Photographer's Insight- Lighting II

Walking through the streets of Harlem, Georgia we came across this wonderful candy shop.... Lucky Lady Pecans... Fantastic pecans that are locally grown. As we were grazing and browsing it began to rain....Pour more like it. I walked outside and stood in the doorway enjoying the smell and mist of the afternoon rain shower. There was practically no one driving on the streets, not a soul walking around and a really cool bench to my right. The bench looked like a spot where people would sit, chat and get to know your neighbors. Harlem, Ga has a lot of charm. The light, rain and the contrast of the bench caught my eye and I waited until there were no cars driving down the street..... I took probably 3 shots and chose this one as my favorite...

Cloudy days are another source of wonderful lighting opportunities as the clouds act as a diffuser and softens the light falling on your subject. This is one of the images that was selected to display in the 29th Annual Georgia Marble Festival Art Exhibition....... Fingers crossed that the judges awarding prizes love it as much as I do....

Photographer's Insight- Lighting

People often ask for for advice about how to take better pictures. It can be summed up in a word, lighting. A teacher once told me....."If you have a north facing garage, quit your day job and open a photography studio!!" You will always get great images. The same is also true for window light........The soft light falls beautifully over the face and casts the beautiful catch lights in the eyes. My lovely model Frenchy (one of my Boston Terriers) is posing for my example. In true Boston Terrier fashion she is very excited about being told where to look and how to pose. Notice the excitement on her face. :)

Yum Yum Getcha Some- Carnitas (Pork) Tacos

Oh jeez, this recipe is so wonderful and versatile. The pork is a twist on a recipe I saw watching an episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. This pork can become many different dishes by changing the sauce. Today I am making tacos but, slap some BBQ on the pork and you have one tasty sandwich my friend. The sauce below I threw together. Let me know what you think :)

Serves 4 (with left overs)

Pork: Place in a large pot
2lbs pork tenderloin
3 limes (sliced in halves and slightly squeezed)
3 tbs cinnamon or cinnamon sticks (which ever you have)
1 1/2 head of garlic (cut off the bottom, exposing the cloves)
1 can sweet condensed milk
2 tsp kosher salt
1 can of soda- all we had was diet soda so I put a fuzzy naval wine cooler in mine... (this was left over from an 80's party we had:)
2 orange peppers- cut in half (toss the whole thing in)
fill with water to cover pork.

Cook to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook for 4 hours

Remove pork and shred

Sauce: Note to self....This has a kick to it. Add all ingredients into the food processor
1 medium spoonful of chipotle peppers
2 jars green Mexican salsa (16.7 oz jars)
1 handful of cilantro (stems and all)
10 jalapeno slices
1/4 red onion

Adding more cilantro and lime juice will cut the sassyness (this is code for heat) or you can opt not to add the japs.

Heat sauce and add pork.

Serve with tortillas, taco shells, as enchiladas, burritos....whatever.
Don't forget the sour cream, guac and salsa!

Camping in Lincoln National Park

Camping has become the latest thing to fill the weekends due to the recent purchase of a travel trailer. We call it the Taj Ma Haul, I swear it's an apartment on wheels. The best part is that we got it used, in great condition and a sweet low price. Poor guy had to sell for less than it was worth because his wife listed it for the actual amount of the loan payoff. (let's just say... He wasn't a happy camper :) Anyway, this particular vacation revolved around going to Holiday World in Santa Claus, Indiana. There are so many places I could take this entry but, the real reason is to post some cute pictures of the children staying in the campsite across from us playing with a frog so I will reign it back in. We stayed at Lincoln National Park which is a few miles down from the theme park. There was a couple and their 3 kids in the campsite across from ours that found a frog.

This poor frog.

The kids were so excited about it. I swear I think the frog held up a sign that said......Help me. They finally put the thing down but, not before I was able to click a few great pics. It's funny to see the little boy's face change once he gets to hold the frog. Hope you enjoy them.

Upcoming Art Show

I am very excited to announce my upcomping art show at It's a Grind coffee shop in Holly Springs, Ga the 1st week of September. The collection is a sample of images from my newborn photo sessions, classic black and white images shot in natural light.

Red Pepper Flake Redemption

My mac and cheese lunch was incredibly hot after accidentally dumping nearly 2 cups of red pepper flakes in the pot. Shortly after the mac and cheese debacle I was rewarded with the tasting of my 1st Fig Jam made with Celeste Figs. Oh glory day, the sweetness is so subtle and delicate the bread is practically leaping from my freezer into the toaster.

Ding-Dong Moment

Ok kids, Today's weight loss class deals with portion control. To ensure you only eat 1/2 the mac and cheese you just made......Mmmmm all that gooey yummy cheese. Open a BJ's Wholesale sized container of red pepper flakes on the spoon side (when you really mean to open the sprinkle side) and proceed to shake it 3 times before you realize (sadly) that you have dumped approx 2 cups of flakes all over the mac and cheese. Trust me... A little bit of flakes goes a long way..

The moral of this story is.... Make sure that you flip open the sprinkle side before you start shaking the bottle like a dude in the Mariachi band that shakes the Maracas!!