30-Days: Meet Autumn

The lovely Autumn works at my absolute favorite place to buy fruit.  

I loved her shirt today, and she seemed nice, so was hoping she's say yes when I asked if I could take her photo.

And she did!  YAY!

The kids were in the car, so I couldn't take time to get to know her at all, but she was really sweet.  And now when I go buy fruit, I'll know someone who works there!

So thanks, Autumn, for being a part of my project.  I'll wave and say hi next time I'm in to buy peaches.  :)

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30 Days Day 1--Whew!

Inspired by Caroline at Constantly Evolving, I decided to finally try a 30-Day portrait project.  I love taking photos of people--LOVE IT.  But I needed to give myself a bit of a boost--a reason to start carrying my camera around everywhere I go again after the 365 project a couple of years ago.  I wanted to stretch myself, improve my skills, and meet interesting people in the community.  I should have started at the beginning of August, but frankly I was a chicken.  Bawk.

Those of you who know me know that although I'm a-ok with clients and friends and can be goofy and friendly with people I know or who have asked me to take their picture, I'm pretty reserved otherwise.  The idea of going up to complete strangers and asking to take their photo scared me.  Scares me.  Knees knocking.  Sweats.  Face turning red.  Oh yeah.  It's not a pretty picture.

But since I told everyone on Facebook last week that I was going to do this, what could be done?  So away I went.

First to the fire station, but nobody was around.  Dang.  Then to Central Park downtown, where I took a photo of the fountain while trying to build up the nerve to talk to a group of old guys commiserating.  They were great guys--friendly and funny with great laugh lines built through years of living--but they didn't want to get their photos done.  They were seniors, and when I mentioned "blog," they didn't want anything to do with that newfangled stuff!  But they were fun to meet.

Then I drove around scoping people, feeling a bit like a stalker, I'm afraid.  Then thought I'd go take a photo of the Incline Plane operator.  But he was looking pretty busy.

So then, last ditch effort, back to the firehall.

And someone came up the stairs!!  YAY!  Told me to head downstairs, and one of the guys for sure wouldn't mind.  My legs were shaking so much that I thought I'd probably fall down the stairs, and rather than getting their photos done, they'd be giving ME first aid.  I suppose there are worse places to break something.  But thankfully, all went well, the guys went along with the idea, and I was able to get the first photos of the project.

So meet Randy and Dave.  Who saved the first day and perhaps the whole shebang.

Here they are looking oh so serious.

And one with the shades, coz it just had to be done!  Decided to process it kinda cool and grainy.

Thanks guys!  You made my day!

~~~~~

**If you'd like a low-res copy of your image(s) for your Facebook profile, please like www.facebook.com/allegriaimagesbylynn and let me know. To order prints, please contact me at allegriaimages@gmail.com**

Yes, I'm going out to take a photo of a stranger to start my 30-Day Portrait Project, but before I go do that, I had to post this photo of the sun starting to go down on our picnic the other day.  Such a great time with Meryl's Aunt Betty and all of those cousins!  The chicken was great!  Just a note, though--don't go in the water ANYWHERE but the roped off swimming area.  Even though the lake is huge and, for someone used to being able to swim in a lake that has tons of fishing, safe--I guess that's against the rules...

But at least I had fun with the kids and Belle in the water long before the ranger showed up.  

:P

OK.  Here's the shot.  Loving the sun flare.  

*sigh of photographic blissfulness*  

The Lovely Kaeli

I JUMPED at the chance to photograph Kaeli.  No wonder.  Just look at those eyes!

We chased light all over town.  Yeah.  You can tell when the light was good and when it was painful, can't you?  Luckily, the train kind of lent itself to the starkness of the higher light.  Had a great time!  This girl is so full of fun.  Super intelligent, witty, and gorgeous.  A killer combination.  Her parents are probably beating away the boys!  

Once again, I'm crazy about the black and whites.  Is there something wrong with me?

I won't be able to think about these field shots without thinking about her grandmother worrying about snakes!! She was good, though, and held it together until long after the shoot, when she probably allowed herself a good, long, anxiety attack.  HA!

Can I say again how beautiful this girl is, inside and out?  Indeed.  

Alyssa

Meet Alyssa!  She's my Forest Hills Ambassador this year.

It was really too hot to take photos--almost 100 degrees--but she was a sport and away we went to get some images for her rep cards.

Alyssa loves art and reading.   Since I can't draw a stick, I'm pretty impressed!

OK, OK.  Here's one colour one.  Just because I love ya!  See?  She's just as beautiful in colour.  :)  Just wait until we do the rest of her shoot--in a sunflower field when the flowers are out.  I can HARDLY wait!  

Thanks so much for hanging out with me in the heat, Alyssa!

Let's Go Do The Hop

So.  The other evening I'm sitting in the living room when something goes flying onto the table.  "Did you throw something?" I ask Meryl.  "Nope."  Then the cat jumps down and acts all interested in something under the coffee table.  I didn't pay much attention.

About half an hour later, HOP!!  Onto the table jumped a huge grasshopper.  When I went anywhere near him to catch him, he'd jump away.  And every single time it startled me and I'll let out a screech and a giggle.  Yes, it's true.  And I'm not too ashamed to admit it.

He had Meryl and I jumping and hopping after him all over the living room, until finally he hopped behind the sofa and that was it.

Cue the next afternoon when:

"MOOOOM!!  *giggle giggle laugh* There's the grasshopper!"

Obviously too tired and probably hungry to complain, he let us catch him and put him on the porch, where he hung out for awhile, crawling on Adam, and the walls and windoww ledges, until finally disappearing.

I love his colors, don't you?

And he was STRONG.  I still can't believe how high he could jump!

And how such a little guy made me jump nearly as high!

Oy.

Gotta love nature!

Dell Demise Contest

Although I have felt like doing this to my Dell laptop many times since purchasing it four years ago, I refrained.  I really did.  I have struggled with it, been frusterated with Dell customer "service," and generally fought with the thing for ages.  About a year ago, I accidentally tipped it off the table, and some of the plastic cracked at the bottom of the screen.  So I duct taped it together, and it worked.  As well as it ever had. 

But on Saturday morning, I tried to turn it on, and it wouldn't.  And I noticed that there was a hunk of twisted metal and broken plastic in the same place where it had been damaged by me.  Upon questioning, I was told it had gotten "bumped, Mommy."  I know that it wouldn't have taken much, so I'm not going to blame the kids, really.

And that was that.  Much of it had been backed up, and Best Buy (bless 'em, they were open on Saturday) backed up the remainder.  But the computer is toast.

Thanks to a generous and much loved anonymous sponser, I will be receiving the computer of my dreams tomorrow. I hear he has a penchant for apples  And I'm thrilled at the possibility of not struggling with a PC.  Or Dell.  Again.

But I think this old computer needs a proper sendoff, don't you?

Some suggestions have been to give the kids a hammer and nails and tell them to go for it.  To drop it into the ocean as part of an artificial reef.  To bring it to the rifle range and have a go at it.  Dynamite.  Car crusher.  You get the picture!

So I'm going to have a contest.  As long as I get enough entries, that is--so share away.  The more entries the merrier!

So make your suggestion below as to what you think would be appropriate after the ...well, you know...that this computer has put me through over the years.  Then we'll put it to a vote through a handy dandy form doohicky or do a random pick (I'll have to figure out the technical aspects of both, since I'm a newbie in the forms and contests department) and the winner will have their suggestion videotaped.  The only real rule is that is has to be something that is possible without putting any dollars into it on my end.  So the ocean, for example, although a great idea probably wouldn't work well in our landlocked situation.

My husband thinks that bringing it to a range and teaching me to shoot, strictly for this purpose, would be the best.  He may be right, but I want to hear what YOU have to say about it first!

Contest closes Tomorrow July 18 at midnight EST.  It's our anniversary, and Meryl and I will both find your responses a fun addition to our day.

So have at it!!!