Federal Way Symphony Garden Tour

A garden tour is a wonderful diversion - spending the day outdoors, the treasure hunt of finding the gardens, viewing a variety of horticultural creations, gathering ideas for our own garden, and meeting other garden enthusiasts.

The Federal Way Symphony 10th Annual Garden Tour took place July 18, featuring seven private gardens in the Federal Way and Des Moines area.

My slideshow of garden tour images may be viewed on my website in the Image Gallery, Featured Sessions or via this link: FW Symphony Garden Tour.

Kurnik Family

We photographed the Kurnik family while their daughter was home from college. and we had a nice evening for the session at Brown's Point Lighthouse.

Commercial job

This image was shot for Puget Sound Skills Center for use as their new poster and other marketing pieces. My daughter attends PSSC, Digipen Academy, so I was excited to work on the project and help promote the school. My goal was to create an edgy, dynamic image that would be attractive to potential program applicants. The models are all actual students, representing 14 different programs offered at the school, and they did a great job depicting their chosen fields. Click on the image to see it much bigger.

Mariah's 6 month session

Mariah came in a bit late for her 6 month session, but it worked out fine for her, and we captured lots of cute portraits. Her complete session slideshow is available on my website. Thanks to Grandma for bringing her to the studio!

Maternity model wanted

Looking for a pregnant woman who will be 7-8 months along in August, to model for an upcoming photography class. Free portraits in exchange for modeling. Please email or call if interested.

Mt. Rainier

Grandma Betty from ND is visiting and had never been up to Mt. Rainier, so last Friday we ventured forth. It was a beautiful, warm day and it was quite busy with many other visitors opting to do the same. Fortunately, we entered the park on the west side, because Stevens Canyon Road is closed for repairs due to winter damage.

Gorgeous views, warm sunshine, sweet scented flowers, twittering birds, followed by burgers and blackberry pie - 'twas a feast for all the senses.

Welcome Preston

Preston was very alert for his first portrait session at 6 days old. I love how he's looking directly into the camera in this image with mom and dad.

They selected these images for his birth announcement cards.

Photo makeover

My cousin posted on Facebook a photograph she had taken of a rose. With her permission, I offered some suggestions on how the image could be improved. I thought this might be helpful to others too, so am posting it here. Here's Tracey's original rose photo.

My initial observations: First, the rose is too centered, like a bullseye, which is a static composition. You want to lead the eye thru the image, coming to rest upon the subject of interest. Imagine your canvas divided in thirds, horizontally and vertically. Where the lines intersect is where to place the subject. Since we read from left to right, ideally you want to place the subject to the right, so the eye travels thru the image and stops there.

Introducing diagonals into the image creates leading lines and adds energy to the image. Tracey had a bit of a diagonal in the stem of the rose, but she can go further by tilting the camera when shooting, so the stem emerges from the bottom corner of the image.

The background is very busy, since all the leaves are in focus. Emphasize the center of interest by shooting with a wider open aperture and/or a longer lens, which will defocus the background.

I'd pump up the saturation and contrast to make the image really pop.

Compositional rule of thirds diagram for subject placement:Here's the image after saturation and contrast adjustments and some retouching. I found the highlights on the leaves to be distracting. Any lighter areas of an image will draw the eye. So I toned those down by cloning a darker green over those spots. There was a withered petal and other browned spots on the rose and foliage that I cleaned up because they were also distracting.

Here's the image with some blur added to the background to make the rose a more prominent center of interest. Ideally, this is better achieved by shooting with a shallow depth of field and/or longer focal length lens.

Here's the final image, cropped for closer, diagonal composition, and with a darker edge vignette added. Keep in mind that the image isn't as sharp here as it normally would be, since I was working from a low res image lifted from the web, then re-uploaded to blogger.

Cute hats

While in Lynden last weekend for my nephew's graduation, I stopped by the Heritage Festival. Jo Kaseter of Me and Mom's Hats had a booth crammed full of the cutest hats in many styles and colors. These would be perfect for baby and childrens's portraits. You can visit her store at Pike Place Market or order online at her website http://www.seattlehats.com/

Maternity wrap up

Becca and Chris welcomed baby Preston a bit early, and I'm looking forward to photographing his newborn session next week. Here's a couple from their maternity session. Becca has the best cheekbones! She's wearing one of my wrap tops, which took a couple tries to achieve the right look with the wrapping, but we got it done and she looks beautiful.

Memorial Day!

Remembering those who have served our country, and thanks to all who continue to do so. Have a great memorial day!

New Logo

After many years of the old logo, it was time for a makeover. I love what the designer came up with, but have been waiting to deplete my stock of materials before I started using the new one. What do you think?

Happy Mother's Day!

Mother, mom, mommy, momma, mama, ma, mammy, mummy, mum, mumsy, madre, mater, mutter, mere, makuahine. Blessings to all mom's out there for the love, time, energy and sacrifices bestowed upon us.

HS Senior Graduation announcements

Evergreen Lutheran High School Senior Portraits

I've got exciting new backgrounds and I'm looking forward to the creative possibilities with them. I was anxiously awaiting one to arrive for Garrett's senior portrait session with his guitar, but it didn't show up until 8pm that night. The background I used instead worked really well for the look I envisioned. Here's a sneak peak of one of the images that I tweaked with some extra artistic techniques.

Happy Easter!

Senior Feedback

I love creating beautiful portraits for my clients, and I so appreciate it when they take the time to send a note about how much they love theirs. I'll be the first to tell you that my portraits aren't the cheapest available out there. Quality custom portraiture is not cheap, and it's nice when people "get it".

Thanks to Lauren G for the feedback:

Why did you choose Colleen for your senior portraits?
I was dissatisfied with the photographers all of the girls in my school chose. So, I decided to research a couple of seattle & regional photographers. I immediately fell in love with Colleen's style. Her pictures were flawless and exactly what I was looking for.
What did you like about Colleen’s photography that you didn’t see in portraits done elsewhere?
Other than being flawless in lighting, composition, and final touch ups, they are sophisticated, classic, & a touch edgy.
What did you like about your session with Colleen?
Colleen had pictures in her head before you stood in front of the camera. She knew great poses, lighting, and props. Though most importantly, she made me feel at home and relaxed.
Anything you would do differently?
Order more!
What you like best about your portraits:
They're beautiful and original. I have received so many compliments, especially from my crush! ;) Thanks Colleen!
Friends and family reaction:
They are in awe!
Advice for upcoming seniors about their portraits:
Relax! Photographs are art!
Thoughts on the entire experience of working with Colleen:
It was fantastic and I am so pleased with the pictures I have.

First Day of Spring!

Yay, spring is here! All the rain we've been having should encourage the garden to reawaken. I'm anxious to see what plants survived the winter we had, and am so ready for sunshine and warmth.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

An Old Irish Blessing
May love and laughter light your days, and warm your heart and home. May good and faithful friends be yours, wherever you may roam. May peace and plenty bless your world with joy that long endures. May all life's passing seasons bring the best to you and yours!

Newborn announcement and gallery

This is the birth announcement I created from the previously posted newborn session. Also, their selected favorites are now available to view in the Featured Sessions of my website Image Gallery. Shaelyn