Christmas Spirit/Lighting Essentials/Backdrop Compresson Poles

Wow this website is filled with great information:

Lighting Essentials:
http://www.lighting-essentials.com/

Also, another DIY treat for those who want to save money on a diffuser:
http://www.diyphotography.net/just-fab-s-turkey-pan-beauty-dish


DIY Studio Lighting - The Strip Light That Won't Strip You

http://www.diyphotography.net/the-strip-light-that-wont-strip-you


A link to 150 great blogs abput photograohy

http://chasejarvis.com/blog/2007/11/150-of-your-favorite-blogs-and-my-new.html

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST - This just may be the answer to my backdrop hanging woes! A compression pole from the Home Depot! Watch the video on this site to see how wonderful this invention is for us DIY photographers!

PHOTO STUDIO COMPRESSION POLE

http://www.diyphotography.net/photo-studio-compression-pole

After you watch the video in the one above and you get the idea - THEN CHECK OUT THIS POST - THIS may be the answer for me! I'd prefer to not have to put the one above together and this one also lets you place it on a diagonal.

"THIRD HAND" Lighting Pole

http://www.diyphotography.net/home-studio-third-hand-lighting-pole

So, it looks like I might be purchasing a set of these soon:

http://astore.amazon.com/diyphotography-20/detail/B000067S12/105-0886295-3838818

In the Christmas spirit here are couple Christmas tree ornament macros I just edited from yesterday:

Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas from My husband and I:



My table is all set up for Christmas day tomorrow... :)






A few of my favorite decorations:







My mom gave me these salt & pepper shakers for my Birthday Saturday...I love snowmen and these are too cute.




Can you tell I adore snowmen??

And this is my tree:

Merry Christmas Wishes!

Last weekend I finalized my Christmas card. I decided to do another "make your own" card of one of my photos.

The past 2 years I had my Black Lab Lucas on the card...one with a Photoshopped Christmas hat and last year he was sitting in front of the Christmas tree.

I decided to not do another Lucas card so I photographed my ornaments on my tree and picked my favorite one...show below:



Some that weren't chosen for the card:








Some good news! My husband ordered my Birthday/Christmas gift from B&H Photo. On Monday my Nikon Telephoto AF Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR (Vibration Reduction) Autofocus Lens should arrive! I can't wait!!

I'm looking forward to creating my own softbox (hopefully over this weekend) and working on Macros to make my own Birthday Cards/Special occasion cards for family & friends like I do for Christmas every year. I think it's a great way to send them something personal while saving the $4.00-$5.00 that card companies charge!!

I want to find cardboard cards that have the open hole in the front where I can slip the photos into. Otherwise I have to figure out how else to make the cards. I haven't done any research yet on the best ways to do it but I'm sure once I search ideas will come out of the woodwork. :)