One Year Ago Today :: Personal

My mind likes numbers. I think it fun to find patterns in license plate numbers (like 278: 27 is 3 cubed and 8 is 2 cubed. Neat, huh? No? Dorky? That's what my family thinks, too.). I am able to remember dates and all the little things that happen in the history of my family.

Some of them are not so little.

Like August 26, 2010. I photographed it. Then I blogged about it. And it was one of the most meaningful posts I have ever done.

Today, though, one year later, is so very different. Instead of trying to fill the hours before the buses collected all the soldiers, I complained to my husband about how strong the scent of his new deodorant is. I bathed my daughter before school. I enjoyed coffee before heading to the gym for a workout. And I will welcome my husband home at the end of this day. Not 6 months from now. Today. In a few hours.

I have to remind myself today, when I start feeling aggravated by whatever small grievance I might have with how Daddy gets the girls ready for bed or how he is willing to get them all riled up with tickles and laughter and vocal love, that it could be otherwise. He could be gone. I could be doing this alone. And I will consciously remember the very long days of single parenting and think of all the other moms I still know who are enduring that life right now. And I will be thankful. Actively thankful.

Life is always quirky and bumpy and harder to handle some days. But I am blessed today with a complete family. Living under one roof. Sharing the ins and outs of the day to day. It is simple. And it is wonderful.

15 millimeters of fun :: Lexington, Virginia Children Photographer

Photographer friends are the best. A photographer friend who was also your best friend in high school is the VERY bestest. Because she is willing to hand over a lens and then drive home, 3.5 hours away. Without asking for collateral. 20 years of friendship earns you stuff like that.

So I have been having 15 millimeters of fun with her quirky, distorting, lightweight lens. I know there are moments when this lens is the exact lens you want. And I know there are moments when this is exactly the lens you do NOT want. Since I have only played with it for three days, I haven't learned that distinction. I was using it for anything and everything. And having a blast.

I learned that my fairly frequent shooting style of sitting on the ground, eye level with my short subjects, often resulted in getting my outstretched legs in the frame. Fortunately, my "camera shy" baby happily held her pose long enough for me to get it right. Sans ankles, calves and feet.

I learned that lovely landscape scenes, complete with tender kisses between my best two girls, are far easier to capture.

And I learned that the self portrait is a breeze with this bad boy. The key is positioning myself towards the center of the lens where the distortion is slightest. If the baby is a bit skewed, it is perfectly acceptable. She doesn't know about self esteem yet. And she has oodles of cuteness to carry her through stretched-out-face syndrome.

All in all, I am not sure I find this lens a necessity or next in line on my "oh, how nice it would be to have..." list. But boy it is fun. And fun leads to creativity and creativity leads to new, unique shots, and...maybe I do need this lens...

My Birthday Winners! :: Lexington, Virginia Family Photographer

The little things tell me if a session is going to be good. Last night, as we started away from our cars to begin shooting, the father grabbed his cell phone out of his back pocket and tossed it into the car. It probably didn't even resonate with him, but I loved it. I also loved the family's cheerfulness and energy and simple glee at being out and about...even after an hour drive from Charlottesville to meet me. I loved the son's curiosity about my camera, saying it was very odd looking. And I definitely loved the sweet baby girl's half galloping, half jumping gait as she bounded from one happy scene to the next.

I can only hope this beautiful, charming family can see all that love smiling back at them!

I Heart Faces, Week of August 22 :: Pets

I know my choice for this week's I Heart Faces challenge is slightly obtuse. My "pet" has no head. And it really isn't a pet. As lovely as the flamingo is, I have no desire to raise and tend one. I have children that satisfy any caregiver urges I might have! But I love the beauty of the feathers, the delicate color and soft wispiness.

I can't wait to see how many varieties of animals will be featured this week! Click the button below and share your picture with the menagerie.

Enduring Love :: Lexington, VA Family Photographer

The military is sudden. Capricious. Life can be very normal: off to work each morning, home with family each evening. There is a slightly different dress code. And you get to wear your accolades as little colored ribbons on your chest. But otherwise, fairly similar to most other folks.

Until you get a call saying you have to go. Now.

And it is those calls that make pictures so valuable. Pictures that let the kids say good night to Papa every single night. Pictures that fill the emptiness across the ocean when time zones and distance get in the way of the yearned for hugs and kisses. Pictures that assure you about what is important, what will be again and what this whole big thing is all about.

These are not just pictures. These are lifelines of love. Elastic, stretchy lifelines that have to endure some of what often feels unendurable. So much more than pictures.

I Heart Faces, Week of August 15 :: Eyes

I am extremely shy in complimenting myself. I don't want to seem pretentious. Haughty. Snobby. So I am bad at acknowledging my talents and accepting compliments from others. (I can, on the other hand, rattle off an extremely well developed list of my short comings. Like that is a becoming character trait...)

Anyway, today I am going to do it. I am going to publicly say I think I have pretty eyes. They change colors depending upon my outfit, the light, my mood. My lashes are a nice length and the wrinkles I have were caused by smiling and I rather don't mind them.

So, for this week's I Heart Faces challenge, I am entering my own eye. Taken with my own hand.

(Canon 5D Mark II, 50mm/1.4, ISO 640, 1/60, f/2.2)

The eyes tell a person's story when their mouth can't speak. When the words won't form. And I find that endlessly fascinating. Share your best eye picture this week. Just click the button below!

Love Renewed :: The 85mm lens

I only use three lenses. Let me re-phrase. I own three lenses. I seem to only use two of them at a time. Because I forget why I love the 85mm so much. Don't feel too badly for the 85. He gets to hang out in my brand new lavender Kelly Moore bag, in nice, plush surroundings, joined by a few CF cards and an extra battery. Life could be worse. But he doesn't get to do his job. He doesn't get to gaze at all the prettiness I get to gaze at. That bag is dark. I guess it could get scary. It is nice to be let out.

I have a tendency to shoot tight pictures and oddly, for someone who prizes personal space, I think I have a way of waltzing right up to my clients and taking the shot I want. I find the 85 harder to use. It forces me to step back. And step back. And oh, wait, just one more step back. There we go. Now I can focus on more than your eyeball. Ahem.

But then I happen to grab the 85 and I see why I have this lens. Why I love this lens. And remind myself why I should use it FAR more than I normally do. For it produces gorgeous images. Images that barely need to see the inner workings of Photoshop. Images that are instantly frame worthy.

Yes, Sir 85mm, you are a jewel. And I love you.

(The three pictures above were shot at ISO 400, f/1.8)

I Heart Faces, Week of August 8 :: Friendship

Hello, Friendship Week! (I am so thankful to I Heart Faces for helping keep me abreast of these lesser publicized celebrations. I have a hard enough time with my children's birthdays and Christmas!)

Friends are such a treasure and I am so grateful for those special friends I have made and cherished through the years. But nothing can substitute for the friendship of a sibling. Yes, it is often a messy relationship, with serious ups and downs, fissures that seem permanent, but never are, the long road of life that pulls you apart and thrusts you together.

A sibling can love truthfully, deeply, freely. They have seen everything of each other and yet they still love and trust. And that is an amazing thing.

Take a moment this week and share the meaning of your deepest, most special friendships. Sometimes, the greatest gift you can give to that dear friend is a sincere word of thank you.

And the Winner Is.... :: Giveaway Result

I am certain there are far more high tech ways to select a winner for a contest. But at this stage in the summer, I will use any excuse to find a way to occupy my 5 year old.

So she was the energy behind today's Winner Selection. First, she made number tags to correspond with my entrants' names.

Then she carefully cut each number out.

Then we folded the numbers and put them in the Prize Picking Pot. And she shook them vigorously. So they all flew out. We put them back. She did it again. She thought it was hysterical.

Finally, I calmed her down enough to make a selection. Who will it be? Who will it be?!

Ah-ha! It is number 12! Congratulations, Number 12!

Wait, you have no idea who Number 12 is? Number 12 corresponds to....(drumroll please)...

Megan Bleakley!!! Congratulations, Megan! I cannot wait to meet you and your family for this fun update to your family portrait! Look in your email inbox for details.

And for all the other entrants, I sent a little thank you to the email you shared on your entry. Sometimes my emails go to Spam folders, so if you haven't seen it yet, please look there. (One final note to Amanda, who entered yesterday: I don't have an email for you. Please email me so I can write you.)

Whether you choose to work with me or another photographer, don't let the years go by without updating your pictures. We have no idea what the future holds. Savor what you have at this moment.

My Birthday = Your Lucky Day! :: Giveaway

(Insert your own singing voice. Mine is NOT what you want to hear!)

Happy Birthday to Me! Happy Birthday to me! Happy Birthday to Meeeeeee, Happy Birthday to Me!

(And gifts to you!)

They grow so fast. They change so quickly. The days become weeks, the weeks become months and then you realize elementary (or middle or high) school is over.

It is impossible to remember all the nuanced looks. All the quirky smiles. The crazy dime store removable tattoo.

The mental images you swear will never fade...well, sadly, they do fade. Or get crowded out by new ones. But you don't want them to be lost or crowded or faded.

So you snap a picture.

And you hope for a good one. One that really captures the true essence of who you are and how you love one another.

I want to create that image for you. And for one lucky person, I will do it for FREE!

Yes, you read that right. Free. Gratis. Just because I am having a Happy Birthday. (Lucky you!)

Now for the fine print:

1. The session must be conducted in the month of August 2011.

2. The session will be held in Downtown Lexington, Virginia.

3. The winner will receive an hour session, a DVD with 10 digital images and a 5x7 print of each image.

4. The session is limited to no more than 5 family members or friends.

5. The comments will be closed Thursday, August 4 at 9 pm EST. The winner will be picked by a random drawing and announced Friday, August 5.

To enter this AWESOME GIVEAWAY (if I might be so bold to say...), simply leave a comment on this blog post letting me know when you last had professional portraits taken. I will need a way to let you know if you are the winner, so be sure to include an email address. If you are not comfortable posting your email address on a public blog, shoot me an email at julie@julieriveraphoto.com.

Good luck and I hope you enjoy my birthday day! (Trust me, August has no holidays. I am happy to create this reason to celebrate!)