Disneyland!

I normally don't take my good camera to Disneyland but this trip I decided I wanted to. I regretted it 5 minutes into the park when Beckham tried to "help" me unhook it in the bathroom and it crashed on the floor (my lens was a little jumpy when it focused but it still works - thank goodness).

When I saw these pictures though I was so glad I took it!

(balloon photos compliments of my Dad)

While my Mom was sick I had plans to get a babysitter one night and go back to Disneyland and practice shooting. I never got the chance but Disneyland is the perfect place for taking pictures!

I also eat my words that Fantasmic is WAY better than world of color. Don't get me wrong - I still prefer Fantasmic...but seeing World of Color from the front makes a huge difference! It was awesome.

Bye Bye boring Belagio fountains!

Bye Bye Baby... Hello Big boy!

Someone pinch me please.
He is SO cute!

Reflections

Caleb wanted to enter the Reflections PTA contest in the Photography category. The theme this year is "Together we can". Here is his picture and his artists statement.

I wanted to build a town with my Geo Trax Train to show people working together and I wanted to build it with my brother Davis. We can work together too.

My Mom let me use her camera and I took lots of pictures of our town from lots of different ways. I liked this one the best because it looks like the girl is waiting for the train.

By Caleb Henderson

I'm pretty proud of him. That's a pretty rockin' picture! For the record I really did walk away and left him with my camera. He took about 200 pictures and then told me he was done and I put the card in and found a lot of good pictures. He really loves photography and he really has a talent for it!

All Done!

I have stayed up a lot lately trying to figure out my whole photography name/website.
Like A LOT of mental energy.

• Would I still like the name Sweet Pea Photography in a year or so?
  
• What domain name I should try to get that was easy to remember since all the ones that I wanted were taken or like $2400 a year.
• What type of template should I use?
  
• Did I want to have someone do it and then have to rely on them when I needed to change something

I kept going back and forth. Then I found out that blogger now has pages that can be added. I was so happy. I really like blogger and I feel like there are enough people doing back end things on it that information is easy to find.

In the middle of the night one night I decided to use my lisahendersonphotography.blogspot.com and mess with the format and HTML myself. I also decided to just use Lisa Henderson Photography as my name and use a sweet pea as my logo. I did buy the domain name lisahendersonphotography.net and will have my blogger forward there after I sit down with Scott and figure out the one little hitch with it right now.

Ive spent the last week or so working hard and learning a lot but its all done (for now) and I'm really proud of it. It was no small feat (for a computer illiterate like myself) and made me use new programs like Photoshop Illustrator and new HTML hacks that I hadn't done before. I also designed business cards and am ordering them today.

There is still a lot I want to do and features I want to add that I am going to have to research but for now I feel a great sense of relief!

If you have some time go check it out here!

I got a job...

Well, I actually have 4 now.

• Apartment Manager to 1 house
• Part time photographer
• I babysit a friends little kiddos about once a month when she has work meetings
• And now I work for my friend Lynnette and for Janey Mac

I'm pretty excited about this one. First off it will be more steady. I think between 5-10 hours a week. Its really flexible and I can work from home most of the time. I'm also going to be able to do some really creative things like find blogs to advertise on and do product reviews and giveaways. I will also be putting a catalog together so Janey Mac can go wholesale. Taking inventory and weeding vinyl and other little jobs. Its exciting.

There is a part of me that's sad because I feel like I have to work. Things are just a little too tight that there isn't a lot of extra money each week. Don't get me wrong we are fine but we are tight and its getting hard to be tight for so long. Our tax return was such a blessing and we have been able to do a lot of things we have been waiting for. But week to week, we just need a little bit more money. Its for all the activities like karate, gymnastics, preschool, tee ball...Are they necessary, No. But they are important to me. I'm committed to only working in the mornings before my kiddos get up. I know that its going to be hard but I think I need something to get me more disciplined about mornings so this will work out good.

I feel really blessed that I get to work for someone I like, on my own time, and to really be creative. I'm also really glad that all of my experience with Photoshop will be helpful and it wont be as hard to learn Illustrator (at least I'm hoping). Plus Lynnette is really talented and her vinyl business is different and unique from most of what you see. I love her look and am excited to be apart of it.

Long term I hope to be doing Photography as my part time job and have that support us in the extra money we need but for now this is going to be such a blessing. Speaking of Photography I changed my mind about my Photography name...a girl can do that right!?!

I really like the name The Vintage Image but it doesn't sound like the kind of photography I want to specialise in, which is kids and family outdoors. It would be too long of a story to really explain the whole thing but I think I'm going to change the name to Sweet Pea Photography. I love it. I reminds me of my Grandma Irene and summers at Lake Cavanaugh. Still trying to get the whole domain name thing worked out but Ive been thinking about it for a few days and it feels right.

Its funny how life doesn't turn out the way we expect but at the same time it feels so right. I keep waiting for life to settle down but I'm starting to think that just isn't life, or at least my life with small children and juggling all of my responsibilities.

I feel renewed though. In my purpose, in my focus, and in my home. Not sure how long it will last but today I am grateful for it!

No biggie

We just dropped $1000 on electronics in our home. For some people that may not seem like a big deal but for non-techies like John and I its huge!

Our new computer is nice and fast and I love it. Still trying to get all my old files onto it and then I will be up and running. We are so lucky to have family and friends who are willing to share their computer skills with us.

Our phones work, well one of them at least. Our modem works, and we bought 2 DVD players. A cheap kiddo one and a new Clearplay.

Now I have working USBs and that means I can upload pictures to our computer...YEA!!!!

Did I mention that I got a new lens for my Camera. Its awesome. Here is my favorite picture I have taken so far with it...

My current photography class only has 1 week left. I am taking a hands on Saturday class in 2 weeks and then I am taking a portraits class for 4 weeks after that. I love it and its helping me so much, especially with my confidence.

Well, that a really boring update but hey that's life!

My B-I-G announcement came on a bad day

Today, I was so excited to reveal to you something that I have been giddy about and worked hard on. It just came on a bad day. You see today I felt like my photography came under some criticism from a friend.

I felt like I had been punched. I wanted to disappear.

I later expressed my feelings, they apologized and told me how they really hadn't meant it the way it had come out. All the hurt feelings are put aside and over tonight.

I think the hardest part about everything, from starting my first photo shoot to today is putting myself out there.

You see photography is a leap for me. I don't like people to see me improve at something. Its a hard process for me to be that vulnerable. Ive put my neck out on the line and jumped in with both feet. Its been hard!

SO HARD!

Thank you to everyone who has been so supportive of me. You have no idea how much it has made a difference to just keep putting one foot in front of the other. To keep trying, keep learning. My first class starts a week from Thursday and I am so excited!

I have some amazing friends. One particular friend did something so nice for me that I still can hardly believe it. He builds websites and he helped me start one. He helped me buy a domain name and with his wife's help I came up with a name and logo.

Thank you so much Scott and Pam!

So here it is my friends; my B-I-G announcement

The Vintage Image
(Click on the words above to see my site)

Baby Larsen

I got to take pictures for my friend Mary of her little tiny baby...like 4 pounds smaller than my Beckham and I loved the way they turned out.

Go check them out here!

Have I mentioned that I'm going CrAzY! I have been doing photo shoots like mad which is great but its busy. Not to mention its the holidays, next week we are going on vacation, I have 2 more photo shoots, I am babysitting for 3 days before we leave, I'm trying to plan a birthday party, finish up gifts, keep up on the house and laundry, be a good wife, and try to be a nice Mom somewhere in there!

One little week and we will be "home" for Christmas.

One little week and we get to go to Disneyland and Sea World.

One little week we get to be with our Families.

One little week and I will get to rest!

One little week and my boy will be 6 years old...

Where is the time going?

Nic & Steph

We spent the weekend in Vegas celebrating Johns brother Nic's wedding. I had so much fun taking pictures...Im having a hard time not ignoring everything to work on them...here is a sneak peek!









I really need to figure out how to make my pictures even bigger....

Updated: Ohhhh! Don't they look so much better BIG! Many thanks to Vanessa at V and co for showing me how! If you haven't been to her blog...GO! Shes great!

Uncle Bada is getting married...

Johns brother Nic lived with us for a year and Caleb came up with the nickname "bada." We haven't got a clue from where but he just got engaged and I got to take their pictures! Go check them out on my photography blog if you are interested!

Trying to be brave...

I started a blog to put the pictures Im taking on...
See over----->

My first photo shoot

Okay so I did my first photo shoot of my good friend Mandys sweet baby. It was so scary for me! I love to develop new talents but I prefer to do it where no one can see until I'm good at it. So this whole practicing photography makes me very uncomfortable. Some of the pictures turned out great and some of them...well I learned how NOT to take that shot.
These were some of my favorites....
Thanks Mandy for letting me experiment on you and many thanks to Kekoa who was perfect and slept the whole time and let me pose him however I wanted without waking up!

As uncomfortable as it is to practice I need lots more, so please let me know if you would be willing to let me practice on you! Its free and I will give you a disk of the pics I take.

I really want to do families, not just newborns!

New camera + New baby= LOTS OF FUN!

Oh...and Photoshop of course!