5 years ago today my life changed forever….

My first child, Lillian Ruth, came into this world at 10:38 pm, weighing 8lbs 14oz.

From the beginning, Lilly was an easy going and joyful child..

Other than the normal “baby” stuff, she had such a happy temperament, we couldn’t believe we were so lucky to have such a wonderful little girl.

As she grew, so did her personality.

Always quick to laugh, cry, love.. she’s a sensitive and passionate child, who always thinks of others and tries to make sure everyone is “okay”.

Watching her grow has been an amazing journey, not only in the miracle of life and how a child evolves into a person, but a journey of learning about MYSELF as a woman, mother, wife, and person.

I’ve learned about who I am, what my goals are, what I want to pass down to my children.

I’ve learned that I’m NOT perfect, and I Never will be, no matter how hard I try.

But that’s okay, because I’ve got this beautiful little girl that loves me, no matter what I do, or how many times I fall down.

I’ve learned that what you THINK is important, probably doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. And that blowing off work to snuggle with your kids is probably the most important thing, anyway.

I’ve learned that there really IS wonderful things everywhere you look, you just have to pay attention to what you’re seeing.

I’ve learned that sometimes the simplest things are pretty hilarious

I’ve realized that the most important thing I’ll ever accomplish is standing right in front of me…

I’ve re-learned how to believe in myself, because I’ve got “special powers”

And I’ve learned that if the world could just chill out and spend a bit more time dreaming and loving.. we’d be so much better off.

I know this whole post is a bit sappy/corny, but it’s the truth. I cannot imagine my life without my Lilly Bug. She’s been the motivation on this entire journey of photography, and has allowed me to fulfill my dreams in a way I never knew possible.

She’s a passionate, caring, sensitive, intelligent, hilarious little girl. I know every mom says it, but she really is the perfect kid. I could not ask for a better daughter/big sister.

When I really stop and think about it, I have to thank God that I was given the chance to be her mother. To be able to watch such a miracle grow is something I’m truly thankful for. I know she will be a world changer, because she’s already changed so many people’s lives just by being her simple, beautiful self.

Happy 5th Birthday Lilly! Mommy, Daddy and Katie Love you with all our hearts!

Lilly has her last soccer game tomorrow, and unfortunately I won’t be able to attend because I’ll be shooting a wedding all day. I was able to shoot some pics with the huge ole 70-200mm lens on Tuesday though (rented for the wedding).

Action shooting is so different from portrait shooting, especially with that big lens! You have to track the action and try to guess where the focus will need to be. Not very easy!

Funny thing about this year for Lilly’s soccer. Sam actually signed her up as being already 5 years old (born in 2002), so she’s in a league above where she should be. I suspected something was wrong when the first time we showed up for practice and all the kids were about a foot taller than her! But she was having fun and keeping up with them, so we figured why not!

She’s done really well, and has a great time, so next year she’ll be even more prepared.

The only problem, though is that she sometimes gets lost in a “moment”.. Like here where she assured me that if you put your hands up to your eyes they work just like binoculours and she could see just as far as my big camera lens did.  (as you can see she’s missed the ball behind her )

She does a great job of running and keeping up with the other kids though:

What Katie does most of the time, when she’s not “pretending” to run out on the field and laughing maniacally:

So tomorrow Lilly gets to have a PIZZA PARTY and then hand out invitations to her birthday party. Her first one that she’s actually inviting her friends to. I’ve got to get on the ball and get that all planned next week (wish me luck, I’m SO not a hostess).

I’ll have some wedding shots to share tomorrow hopefully. Have a great weekend!

Ashley has picked a winner.. the winner of the action set is…………..

Comment #44.. Gail! Please email ashley at ashley@ashleymcnamara.com to claim your prize!

Thanks everyone who commented, Ashley was surprised at how many comments there were (though I’m not, as her work is certainly worthy of all the great comments!)

If you want more Ashley, visit her here:

Flickr Stream

And Ashley has been VERY generous and if you mention the phaunt blog you can get your VERY OWN Ashley Actions for only $35.. that’s $10 off!!

Yes, I know I help you guys spend your money, but I always get you good deals, right?

Name: Ashley McNamara

Location: Sunny San Diego

How long have you been doing photography?

About 5yrs but in business 3

3 words that describe your style?

fresh.modern.fun

What is your best tip for those getting into photography/photography business?

Photography is 90% business 10% talent..make sure you have your business side down! It took me awhile to get that.

Favorite Photoshop Tip/Tool?

My favorite photoshop tool is the patch tool patching under eye circles and then fading them back 50%

Tell us a little bit about your photoshop actions.

My actions are actions that I use on my own photos, I use them on every single photo. I created them to save some time and have gotten a lot of emails over the last few years asking if I was going to sell them and I never ever intended to. Finally this year I started working on making the actions useful for everyone because my actions were truly for me and the way that I shoot once streamlining them  was done I had a few dozen people test them..including your own Miss Kylie and decided to finally take the leap and release them. I am really excited/nervous and I hope everyone who has them is having tons of fun!

http://www.ashleymcnamara.com/articles/2008/04/23/photoshop-action-set-ashley-mcnamara-san-diego-photographer/

**phaunt note: I personally tested these actions and give them the phaunt seal of approval. There’s a few really cool tricks in them that I wish I had thought of myself!**

What’s in your bag?

40D, 30D, 50MM 1.4, 50MM 1.8, 24-70 2.8, 70-200 2.8, 15MM FISHEYE

If you were stuck on a deserted island with only one book to read for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Harry Potter!

Quick! A wild boar is running towards you, intent on destruction.. do you

A. Run like Heck in the other direction

B. Grab a stick and prepare for battle

C. Do some super secret ninja flips to get to safety

D. Other (fill in the blank)

Ninja, BABY!

Favorite photography related product under $100.

50MM 1.8

Visit Ashley!

  Website——- www.ashleymcnamara.com

Blog ———–  www.ashleymcnamara.com/articles

Actions ————- http://www.ashleymcnamara.com/articles/2008/04/23/photoshop-action-set-ashley-mcnamara-san-diego-photographer/

And because I always hook you guys up with fun stuff, Ashley is going to be giving away one action set to a lucky phaunt blog reader! Just leave her a comment here and she will pick a random winner in the next few days.

Ever have those days where things just seem too much to handle and you can’t juggle all the roles in your life properly? I’m having one of those. As most of you know, on top of being a photographer/photoshop geek, I’m a wife and mom of 2:

Lilly, who will turn 5 next Monday

And my feisty little Katherine Grace, who is now 20 months old:

I started photography like many of you did, with a desire and passion first for capturing my own children, that quickly evolved into a love of the art of portrait photography. The photoshop side of it came along with it hand in hand. I’ve learned so much about myself these last few years, about my motivations, what makes me happy, what the most important things are in life, and also how much I can achieve if I put my mind to it.

One thing I have a hard time balancing though, is that Mom and Professional role. Since the beginning of January I’ve been working in an actual “office” for at least a few hours a day. It’s been great to be able to go to work and BE AT WORK instead of having to be distracted. But I also miss being able to jump out of the home office and snuggle with the girls, or grab a quick nap. I also have missed being involved with the minute to minute day to day things.

I guess it’s a matter of “The grass is always greener”.. Where if you’re a self employed Work out of the Home Stay at home Mom (would that acronym be SEWOTHSAHM? ).. you long for the ability to get a project done without being interrupted every 2 seconds. And if you’re a working professional you long for the ability to take naps with your kids and be involved in every day things. I’m currently trying to do both, and sometimes feel like I’m hardly doing either very well.

I guess what this whole post is about is just that I’m really appreciative to MY mom who did both for a long time, and did them both very well. It’s not easy to be a Mom and work at the same time, no matter if it’s working outside the home, or running a home based business. As mothers we know that the most important thing is to put our family first, but when you’re self employed it’s hard to step away from the business that becomes a big part of your identity at times.

Anyway, just my Monday Musings, wanted to offer support/encouragement to those of you I know are in the same situation. I sometimes look at my messy house and unfolded laundry and want to just throw in the towel on everything, but then I get a wonderful email from a photography client, or someone who has watched a tutorial and FINALLY gotten something in Photoshop, and I realize why I do this.

I am a Mom, I am a Photographer, I am a Photoshop geek, I am an entrepreneur, I am a wife, I’m all those things, and I’m learning how to make them all work together. I’m making mistakes, but I know that I’ll work it all out in the end.

So if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed, take heart. I know it’s hard, especially when you’re trying to learn a million things at once. Take things one step at a time. Get some people to chat with and bounce ideas off of. Take a step back and look at your family. They are the reason you started doing this, and in the end, they’re the ones that will be there for you to pick you up when you fall down. Forget about the approval of the “others”, just focus on your own journey and the goals YOU set for yourself.

Anyway, got a bit off track there.. had a Hallelujah soap box moment.

Tomorrow I’ll be posting an interview with someone I think is super rad, so don’t miss it!

Oh, and a pic of Kate and I that Lilly took. Excuse the Sunday Morning hair and no makeup, Lilly made me promise I’d post it in the “Wep Site”.

Have a great week!

I thought it would be fun to share images/shots of random things that I see every day. Hope to share a few times a month at least. I’m sure you’re all dying to know what my life is like. So very exciting, I promise! I’m a total jet-setter party-type.. Hollywood has nothing on me!…..If you count Soccer games and photoshop and diaper duty as hip, that is!

So the first taste of “phaunt life” is something I see daily on my drive to work. A field where 3 or so goats hang out and graze, for some reason has an old van that they’ve commandeered and now sleep in/on and attack at times. Lilly thinks that it’s hilarious when they get on top of the van, usually towards the end of the day, I think probably it’s been warmed by the sun all day and they’re just warming their bums? Who knows.. But it makes an interesting picture:

I only had time to take a few pics because people were driving by and trying to figure out what the heck I was taking pictures of goats for. Always funny to see people look from you to what you’re taking pictures of and see the confusion on their face as they’re trying to figure out why in the world that’s worthy of a picture!

One of the questions I get constantly is what is the “right” settings for web sharpening.

Well, the reality is, there is none! Sharpening is a pretty varied practice (as is EVERYTHING in Photoshop) and if you have a method that works for you, then stick with it! Just be willing to try different things and change up the routine. The best practice is to use some different methods depending on the photo you’re sharpening. Some photos have hard edges (like buildings or very contrasting colors) and can “soak up” more sharpening than a portrait can. You will need to make your sharpening decision based on what is in your image.

The basics of web sharpening are simple, however. I’m going to keep this to using the USM since many readers may not have Smart Sharpen available (only in later versions of PS).

One very simple method of sharpening is to sharpen when you resize your image! When resizing your image you’ll have a few different options. To do a quick sharpen simply check “Resample Image” and switch to “Bicubic Sharper”.

Many times this is all the sharpening you’ll need.

If this isn’t enough, there’s a few different things you can try in the USM box.

Unsharpen Mask is found under the Filters-Sharpen Menu and looks like this:

The way the Unsharp Mask filter works is really to increase the contrast between adjacent pixels in your image. The result makes your image appear sharper.

AMOUNT Slider changes the increase in the contrast of the pixels. The higher the percentage, the higher the contrast between the pixels will be.

RADIUS Slider changes the width of the “band” of sharpening around the object. Pulling the radios very high will make halos appear in your image. (Though you can do a pretty cool effect if you pull it all the way up. Try it!) The greater the radius value, the wider the edge effects. And the wider the edge effects, the more obvious the sharpening.

THRESHOLD Slider is where you tell Photoshop how to differenciate what is an “edge”. Set too low, EVERYTHING will be considered an edge, and noise may be sharpened too much. Set too high and no sharpening will appear to have been done.

For a WEBSIZED image the basic settings that *I* follow are usually:

High Sharpening:

Amount: 110%

Radius: 1.0

Threshold: 0

Medium Sharpening:

Amount: 110%

Radius: .5

Threshold: 0

Low Sharpening:

Amount: 70%

Radius: .5

Threshold: 0

You can easily change these amounts to suit your photo!

Another “trick” that I sometimes use is to apply the high amount of sharpening and then immediately go to Edit-Fade Unsharp Mask and change the opacity of the USM to fit the photo.

*note, some people also use this to change the mode to Luminosity to avoid any color shifts when sharpening*

The last method that I use sometimes is to do a 3 pass USM that does a small USM filter 3 times successively. Sometimes this really helps to “tease out” some sharpness that isn’t appearing with the normal websharpen.

Often times a quick USM is all it takes to make a photo POP for web viewing.

Here’s a quick set of websharpening actions that have a High, Medium, Low and 3 pass method.

DOWNLOAD IT HERE

And hey.. Leave me a comment.. I like to know if you’ve been here.

Till Next time! Have a great Weekend!

Totally random blog post, but my husband, brother and I just finished watching the movie Short Circuit. I haven’t seen this movie since I was a kid, I vividly remember watching it and thinking it was the COOLEST movie in the entire world. The greatest thing about watching it again though was all the awesome lines that I missed as a kid because I had no clue what they were talking about. A few of my favorites:

Farmer’s wife: I hope you took the grass out of the glove compartment.

Ben Jabituya: I am thinking she is a virgin. Or at least she used to be.

Ben Jabituya: With excitement like this, who is needing enemas?

Number 5: Well, if you gotta go, don’t squeeze the Charmin.

I vaguely remember Short Circuit 2, but not the specifics.. I’ll have to watch that one next. So I had to google it, and found out they may be making a remake of it! Link

So watching this movie reminded me of how I had the BIGGEST crush on Steve Guttenburg. I remember watching Three Men and a Baby multiple times because I thought he was sooooooooo cute. I mean look at him:
Steve

But my FAVORITE movie of his was Don’t Tell her it’s Me:

I watched that movie hundreds of times. Every time I’d get sick and stay home from school my mom would rent it from the grocery store for me. I had the entire thing memorized. I had a VHS tape of it but after moving a few times we’ve lost it. So I found it on Amazon, apparently it’s under a new name now: The Boyfriend School.

Why? I have no idea. But now I’ve gotta order it.

Now I’m on a sentimental movie kick.. I’ll have to make a list of all the oldies and get them ordered on Netflix.

Well, just have to say THANK YOU to everyone who wished phaunt a happy birthday.. I really appreciate it. It’s amazing that this blog/adventure only started a year ago and I’ve made SO many friends and done so much in the last 365 days. I never imagined how it would grow, honestly. I thought maybe I’d make a few bucks and have some fun, but who knew I’d be meeting and getting to know people from all over the world?

I love you all.. you make my job so much fun.. so thank YOU for commenting, reading, linking, emailing, and using the actions/tutorials. I hope as phaunt continues to grow and change that I never lose sight of the people that have been with me from the beginning; my family and YOU. So if you ever see me being silly, just slap me upside the head and tell me to knock it off

Oh yeah, a winner.. forgot about that!

Well, I really hate picking winners as I wish I could give everyone something. But the grand prize winner is………..

Comment #45.. Laura Carlson!! Congrats Laura

Email me at info@phaunt.com to claim your prize!

And if you didn’t already, be sure to sign up on the newsletter, I’m going to be starting a new photoshop tip of the week that you can get in your inbox.. quick tips to help your post processing.. may even include an action or two that only the newsletter readers get

And also, I’m going to be changing up the blog a bit. It’s come a time for me to combine my “jobs”.. Did you know I have more than one? Not only am I an uber photoshop geek, I also am a photographer! I’ve been neglecting my photography blog for far too long, so I’m going to integrate my photography blogging into the phaunt blog. I’m a simple kind of person so want to keep it neat and easy (easy being the key word).

So I bought the Professional Photographers Theme  and I’ll be installing that in the next week or so. Wish me luck, I usually have Kim T do this kind of stuff for me but she’s booked right now so I’ll have to give it a go myself!

Oh.. and since I’m proofing these right now I wanted to share one.. Cute little newborn I got to shoot on Saturday.

I know I Missed yesterday, it was my husbands birthday, and well, I just plain forgot about posting!!

So I figured I should post something really good for you all today.. How about 30.. yes

THIRTY free actions

Happy Birthday Phaunt Readers!!

I put a pack together of most of the ones I’ve given away on the blog at various times. You may have some of these, you may not. Either way, there should be something fun in there to play with.

I’m being lazy and not putting it in the store today, so just download it:

HERE

And… there’s more.. one person will win EVERYTHING in the phaunt store. How do you win it? Just Link people to the phaunt Birthday Give away. Send em here to download their goodies!

Post the link, Leave me a comment here, and I’ll pick one winner from the comments! That simple. It’s not a matter of who sends the most people from their link, it’s just spreading the word so everyone can snag the bday present.

I’ll announce the winner on Monday. Remember, you have to post the link somewhere AND post a comment or I’ll have no idea you did it!

Happy birthday Phaunt, Thanks for making this year a great one

Have a great weekend everyone!