The sun was shining, the trees were blossoming, and we had a few hours of free time last weekend, so I dragged Big Brother to the local schoolyard for a project I’ve really wanted to do for a long time: a day in the life of a boy photo shoot.
My kids generally groan and make bad faces when I pull out the camera and start taking pictures, especially if I announce, “Today, we are going to put on nice clothes and take family photos!”
So instead, I wanted to capture them in the natural environment — playing ball, riding bikes, just being boys. Turns out I only got one of my boys to go along, but it actually made for some better images.
I just finished an online class with Clickin’ Moms, learning the basics of editing and organizing photos with Adobe Lightroom. I did the follow-along version, which costs only $150, as opposed to the full-version, which costs $300 and allows participants to upload their photos and receive critiques from the teacher and classmates.
I spent about an hour shooting these pictures. And not much more editing — which was a tremendous improvement over my old software, which required applying changes to each image, individually.
Big Brother was a good sport about it all. But after a while, boys will be boys…
Clickin’ Moms gave me a free trial membership to their online community. I was not compensated by ClickinMoms or Adobe for this post. Affiliate links are included. All the opinions expressed are my own.
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Grace Hwang Lynch
How to Stir Fry, According to My Mom
I confess, I over crowd my wok with meat because I'm too lazy to cook
Photography: A Lesson in Shutter Speed
I personally LOVE the panning shots because it really does capture the
Adel
Grace, what a great idea. I love the shots you captured. I totally understand the whole groaning and complaining you receive when you pull the camera out. Happens in my house too ;)
I too am taking a CM workshop as a study-along right. Shooting 201 – Beyond the basics. We are in our final week and man I’ve learned A LOT! Do excited to practice! :)
By the way, glad you got LR! Is it LR4? Trying to decide if I should upgrade….
Adel
Grace
Thanks, Adel. It was fun! While a lot of people talk about correcting anything and everything digitally, I still find it easier to get it right in the camera whenever possible. Of course, with active kids, that’s not always possible!
I’m sure you’re getting a lot of great ideas from Shooting 201. Can’t wait to see your images.
And no, I haven’t upgraded to LR4 yet. Debating whether to go ahead and take the plunge now, before I get used to LR3 and have to teach an old dog new tricks ;)
Aisha G of HartlynKids
Really nice photography. I enjoyed this post.
Grace
Thanks, Aisha!
Lucy
Sweet! I grew up with a house full of brothers ~ I miss those bike-riding days!
Virginia Kahler-Anderson, aka HomeRearedChef
OH, Grace, what a contract between the 3rd and 4th photo. In two shots there he showed us two very different moods. But what a cutie he is! :)
A very simple post but so very lovely.
~Virginia
Lisa
Great sharp photos. I’ve wanted to take a class of theirs for a while, but just haven’t had the $$. Glad you learned something from it :)
Grace
Thank you, Lisa! ARe you a member of Clickin’ Moms? Let me know your username so I can find you. I’m HapaMama. If you aren’t already a member and want to join, I’d appreciate it if you join through the links in my post ;)