08-16T17:48:00.001-07:00

California Dance Academy 2009 Open House, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

My daughter's dance studio had an open house this past weekend and I took some pictures including this one of the front of the studio.

If you live in or around the San Fernando Valley and you are looking for a dance studio, I would recommend checking out California Dance Academy

And, yes, once again my Friday Foto (Phriday Photo) was not taken on a Friday!

Date Taken: August 15, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/250
Aperture: f/8.0
Focal Length: 32 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: +1/3 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Program AE

I used a combination of Program AE & Manual for the shots I took during the Open House.

Week 32: Shooting the Moon

2009-08-08T01:10:00.001-07:00

Shooting the Moon, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

This week I had intended to take a picture of my oldest daughter at the first college we toured but I forgot my camera. I had happened to take some shots of the moon because some of my friends were posting moon shots so I thought I'd share one of those this week.

The longest lens I own is an old Sigma 70-300 that I had with my old 35mm Canon. It doesn't really work with my new digital SLRs. I can only shoot with it if I have the lens wide open so while I would have preferred to shoot this at about f11, I had to settle for f5.6.

Date Taken: August 7, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Sigma DL 75-300mm f4-5.6
Exposure: 1/200
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 300 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off
Exposure Program: Manual

If you are interested in more of my moon shots, you can see them in my Facebook Moon Shots Album.

Week 31: Summer Work

2009-08-02T20:46:00.001-07:00

Summer Work, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Even though I teach, I don't have summers off. I have to spend time in the lab getting it ready for the next year and at 1-2 hours for each computer that takes awhile not to mention lesson plans and other things for the next year. I am also in charge of the school web site which needs updates during the summer including changes to the Student-Parent Handbooks which I am currently working on and is the subject of this week's photo.

Once again, not taken on Friday. On Friday I was at a taping of Ruby & The Rockits and they don't allow cameras so I didn't even bring mine.

Date Taken: August 2, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/125
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 65 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Manual

I also took a series of shots of Nemo in one of his favorite spots. He loves to sit on top of the chair in the office when someone is working on the computer. Here's a slideshow of some of the shots I took of him.

Week 30: Pushing Up Daisies

2009-07-26T02:42:00.001-07:00

pushing_up_daisies_9278, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

As I mentioned last week, every year my daughter attends DayJams which is a rock music camp for 8-15 year olds. This year she went for two weeks and during her second week she was in an all-girl band named Pushing Up Daisies. As you can see, she played guitar this week; last week she sang. She was very excited because this was the first year where she was able to play chords instead of just notes!

Not only did she get to play chords but she actually won a Daisy Rock guitar that DayJams was giving away!

Top Photo Taken: July 24, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired
Exposure Program: Manual

If you are interested in more photos from the July 24th DayJams concert you can find them in my DayJams San Fernando Valley set on Flickr.

Week 29: Jim Morrison Revisited?

2009-07-23T01:53:00.001-07:00

phat_sandwich_9162, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Every year my daughter attends DayJams which is a rock music camp for 8-15 year olds. On Friday of each week of the camp, the bands, which were just put together on Monday, hold a concert featuring songs that each band has written during the week. This week, Phat Sandwich, and especially their lead singer, were very entertaining to watch. Do I see a young Jim Morrison wannabe?

Photo Taken: July 17, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/125
Aperture: f/5.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Manual

If you are interested in more photos from this concert, check out the slide show of all of the photos I took:

Week 28: Grasshopper on Mini Rose

2009-07-11T16:07:00.001-07:00

Grasshopper on Mini Rose, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Once again my photo of the week wasn't taken on Friday but at least I did take one. This was taken in the front of our house on Saturday afternoon. I was trying to get a picture of one of the roses and moved it a bit and this guy surprised me and flew on to this flower. I just had to take a few photos of him at that point.

Photo taken: July 11, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm f2.8
Exposure: 1/800
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Manual

Week 27: Statue of Liberty

2009-07-04T03:35:00.001-07:00

Statue of Liberty, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Once again my Friday Foto was not taken on Friday. This one was actually taken on Sunday this week but I wanted to include something else from our trip to Las Vegas and this is it!

And, no, we didn't visit New York City but we did go to the New York, New York Hotel when we were in Vegas!

Date Taken: June 28, 2009
Camera: Canon PowerShot A590 IS
Exposure: 1/640
Aperture: f/5.5
Focal Length: 23.2 mm
ISO Speed: 80
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Auto, Did not fire
Exposure Mode: Auto
White Balance: Auto

I didn't have a wide enough lens on my 40D to get a shot from this angle on that camera so I used my point & shoot.

Week 26: Before the Bingo Party

2009-07-03T03:53:00.001-07:00

Getting Ready for the Bingo Party, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Last weekend we were in Las Vegas with my husband's family to celebrate my father-in-law's 80th birthday. The first night there all of the younger generation of cousins had a "Bingo Party" with my husband's sister. This photo of one of our nieces was taken in the hotel room while my niece was playing a game of "guess which hand the penny is in" with my oldest daughter.

Photo Taken: June 27, 2009 (yep, again not a Friday photo)
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Aperture-priority AE

Week 25: We Have a WebCam!

2009-06-20T00:55:00.001-07:00

We Have a WebCam!, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Okay so this isn't technically a photo that I took and it's not really a Friday photo either since it was snapped by the webcam at 12:02am on Saturday morning.

It is, however, my photo of the week for this week because I'm finally testing out the webcam that I got for Christmas! It's a Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000 and so far it seems to work just fine on our home computer. My next step is to test out Skype here and then I'm going to try it at school. My hope is to use this to Skype at school next year. Keep your fingers crossed that it will work on the older equipment that we have there.

Date Taken: June 20, 2009
Camera: Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000

Week 24: 2009 Graduation Breakfast

2009-06-15T19:13:00.001-07:00

2009 Graduation Breakfast, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Well, it's official I missed a week and this week's photo wasn't even taken on Friday. After taking hundreds of pictures on Tuesday and Wednesday for year end events at school, I just wasn't in the mood to take a photo on Friday.

Anyway, this photo is from the Graduation Breakfast. Each year we hold a breakfast for the 8th Grade graduates and their guests and the centerpieces this year were a 2-tiered display with the top holding rosebuds and the bottom holding strawberries. These were the roses on my table at the breakfast.

Date Taken: June 10, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire

Week 22: Spring Dance Recital Time 2009

2009-05-29T20:21:00.001-07:00

Time for Spring Dance Recital 2009, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Each spring, the dance studio my daughter goes to has a recital as do most of the studios I know. I take a lot of photos for the dance studio and provide them for purchase to the studio families. This shot was taken of my youngest daughter at the dress rehearsal.

Date Taken: May 28, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/200
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
No Flash

When taking the dance photos, I tend to use P mode or TV mode since the lighting conditions change so frequently.

Week 21: Happy Anniversary

2009-05-24T11:22:00.001-07:00

Happy Anniversary, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

This week's photo was not taken on Friday but it still had to be my photo of the week. This is a photo of one of the flowers I received from my husband in celebration of our 17th wedding anniversary. We both try to get something for the other that follows the recommended gifts for the year but this year that recommendation was furniture. We decided against furniture even though we really do need a new couch. He got me roses and I got him the new Sports Active game for the Wii.

Date Taken: May 24, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/80
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
No Flash

Week 20: The Set List

2009-05-24T11:18:00.001-07:00

Set List, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I have made a lot of friends at Cowsill.com and one of them was visiting from Arizona to celebrate her birthday. She brought a small notebook with her to keep track of the set list for the night. In this photo, you can see a few of the songs sung by Bob Cowsill on Mariann's birthday!

Date Taken: May 15, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/50
Aperture: f/1.4
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
No Flash

Week 19: Roses & Strawberries

2009-05-09T21:29:00.001-07:00

Roses & Strawberries, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

This week was Teacher Appreciation Week and we have great parents at our school. Our Parent Faculty Association provided breakfast on Monday, a free lunch at our annual Fiesta Lunch and lunch on Friday. Other parents baked us goodies, gave us cards, flowers and other things and 1st Grade decorated pots and gave us plants.

This week's picture is a rose from one of the families at school for Teacher Appreciation Week along with some strawberries left over from the lunch provided on Friday.

I added some subtle painting effects to this one in Photoshop. You'll probably have to look at the larger sizes to really see them.

Date Taken: May 8, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/125
Aperture: f/3.2
Focal Length: 47 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On & Bounced

Week 18: Middle School Game Night

2009-05-01T23:19:00.001-07:00

Middle School Game Night, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Tonight I helped chaperone the Middle School Game Night at school. It was interesting to watch and see that even in our hi-tech world, two of the most popular games were most definitely low tech - Chess and Twister!

BUT, just so you don't think that it was all low tech, there were also Nintendo DS games and a spirited game of Guitar Hero on the Playstation going on at the same time!

Date Taken: May 1, 2009
Camera: Canon PowerShot A590 IS
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/5.5
Focal Length: 23.2 mm
ISO Speed: 125
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Auto, Fired, Red-eye reduction

Week 17: First Driving Lesson

2009-04-26T23:17:00.001-07:00

First Driving Lesson, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

It's another Saturday (instead of Friday) photo but I had to take this photo this week because the day has arrived for my oldest daughter's very first in car driving lesson. I took it as a good sign that the instructor did not try to make her back out of our driveway as her first experience. I have trouble backing out of that driveway and I've been driving for many, many years! All went well with the first lesson so we're on our way to having a brand new driver in the family.

Date Taken: April 25, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/250
Aperture: f/9.0
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On (trying to fill in the shadows but it didn't work very well - someday I'll figure this out!)

I also used Picnik to add a few low opacity effects to the photo including: HDR, Lomo & Cross Process.

Week 16: Pink Ribbon Night

2009-04-19T20:39:00.001-07:00

My friend Marla is a 5-year breast cancer survivor and each year she walks in the Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk. This year she's walking in San Francisco. As part of her fundraising efforts, she and her team mate, Karen, hold a fundraiser at a local pub headlined by Bob Cowsill. As part of my contribution to her effort I take pictures of the event for Marla.

You can see all of the fun from that night in my Pink Ribbon Night 2009 set on Flickr. Take a minute and read Marla's story and contribute to her walk or to Karen's walk on the Breast Cancer 3-Day site

Date Taken: April 18, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/50
Aperture: f/8.0
Focal Length: 35 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On / FEC -1/3

Week 15: Cowsill Trio Smooth

2009-04-11T11:23:00.001-07:00

Cowsill Trio Smooth, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Another Friday at the Pub enjoying music from Bob Cowsill. Recently, Bob has been joined for his first set by his son, Ryan, on keyboards and harmony vocals, and his nephew, Brendon, on guitar and harmony vocals. I had seen Brendon & Ryan play with Bob before but this was the first time I had been in since the younger generation of Cowsills had started to sing as well as play.

This was another try with high ISO and no flash with a point & shoot camera. I am impressed with the IS on this camera but my 40d is definitely the clear winner with noise and high ISO especially with my fast lenses.

Date Taken: April 10, 2009
Camera: Canon PowerShot A590 IS
Exposure: 1/8
Aperture: f/3.2
Focal Length: 7.9 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off
In camera sepia with curves adjustment in Adobe Photoshop CS2

Week 14: Music Man Collage

2009-04-03T23:44:00.001-07:00

Music Man Collage, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

My oldest daughter is in the musical at her High School and the performances are this week. We attended the Friday night show and didn't have the best seats. They seemed good at the time I picked them but it was almost impossible to see around the people in front of us. The show was great anyway but the middle of the stage was blocked from my view much of the time.

Still, I had to capture a few photos so here is a collage created with Shape Collage of some of the photos I took. I made a collage of the ones you see here because my daughter is in all of these in one of her four costumes. Can you find her?

Date Take: April 3, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: Various (typically between 100 & 200)
Aperture: Various (typically between 2.8 & 4.0)
Focal Length: 70 mm
ISO Speed: 3200
Flash: Off

Week 13: March in Southern California

2009-03-28T01:18:00.001-07:00

March in Southern California, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

The sky was so blue, the trees are budding and the wind was blowing the flags; it seemed like a great time for a picture of the school where I teach. Okay, honestly I was actually testing exposure for a photo I was going to take of the Middle School students in this location a few minutes later - but I did like how the shot came out.

Date Taken: March 27, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/250
Aperture: f/11.0
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Week 12: Shopping Anyone?

2009-03-20T18:11:00.001-07:00

Yes, these are all mine. I know I can't be the only one with this problem. I love gift cards but the problem with them is ... if I don't spend the entire amount the first time I use them then I lose track of the balance left on them. Honestly, I have no idea what's left on at least half of these cards. I've tried:

Keeping the last sales slip with the card so I always have the balance but I either lose them or I end up with way too many little slips of paper in my wallet or purse so I throw them away.

Keeping a list in my purse of all the cards I have and their current balance. I either lose that or forget to update it and then I'm right back where I started.

So, I end up with lots of cards with some kind of balance on them that I don't use. Why don't I? Well, I don't carry much cash so if I'm buying something for $20 lets say and I don't know the balance then I worry that it will be almost enough to cover it and that I'll have to charge some really tiny amount to make up the difference.

Someone needs to invent something to keep track of all of these that you can carry with you and easily use. I know!! We need a small electronic device that you can just run the card through and it will tell you your balance! Okay, so maybe we don't need yet another device to carry with us. So, how about some kind of app for the iPhone or iTouch that lets you keep track of them easily? Of course then I'd need the iPhone or iTouch. Hmmm, do I have a gift card that would work for that?

Date Taken: March 20, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/7.1
Focal Length: 71 mm
ISO Speed: 640
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Week 11: Collaborations Map For Open House

2009-03-15T11:48:00.001-07:00

Collaborations Map For Open House, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Open House was held this week at school on Thursday Night. I have a map up in the computer lab with links to the different schools we have collaborated with on various projects during the year. I decided that I needed to add something to the Collaborations Map for World Math Day. I created a pie chart with the number of correct answers for each class that had participated in this event and then linked that to the host city for this year which was Sidney, Australia.
Date Taken: March 13, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/100
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 40 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

Week 10: March Madness - Crazy Hair Day

2009-03-06T17:48:00.001-08:00

March Madness - Crazy Hair Day, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Every Friday in March it's March Madness at school with a different theme for the day. The first Friday brought Crazy Hair Day and my daughter's hair was definitely crazy!! I wanted to share this picture not only for the crazy hair but to show the difference that a few weeks and visits to the dentist can make. My daughter's teeth have been repaired - after a root canal on the left front tooth that is. A small scar is all that remains from the lip injury and this should fade away given time.
Date Taken: March 6, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/250
Aperture: f/10.0
Focal Length: 37 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On (Fill Flash)

Week 9: Signs of Spring

2009-02-28T15:22:00.001-08:00

Signs of Spring, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Friday after school I took a walk in my backyard and came up with some photos of the flowers currently in bloom. There's still a lot not in bloom but the colors are starting to pop!

Date Taken: February 27, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
ISO Speed: 400 on all
No Flash
Focal Length: 75 mm except lower right which was 63mm
Manual Exposure
Upper Left: Exposure: 1/60, Aperture: f/3.2
Upper Right: Exposure: 1/80, Aperture: f/4.0
Lower Left: Exposure: 1/200, Aperture: f/4.0
Lower Right: Exposure: 1/125, Aperture: f/4.0

I had a hard time choosing what to post this week which is why there are 4 different images here already and here's a bonus shot of a Lemon Tree too. This is actually our neighbor's tree but this branch hangs over in to our yard.

Date Taken: February 27, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40d
Exposure: 1/200
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 75 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Manual Exposure
No Flash

Week 8: Friday Night at the Pub

2009-02-21T14:44:00.001-08:00

Friday Night at the Pub, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

Bob Cowsill spends his Friday nights entertaining people at a pub in Woodland Hills, CA. I also spend many a Friday there enjoying the music and once in awhile I take a picture or two, too. I have been a fan of The Cowsills since I was 11 or 12 and I first walked into this Pub in 1990 to see Bob and his sister, Susan. I've been a regular there ever since and now I am even the webmaster for The Cowsills. Amazing the twists and turns that life can take.

I took this one with a point and shoot that I recently purchased to use at school. It went to Catalina with the Middle School chaperones and I wanted to try it out to see what kind of results I would get in a low light situation. I discovered that even though it goes to ISO 1600 there's no way I can take photos without flash at the Pub.

Date Taken: February 20, 2009
Camera: Canon PowerShot A590 IS
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/5.5
Focal Length: 23.2 mm
ISO Speed: 250
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Auto, Fired, Red-eye reduction (which didn't work!)

Week 7: OUCH!

2009-02-13T15:49:00.001-08:00

OUCH!, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

My daughter left for the annual trip to Catalina on Monday morning. Due to windy conditions on the way over to the island, the trip was very rough. In fact, my daughter was literally knocked to the floor in the restroom on the ship and this is the result - stitches in the lip, a broken tooth and several other loose teeth, a bruised cheek and lots of swelling. So instead of enjoying the week on Catalina, my husband went and brought her back on Tuesday (we tried to get her home on Monday but all boats and the helicopter were canceled) so she could see the dentist. Poor baby and major OUCH!

Date Taken: February 10, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/40
Aperture: f/3.2
Focal Length: 63 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On & Bounced

Week 6: Yearbook Creation

2009-02-06T19:08:00.001-08:00

Yearbook Creation, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

The first 1/2 of the yearbook is due on Monday so this will be my view the entire weekend as I try to meet the deadline! Welcome to my world. Oh, and ignore the dirty speaker on the bottom of the monitor - amazing how that stuff shows up in pictures when you don't see it in real life.
Date Taken: February 6, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 1/40
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Bounced, FEC -1

Week 5: A Walk Around The Yard

2009-01-30T17:49:00.001-08:00

A Walk Around The Yard, originally uploaded by Visions By Vicky.

I planned to take a photo at school today and got busy and never took one so I put my 50mm 1.4 lens on my camera and took a walk in the front and back yards. I couldn't decide which photo I liked best so I created a collage of three.

The rose is on one of our mini rose bushes which are located in the front of the house right beside the garage.
Date Taken: January 30, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/320 second
Aperture: F1.8
ISO Speed: 400
No Flash

We used to have a tree in our front yard but that died years ago and we now have a variety of plants in that planter. The brown/beige plant is one of them. Anyone know what it is? I really liked the textures in this.
Date Taken: January 30, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/500 second
Aperture: F1.8
ISO Speed: 400
No Flash

Last but not least is one of the oranges on the orange tree we have in the backyard. Our oranges are very yummy and we still have quite a few left on the tree. I think I may just have to eat that one!
Date Taken: January 30, 2009
Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Lens: Canon 50mm 1.4
Exposure: 1/250 second
Aperture: F2.0
ISO Speed: 400
No Flash