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This is my sweet submission for the July photo challenge at www.rocktheshot.com “Day at the beach”

Take a look at the other gorgeous submissions by clicking on this link:

http://www.rocktheshotforum.com/2012/07/09/july-photo-challenge-day-at-the-beach/

Take care,

Cindy Cavanagh

Wow! The first 3 months went by so fast, and I am sure baby Benjamin’s parents think so. He is smiling, looking straight at you with his beautiful eyes, and his older sister adores him.

My goal for this session was to capture him in a natural way. I know the current trend for baby photos is with various props and posing. I love some of these images, but I think babies are just so gorgeous that they do not need anything else. The only props in this session were Mum, his loving sister and his everyday life. It is cuddles with Mum, and it is smiles at his sister. It is simplicity, and sweet pleasures.

Sophie, Jonas, and Oliver are from Sweden and have lived in Brazil for close to a year. They are returning to their home in Sweden shortly, and wanted to take home a personal reminder of Brazil. We planned a relaxed session in the park and focused on incorporating colours from Carnival masks, brazilian coloured M&M’s, their favourite Brazilian t-shirts, and bright coloured bean bags.

It was not a sunny day, but Little Oliver was soon hot after playing tag with his Mum and Dad, rap dancing, a little painting, and jumping into the bean bags. He is one busy boy, and I am so glad I had on my sneakers rather than a pair of high heels. I was able to capture his various acts, and a few quiet pictures, as well.

I am happy to share these images. Enjoy!

When Ana Laura suggested a photo session at the beach, joy bubbled up. A beach session was on my to-do list, but as we are an hour from the beach it was not easy to organise. Ana Laura and her family are from Mexico and have been living in Brazil for a year. One of their favourite activities to do as a family is to spend time at the beach, and they asked if we could have the session at the beach. My response…YES! Let’s go the beach!

“Costa Verde” has fantastic beaches, and a friend suggested Domingas Dias, as it is both beautiful and secluded. We met remarkably early at a local shipping centre and then caravanned down to the beach. We arrived before all the other beachgoers and enjoyed the beach to ourselves. The scenery was stunning, and it was such a pleasure to capture this delightful family. We planned a natural session, with the family enjoying time together and playing on the beach. The weather was incredible and provided us with lovely light. Everything conspired to create a stunning session, and I am happy to share these images. Enjoy!

Four years ago we moved to Brazil, and it has been the biggest challenge that I have faced. It has been an experience that has altogether changed me for the better, and each challenge has made me stronger. We arrived with 5 children and knowing all that I could learn from Rosetta Stone in 4 months (Hello, Goodbye and the cat is sitting on the table). I lost my bearings as nothing felt familiar. The simplest tasks like grocery shopping and going to the doctors caused anxiety and stress. I had no reference point, I couldn’t read the packaging to know if I was buying sugar or soap and it felt like I was spinning in circles for the first six months.

Thankfully, I met a group of english speaking Expats. The common element is english, but there are girls who come from Brazil, Argentina, Sweden, Germany, Kenya, France, Costa Rica, the U.S.A, and of course Australia. Each week, we  meet for coffee and a chat. I soon realised that what I felt was normal, and I began to breathe again. They helped me to find Drs, the best fruit markets, and many more everyday items. No question went unanswered and no-one ever made me feel uncomfortable for asking it. They gave much more than information. They opened up their hearts and welcomed my family. They hugged me when I was missing my family. They made me smile and enjoy the ride. I felt like I was part of a community again, and I now have lovely friends who live all over the world. Each week I look forward to the coffee, chat and the friendship.

After four years, I am no longer the newbie, and I get to give back to the newer Expats. I can see the same look that I had in my eyes, and remember that feeling. I know when to offer advice, a hug and, when to let them enjoy the experience.

Recently, friends on my facebook page asked me to critique images, and (finally) this is the link to my photography. Although I am still learning, I have more experience than others that are just starting out. I am using the same approach with my photography that I have learnt from my Expat coffee group. I welcome them with open arms, share my passion and offer practical advice that will help them to develop. No question is left unanswered. This is not a side of the photography business that I thought much about beforehand, but it is one that I love.

Next time there is a new Mum at the school gate, a new member in the local community or in your area of expertise, welcome them with open arms. It will change their experience…..big time!

Take care

Wow! 8 weeks just flew by and now we have completed our first ever ‘Telling my story” workshop. I enjoyed every minute and found the process so inspiring. I love that we can all look at the same subject but have different interpretation of what we see. We can all go to the same park and return with different images. As the saying goes, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” and this is so true in photography.

Over the last 8 weeks, we enjoyed getting to know our camera better, the settings on the camera, and when to use them.

We moved onto learning about aperture, shutter speed, ISO, and how we can use these settings to create interest in our images. We looked at composition techniques and how we can add impact to our photos. Lastly, we ventured out to a local park and captured images using all the new “rules”. We then looked at editing and how a few tweaks can add a  finishing touch to our photos.

I am happy to share with you that I will be holding another class, starting in August, 2012. The price is R$280 for the 8 week course. You need a camera ( preferably DLSR), 1 hour per week to attend class, and a small amount of  time to complete homework. An important part of the class is to submit images each week, which will be critiqued and discussed in class. There is no set theme for the submitted images, as you are learning to “tell your story” with your images.

If you are interested, please send me a message

Facebook page  https://www.facebook.com/image421

email: cindy@image421.com

Now, take a look at the images submitted by Linda and Leticia. Their commitment and attitude was just wonderful during our time together. Thank you!

This is the simplest trick in the book. It doesn’t involve upgrading your camera to the latest and greatest but it will have a huge impact on your photos.  Drum roll please……..the easiest way to improve your photos is to remove distractions. A distraction is any object, person or background that removes the viewers focus from the main subject in the image. Take away the mess in the background, remove the garbage bin full of trash. If it doesn’t add to the story, then don’t include it in your photo.

How do you remove the distractions:

1) Take the distractions out of the scene, if they can be physically removed.

2) Move the subject to a different position, so the distractions are no longer an issue.

3) Change your position from where you are taking the photo, so the distractions are no longer in the frame.

4) Fill the frame with the subject, and then the distractions are no longer an issue.

This week, I finished an eight week online workshop with https://www.facebook.com/pages/Finding-the-Light-Workshop/159966014084273. This workshop is about finding the natural light and using the light to your advantage. I have always been in love with natural light photography, and this course has fuelled my passion.

However, I struggled with this course. It was not the quality of the workshop, the course content, or the instructor, but with myself and my photography. Each week we had to submit two images; one straight out of the camera(SOOC) and one edited. Each week, it felt like the critique I received for my SOOC photo was “underexposed”.  I was not letting enough light into my camera and the sensor. Each week, I would use the histogram, use the metering, and check my display only to find it was underexposed once I downloaded the images to my computer. Talk about frustration!

Then, Mr Self-Doubt came and sat on my shoulder for a while. He helped me question my ability, he helped me compare my work to the other students, and compare their critiques to mine. I did not like his visit at all.

So yesterday, I gave myself the task of creating inspiration boards on my pinterest account http://pinterest.com/image421/. I wanted to see the images that appealed to me and what I instinctively liked, without pausing. It was a fascinating learning experience. When I look at the images on the boards, I can see what I like best……natural light, sun flare and warm colour!

I have two choices:

1) Continue to admire other photographers work but leave natural light photography to the experts.

2) Give Mr Self-Doubt the flick, and keep pursuing this area of photography that I love.

I said goodbye to Mr Self Doubt and I picked option 2. I know the direction that I want to take my images, and this course has helped me to clarify this. The struggle has helped me to develop, and I will be forever grateful for that.

And I will be forever grateful to my models and their endless patience….

Here, are some of my favourite “edited” images that I captured during the workshop….and hopefully next time I will be able to share the correctly exposed SOOC images 😉

My dear friend, Stefani, celebrated the arrival of a gorgeous baby boy in February.  To celebrate this little one’s first year, we are capturing him at birth, 3 mths, 6mths, 9mths, and 12mths. During the first year, our babies grow and change so much. By the end of the first year, it is hard to remember how small they were  when they first arrived. With the images, we are going to create a photo book to document all of his growth. This is a project I am very excited to share and be involved in. Enjoy!