Photo Festival

Every two years there is a week long photo festival here in Augusta.  This is the first time I've participated...learning lots!

The first two days I went to classroom workshops.  Day one a basic digital photo workshop.  Like many folks I use about 10% of what my camera can do.  My goal is to get that up to at least 50%...or to be able to rely on knowledge instead of luck for good photos!  The workshop was great...but it felt like my head was going to explode!

Day two was a into to an editing and catalogue software called "Lightroom."  To be honest until I get to really sit down and play with it I can't judge it.  Maybe it was because my brain still hurt from day one...

Yesterday I participated in a Photo Shoot at a local horse farm.  I had decided to focus on using Aperture priority setting and doing animal portraits.  I thought it would be best if I learned one thing at a time.  Not a bad idea but then the first thing the coordinator announced was they would have this beautiful white Arabian horse run across the field for us to photograph! 

She rambled off some camera settings (none of which included what I had studied!) and off the folks marched.  Duh...it isn't that I don't know the setting it is I don't know where on the foolish camera to get to where I can change them!

On my old 35 mm there were a half dozen knobs.  I knew where there were and what they did.  There are more options on my digital camera then there was on my first desktop computer!  (and a lot more memory but that is dating me!)

Today I am exhausted.  Did lots of walking at the farm!  (and I took Bill V.'s advise to try shooting from a low angle which caused me to do lots of crawling around the ground...the goats thought it was amusing!)  So I am taking the day to play with photo editing software. 

How does this relate to quilting you may ask?  Well, I would like to be able to document my quilts with better photos and to take better photos at events like quilt shows. 

And of course to be able to post better "cat on my quilt" photos on my blog!

New Mexico Roadtrip

Just came back from a great trip out to New Mexico!  It has been awhile since I've been out there to visit my sister and her family.  Amazing how fast the kids have grown (they are driving cars and at university!  how did that happen?!)  Anyway, autumn is my favorite time to visit New Mexico...partly due to weather and partly because of chili harvest!

The colors out in the southwest just seem so much more intense.  Even when the skies were overcast. 

Loads of both color and pattern inspiration all around!  Like these windows in the old railyard building in Albuquerque where they hold an art and farmers market on Sundays.

Or these tiled stars leading to a restaurant in Santa Fe.

and these tiles...hexies below the watchful dog and colorful tiles on the walls!

Visited a wonderful quilt shop in Corralles called "Quilt Ole."  Great selection of fabrics, notions, patterns, and staffed by some really nice folks.  (and if you go there make sure you stop at Hannah's for lunch and get their cranberry bread pudding for dessert!  amazing!)

Getting Ready for Halloween

Since it is October and the weather is now cool in the mornings I went ahead and put out some of the Halloween decorations...

I have two more Halloween quilts in various stages of UFO...I hope to get at least one of them finished this month!

For some reason my DH doesn't love the holiday nearly as much as I do so I slip a few decorations in every few days...

Though I have accepted the ban on dressing the pets...

Cool Weather quilting

As the weather is finally cooling down here in Georgia my guild had a "nature" workshop with Marilyn Walls.  A chance to do some fabric gardening!

My workshop project...sunflower!

Generally I'm not a big fan of fusing but I've always liked her large flower pieces.  Besides learning new techniques help me in doing my appraisals of nontraditional quilts.  Marilyn is a good instructor. I'd highly recommend her if you get a chance to take one of her workshops.   Likely I will finish my Sunflowers! 

Marilyn Walls class sample

Marilyn taking about choosing background fabrics...

 

On other fronts...I broke my beloved camera!  Ok, it was 8 years old and had a hard life but still...it was hard to decide to not repair and get a new camera body.  Still learning new one but so far so good!  I stayed with a  Nikon and it has kept the learning curve to a minimum.

Also, have started my fall cooking!  Out has come the pumpkin and apples...color me happy!  I made a pan of pumpkin cheesecake bars for the workshop...sigh.  Somehow they just taste better in the Fall...