Secrets of Better Photography

I recently signed up for an online photography course and I am loving it! I have learned so much and I can't wait to start practicing some of the things that I am learning. I'm only half way through this course but I've already signed up for another course. This course is called Secrets of Better Photography and it focuses on a variety of areas. So far the lessons have been about equipment, film, lighting, exposure options, and portraiture. I'm really looking forward to the next lesson which is on children and pet photography.

Although, I'm loving the course and learning so much, I've found it difficult to get out and take pictures lately. I did manage to snap a few pics to use some of the techniques I've learned but I really need to start taking more pictures. I'm going to make the effort to get out every day and take some pictures. The assignment for the portraiture lesson requires me to find someone who is willing to let me take their picture so I'm on the hunt for a willing subject. If no one is interested, I suppose Cory will just have to have his portrait taking!

Here are a couple of pics that I have taken since I've started this course. They aren't very exciting but I was keeping it simple while practicing various techniques.

Road Trip

This morning I flew out of bed to the sound of my alarm. It's amazing how much it startles me when my alarm goes on in the morning because I so seldom have to actually set it. I often have to remind myself as to why I would have been so silly to set the alarm in the first place but this morning I quickly remembered that we were going on a road trip today.

Cory is gone golfing with the boys for 4 days. They are in Humboldt for the annual Saskatchewan Provincial Police Golf Championship. Cameron and I dropped Cory off yesterday morning and we then proceeded into Yorkton to pick up a few things. However, today we had a bigger road trip planned. We had some problems with our home theatre system and it had to go back to Best Buy to be sent away for repairs and they called last week to say that it was fixed...which thus required a road trip to Regina. Since Cory was going to be away for a few days, I decided it would be good for Cameron and I to get out of the house for a day while he was gone...we sometimes get a little tired of each other when it's just the two of us for days on end.

I invited my friend Amie and her sweet little baby Rylee (who just so happened to have turned 7 months old today) to come along for the day. Amie was also looking forward to getting out of the house for the day. We left Sturgis around 9am and made it to Regina shortly before noon. We decided we better have lunch before we did anything else. We decided on Applebees and it was pretty good. I've eaten there a couple of times before and today's lunch wasn't quite as good as what I've had there before but no big deal. Cameron refused to eat his lunch (it's in a container in our fridge now) and Rylee was a perfect little girl.

After lunch we headed for Best Buy to pick up our home theatre package. It is in a huge box that weighs at least a 100 pounds so two young gentlemen that work at the store were kind enough to put it in the truck for me. We then ventured next door to Winners and Homesense. Amie was on the hunt for a couple of pictures/art work but didn't have any luck. We both ended up just buying a toy for the kids. We discussed doing some more shopping but we both decided we didn't really need anything. I also figured I didn't need to spend any money when I should be saving for our Florida vacation that is fast approaching.

We left Regina at 2pm and arrived in Sturgis just before 5pm. However, we did make a quick pit stop in Fort Qu'Appelle at the Dairy Queen. The DQ in Yorkton is closed due to flood damage so we decided we should get our fix on the way home. We were lucky and didn't have any crazy weather to drive in...no thunderstorms, rain, hail, etc. Cameron wasn't an angel today but he wasn't horrible either...he just likes to push my buttons some days. Rylee was a little angel though and slept most of the way to Regina and most of the way back to Sturgis.

All in all it was a good day and it was great have some company for our little road trip. We'll have to do it again some time. Now it's time to relax for the evening. Cameron's watching a movie and I may put in a movie for myself after he goes to bed.

PEI Vacation - Part 3

I didn't spend my entire vacation on PEI. There was a road trip to Halifax, NS after Cory returned to SK. Myself, Cameron, my mom and my aunt Mae went on a little roadie to Halifax to visit our great friends, Lori and Wayne. We went to NS on a Thursday and came back on Saturday. We did a little shopping, toured the Halifax waterfront, had some good eats and most importantly, spent some time with Lori and Wayne. It was a great little trip!

Wedding number 3 took place on July 17th, which was when one of my dearest friends from high school got married. Krista and Marc have been together for 10 years and finally tied the knot. They live in New Hampshire so we don't got to see each other too often but we are all still great friends. My mom was my date for their wedding and we had a fantastic time. It was one of the most amazing weddings I've ever been too...even better than our wedding! The work that they (Krista) put into the wedding to make it so special and personalized was unbelievable. I am so happy for this wonderful couple. I just wish we didn't live so far away from them :(

Some other highlights of our vacation include:
~ A few trips to the movie theatre...I went to see Shrek Forever After, Toy Story 3, Grown Ups, Eclipse, and Despicable Me...can you tell I miss having a movie theatre so close to where I live?
~ I got my hair colored and cut TWICE by my favorite hair stylist who I actually trust that she knows what she's doing with my hair.
~ Canada Day fireworks...Cory's done a decent job with the backyard fireworks the past two years but these were much better.
~ Cow's Ice Cream...oh so yummy, and Cameron couldn't finish his so I couldn't let it go to waste.
~ Meeting two new little babies...Olivia Margaret Stanley and Aiden Andrew Smith.
~ A second trip to Shining Waters on a very, very hot day.
~ Getting to spend time with family and friends...although, as usual the time went so fast and I didn't get to see everyone as much as I had hoped.

That pretty much sums up our PEI Vacation for 2010. Again, I'm sure there was lots more that happened but that's all your getting! Now we're gearing up for our next vacation which will be in just a little of 2 months...Florida here we come!!!