The Munchkin's Notebook

This year was good year for photography for me even if Iceland was disappointing from a photography perspective.  So, at years end, I reviewed my photo statistics and found that I edited 2,871 images (that is the number of edited images sitting in LightRoom not the number of photos I took); my most used focal length is 28 mm, with a shutter speed of 1/125s at an f8 aperture, and ISO 400. I also looked back at the photos I posted this year and determined my three favorite photos in Cosplay, Travel/Landscape, and Animals.  Then looked at my website and determined which photo was the most viewed. The photo really was not a surprise because overall, the cosplay was great and the photo turned out well.  It was Maleficent from Katsucon, it had over 1300 views.    Cosplay Travel/Landscape Animals Most Viewed Photo That is my wrap up for the year. I am looking forward to a great 2016, working with awesome people, and traveling...

On December 6, I participated in Star Wars Cosplay Photo Shoot hosted by the DC Cosplay Group at the National Building Museum , which is a great location to shoot in, due to its grandeur.  The meet up consisted of several cosplayers and photographers.  The rules for the shoot were simple no blasters inside the museum, but light sabers were ok, and photographers could not use light stands or umbrellas.  Thus, this meet up was perfect for photographers practicing for Katsucon. At the shoot, I used a Cannon 70D with an 18 - 200mm lens and an external 600EX-RT on a stick held by my assistant, who is also my husband.  Using an off camera flash, was good because it allowed me to get different angles of light.   I took over 200 photos, however only kept 136 photos mostly because several were repeats poses.  My camera was set ISO 400 with an f/8 aperture, which is the sweet spot form my lens.  My shutter speed varied between 1/20s to 1/200s, with ...

The Holiday season has officially kicked off.  As we leave Thanksgiving behind and make that mad dash to prepare for Christmas, by decking the halls, making cookies, shopping for gifts, and wrapping presents.  We make lists, check them twice, and stress out about all the little things.    I took a moment today to think, because someone asked me what I want for Christmas. I thought, “What do I really want for Christmas?”  Sure, I could ask for world peace like a stereotypical pageant queen or something selfish like million dollars or a heated back massager. (Cannot lie all those would be nice.) But, honestly what I would like is a phone call from friends and family to just catch up and discuss things going on in the world. (If you are wondering why, I do not call; it is because I feel like I am interrupting when I call. If you are wondering, why I do not text instead, it is because I hate conversation by text message.) Alternatively, I would love people to ...

I am considering this AnimeUSA 2015 a success.  I had ten photo shoots scheduled but only did eight due to cancellations.  Overall, I thought most of the shoots went well, however the construction going on at the venue limited some photo opportunities outside in the garden area.  I found that early Sunday morning is the best time to shoot in the “fancy” area of the venue including the long brick hallway.   Because the area was empty, I was able to get some nice reflection shots using the mirrored walls in that area of the venue.  Also the other area that I enjoyed shooting in was in the upper levels of the venue near the elevator bays, were they have a sitting area with curved couches. Aurora by Cassimonee Cosplay Daiya by Lina Lin Cosplay Now every year I have some lessons learned, and this year is no exception.  Again, pre-shoot questionnaire really helped with the shoots, allowing me to plan the...

We got a Pixelstick about three weeks ago, thought it would be a fun thing to add to the gear collection and possibly use at anime conventions.  The pixelstick is a narrow 6-foot strip of colored LEDs that will go off in a pattern, and as you walk with the stick, it will form a light trail or picture based on the loaded program.  Most people use it to create abstract light art or do light painting ; however, it can also be used to create a background for a photo or add effects like fireballs and ghosts. Last night I did a few test shots with the stick.  I did some light painting first.  Which is interesting, but I think I need to have a specific pattern in my head or be working around interesting objects and/or people.  I also determined we might need to get the attachment for the stick, which bends and smooths the light to form better curves.   Overall, the light painting turned out okay. However, I need to work on my timing for the moon. But th...

In honor of my photography Facebook page reaching a 100 likes, I ran a contest to give away a 100-minute photo shoot with digital images and a 5x7 print.   The winner of the contest was chosen at random from those who commented on the contest post.   The winner of the contest was Sara Cosplay , who does historical versions of the Disney princesses.  Snow White in the Wood She choose to do a combined outdoor and studio shoot for her historical Snow White cosplay.  We did the outside shots in a local park, which had a waterfall feature and a trestle area covered in ivy.  For the shoot, I used my standard 18-200 mm lens, using an ISO 100 with a f5 and smaller aperture, with various shutter speed, and an external flash.  The flash was used because the waterfall photos were taken in a heavily shaded area and it allowed for the me light the subject properly and separate here from the background.  My husband used his 70-200 mm lens with ...

In September, we were up in Ohio to attend a wedding.  The weather that weekend was mostly dreary and rainy.   Coyote in a barrel The Friday we arrived, it was cloudy and looked as though it was going to rain any minute, but we went to the Akron Zoo anyway before dinner with family.  The Akron Zoo is a small zoo that makes you feel you are up close and personal with the animals in the zoo.  However, the zoo does feel like a bit of a maze.  Overall, it is a nice zoo.  I have upgraded to a new camera, a 70D and my husband has upgraded to a 5D.  I used my typical 18-200mm lens while my husband used a 70 – 200mm with 1.4x converter.  I kept my aperture around 8f, since it is the most versatile for the environment, while my husband varied his f-stop.  We used various shutter speeds with ISO around 200 and up depending on the exhibit.    We got a couple nice shots, plus lucked out and got to see the snow leopard try to ...