Shelter Love!

When I accepted my new job I had to stop my dog walking shifts (on Monday and Tuesday afternoons) at the shelter. But I am so happy that they have other areas that I can help out in. I will be training in as an Adoption Counselor, helping make the best matches for the animals and potential families. Although it will be less contact with the amazing puppies/dogs that I have come to enjoy, I am excited to get to see the happy moments when those animals get a new forever home :)

In addition to being an Adoption Counselor, I will also be practicing my photo skills as a shelter photographer! I will be getting to photograph some of the animals that are available for adoption and the pics will be upload on Petfinder and on the shelter's website and facebook page!

Last weekend was my 1st weekend photographing the animals and I got some great feedback and warm fuzzies from the staff :) 

Arabella 

Elsie 

Riley

Ripley

Trixie 

(haha I love her angry face, she really was a sweet heart)

Still working on the photo-housing site, but when it's ready, I'll link up :)

Enjoy!

Toot Toot

Ok I'm going to toot my own horn a little here. Over the past month I feel I have grown sooo very much in the way of photography.

1st ~ I have read 20+ online articles that have helped to add fuel to my "foto-fire". I say 20+ because I have gotten thru half of some and also continued clicking related links on others that I honestly have no idea exactly how many articles I've read, but I've bookmarked over 20 as read and still have 8 online articles in the folder I had to create called "finish reading" haha! And I say "add fuel" because my new-found passion for photography hasn't been extinguished by any means, I am just normal and have life events/happenings that come up and take precedence, but these articles (that I can enjoy from the comfort of my own comfy couch in my comfy sweats) have helped build the fire back up.

2nd ~ I made the leap to shooting in full Manual Mode! I know eek! I was super nervous that it was going to be waaay over my head but after practicing in Shutter Priority and Aperture modes since last summer I feel like I had 2/3 of the basic concepts pretty much figured out and it truly was not as hard as I was building it up to be (that's a little push for anyone who reads this to just try it out), I still wasn't (and am not) a genius at this but I also...

3rd ~ FINALLY completed Level 3 photo class at National Camera! So happy I did this! The instructor (who is amazing and taught my Level 1 & 2 classes) confirmed what I thought I was doing correctly WAS correct (yeah me!), clarified concepts that I just wasn't getting, reminded me of concepts that I had forgotten to implement from the other levels (hello forgotten gray card) and taught new concepts that I was captivated by. Sooo wishing there was a Level 4, not sure what would be taught, but I would go (and yes, I wrote that on the comment card).

4th ~ after talking to a dear foto-friend who is also in love with photography but year(s) ahead of me in figuring out this whole Manual Mode thing I was also pushed to move from only shooting in JPEG to shooting in RAW+JPEG and actually using the software (I already have) to process and correct the RAW photos. BIG EEK! I think I was more nervous for this than I was for moving to M-mode. But I thought to myself "just go for it, it's not like you're a professional and will mess up pics for someone else" or so I thought....

5th (and final, I promise) ~ I got together this week with Matt's aunt (Shannon) at her store...to take product photos! I felt the need to remind her multiple times that I am by no means a professional and that this is technically my first photo shoot (outside of my kitchen). Shannon and her business partner didn't seem to mind or be worried about how the pics would turn out...but being the Type-A Perfectionist that I naturally am I took my "job" very seriously and really truly did try to put to use all the knowledge I have learned to get some good photos for them. So yep, I not only shot in full M-mode, but also RAW+JPEG, used a top-mounted flash with a diffuser, created my own "stage" area, totally used by tripod, AAAAAND processed the RAW pics! I can not believe how some of them turned out, yes there are some that are still not that great and some (that I forwarded on to my dear foto-friend for honest critique) that I am still surprised with when I see and can't help but think "wow Laura, MAJOR improvements!"

So there we go, a little toot-toot for myself! I say go ahead toot your own horn, because sometimes no one else knows you need a little tooting ;)

And to show some examples of what I did last Wednesday:

My foto-friend and I also talked about labeling our pics with our names (hence the "by Laura Shaleen") and I am putting together a different area/site to host all my pictures like these as I want to keep this blog a personal-blog and a separate site as reference for my pics. It's not finished but when it is, I'll link it up here so anyone can check it out.

(remember everyone loves comments...especially this toot-happy lady)

Finding Fun

Yesterday I had one of the best days I've had over these past 11 weeks. It started off by FINALLY getting together with my husband's aunt (Shannon) at her store to practice my photography skills. We started talking about this BEFORE Christmas and today we finally both had some free time. Well I packed up my equipment and headed out.

Once there it took awhile to get going because we weren't really sure where to start. But I suggested they (Shannon and her business partner) start picking out items they wanted photos of by artists they wanted to feature as I got set up.

Fast-forward 5 hours later I was exhausted, my back hurt, and my eyes were sore...I was done. By no means did I photograph everything they have (they have a billion items in their store) but I got a pretty good sample of items.

I was so excited to get to practice somewhere other than my kitchen with objects other than our dishes, pillows, foods, etc that I absolutely did NOT expect any sort of payment. So I was completely surprised and thankful when those ladies not only bought me lunch (an amazing club sandwich with extra thick and crispy kettle chips) but allowed me to choose a piece of copper jewelry! WOW! Here's a sneak peak of what I chose (the cuff on the right):

I will be spending time over the next couple days to sort thru all 236 photos and edit the best. I'll post more when I get thru some but I was just so excited by all the fun I had yesterday and by my amazing bracelet that I just couldn't wait :)

Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeease

The folks over at Prop Insanity are having a last minute, end of 2011 $100 giveaway so go check them out

and if I win (which I really really hope I do so that I can keep growing my photography skills) I will definitely talk about what I get! :)

Twist on Pinterest idea

So it's no surprise that I'm obsessed with Pinterest. I've talked about it many, many times. Well one of my boards, called "Puppy Love", is all about anything related to pets & canines. This board is where I store ideas, interesting products, techniques, or just adorable puppy pictures.

Well one idea I came across is from Bark Buckle Up which promotes safe traveling with your pets. One product that they offer is this Pet Safety Kit which includes: pet's emergency info, emergency contacts, shots/vaccine records, vet info, and a current pic of your pet. The idea is to create this In Case of Emergency (ICE) card/packet to keep in your car in the event you are in an accident with your pet in the vehicle.

GENIUS!!!

I can't believe I NEVER thought to have emergency info for our pets on hand. I mean it totally makes sense, if we're in an accident where either of us (the humans) can't communicate what to do with our pets it's a great idea to have it all written down somewhere so it becomes one less thing to worry about.

Well having the "I can totally make this" mindset...that's exactly what I decided to do. So I picked out a recent picture of each of the dogs and went to work adding all the info I thought would be necessary. Plus if either is ever lost (God forbid!) these could quickly be printed off.

So there you have it, for the price of 2 pictures printed, copies of their latest vet vaccines, & one envelope to keep it all in I have my own Pet Emergency Packet!

Happy 3rd Birthday!!!

Today is my sweet sweet baby Hank's 3rd birthday! My how the time has flown!

We brought Hank into our lives in May 2009 when he was 5 months old and I didn't realize it then, but he was sooo little!

May 20th, 2009 ~ 35 lbs

And the latest pic (taken today) with his new winter coat, which was a great birthday gift and fits him perfectly!

December 20th, 2011 ~ 78 lbs

He is one of the sweetest, friendliest, kiss-iest, protective dogs that tries so very hard to please us. Yes, we've had our trials (but that comes with any dog) but I wouldn't trade him for anything and can't imagine not having him in our lives. So I want to say a big "thank you" to Hank for being an amazing addition to our little family and providing us with so much unconditional love and unending amusement. You are a very "good dog"!

Holiday Happiness

(Warning: this is going to be a long post)

I so love getting all fancy-fied and what better reason than a holiday party??? So for some inspiration I turned to a really fun website (which I've mentioned before) Polyvore and like other boards everything included here is under $50...even the dress!

The Left Side: contains some items that are a little more "traditional" (I use that term loosely) by incorporating red, green, and gold. Take your favorite LBD (because what woman doesn't feel sexy in a LBD???) and add some fun, furry boots or some bright Christmas-red heels and your favorite standout gold jewelry.

The Right Side: for that woman who wants to feel glitzy but doesn't want to rock the red and green so the alternative...pick a jewel tone! I personally LOVE LOVE LOVE purple. So again, take the same LBD throw on a super adorable pair of glittery pumps and then add your jewel tone items.

Key Take-Aways:
~Wear hosiery (tights or nylons) because not only does it look adorable, but it's super functional, will keep you just a little warmer, and cover up those winter-pale legs. But remember, if your shoes are fancy, keep your hose toned down and vise-versa if you are wearing your favorite (plain) black pumps, feel free to wear polka dots, fish nets, or even lace prints.

~Paint your nails! Get a good polish (in a color that you love) that advertises that 1 coat does the trick. And here's a secret that I do, get completely ready: dressed, hair, makeup, shoes, coat, AND get in the car (I ask hubs to drive) and before we drive away, paint your nails. If you get a fast drying polish, before you get to your destination your nails will be dry and in perfect "just-stepped-out-of-the-salon" manicure.

~To feel INSTANTLY glamorous and pulled together wear false lashes! I know they can seem intimidating, but seriously get a pair that are supposed to be worn more than once and a few days before the party PRACTICE. This way you won't feel rushed or panicked that you're going to mess up and end up saying "forget it". If you can put on eyeliner you can wear false lashes!

~Wear lipstick! Even if you're nervous and not really a "lipstick kind of girl"...wear lipstick! You will look sooo much more pulled together and your face will photograph better if you have color on it. But...

~Choose ONE facial feature to feature. Choose your eyes OR your lips to enhance. DO NOT DO BOTH! Trust me, you may think it looks "fun" for a party but you will look too made up and at some point regret it. So either do the smokey eye and a pale lip OR bold lips and minimal eye color.

Another great thing I love about this style board is that it provides a variety of outfit options if you are so lucky to have multiple engagements this holiday season. And because you are wearing a simple LBD no one is going to say "hey, didn't you wear that zebra stripe dress to last Saturday's party???" :) And because I always pick out my "wish product" from the boards, today's is the LBD. It's perfect and a great price and you know what????

I bought it!!! :) I'll have to write about it when it come in.

Holiday Happiness by lauramegan featuring a gold necklace

I love my friends

So this past Sunday morning one of my very dear friends and former college roommate called to say that her husband was sick and that they were at Urgent Care. Sad, I know, well the reason for her call was so much more than that...they had tickets to the Zac Brown Band concert that night and he wasn't going to go soooooooo she wanted to know if I wanted to go with her...ummm YES PLEASE!

We (me and hubs and her and her hubs) saw ZBB a while ago and it was an amazing concert where they played for for about 4 hours! So to say that I was excited is a little understated. (I did feel a little bad talking about it that day because hubs loves ZBB also and I think he was a little jealous, but then again there was only 1 extra ticket).

And although cameras were not allowed in the venue, I was determined to get some pictures and thought of ways to get my little Canon SD940 IS in with me...hmmm well lets just say that because it's chilly outside I had to bring mittens in my purse hehe :) Well here are some of the pics my little camera got me