Seniors 2010

Its about that time of year again. We're knocking on Springs door which means my calendar will start booking up with senior sessions again. I thought I would post some shots I did last week of Micheal.

Weatherford Car Show

After my photo shoot Saturday I took a look around the Car show that was in the parking lot.

In My Head

One of my favorite songs at the moment. I think this dude will be huge this year. After watching this video it's obvious to see Michael Jackson's influence.

Kara's Love Story

Someone on YouTube made a hilarious video about Cougar Kara & the infatuation she has for Casey. Besides the funny Kara antics, it's also all his Idol performance so far in one video.

The Edits #31

I wanted to give our readers an inside look at how much work/time photographers spend in creating that perfect end result. The days shooting a roll of film, processing & selling proofs are long gone since the digital age. Much more time is spent in post production, but the end results are way better. Being able to take my favorite shot then edit it 3 different ways is kinda cool until I look up & realize I've spent 2 hours editing one session. So, between shooting, downloading, saving, editing, saving again, posting, ordering, packaging, & figuring financial, we will have spent at least 5 hours on one client for a regular session.

Since I started this series with my kids I thought it would be appropriate to end it with them too. This is from the same sitting as before.

I had to brighten the image all around. I then added color contrast & saturation to enhance the leaves, brighten the eyes to bring out color, remove little boy bruises & cuts, reduce allergy circles around his eyes, & that's about it.

So you can tell on editing just one image I spent a good 5 to 10 minutes. Multiply that work times 25. Not all session/images need extreme work but much of the time it does.

We appreciate those who take the time to read our blog. It's something I enjoy putting together, & hopefully there's a little bit something for everyone. During this time of the year I have a little extra time to do regular blog updates, so check back regularly to see whats new.

Thanks again for stopping by,

Jake

Hometown Idol Advances

After seeing all 24 Idols do their thang this week, I have to say it's looking pretty good for our local guy Casey. All of us fellow Millsap grads. were on the edge of our seats Wednesday night to see how he would do. He didn't disappoint us or the judges with his cover of Brian Adams hit 'Heaven'. In fact if memory serves correctly, he is the only guy that got praise from all the judges even despite his distraction from Kara & Randy in the beginning. It seems that other top favorite Andrew 'Gokey' Garcia will be his only real competition along with female standout Crystal Bowersox. I really don't think I'm being partial just because he's local, because the buzz all over is that James has what it takes to make it far. It was neat to see his mom & brother B.C. (band member) in the audience who traveled to L.A. support Casey. His mom Debbie was quoted in the Democrat saying how she had traveled many miles to see her boys play & this was one "gig" she wouldn't miss. So many of the kids that make it to the show have great voices but don't have the stage presence. Then there are those like Casey, when it's obvious that they know the ropes & have been doing it for years. It's awesome to see it's all paying off now.

My 10 year old asked me as he pressed re-dial "dad, what does Casey get for all these 'points' we're giving him" I laugh......to be rich & famous. I've seen a few of my facebook friends post photos of the signs in Cool & Millsap congratulating him on the succcess. While in Sapcity yesterday I had to get my own.

I'm sure some of our blog readers couldn't care less about American Idol, or think it's a bit ridiculous for a 32 year old man to give updates. Under normal circumstances I couldn't agree more with that. However It's not everyday an average dude from Millsap gets this kind of attention by 30+ million viewers. So..... we will continue to support Casey w/ blog updates news & whatever it takes to help push him further.

Related Links:

Mineral Wells Index Article

American Idol Official Page

Seattle Times Article

Casey On iTunes

Local Idol

The Edits #30

I've been photographing these kiddos since the oldest was a newborn. It's great to watch the family grow & we appreciate their continued business.

I basically removed much of the color saturation & added a colored grunge overlay/border.

Added a lot of diffused glow & a feathered dark outer edge.

Using the same diffused glow I used an aged overlay that gave the image a warm tone.

Mason

I can't believe our nephew Mason is turning 2 next month. Here are just a few shots from his session at Holland Lake.

Vote Tonight

Ok, so tonight our local top 24 Idol contestant Casey James will take the stage for his first live TV performance. After the girls less than impressive performances last night, we are anxious to see how the guys will do. Even if you don't usually watch the show be sure to tune in the last 10 minutes when their phone numbers will be shown. Voting starts when the show ends at 9:00. Let's help Casey put Cool, Texas on the map!

UPDATE:

Did you know that you can download any of the Idol performances from iTunes? It looks like this weeks live performances will release on Friday the 26th. I believe when it gets to the top 10, each of the finalists will go into the studio & record a full length version of the single they perform on the show. Be sure to download Casey's first live AI performance of "Heaven" on iTunes.

In case you missed the show.

Related Links:

Mineral Wells Index Article

American Idol Official Page

Seattle Times Article

Casey On iTunes

Local Idol

Octo Nut Case

I was looking in youtube & came across this hilarious clip of Octo Mom. This is the first time I've ever seen/heard her speak & I hope it's the last time too! Crazy interview, I had to watch it twice.

The Edits #29

Basically I removed all the color.

Google Chrome For Facebook Users

I noticed something strange shortly after I booted up my desktop computer this morning. A message saying my PC had been infected with several viruses along with information boxes saying I needed to purchase virus protection starting at $40. I have Trend Micro AntiVirus on my computer, so why would I need to buy more? Less than a week ago my Dad called me saying his computer was giving him those same crazy messages. I immediately called the geeks at Best Buy to see what all this was about. Without seeing it he knew that it was definitely a virus & said NOT to purchase the advertised software. He explained that this virus would keep me from going online using 'internet explorer' browser. Luckily some time ago I had installed Mozella Firefox browser & was able to connect to the internet that way. This enabled him to remove the virus for me without me going to the store. It also saved me $50 too. Basically he said I got the virus from Facebook & the best way to keep from getting it again is to NOT use 'internet explorer' web browser. He said the best browser out is Google Chrome. I just thought I would pass along this info if you use FaceBook.

Speaking of........if you want to see the latest photo/blog updates you can be our friend on our Business Facebook Page.

The Edits #28

Ok so I cheated & gave this image lens flair. The sun just wasn't in the right spot to capture this effect, so I manually added it in using photoshop. I also added a lot of contrast & burned the edges quite a bit.

The Edits #27

I really liked this image, but the only problem it was a more overexposed than I thought it would be. A quick fix is to make it b&w or sepia then you can burn hot areas or darken the entire image & make it look ok. After I used this technique, I added an aged overlay to give it even more character.

Funny News

The Edits #26

Using the same subject & technique as #25, I pushed up the contrast to add detail. Using photoshop a added even more contrast to tracks. If you look you will also notice I removed the telephone poles & electrical box in the edited photo.

The Edits #25

Edits Include: Added contrast, color saturation & cropped.

It's amazing by just adding contrast & color saturation how different you image will look.

Same photo but I simply cropped vertical & manually applied antique (sepia) effect.

One Ancient Path Products

My Aunt & cousins recently started a business you should check out.

One Ancient Path

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Lotions
Lip Balms
Books, Cd's, DVD's
Healing Salves, & Tinctures
Accessories
Candles
Gift Baskets

We were given some of their natural products at Christmas & really like them.
Take a look at their online store at: http://www.oneancientpath.com/

Millsap In The News

News cameras were in my home town of Millsap last week. Fox News was at the High School getting footage & interviews to show where Casey James grew up & attended school. It's a pretty big deal for this kind of attention in such a small town & hopefully this won't be the last time cameras will be here. If you don't watch Idol, this is the year to start....Vote Casey!



I was finally able to locate the video footage in case you missed it.

The Edits #24

click images to enlarge

Edits Include: Offset crop, added a lot of contrast, saturation & diffused glow. I also removed her shoe that was showing above her head. I just felt it was a little distracting.

The Edits #23

click to enlarge images


Edits Include: Added contrast & diffused glow to entire image. I then added a grunge image overlay & name.

Cool!

Cool, Weatherford & Mineral Wells all got a mention on last nights Idol when Casey James was asked about his hometown. Throughout the audition process James has impressed the judges with his blues rock style & not to mention Kara's "extra feelings" about his looks. Casey did his cowboy-cool singer-songwriter thing with a cover of Colbie Caillat's "Bubbly." Next week America will begin calling in their votes for their favorite Idol contestant. Having never voted myself I believe there's a first time for everything. This will also be a "fun" task my 10 year old will like to partake in......REDIAL....Casey James has all us locals pulling for him in the title for this years American Idol winner.

In case you missed last night





I was reading my friend's Face Book status yesterday, I saw a mobile upload photo that caught my attention. It was a pic of her with Casey taken Tuesday in Mineral Wells. He was obviously in town visiting family etc. & she grabbed a quick autograph & pic. If he continues to do well & make it through, this may be his last visit home until the end of the show. It would be awesome if the next time any of us see Casey is for a huge hometown finale welcome. Let see if we can all vote Casey to the end.

Past Idol Blog Links:
Feb. 10, 2010 Casey Move On
Feb. 2, 2010 Local Idol Hopeful