Nihao, Cupcake!

FAMILY x 12 November Blog Hop {31 Days of Inspiration: Day 30 - Fun Family Photo Idea}

Here is our photo for the month. Notice anything strange about it? I'll explain how I did it in an upcoming blog post. Unfortunately, I don't have time do it today!

 

Next on the blog hop is Melissa. Don't forget to continue on to all the other participants for more family photo inspiration! If you are interested in committing to one family photo a month, send me an email and join us next month on the 5th. It's fun and you'll have some great photos of your whole family. I'm so glad we've done this because now we have lots of choices for this year's Christmas card photo. 

 

Here are all the blog hop participants in case you should get lost along the way, come back here and find your way. Thanks for stopping by.

Don't forget to stop by Patricia's blog. Carol Anne's is a little late so you may have to come back here to find Patricia.

**Jo joined in a little late, so she isn't linked from Monica's blog, but please stop by her blog to see her photo too! Thanks!**

Margie  http://xnomads.typepad.com/blog  <---- You are HERE.
Melissa  http://www.melissagross.blogspot.com  <--- Go here next.
Carol Anne   http://www.scrappingthoughts.com

Patricia http://patoliveira.wordpress.com/

MonicaB   http://questtoperfectimperfection.blogspot.com/

Jo             http://mrsbeee.blogspot.com/

Come back tomorrow when I'll be posting a story for storytelling Sunday called "The Broken Plate."

 

 

 

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION: Day 29 {One Day on Earth - The World's Story is Yours to Tell}

via www.onedayonearth.org

I've signed up for One Day on Earth on 11.11.11. The world will document the day. They did it on 10.10.10. I'm just learning about all the details but why not do it too? This is A Day in the Life on steroids!

Click on the link and you will definitely be inspired!

{A Menagerie of Halloween Cupcakes}

Back to cupcakes. My children's school had International Day on Friday. Since Halloween is an American holiday, I thought what better cupcakes to make than a menagerie of Halloween cupcakes! Originally the plan was to make an American flag-esque cupcake cake, but at the last minute I talked my son into these cuties. I get bored easily and would rather make five different types of designs rather than one big design.

I think these are all new designs for us. Many of them are all over the internet but we've never made them before. These were all easy to make and of course are really cute!

I love the little details. Just adding eight little legs on to this mini M&M gives this cupcake a personality.

This Peeking Monster Cupcake is so easy and so cute! He is good for those cupcakes that don't come all the way up to the top of the cupcake liner. Fill that space with frosting and push in as many candy corn as can fit, add two Necco wafers for eyes and with a dab of vanilla icing stick on two mini M&Ms and add pupils with chocolate frosting. Couldn't be easier or cuter!

 

Another super easy and cute cupcake. The teeth are Tic Tacs and the eyes are mini M&Ms. Super easy!

 

These spider cupcakes are a little tricker but with a few tips, they are easy too. To add the black licorice legs, I took a 'naked cupcake' and with a toothpick, poked four holes in each side of the cupcake. With a simple toothpick hole, the licorice laces slid right in. I then frosted the cupcake with chocolate icing, dipped them in chocolate jimmies (sprinkles) and then added red mini M&Ms for eyes. So cute and easy too. No special talent needed!

 

I only had a few cupcakes left to decorate. I was tired of decorating mummies, green monsters and spiders, so I started dotting a cupcake with white spots, added some mini M&Ms and thought they looked kind of like eyes, so added the pupils and ended up with a alien-esque multi-eyed cupcake. Or it could just be colorfully decorated!

 

This one looks even more like eyeballs and it is even easier. It is just white dots of icing topped with a dot of chocolate. A little bit cute and a little bit creepy.

 

Another fun batch of cupcakes made! I'll be doing the same thing next week because it is my son's birthday and I'll be bringing cupcakes for his class. He wants me to make monster cupcakes that look furry and have big bulbous eyeballs (lollipops with gummy candy rings around them) - tune in same time next week to see how those turn out!

This is the 28th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

To see anything about FUN CAKES & CUPCAKES on my blog, click here.

Even more Halloween cupcake ideas in my photostream on Flickr.com.

31 DAYS of INSPIRATION: Day 27 {Project Life::Project 365 Photo Catch Up}

This is the 27th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

Saturday, October 8

One of Nicholas' favorite breakfasts: chicken friend steak scrambled eggs & hashbrowns We stopped at "Grandma's Kitchen" on our way to take our family photo by some fun statues. (To see that photo come back here on November 5 for the FAMILY x 12 BLOG HOP.)

 

Sunday, October 9

The pollution has been so horrile in Beijing this year. I have never seen so many hazardous air days in a row. So unfortunate! And all the smokers makes it tremendously worse to live here. I never feel like I can get a breath of fresh air.

 

Monday, October 10

Top view of Braden's lunch box: non sugar applesauce, pumpkin muffin, packet of seaweed and the bottom part of the lunch box has his sandwich and some yogurt.

 

Tuesday, October 11

Cleaning up after breakfast.

Wednesday, October 12

Working on my Project Life album.

Thursday, October 13

Hanging out with Nicholas on the day he was sick.

 

Friday, October 14

We were reading a biography about Dr. Seuss and Nicholas was reminiscing about his favorite Dr. Seuss book, Fox in Socks. He pulled it off the shelf and started reading to us.

Saturday, October 15

What I saw in the kitchen at 10:30 AM Saturday morning. A frog and a little boy playing Pictionary Cards.

 

Sunday, October 16

I made apple muffins for lunches & snacks this week. Muffins with apple chunks for Nicholas, muffins without for Reece & Braden (I grind them up into apple puree.)

 

Monday, October 17

Dad brought Cadbury SCream Eggs home from London as a treat.

Tuesday, October 18

Can't show my photo from the orphanage. I've been having so much fun taking photos and putting together Personal Yearbooks, a free download from Becky Higgins, for the kids.

Wednesday, October 19

Braden having fun with his scholastic order from school.

 

Thursday, October 20

My dragonfly

Friday, October 21

The boys have been all about making their own videos these days. They have been coming up with some pretty funny & creative productions. This time they are filming an interview on a talk show about a current news topic - a creature who is on the loose attacking people. They turn out so cute and funny, if I do say so myself. I love that they are spending their time doing something so creative! And in this photo, I love how serious Braden is taking his job (cue card turner)!

31 DAYS of INSPIRATION: Day 26 {Street Photography}

via www.in-public.com

I'm having a hard time spending time on my blog posts this week. There has been a lot going on with our family. Our kids are now settling in at their new school which started in August, but that means now the things that need to be tweaked and addressed are all coming to the surface. I think in the long run all will be fine, but it has been three years of quirky international schools and lots of bad quality of all layers, so I think this adjustment time is just par for the course. And so far, the support at our new school seems very good, so I think we'll be alright. It is just getting there that is a little challenging for this mom.

So, true to my word to bring you photography related inspiration this week, here is a link to a really cool looking website on street photography. I think street photography is my favorite genre of photography. That and photojournalism. I so admire the ability to make a beautiful image out of real life as it happens. It is a HUGE challenge - I keep striving! And when it all comes together (so far it hasn't for me) it is simply magical.

I think I will continue through my life striving to be able to do that. In my way is, firstly, courage to be brave enough to put my camera to my face in places where I feel shy. Secondly, is skill, which I am always striving to improve. It takes practice and feedback which is hard to come by, but I trust that quality feedback will come and go as I go through my life and hopefully at the times when I am ready for it, it will be there!

I hope you will take the time to click over to that website. There were some pretty cool images just on the first page.

31 DAYS of INSPIRATION: Day 25 {Photo Tips: Intimacy & Perspective}

This is the 25th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here. 

I missed my post yesterday so this is yesterday's post. There will be a second post (Day 26) later on today.

As I mentioned in my last post, I am going to spend the last week of my 31 Days series discussing elements in photos that can easily be improved with a little attention. Or probably more accurately, ways to more effectively communicate using your camera in the way that you intend.

Today is about perspective and intimacy. I think what is important about this photo is two things - the angle and the proximity to the subject. As you can see, I am at the eye level of my son. The angle I might be tempted to take this photo would be from above. If I did that, however, I would not be able to see my son's face, so I would miss his intense expression.

The other thing I wanted to capture was my son's tapping fingers. Can you see the blur from their movement? This is his new (annoying) habit. If I took this photo from above, I would not be able to see those fast moving fingers so clearly. I probably should have used a higher shutter speed in order to show a bit more definition in my son's tapping fingers, but there was not much light to work with in the restaurant and I risked losing sharpness in the rest of the photo.

Do you also notice how close I am to my son? I was using a wide angle lens that allows me to use auto focus while being rather close to my subject (alternatively you could use manual focus if your lens needs to be further away). The tight proximity communicates intimacy. We are getting a view of this boy from an angle and a distance that only people who know him well get to see. We are in his personal space.

This photo does a good job of capturing his 'true personality.' It captures a habit in a way that is pronounced and easy to see, and we are viewing him while he is completely lost in a moment seemingly unaware of our presence, therefore he is being himeself and we believe he is not influenced by the camera.

TIP: My son's eyes (or in this case his eyelashes) are in sharp focus. The eyes are the most important part of the human face and therefore the most important part of a photo with a person as its subject. Your subject's eyes should be in focus. If only one eye is in focus, it should ideally be the one closest to the lens.

Here is another similar photo of my son, also lost in intense concentration being himself. 

Do you see any similarities?

This time I am looking up towards his face, but the important thing you can see his face. I find photos so much more interesting if the subject's face is easy to see (except in rare exceptions). The more of the face, the better, in my opininion.

I adjust my body and the angle of my camera whenever possible to capture my subject's face. The perspective, again, is very important here because it allows us to get a good view.

We are also very close to our subject again, so we are creating that feeling of intimacy - we have entered his private world. 

We feel that again because my son seems to be unaware of the presence of the camera. We are priveleged to get a glimpse of his true personality.

Notice also that his one visible eye is in focus.

TIP: Shooting up at your subject can be one way to deal with a cluttered environment or background. Behind my son is a messy playroom and a clothes drying rack. By shooting up at him, not only do I get a good view of his face, but the background of my photo is clean so my subject is clear. Everything left in the photo plays a vital part in the story.

More photos and tips tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!

31 DAYS of INSPIRATION: Day 24 {Can You Cultivate An Eye for Photography?}

This is the 24th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here. 

I think there is a huge misconception out there that some people just have an "eye for photography." Just like the notion that some people are "creative," implying that others are not.

What typically is not acknowledged, however, is that this eye for photography has hours, if not weeks and years of effort and practice behind it.

I've been told on occasion that I have an eye for photography. But the truth is, I have worked very hard for that eye. With hard work, study, practice and actively seeking honest feedback, I have watched myself improve over the years. And the better I get, the harder it is to make leaps in my improvements. This can get discouraging but I inch along in fits and starts anyway.

I have had some wonderful teachers, taking a class at my local community collge in California as well as spending weekends with professional photojournalists in intensive workshops. I've gotten some pretty brutal feedback. But you know what? I LOVE IT! I won't lie and tell you that it has never brought tears to my eyes, but once I pull myself together, I have the opportunity to go out and improve again. Without it my photographs stagnate.

What's my point? Cultivate your eye for photography. If you love it and want to take better photos? Study the masters. Read books on photography, take a course at your local community college. Learn the classic rules of composition - they won't steer you wrong. 

I see so many classic mistakes that could be easily corrected or improved with paying attention to some very simple rules.

I say that without meaning to downplay how NOT easy following those rules are. A photograph is a moment frozen in time. It happens in a split second. You are capturing something that is not in your control. How many times have we frozen the wrong moment and it looks ugly, unbalanced and confusing? Most of the time, right? That is why we practice and take ten photos to hopefully get one decent one. The one where we capture a clear tender (or funny or emotional) moment in an aesthetically pleasing image. It is hard work. It is luck. It is serendipity. No?

For this last week of my 31 Days of Creative Inspiration, I plan to highlight some of those simple rules of good photographic composition that are often over looked or broken. I can always use a good review. 

Today I thought I would talk about LEADING LINES.

All strong lines in a photo are actually LEADING LINES. The question is, where exactly are they leading you to? Not all LEADING LINES are good. Some lead you right out of the photo!

You don't want that.

Other strong LEADING LINES lead you right to NOTHING or

to nothing interesting

or to something distracting.

You don't want any of that!

You want leading lines to lead you in to the photo and keep you there. 

You also want those LEADING LINES to lead you to the main subject of your photo. The place where you are led should be interesting, intriguing even, and should make you want to 'stay in the photo and look around.' 

This photo of the judges tent at the 2011 LA Harbor Dragon Boat races is an example of a photo with very strong LEADING LINES. Do you see the curb starting from the bottom right of the photo, leading your eye right into the background? Then from the left side of the photo you see the line of the sand where it meets the ocean? It also leads your eye straight to the back of the photo. These are awesome LEADING LINES. They take you right into the photo. The horizon line from the left of the photo even leads you right to that same point.

So what is the problem? 

There is nothing interesting at the intersection of those three very strong LEADING LINES! You get to the end and you are disappointed, bored even! Your eyes and brain just can't be bothered, so they quickly move on.

 

Can you see the LEADING LINES in this photo? They aren't as strong as the LEADING LINES in the photo of the judges' tent, but they are effective, nonetheless.

Starting from the right, the boy's arms almost connect and lead you right to the center of the photo. Starting from the left, the other boy's arm does the same thing - leading you right to the center of the action. From the top right, the door moulding leads you in to the photo and then we make a sharp turn down and follow that line also to the center of the photo. And finally, just left of center also on the top of the photo, the eve of the roof, leads us to the head of the boy in the middle and then the direction of his eyes take over and we are again led right to the center of the action.

The action, of course, is a play in the game. We see the boy's hand just about to place his piece in the classic game of Mastermind.

Isn't the destination of these LEADING LINES far more interesting and intriguing than the lines in the first photo? 

By comparing these two photos, we see that not all LEADING LINES are created equal and it is not all about LEADING LINES, but rather what is at the end of those lines!

In an upcoming post, I will discuss what about this last photo distracts the viewer from the main subject, possible solutions and if it is a deal breaker for this photo. What do you think is the distracting element?

31 DAYS of INSPIRATION: Day 23 {Halloween Cupcakes}

via www.marthastewart.com

This is the 23rd post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

These adorable bats are found at MarthaStewart.com.

And more cute and easy Halloween Cupcake ideas from MarthaStewart.com:

via www.marthastewart.com

 

Here is a list of 25 ideas for Halloween themed cupcakes at partycupcakeideas.com.

via partycupcakeideas.com

 

via 3.bp.blogspot.com

These spider cupcakes are super cute and couldnt' be easier. Just remember to give your spider eight legs or your cupcakes will be mere insects!

 

These are the cutest Eyeball Cupcakes I've seen in a long time. I like the added dimension of the donut holes. If you don't want to get this complicated, you can just use candy and frosting and skip the donut holes. I found thme at BHG.com where they have a ton of other very cute Halloween cupcake ideas.

 

Here are a bunch of cupcakes I made a couple of years ago for Halloween. There are three-eyed aliens with pretzel stick antennae cupcakes, chocolate & candy bug cupcakes, blood shot eyeball cupcakes, chocolate black cat cupcakes, white chocolate ghost & skull cupcakes, jack-o-lantern faces made from chocolate and chocolate bat cupcakes. These are all quite simple to make with ordinary ingredients and candy.

For ideas on how to make the toppers made from chocolate, go to this post on making chocolate toppers for cupcakes.

 

via vernellc.typepad.com

I love these gravestones from Vernell's blog: Ole Talk. What a cute idea - effective, yet simple. She also has a link to a recipe for pumpkin cupcakes - yum!

I have to make some American-style cupcakes for Friday's International Day and then Monster birthday cupcakes the week after. Any good ideas?

To see anything about FUN CAKES & CUPCAKES on my blog, click here.

 And to find out what Halloween cupcakes I ended up making this year for Halloween 2011, click here.

 

Even more Halloween cupcake ideas in my photostream on Flickr.com.

31 DAYS of INSPIRATION: Day 22 {Scrapbook Inspiration}

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This is the 22nd post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

I've been having so much fun over the last few days! I have been attending Spawn of True Scrap, a live webinar that includes classes by well known scrapbookers & papercrafters.

I was so inspired by what I saw in Kelli Crowe's class that I jumped right up in the middle of it, grabbed my circle punch and made this Great Wall snow layout! What do you think?

I loved that about this event. If I was struck with the urge to scrapbook in that moment, I had my own product, in my own house right at my fingertips and I could get to work!

I don't know about you, but the one time I went to a live scrapbook convention, I came home with a bunch of projects that weren't me and that I didn't like. Now I have a project, two, actually, that are totally me and the event has one more day to go!

The other thing I liked about this format is that it was very easy to see what instructors were doing due to the intimacy of the camera angles. And unlike a live event, I can replay their classes as many times as I want in case I missed something.

Remember this layout from a few days ago?

Well, the more I looked at it, the less I liked the result. It needed something more and it was off balance.

Inspired by Noell Hyman's embellishment layering class, I came up with this:

I didn't follow everything she recommended (though I want to another time), but watching her process, gave me the confidence to try some new things on my own project. And because it was right here and I was already working on it, everything just fell into place.

I love how the red flowers help tie in the red on the elephants' blankets. Without them the photos don't really fit. And I like how the flowers and the gold pattern from the other paper highlights the vibrant culture of India, where the photos were taken.

Now the page more closely matches the mood of our trip. Though I may have to change the lettering. I think it makes the whole page look too busy and its whimsical nature doesn't match the embellishments.

The inking all around the page and on the paper strips (to tone down the white) was influenced by a challenge Nic Howard offered at the pre-event crop.

Lain keeps everything running smoothly. And so far the lessons I have been able to view have been awesome. Much of the classes are on while I am asleep, but by the time I am up the next morning, links to the replays have been emailed to me, so I can watch them at my leisure.

It's been an inspiring couple of days so far. A great way to pass a couple of days when I would be hunkered down at home anyway, hiding from the terrible smog that has taken over Beijing this month!

How about you? What has inspired you to scrapbook or make something creative lately?

 

Want to see more SCRAPBOOK inspiration on my blog? Click here!

31 DAYS of INSPIRATION: Day 21 {Why You Don't Need a DSLR}

Powershot SX10IS

This is the 21st post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

 

DSLR vs P&S

"I need a DSLR!" I hear that statement all the time! When people are frustrated with their point & shoot camera, they typically think a DSLR will solve all of their problems. They see photos taken with DSLRs and they immediately notice the difference. Yes, it is true, there will be a slight initial improvement in your photos due to the lens quality and the superior metering in a DSLR, but basically if you don't know how to use your point & shoot, you are not going to know how to use your DSLR. Likely, a DSLR will confuse you more as using it out of auto mode is more challenging than any point & shoot (P&S). And a DSLR is a lot more expensive than even the most expensive P&S.

I propose you either upgrade your point & shoot or spend a little time learning enough about your current point & shoot to improve your photos.

[DSLR stands for Digital Single Lens Reflex. Basically it refers to any camera in which you can change the lens. If you can't change its lens, then it is a Point & Shoot.]

If you are frustrated with your current camera, you may feel like you would like to move on to a DSLR.

But before you do that, I would encourage you to figure out why you are frustrated with it and decide if you need to spend the money needed for a DSLR to solve those problems or if your problems can be solved by purchasing a higher end, though relatively inexpensive, Point & Shoot (P&S) or learning more about your current camera (the user's manual is really your friend).

With all of the amazing high end P&Ss out on the market now, you can find a lot of camera for a much lower price point than a DSLR (with or without kit) and don’t forget to figure in the cost of those additional lenses!

DSLR: Rebel XSi (450)

There are plenty of high quality P&S on the market that are perfect training cameras. They allow you to learn about shutter speed, f stop (aperture), ISO, flash, metering, depth of field, etc, etc and still produce fantastic high quality photos. Many now allow you to have full manual control over the camera. They include manual mode, aperture priority (where you control the aperture, the camera chooses the shutter speed), shutter priority (you choose shutter speed, camera chooses aperture), flash control including choosing 1^st or 2^nd shutter.

Of course, there is significantly more potential with a DSLR but:

*the learning curve is higher,

*the weight is heavier and

*the cost is significantly more.

DSLR: Rebel XSi (450)

If you do not know how to use shutter speed and aperture priority, if you don’t know how to adjust your current camera so it performs better in low light, and if you don’t know how to override it’s automatic settings, I would suggest upgrading to a higher end P&S. It will allow you the maximum amount of control so that you can learn all about those things and when you outgrow that camera and you’re ready to upgrade to a DSLR you will really understand what you need and what you are looking for in a camera.

P&S: Powershot SX10IS 

One common word of advice I hear often that I whole-heartedly agree with, is do not upgrade your equipment until you outgrow your old piece of equipment and you know why and what you need next. Exhaust all the features (within reason) on your current camera before you move on to your next.

DSLR: Rebel XSi (450)

If your camera is not performing correctly, perhaps you are not using it correctly. Open your user's manual and make sure there isn’t something you can do to improve the situation. For example, on many P&S you can increase the shutter speed by switching to sports mode. This increases the ISO, turns off the automatic photo review (when you look at the photo on the screen right after you take it) and allows the camera to take continuous photos faster. Of course, many cameras also have a continuous shutter mode (usually indicated by a stack of rectangles), this mode will give you a similar effect to the sports mode.

P&S: Powershot SX10IS (taken by my ten year old son)

Common frustrations with camera:

1) You want less lag-time between photos.

You would need to find a camera with higher maximum frames per second (fps) than your current camera.

2) You want sharper photos.

There are a list of reason why images are not sharp enough. Some are related to the camera, some to the situation and some to the photographer.

From the camera end, you would want to look for faster automatic focus technology as well as better lens quality. You do not need manual focus to get sharper images. Higher ISO (more light sensitivity) and a larger maximum aperture (will let in more light faster) also is a big factor in getting sharper images.

The aperture is the number with the f/ in front of it. The lower the number the larger the maximum aperture (lens opening size) – the number is actually a fraction. Think of it like f1/2.8 or f1/15.

Unless you are confident a DSLR is the next camera for you, I think it is worthwhile to seriously consider a higher-end P&S before making your final decision.

I will do a quick analysis of the 2 Canon cameras I might consider for myself. And compare them to the entry level Canon DSLR. (I am choosing Canon because I am the most familiar with their DSLR and P&S lines.)

DSLR: Rebel XSi (450)

Before I begin, I wanted to mention that all of the higher-end Canon P&S’s can be operated in full manual mode. You have complete control of the shutter speed & aperture and can also opt for aperture priority or shutter priority (that’s where you choose one and the camera chooses the other to give you correct exposure).

Many professional photojournalists that I have talked to shoot in aperture priority mode most of the time. They are just skilled enough to know when to switch to manual. I should also mention that without the purchase of any additional lenses these P&S also:

*allow you to shoot in macro and

*can be mounted on a tripod.

P&S: Powershot SX10IS

The Canon G12 is arguably Canon’s best P&S camera. The MSRP is $499 USD. The zoom lens on this model has a film equivalent of 28mm to 140mm range – this gives you a wide angle all the way to a very decent zoom. The wide angle is wonderful for shots in tight locations and the zoom is great to get the bokeh everyone loves as well as great portraits. The lens is quite fast with the maximum aperture at the 24mm end at f/2.8. That is incredibly large for a P&S! My $1500USD pro level 16-24mm lens has the same maximum aperture! The 140mm end has a f/4.5 maximum aperture which is very good for a mid-range zoom. It’s not ideal for indoor photos without flash, but better than any kit lens I’ve seen or any non-pro zoom lenses I’ve seen.

Its maximum shutter speed is 1/4000 of a second. That is faster than any SLR or DSLR I have ever owned.

DSLR: Rebel XSi (450)

In the most optimum of situations it can take up to 4.2 frames per second. That is faster than any DSLR I have seen. Usually this is the big weakness of the P&S as it does not compare with most DSLRs in this area. But you have to be realistic about how fast is fast enough for what you are taking photos for. There are very rare occasions where you will need a faster rate of frames per second than this camera can give you.  

This camera weighs more than 12 oz due to the large zoom range.

DSLR: Rebel XSi (450)

Another P&S of note is the SX130 also part of the Canon Powershot range. This camera is only $229USD The zoom range on this camera is 28mm – 336mm which is phenomenal, however this makes me nervous. That camera will need one powerful motor making it heavy and also making it a much higher risk for breakage and motor burnout. I have also used a Canon Powershot with a strong zoom like this before and I’ve had an extremely hard time getting it to focus in low light situations much worse than my Powershot SX10IS which is a much older model (but with a less powerful zoom). So, I am skeptical of these cameras with such huge range of zooms. I would read all the reviews on this one and make sure you read reviews from people who have had the camera for at least a year to see if it lasts and to see if they have improved the focusing issues. They have an extensive series of P&S with even larger zoom ranges that look like they are worth considering. I would encourage you to pour over their comparison page at Canon.com and then read lots and lots of reviews to see how they perform.

http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/cameras/digital_cameras?pageKeyCode=65&category=0901e0248006113a&compare=0901e024801f482b&compare=0901e024801cff65&compare=0901e024801f482c

DSLR: Rebel XSi (450)

The other thing you can do to see how a camera performs is to go to Flickr.com and search for the camera model you are interested in. You will be presented with pages and pages of sample images. This is a fantastic way to see the potential of your camera of interest.

Canon G12 - http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=Canon%20G12

Canon SX130 - http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=Canon%20G12

When searching to see photos taken by a DSLR be sure to search by lens including maximum aperture of the lens.

	Rebel EOS XSi DSLR	Powershot G12	Powershot SX30 IS
Cost	$649 USD with kit	$499 USD	$229USD
Max Shutter Spd	1/4000 second	1/4000 second	1/3200 second
Max shots/second	3.5 shots/sec	4.2 shots/sec	3.6 shots/sec
RAW option?	Yes	Yes	No
Max ISO	1600	3200	1600
Self-timer	10 & 2 sec delay + continuous	Up to 10 shots in a row	Up to 10 shots in a row

There are several more P&S in the Powershot line that I would recommend adding to the comparison. I was quite amazed at how these cameras have improved even in the past few years since I last purchased a camera in Spring 2009! I can’t believe how incredible these cameras are!

P&S: Powershot SX10IS

I have no specific recommendation for you since choosing a camera is a very personal decision. That being said, I do encourage you to keep your options open and seriously consider a high-end P&S before you spend your money on a DSLR unless you are certain you are ready.

If you’d like to see some of my photographs, you can see my Flickr photostream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/74155750@N00/

****NOTE: I would recommend buying a camera that is either a Nikon or a Canon. They are the top companies in the industry and spend the most money on research and development. Cameras by other manufacturers will not have the same caliber of technology available.

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 20 {Paper Folding for Your Scrapbook Page} - Dragonfly

This is the 20th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

 

Isn't this an adorable dragonfly made from scrapbook paper?! I found the tutorial for this here. They use tissue paper, but since I wanted to use it for my scrapbook page, I decided to use my scrapbook paper. The problem with scrapbook paper vs. tissue paper is that scrapbook paper is much harder to fold precisely due to his heavier weight.

To solve that problem or at least make it a bit easier, I sprayed my papers with a mist of water. I used a mini mister by Ranger filled with ordinary tap water. I gave each paper 2-3 quick squirts before I started working with it.

Each piece of the dragon fly is made from a 3'x3' piece of paper that I cut out by dividing a 6x6 piece of patterned paper in four equal pieces.

Since my paper wasn't double sided, I had some white areas that I didn't like. To solve this problem, I got out my Prang water colors and filled in those spaces with a little yellow.

Before I put this guy on a page, I want to spruce him up a bit. To see what I do next, keep watching my 31 Days series (Oct 1-31) and I'll show you before its all over!

Tomorrow I discuss PHOTOGRAPHY. What is the best camera for you?

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 19 {Oatmeal Scones} - A HealthIER But Still Delicious Recipe

This is the 19th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

You may have noticed that I didn't end up publishing a blog post yesterday. My goal of 31 days of posts isn't coming true! However, I will still meet my goal of 31 posts in 31 days since I have already posted more than once on some days. That is the way to put a positive spin on the whole thing.

I have had my crash days. I was on my own for 8 days - meaning my husband was out of the country. It wears me out having the kids to myself not only during the school week but on the weekend as well. A large reason I get so tired is because I like to stay up late into the night. And when my husband is gone, I tend to stay up far later than I should yet still have to get up at the crack of dawn to get all the boys ready on time.

Tomorrow the boys' school has parent/teacher conferences. My husband is out of town again (but just for the day - thank goodness), but that means I not only have to take care of three boys but I also have to be at school to see 19 teachers! YES, 19 teachers!!! Can you believe that? I am not going to be seeing them all. I had to prioritize with that many within a ten hour period.

A friend offered to help me out by having my youngest son over in the morning to play with her daughter who is also his friend. The older boys are supposed to come with me any way as the older grades have parent/teacher/student conferences.

So, to thank her for her generosity, I whipped up a few batches of HealtIER But Still Delicous Oatmeal Scones. It was also my middle son's 4000 days of life celebration (he discovered this over a year ago and marked it on the calendar), and since these are some of his favorites, I had two reasons to make them.

And it is a great CREATIVE thing to share with you!

These are not traditional British scones. They are more an American twist on the British creation (which I LOVE and miss since I no longer live there). American scones don't do British scones justice. They are like a completely different animal with the same name. That being said, these are still quite tasty in their own right. Here is my kids' favorite recipe:

HEALTHIER YET STILL DELICOUS OATMEAL SCONES

3 cups old fashioned oatmeal

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup oat bran

1 cup unbleached white flour

1 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

2/3 cup sugar + 1 tbsp.

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup non-fat milk

2 sticks of cold butter cut into 1/2 inch pieces.

 

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Spread oatmeal on baking sheet and toast for 8-10 minutes until oats become fragrant. Remove from heat and cool. Reserve 4 tbsp to sprinkle over work surface. Set the rest of the oats aside. Reduce oven heat to 450 degrees (F).

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk and vanilla. Reserve 2 tbsp in a small bowl. Set aside.

In bowl of a food processor, combine dry ingredients (reserving 1 tbsp of sugar). Pulse a few times until well combined. Sprinkle 1/2 inch pieces of butter over dry ingredients and pulse 12-15 times at one second intervals until the consistency of cornmeal.

Pour the flour and butter mixture into a medium bowl. Add toasted and cooled oats, stir to combine. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and fold together using a silocone or rubber spatula.

Sprinkle 2 tbsp of reserved oats over your work surface. Take half of your dough out of the bowl and place on work surface. Shape into a 7 inch circle. Flip over and make sure both sides are sprinkled evenly with oats on work surface. Using a sharp cleaver or other sharp knife, cut the circle into 8 wedges. Using a pastry brush, brush the egg mixture over the top of each scone. Then sprinkle each scone with the reserved sugar.

Using a metal spatula place the scones approximately an inch apart on a non-stick baking sheet (you may also use parchment paper). Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack.

Repeat with the remaining dough. Makes 16 scones.

ENJOY!

I'll be back tomorrow (hopefully) with the paper folding fun you can use for scrapbook pages.

Day 18 Post will be up very late today, but it's coming...

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 17 {More Cupcakes}

This is the 17th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

These are some more cupcakes that I designed all on my own. I LOVE snowflakes. Every winter, I re-learn how to make really cool paper snowflakes and paste them all over my living room window. I am always trying to figure out how to make yet another interesting snowflake shape so I am always paying attention to different types of snowflakes.

All this time making paper snowflakes led to my idea for these cupcakes. All I did was draw these basic snowflake shapes on a piece of paper and place a piece of wax paper over it. I melted some white chocolate chips, placed them in a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and then traced over my pencil drawings. 

When finished making all of the snowflakes, I placed them in the refrigerator to harden. Frosted each cupcake with blue icing, dipped them each in blue decorator sugar making sure each cupcake was fully covered and when the snowflakes were finished hardening, I topped each cupcake with one to three snowflakes. Aren't they pretty? You could even add decorative pearls at the ends of each snowflake line. OR you could add decorator sugar to the snowflakes before placing them in the refrigerator to dry. 

So many possibilities.

If you want more detailed instructions on how to make similar chocolate toppers for your cupcakes, check out my guest blog post from a few months ago on Vernell's blog. I shared my tips for making chocolate designs to decorate cupcakes. Please go over & check it out!

To see anything about FUN CAKES & CUPCAKES on my blog, click here.

Tomorrow we will play around with some paper folding fun that can be used on your scrapbook pages.

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 16 {Rest}

This is the 16th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

Braden resting so peacefully in this cool, comfy bed. What's not to smile about?

Can you believe we are just over half-way in this 31 Day Series!?

It has been fun really getting back into the blogging habit, but I must be honest, it is tiring me out as well! In order to be inspired in our creativity, we need rest and to be rested. So, today is a rest day. I've left you with this restful photo for today.

I'm linking up here:

Happy Sunday!

 

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 15 {Color Inspiration}

This is the 15th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

It is the Color Combo Blog Hop today! This is the third time I have participated (I think?!), but it is a monthly event and lots of fun. We are given a color combo and can use it to make something, anything we want. It is a great excuse for me to crank out a scrapbook page especially if I haven't done one in a while, which I haven't.

You should have found your way here from Sue's blog. Thanks to Amy for hosting.

Color does great for inspiration, don't you think? And so does a challenge? And what better deadline than a blog hop? More great support for an online habit, like I discussed in yesterday's post. Blog hops are awesome like that.

And today you get to experience one first hand. Hop on to the other blogs to see what the other ladies did with one of the color combos. We were given three to choose from. I chose this one:

 

Here is my scrapbook page. I purchased the patterned paper (yellow & gold) & the dimensional flowers in Delhi, so I thought they were perfect for this page which is about our Elephant ride in Jaipur, India in the state of Rajasthan.

I still need to add journaling. I want to ask my kids about their memories of this exciting and unforgettable ride. And I just realized I misspelled unforgettable, the title! So I am not quite done, but you get the main idea!

What inspires you? Is it color? If so, what is your favorite color combo?

Next on the hop is Michelle. Please continue on as there are lots more color inspiration after me, all with a fall color scheme. If you should get lost, see below for a list of all the participants on todays' hop!

Thanks for stopping by and please come again!

www.abstractsmixedwithextracts.com

http://suealthouse.blogspot.com

http://xnomads.typepad.com    <--- You are HERE now.

http://michelleroycroft.blogspot.com  <--- Go HERE next.

http://throughthecameralens.typepad.com/

http://scrapyourlife.net

http://spud-pickle.blogspot.com/

http://curlyscrapbooker.blogspot.com

http://1200somemiles.blogspot.com

http://sugarandscrap.blogspot.com

http://alyssephotographs.blogspot.com

http://handmadebykirsty.blogspot.com

http://adriennefalzon.blogspot.com/

http://helenascreativemaven.blogspot.com

http://digipage-blog.everything-digital-scrapbooking.com/

http://scribblesstickingstitchingstroking.blogspot.com/

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 14 {Online Support for Your Creative Habits}

This is the 14th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

Capture your 365 by Katrina Kennedy - this is a website that offers a gallery and private forum for people who are taking one photo a day for the entire year. YOu can share your photos and discuss relevant topics. See my Photo A Day posts here.

Project Life by Becky Higgins - This is a product that can make documenting a photo a day (or other set up you decide yourself) much, much simpler and easier. See my Project Life posts here.

A Week in the Life by Ali Edwards - As many of you know, around once a year Ali selects one week during the year to document as many details of your life as possible. She gives inspiration, instructions on how to get started, product ideas, photos to take, thoughts on the project. I believe she has examples at her blog for three possibly four years of this project. See my A Week in the Life album and photos here.

Layout A Day (LOAD) by Lain Ehmann - Lain organizes the challenge of doing a layout a day every day for a month. She runs this challenge two to three times per year. It is amazing what you can learn about your self when taking on a challenge like this. See my LOAD posts here. I've participated in 6 LOADs.

Monthly Craft Club  by Rene - this is a brand new monthly craft challenge at BargainHoot.com. There is a theme for each month, a link up at the end of the month and encouragement from fellow crafters.

Art Journal Everyday at Balzer Designs - She offers some awesome looking art journaling classes. I am strongly considering signing up for her class starting on November 1.

 

All of these sites are great places to get support developing a new creative habit.

What is your favorite creative habit? Where do you get support?

BONUS INSPIRATION 

And what better way to inspire your creativity, but a little shopping?! Martha Stewart Crafts is having a 40% off sale this weekend on everything in their online store. WOW! And FREE shipping on orders of $40. I LOVE free shipping. LOVE IT! Coupon code is 4040DEAL (This is not an affiliate link.)

Tomorrow will be using color as inspiration for a scrapbook page.

31 Days of Creative INSPIRATION Series 

Introduction

Day 1: Design Your Own Cupcake

Day 2: Storytelling Sunday

Day 3: Scrapbooking (Week in the Life Album)

Day 4: Everyday Photojournalism (Project 365/Project Life)

Day 5: Family Photo Fun - FAMILY x 12 BLOG HOP

Day 6: Links to Creatively Inspiring People (all writing a 31 Day series)

Day 7: Healthier (But Still Delicious) Cottage Pie

Day 8: Photo Walk

Day 9: Fun Photo Story

Day 10: Drive By Travel Photography

Day 11: Project Life Weekly Photos

Day 12: Project Life Album - Catching up

Day 13: Habit

Day 14: Creative Habits Around the Web

Other topics in the works for my 31 Days of Creative Inspiration Series: 

Photography - I answer the question, 'How do I know if I should buy a DSLR camera?', Family Photo Fun ideas from around the web.

Recipes - my husband's delicious salsa, HealthIER (Yet Still Delicious) Recipes

Scrapbooking - My favorite mini album, 30 minute scrapbook challenge

more Cupcake Ideas, craft ideas...

AND LOTS, LOTS MORE (I'm posting for 31 Days straight, remember?!)

And to find more than 700 other blogs participating in the 31 Days series, go here. There is a huge variety of topics to choose from.

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 13 {Creative Habits}

My middle son was letting me taste his waffle.

This is the 13th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

Today is Self-Timer Madness Day. I've been trying to use the self-timer on my camera more regularly. I want to make it a HABIT.

Habit is a very important part of being CREATIVE.

Basically a habit is the act of repeating something on a regular basis.

Which could also be loosely (or not so loosely) defined as practicing.

The more you practice, the more you experiment, the better you become at something. Anything. Even art or photography.

To be creative, you need to make time for your habit. Do something creative EVERYDAY even if it is something little. Taking a picture with your smart phone is creative. Making a card is creative. Doodling is creative. Writing a letter is creative.

If you are frustrated by your lack of creative pursuits, make a committment to do what you want to do for a week straight. If you want to improve your painting, paint a picture every day for a week, no matter what and see what happens. I bet you will be surprised how happy you feel. (I'm talking to myself here too - I'm thinking next week sounds like a good time to start!)

Tomorrow I will give you some ideas on creative habits you can participate in online. Online communities are a great place to get support in creative habits.

Before I go, here are a couple of other gems of me and Nicholas we took today. My dad would have said, "Nicholas isn't mean!" That was Dad's way of reminding me that "I" never comes first in grammar. I should have said, "Nicholas and I!"

Nicholas was home sick today but as he started feeling better later in the day we spent about an hour Skyping each other and instant messaging for fun. He was in the next room. Silly boy! Nothing like useless technology to make a ten year old boy happy. He's a big fan of emoticons.

And here are our feet. Just for fun!

I'm linking up at The Anderson Family Crew blog today for Embrace the Camera because documenting ourselves with our family is that important! Thank you for hosting this each week, Emily. It is an important creative habit and if it weren't for this weekly challenge, I would show up in a lot less photos! Go on over and link up. It's fun!

Want to see other Self Timer Madness posts? Click here and here.

What creative habit do you want to pursue?

 

31 Days of Creative INSPIRATION Series 

Introduction

Day 1: Design Your Own Cupcake

Day 2: Storytelling Sunday

Day 3: Scrapbooking (Week in the Life Album)

Day 4: Everyday Photojournalism (Project 365/Project Life)

Day 5: Family Photo Fun - FAMILY x 12 BLOG HOP

Day 6: Links to Creatively Inspiring People (all writing a 31 Day series)

Day 7: Healthier (But Still Delicious) Cottage Pie

Day 8: Photo Walk

Day 9: Fun Photo Story

Day 10: Drive By Travel Photography

Day 11: Project Life Weekly Photos

Day 12: Project Life Album - Catching up

Day 13: Habit

Day 14: Creative Habits Around the Web

Other topics in the works for my 31 Days of Creative Inspiration Series: 

Photography - I answer the question, 'How do I know if I should buy a DSLR camera?', Family Photo Fun ideas from around the web.

Recipes - my husband's delicious salsa, HealthIER (Yet Still Delicious) Recipes

Scrapbooking - My favorite mini album, 30 minute scrapbook challenge

more Cupcake Ideas, craft ideas...

AND LOTS, LOTS MORE (I'm posting for 31 Days straight, remember?!)

And to find more than 700 other blogs participating in the 31 Days series, go here. There is a huge variety of topics to choose from.

 

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 12 BONUS {Need some paper crafting inspiration?} Spawn of True Scrap - Premier Online Papercrafting Event

via www.truescrap.com

Doesn't this look awesome? I'll be there.

It's a live webinar event organized by the amazing Lain Ehmann (she's an instructor too). It goes from Thursday, October 20-Saturday, October 22. It's perfect for scrapbookers and other papercrafters and it's not too late to sign up. 

To see all 17 A-list teachers, click here and the classes they will be teaching.

Click here for the schedule and to sign up. It should be awesome.

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION:: Day 12 {Catching Up on Project Life}

This is the 12th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

Are you 'doing' Project Life? Have you fallen behind?

If you are like me, you would have answered 'YES' to both questions.

Well that won't keep me from giving up. I have been taking my photos all year (save for a few weeks, like when my husband became critcally ill) and I am not going to allow that to stop me from finishing this really cool project.

I was asked one time how I could do my journaling if the week had already passed. It never even occured to me that I couldn't. I just go back and write down what I remember from that day. If it is only a few words or one sentence, that's OK. Sometimes the photo is enough.

I also blog my photos once a week and write a few lines with every picture so I can always refer back to those posts if I need to refresh my memory. 

The beauty of digital photography is that your photos always stay in chronological order and if you have a basic organizing software, it is so easy to organize your photos. I use the keyword POTD for my one photo of the day, I also rate my POTDs 2 or 3 stars. I have a smart PHOTOSET created in Lightroom and upload automatically to Flickr on a regular basis, so I have back ups there in case anything ever happens to my digital files.

I also write notes about my photos in the NOTES section for each photograph. That can also get uploaded to Flickr if I want it to, so that can be saved to in the event of a disaster.

This is what the pages look like that I haven't gotten to yet. I leave my album out on a table near my desk. This allows me to insert memorabilia as I go along then once I get my photos printed, I insert them, add a few journaling cards and I am done. 

I don't have an example in this post, but what I have started doing lately, is if one of my kids says something funny, cute or clever, I immediately write it down on a journaling card and insert it in the corresponding pocket for that day. 

With this method the most important thing to do first, is fill in all of your title cards for each page. What I mean by title card, is the orange card in the top left hand corner of the above photo. That has a white area for you to add in the date. I do my album by weeks so mine has the first day of the week to the last day of the week (ie., October 8 through October 14) listed on that card. Then when I want to add my memorabilia or a journaling card, I know exactly where to put it.

If you've gotten behind with your album, please don't give up! Just start this week. Place your album on a table where you will see it everyday. Bring home memorabilia from your day (clothing tags, receipts, movie tickets, mail, advertisements, things cut out of a magazine, business cards, menus, packaging of favorite products) and tuck it in the pockets for this week. You will feel like you are making progress (which you are) and it will make finishing the rest of the project so much easier.

Then when you have an hour or so, work backwards until you get the album finished. You could also decide to do two spreads each week - the current week now and one week from the past that you haven't finished yet.

The most important thing is DON'T GIVE UP! Even if you stopped taking photos, start again today and you will still have a really nice album capturing Fall and early Winter 2011 and that is more than you would have if you did nothing, right?

Now go work on that album!

To see all things Project Life on my blog, click here.

To see my Project Life Daily Photo Set on Flickr, click here.

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION :: Day 11 {Project Life Photos}

Saturday, October 1

Paul makes fresh brewed coffee every weekend. And some weekdays. If he isn't home, I just make myself a cup of Nescafe or tea.

This is the 9th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out the posts here.

Today I am posting my seven photos for the week. To see everything Project Life/Project 365 Related, including weekly posts of my photos, click here. 

 

Sunday, October 2

Paul has started making fresh salsa about once a week. It's evolved and turns out pretty good now.

Monday, October 3

Family movie night! The kids love to do this and what better time than on vacation. We bought a bunch of new DVDs - Hop, Smurfs,

Tuesday, October 4

We went to the flower market to pick up some fresh flowers and a rosemary plant.

 

Wednesday, October 5

If you have nothing to do all day, it make sense to build a fort! And dress in a wizard costume.

Thursday, October 6

Paul bought the boys laser pointers at the toy market. They were having fun seeing how far the light would fall.

Friday, October 8

Frozen yogurt and silly faces.

Tomorrow I will post a few pages from my Project Life album. I've been playing catch up. I'll show you a few completed pages and my plan to make through to the end of the year.

Are you still keeping up with your Project Life album? Are you still taking photos every day? I'd love to hear how your project is going.

 

 

31 Days of Creative INSPIRATION Series 

Introduction

Day 1: Design Your Own Cupcake

Day 2: Storytelling Sunday

Day 3: Scrapbooking (Week in the Life Album)

Day 4: Everyday Photojournalism (Project 365/Project Life)

Day 5: Family Photo Fun - FAMILY x 12 BLOG HOP

Day 6: Links to Creatively Inspiring People (all writing a 31 Day series)

Day 7: Healthier (But Still Delicious) Cottage Pie

Day 8: Photo Walk

Day 9: Fun Photo Story

Day 10:Drive By Travel Photography

Day 11:Project Life

Other topics in the works for my 31 Days of Creative Inspiration Series: 

Photography - I answer the question, 'How do I know if I should buy a DSLR camera?', Family Photo Fun ideas from around the web.

Recipes - my husband's delicious salsa, HealthIER (Yet Still Delicious) Recipes

Scrapbooking - My favorite mini album, 30 minute scrapbook challenge

more Cupcake Ideas, craft ideas...

AND LOTS, LOTS MORE (I'm posting for 31 Days straight, remember?!)

And to find more than 700 other blogs participating in the 31 Days series, go here. There is a huge variety of topics to choose from.

 

I'm linking up at themomcreative.com today. She's offering a coupon code for a free personalized journal from Papercoterie.com. I made one of their photo books a few weeks ago (see this post) and my mom says it turned out awesome. I'm getting one. Don't miss out!

via www.themomcreative.com

Adorable Halloween Cupcake Idea - AllYou.com

via www.allyou.com

Look what I found! How cute are these Halloween Cupcakes?! They are cute enough for other occasions too. What about a picnic, summertime birthday party (think boys, bugs, dirt, magnifying glasses and butterfly nets, maybe even a bug house) or a bake sale at school? Just change up the colored sugar and the icing and make them match the theme of your occasion. Maybe yellows & reds or what about blue and orange. Just a few little changes and these can be very versatile cupcake designs.

For all things CUPCAKE on this blog, click here.

 And to find out what Halloween cupcakes I ended up making this year for Halloween 2011, click here.

Even more Halloween cupcake ideas in my photostream on Flickr.com.

31 DAYS OF CREATIVE INSPIRATION: Day 10 {Drive-By Travel Photography} 10 on 10 @ Shimelle.com

This is the 9th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

Today I hope to inspire you with 10 special travel photos on the 10th of the 10th month for Shimelle's 10 on 10 link party. Anyone can join - it's simple. Blog about any ten things of your own creation on the tenth of the month, go to Shimelle.com and link up.

My husband and I came to Beijing in 1997 right after we were married. We stayed for three days and did all of the typical tourist things. We took photos at all the expected places, Tian'anmen Square under Mao's portrait, The Forbidden City, The Temple of Heaven, etc.

What we forgot to take pictures of were the ordinary things - the crowded buses, the two line subway, the large boulevards dominated by bicycles, the blocks and blocks of old courtyard homes (hutongs), the street food, the people.

Now that it is 2011, Beijing is unrecognizable to me. It looks nothing like it did when I was here 15 years ago. I would love to look back at my Beijing holiday photos and remember how it was back then. To see how truly remarkable the change has been.

But I can't. I don't have any photos.

With the way I take photos these days. So. much. of the everyday. It is hard for me to fathom how I took virtually no 'everyday' photos back then.

What was I thinking?

No foresight for what was to come. None! 

Our first camel sighting in Rajasthan.

I want to remember what is unique about the places I am fortunate enough to visit. The tourist attractions, I can buy a postcard if I have to. The everday sights, the back alleys, the back roads, the villages - it is up to me to get those on film.

Now when I travel, I cannot take enough photos. I thought I took a lot before. I refuse to admit how many photos I take in a day now. It's embarrasing.

But now I have gems like these.

 

Do you know what is unique about all ten of the photos in this post?

Each one was taken from inside a moving vehicle. 

Imagine if I didn't get these amazing sites captured on film? 

In fifteen years, this India, which is developing rapidly, will be unrecognizable. I want to remember these places how they were when I got to visit this past June.

The photo above and the one below were taken from inside a Toyota 4 Runner with the windows tightly rolled up and the A/C blasting - Rajasthan is SIZZLING HOT in June.

This photo was taken out of the back of a rickshaw. That's my husband on the back of the motorcycle with the son of the owner of our Haveli (centuries old home) where we were staying. He picked us up from the station and arranged for a motor rickshaw to take us there. Paul couldn't fit with all our luggage (5 daypacks). Later in our trip we would count 15 people in one motor rickshaw, so I'm not sure why we couldn't manage one more person in ours!

This photo was taken from the back of an open air gypsy (jeep type vehicle) returning home from our camel safari.

I'm linking up at Shimelle.com today for 10 on the 10th.

 

5 BONUS DRIVE-BY PHOTOS

I find this photo humorous for some reason. Do you think it's funny? If so why? I can't quite figure it out. Does it seem like a quirky ad for coconut shampoo?

I love the glimpses of the everyday in these photos.

Most of them are straight out of camera (SOOC). I think they will look even better if I spend a little time cropping some and brightening them up. I shoot in RAW, so as many of you know that typically means they are a bit drab until they get some loving care.

I'm dying to crop out that edge of the cart on the right of the photo below. That will make that picture so much cleaner.

You don't need a fancy camera to be a DRIVE-BY PHOTOGRAPHER. In fact, I know a few of these photos were taken with my Canon Point & Shoot on SPORTS MODE.

 

You can see the glare from the car window on this one. I'm in the 4 Runner again.

I had hardly a moment to frame these photos, so as you can imagine I had far more pictures worthy of deletion than saving.

But look how many are worth saving.

I took this one out the window of our train while it was leaving the station. Is it just me, or does it seem counterproductive to SWEEP off a train track.

 Tomorrow is Project Life Tuesday. Not only will I be posting my photos, but I'll give you a peek into my album.

 

 

31 Days of Creative INSPIRATION Series

Introduction

Day 1: Design Your Own Cupcake

Day 2: Storytelling Sunday

Day 3: Scrapbooking (Week in the Life Album)

Day 4: Everyday Photojournalism (Project 365/Project Life)

Day 5: Family Photo Fun - FAMILY x 12 BLOG HOP

Day 6: Links to Creatively Inspiring People (all writing a 31 Day series)

Day 7: Healthier (But Still Delicious) Cottage Pie

Day 8: Photo Walk

Day 9: Fun Photo Story

Day 10: Drive By Travel Photography

Other topics in the works for my 31 Days of Creative Inspiration Series: 

Photography - I answer the question, 'How do I know if I should buy a DSLR camera?', Family Photo Fun ideas from around the web.

Recipes - my husband's delicious salsa, HealthIER (Yet Still Delicious) Recipes

Scrapbooking - My favorite mini album, 30 minute scrapbook challenge

more Cupcake Ideas, craft ideas...

AND LOTS, LOTS MORE (I'm posting for 31 Days straight, remember?!)

And to find more than 700 other blogs participating in the 31 Days series, go here. There is a huge variety of topics to choose from.

31 DAYS of CREATIVE INSPIRATION :: Day 9 {Fun Photo Story}

This is the 9th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

I know I promised a post on chocolate toppers for cupcakes that kids can make, but it didn't work out for today. I promise it will come sometime within the next 22 days.

Today I wanted to share a cute little photo set I put together of my 3 boys. Since we now have a teen and a pre-teen in our house, we have seen a marked increase in the eye rolling around here. We were talking about it over frozen yogurt the other day and it turned into a little silliness with everyone giving it a try for the camera. I don't mind eye rolling at all when this is the result! There's not enough silliness in the world.

WHAT I WAS THINKING ABOUT WHEN I PUT TOGETHER THE PHOTO SET

These weren't necessarily the three best photos of the lot, but they were the best of all the photos that were the most alike.

To put together this set, I chose the three photos that were the most alike in 1) orientation (horiz vs vert) & 2) composition. Once my photos were selected, I edited the first photo in Lightroom to my liking, then I selected the other two photos and synchronized the settings. This guarantees the set has a consistent feel and look so it looks as if it goes together.

[To SYNCHRONIZE your photo settings in Lightroom, select PHOTO from the menu bar, DEVELOP SETTINGS from the drop down menu, then SYNC SETTINGS.]

 

NEW NAME & UPDATED BLOG BANNER

If you are regular reader of my blog, you may have noticed that I changed the name of my blog a couple of days ago. When I first started this Typepad blog almost two years ago I never planned to remain for long, so I never really gave the name any thought. Then when I was making my blog banner several months ago now, I came up with a name in a pinch so I could get the blog banner done and see how it looked, again not giving much thought to the name. Anyway, I hated that name! I never liked it and I especially hated it when people would refer to my blog using that awful name (My Creative Days in Beijing - BORING & AWKWARD). Anyway, I finally decided it was time for a change, so I came up with Nihao, Beijing!

I love making cupcakes and one of my favorite idea books is called Hello, Cupcake! Nihao means "hello" in Mandarin, and I thought it sounded cute together, so that became my new name! I hope it isn't too limiting since cupcakes are only some of what I share on this blog. 'Cupcake' is also a term of endearment so I hope that helps it seem general enough. Not to mention, cupcakes are trendy right now and it gives my blog a cheerful feel, I hope.

You may also have noticed that I changed the color scheme. It is a simple change, but I like the feel of the blog much better now. I may continue to tweak things here and there, so don't be surprised if things look different from time to time. It's still me!

 

A NOTE ABOUT my 31 DAYS SERIES

Ok, I'm starting to think my 31 Days series should have been 31 Days of Photo Inspiration since I keep coming back to photography. It is just what I do all the time and in a pinch, it is easy for me to put another photography centered post together. I really want to get back to creating things outside of my camera. This 31 Day Series was meant to be a catalyst to that, but instead that extra time is spent on the posts rather than creating. I'm not giving up, however, non-photography posts coming soon! Unfortunately, not tomorrow!

Tomorrow is all about TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY. I'll share some fun things I did on my trip to India this past June. You won't want to miss it!

 

 

31 Days of Creative INSPIRATION Series

Introduction

Day 1: Design Your Own Cupcake

Day 2: Storytelling Sunday

Day 3: Scrapbooking (Week in the Life Album)

Day 4: Everyday Photojournalism (Project 365/Project Life)

Day 5: Family Photo Fun - FAMILY x 12 BLOG HOP

Day 6: Links to Creatively Inspiring People (all writing a 31 Day series)

Day 7: Healthier (But Still Delicious) Cottage Pie

Day 8: Photo Walk

Day 9: Fun Photo Story

Other topics in the works for my 31 Days of Creative Inspiration Series: 

Photography - I answer the question, 'How do I know if I should buy a DSLR camera?', Family Photo Fun ideas from around the web.

Recipes - my husband's delicious salsa, HealthIER (Yet Still Delicious) Recipes

Scrapbooking - My favorite mini album, 30 minute scrapbook challenge

more Cupcake Ideas, craft ideas...

AND LOTS, LOTS MORE (I'm posting for 31 Days straight, remember?!)

And to find more than 700 other blogs participating in the 31 Days series, go here. There is a huge variety of topics to choose from.

31 DAYS OF CREATIVE INSPIRATION :: Day 8 {Beijing Photo Walk}

This is the 7th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.

It is Saturday and I am tired! It has been a holiday this week in China so my husband and boys have been home all week. Therefore, today's post is going to be heavy on the photos and light on the words!

One thing I try to do is always carry my camera with me. My boys are used to asking me now to take photos of all kinds of random things. When I don't have my camera with me, they get frustrated! It is definitely a habit that works for our family as well as helping to improve my photography skills. I will talk about habit and creativity in a future 31 Days post.

Photo Walks are a fun way to practice your skills. There are no rules to a photo walk. You can make yourself a list of photo prompts to follow or find one online or you can do like I do and just grab your camera and go for a walk.

Since I almost always have my camera with me on our outings around the city,(we don't own a car so we often bike, walk or take the subway), I often use the opportunity as an excuse to turn it into an unofficial PHOTO WALK. 

I encourage you to give it a try the next time you are out and about with your family. It doesn't really matter if you are driving, walking or biking, there is always something fun or interesting to take a photo of, don't you think?

I hope you enjoy some of my favorite photos from our PHOTO WALKS over the past week at home for the National Holiday here in China.

Even if photography isn't your thing, I encourage you to see if you can't make some interesting images with your camera anyway. Perhaps you will find something inspiring for your next project - whatever that may be. You might find an interesting color combination, a fun texture or a new perspective on the world. And that is always a good thing! 

View from the 80th Floor.

After many attempts, Braden finally spots the Bird's Nest (National Stadium built for the 2008 Olympics) out the window.

 

The kids loved this tiny ketchup bottle. We took it home with us.

 

I love that he still loves Buzz.

 

So much building all over Beijing.

 

Sweet bread from Charme, a Singaporean restaurant.

 

A stop at the flower market for some flowers and a rosemary plant.

 

Being silly with the statues.

 

This sign hangs above the escalator in Carrefour (a Walmart-type store from France). And now we get great pleasure in referring to one another as "Knockhead" from time to time!

The kids are having lots of fun searching for FAIL photos. They are plentiful in Beijing. This is on the box of a yogurt maker - The company, ACA, stands for Appliance Company of America and it is located in China. Figure that one out! No wonder the hand mixer I bought from them started smoking after only a handful of uses. Though I never knew what the ACA stood for.

 

To the boys, these blocks were Minecraft, their favorite computer game, come to life! I wish I would have had them pose next to them.

I hope you enjoyed my photos. Now it's your turn to pick up your camera and start exploring your neighborhood.

Come back tomorrow when we will hopefully talk all about CREATING CHOCOLATE CUPCAKE TOPPERS WITH KIDS (I'm just trying to locate the photos). And Monday's topic is TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY - lots of eye candy to come!

 

31 Days of Creative INSPIRATION Series

Introduction

Day 1: Design Your Own Cupcake

Day 2: Storytelling Sunday

Day 3: Scrapbooking (Week in the Life Album)

Day 4: Everyday Photojournalism (Project 365/Project Life)

Day 5: Family Photo Fun - FAMILY x 12 BLOG HOP

Day 6: Links to Creatively Inspiring People (all writing a 31 Day series)

Day 7: Healthier (But Still Delicious) Cottage Pie

Day 8: Photo Walk

Other topics in the works for my 31 Days of Creative Inspiration Series: 

Photography - I answer the question, 'How do I know if I should buy a DSLR camera?', Find out who INSPIRES me; Photography Pet Peeves, Family Photo Fun ideas from around the web.

Recipes - my husband's delicious salsa, HealthIER (Yet Still Delicious) Recipes

Scrapbooking - My favorite mini album, 30 minute scrapbook challenge

more Cupcake Ideas, craft ideas...

AND LOTS, LOTS MORE (I'm posting for 31 Days straight, remember?!)

And to find more than 700 other blogs participating in the 31 Days series, go here. There is a huge variety of topics to choose from.