365 Project | Day 127 - 137 | Seattle Portrait Photographer

I admit I'm having a little trouble keeping up with this :).  Not in taking the photos - I'm seeing so much photo-worthy content around me - but getting the photos posted on the blog!

These were taken between May 6th and yesterday the 17th.  I've steered away from the kids and my normal content a little this time around and focused more on patterns, shadows, and drama.  I've always loved abstract patterns.  Patterns are all around us if you look hard enough, especially with the addition of bright sunlight and shadows we've had lately in Seattle.  I've also added more drama through motion, lighting and textures.

I'd love to hear what your favorites are.  Enjoy!

Day 127 - we got the sidewalk chalk out - warm, sunny days are here (for now)!

Day 128 - my morning run - taken with the iPhone :)

Day 129 - lilacs in bloom at Penguin Park.  We picked some for Teacher Appreciation Week.  I loved the three distinct changes in this photo.

Day 130 - Another project this Spring is cleaning out the house.  I can't believe how much stuff we've held onto since the kids were born.  Part of my project was donating several of Ella's baby dolls.  In my quest to round them up, I found MY old baby doll my mom kept for me.  Ella doesn't play with her much but she has some sentimental value to me.  She's very vintage and beat up, so I played up that vibe in a "Chucky" type of way but I'm very pleased with the result.

Day 131 - I was asked to take some photos of Isaac's school building for their website and Facebook page. I decided to take a few inside since its a fantastic old brick building with lots of interesting details.  I loved the shadows and patterns in this composition.

Day 132 - Isaac and I took a walk on the Burke Gilman Trail, a 10-minute walk from our house.  I wish I knew this cat's name, because every time I am on the trail he's there relaxing on his post watching the numerous bikers, runners and walkers go by.

Day 133 - Mother's Day!  Ella drew this cute picture of her and I on her gift bag.  I thought it was so sweet!

Day 134 - Another project we have going on is an upcoming deck remodel (yay)!  Our deck is literally rotting and scary to walk on.  As you can see by Tim's demo, we don't have to worry much longer (except for falling, of course).  You'll see more photos of this project (hopefully) soon.

Day 135 - Ella noticed the pear was smiling at us - literally!

Day 136 - I caught the morning sunlight coming through our vertical blinds.  The cars add a nice bit of interest.

Day 137 - yesterday.  The kids enjoyed big glasses of fruit punch (their grandpa's favorite drink) then really enjoyed the side-effects!

Happy shooting until next time!

365 Project | Day 118 - 126 | Seattle Portrait Photographer

Hello on this fine Monday afternoon!  I have some more great photos to share with you from April 27th through last Saturday, May 5th, Cinco de Mayo {no I don't actually have a Cinco de Mayo photo for you, nor a super moon photo - both of which i was contemplating on doing}.  As I'm writing this, I'm trying to remember what's been happening in our lives lately besides, t-ball, swim lessons,  volunteering, a school-auction, play dates, and work.  April 27th already seems like so long ago to me, and I guess that's enough happening in one week!

Day 118 - let's see - since the weather has made a turn for the better here in Seattle I've been trying to walk Ella to the bus stop more often.  This day I was admiring several dogwood trees blooming in the neighborhood, all with pretty morning lighting falling on them.

Day 119 - bath time after a t-ball game!  Bath time together is quite rare for these guys now as they a) end up fighting, or b) will start looking at each other's bottoms and acting vulgar.  However, this day we had one bath-bomb left to share and we couldn't resist some bubble play :)

Day 120 - I hate dandelions, but absolutely love the symmetry and delicate features of the weed.  I had several "models" to pick from in our back yard for this photo-op.  Dandelions 1 - Hildebrand's 0.

Day 121 - it was sunny and windy today.  I suggested running around outside with the cape to get some windy shots.  This photo doesn't show the wind, but look at that moment of pure bliss & happiness!  Love it!

Day 122 - Ella loves to collect flower petals.  We decided to throw some in the air for a little spontaneity.  Love how it turned out and I'll be using this in other photo sessions.

Day 123 - my rhubarb is growing like crazy.  I love the look of it, especially with the light/shadow play in this photo.  Now if I can just get the rest of my garden planted.

Day 124 - rainy day = game day in our house.  I set-up the remote to get some shuffle action but I needed to use an even slower shutter speed.

Day 125 - regular ol' lunch time with Isaac and I.  Love the raspberry prop though - I'll have to use this one again too :)

Day 126 - Cinco de Mayo.  We went down to Pacific Raceways, the amateur race track in Kent, WA to watch a friend race.  Both kids got to sit in his sweet Brabham race car before the races started.  Isaac was on cloud 9, but what really makes this photo is Ella!  I'll post a few more photos later - I did some panning shots of the race cars that turned out pretty cool.

Look for another post next week!

365 Project | Day 110 - 117 | Seattle Portrait Photographer

So much fun, so little time!  That's something I wish I could always write to describe my week.  It definitely was in this series of 365 photos, taken from April 19 - 26th.  Well, at least the first half.

The kids were out of school for spring break so we took a little family vacation to the Hood Canal the latter part of the week.  We stayed in a little town called Lilliwaup, about 5 minutes away from Hoodsport, the gateway to the Olympic mountains.  We took a ferry over and drove a little over an hour to get there.  We were right on the water and took advantage of the low tides.  The last two days were gorgeous, with 70 degree weather and calm water.  We touched star fish the size of dinner plates, went clamming, played games, relaxed in the hot tub, and observed our little friend, a baby seal whom Ella promptly named Spotty.  Can you guess why?  If you've never been over there, I strongly recommend going.  You'll have a great time!

The rest of the photos are from life back at home, which you'll hear about below.

Day 110 - Ella enjoying the ferry ride to Southworth, WA.

Day 111 - it was raining cats and dogs outside.  I know, very cliche to say, but true (btw - did you see the latest Office episode regarding this very thing?  Hilarious!)  Anyway, Isaac was working on a puzzle by the big front window (yes, beautiful light) and he was whistling.  Well, have you ever tried whistling when you're smiling?  Its pretty hard to do.  Isaac and I have this little inside joke when we try to whistle and smile, but this time I caught it on camera.  Had to post the series because its so cute!

Day 112 - Tim and I were up late hanging out.  This was our view out the window at 11:30pm.

Day 113 - Spotty paying us a visit on our last day.  I'll be posting more of these on my other blog shortly.

Day 114 - no, not on vacation anymore :).  Back home, and I'm dealing with my lifetime love/hate relationship with my hair and decided to capture its essence with a self-portrait.  I was looking forward to getting it cut the next day.

Day 115 - Isaac and Ella re-discovered the Cars stash on this rainy day.

Day 116- cherry blossom bouquet held by my beautiful girl

Day 117 - I met up with some photographer friends at the Roozengaarde tulip farm in Mount Vernon, WA.  Its absolutely gorgeous right now--if you have time, go check it out!  I'll be posting more of these photos on my other blog so be sure to check it out.

Happy shooting until next week,
Kim

365 Project | Day 102 - 109 | Seattle Portrait Photographer

I see I'm really getting in a rut here.  This project is tough - especially trying to take some time to creatively plan then execute an image you have in your head.  Many days I don't feel I have time!!  I do feel like I'm constantly looking around me during the situations I'm in each day too "find" the photo.  It may be bordering on obsession though.  I'm looking at the light falling on the kids and various objects I see; I'm looking for cool patterns or backdrops, or something interesting and out of the ordinary while going through my soccer mom routine each day.  Some days I do much better than others!  I'm looking forward to some new inspiration these next few days when we take a little vacation to the Hood Canal.

These photos are from April 11th - 18th.

Day 102 - my mermaid

Day 103 - i love bamboo.  I love the lime green color and the strong lines of the stalk and delicate shapes of the leaves.  It makes me happy.

Day 104 - I made a trip to IKEA and finally got the kids a bunked.  We got it set up and they were reveling in their newly acquired play space in their room.

Day 105 - i woke up to this view out the window

Day 106 - the kids started their spring break.  Among the many activities we're doing, we made time for pedicures.

Day 107- you may recall from the last post, Ella was asked by our neighbor to take care of their chickens while they're out of town.  Ella loved it and was really serious about making sure we did everything the job required: letting them out to roam for a bit, re-stocking the feed and water, cleaning the hen house if necessary, providing the chickens with a little treat, and of course, collecting the eggs.

Day 107.2 - her favorite thing to do was picking up Buttercup.  Getting the hens back in their house proved to be very interesting for us!!  It involved a lot of chasing and laughing.

Day 108 - alone in a crowd

Day 109 - this is an instance where I saw something I wanted to compose when seeing the shadow of the tree but I couldn't quite get it in the camera.  Its still somewhat cool though....

365 Project | Day 91 - 101 | Seattle Portrait Photographer

Hello and happy hump day!  I've made it to the 100 day mark of my 365 project!  Woo hoo!

What a few fun-filled weeks.  We've been enjoying the nice weather around here by picking flowers, riding bikes, playing t-ball, hunting for Easter eggs, and feeding our neighbor's chickens.  This really gets me in the mood for summertime and all the fun activities ahead.

Day 91- we finally re-filled our bird feeders and are enjoying the new visitors

Day 92 - had to take a photo of this today, as Playmobile horses are a major staple in our home.  There's not a day that goes by without Ella playing {and neighing} with them :)

Day 93 - This was the kid's first t-ball game.  Isaac was so serious about chasing after the ball when playing defense.  I love that he turned his hat around- he means business.

Day 94 - I took this at Matthew's Beach Park by our house.  It was a clear, crisp morning and the light was gorgeous.  You can see the Cascade mountains in the background and Lake Washington in the foreground.

Day 95 - the kids picked spring flowers this afternoon and of course we had to make a little bouquet.

Day 96 - Hail!?!  I decided to slow down my shutter speed to get the trajectories of the hail.  I love how it turned out - especially with the bonus splashes of water from the impact.  BTW - disregard the ugly rail - we're going to tear our deck down this year.  I'm sure you'll see pictures of it sometime.

Day 97 - Ella LOVES animals!  We were hanging out at our neighbor's house and Ella asked if she could hold Buttercup.  Apparently Buttercup doesn't mind.  Ella was thrilled and so proud of herself :)  We get to babysit Buttercup and her two other siblings over Spring Break.

Day 98 - We were gearing up for Easter.  I gave the kids the task of getting their Easter baskets out of storage, and Ella came upstairs with these cute vintage statues I had growing up.  I love them and had totally forgotten about them.  I really appreciate that my mom kept them.

Day 99 - EASTER!  We had a beautiful, sunny, dry Easter this year!  The kids and I must have hid the eggs at least 8 times.  They really got into it, although Isaac was mad Ella could find them so fast.

Day 100!! - Our pear trees are blooming in the front yard.  I took this in the late afternoon with my Lensbaby macro lens.

Day 101 - I decided to do another self-portrait, since its been a few months and I wanted to try out a remote I recently purchased.  Ella has been so excited about reading lately it's become a regular daily activity.

Day 101 (2) - another favorite from yesterday :)