I heart faces Week 46 "Sun Flare"

This is my entry for I heart faces this week. Check out everyone's flare by clicking the button above!

I heart faces Week 45" Autumn Beauty"

I am so excited to finally have the time to enter i heart faces this week. With my launch of my new business, Lou Lou Photography, in mid-Sept., I have been crazy busy. I can't complain. So here is my autumn beauty photo. It was taken when I took my boys to pick out their pumpkins this year. Check out all of the great entries this week!

i heart faces Week 40 "Excited"

This week's theme at i heart faces is "excited". I loved the sheer joy on Hallie's face when she saw what I pulled out of my camera bag. I'm "excited" to see all the fun entries this week. Click the button bellow and become "excited"!

i heart faces Week 38 "Blue"

This week's theme at i heart faces is "Blue". When I first thought of the theme, I thought blue eyes since it's about faces. No blue eyes in this household. I could dress my kids in blue, no. I could take a picture of them in front of my son's navy blue wall in his bedroom, no. Then this picture popped into my head this week. I was glad, because I haven't had time to take extra photo's for the theme. This past week I launched my photography business. I'm so excited and nervous at the same time. If you are interested click here to check out my new website.

i heart faces Week 37 "Completely Candid"

This week at i heart faces the theme is "Completely Candid". This photo is from my first paying gig. It was so fun, the family was so cute. All of their children were full of life and laughter. It really was an easy job just to sit back, watch and shoot.

i heart faces Week 36 "Contemplative"& "Pets"

When this theme was first posted, I was a little worried. I couldn't think of any pictures I had previously taken that would display contemplation and I felt it is one of those things you couldn't "set up". It just has to be. Last weekend when we were visiting my best friend in Boise for her daughter's baptism, I got my opportunity. We were sitting in the living room waiting for everyone to get ready to go, when I noticed Lauren sitting by the window looking out. She looked so deep in thought, it was her big day after all. I scrambled for my camera, knowing I would only have a few seconds to capture the moment. As luck may have it, I got the shot!

Contemplate over the entries this week at i heart faces.

This is my pets entry. In July when I took my kids to a local farm, I got so many fun shots. This goat was killing me. I guess he was a little hungry!

i heart faces Week 35 "Back to School"

This year marked the first day of kindergarten for my oldest child. What a mix of emotion that entailed. He is so ready and excited, but I'm a bit sad. I will miss my little buddy and am nervous for him to leave my little bubble for the real world.

Get back into school by checking out the entries at i heart faces.

i heart faces week 33 "Nostalgia"

This weeks theme for i heart faces is "Nostalgia". I took this picture of my son after we made homemade ice cream. As a child my family always made ice cream in the summer, and I was always allowed to lick the beater. I still remember the blue ice cream maker with white stripes and red stars. Get taken back with nostalgic photos here.

i heart faces week 32 "Bubbles"

This week's theme at i heart faces is "Bubbles". I already entered my favorite bubble blowing picture, so I thought I would try something else. My boys love bubble baths. However, they tend to make quite a mess. So we decided to have a bubble bath outside in the blow up pool and they could make as big of a mess as they wanted. Check out all the bubbly entries at i heart faces.

i heart faces week 31 "Crazy, silly, funny faces"

This week's theme at i heart faces is "Crazy, Silly, Funny Face". This is my friend Marci's little guy and he embodies crazy, silly, funny. We were at the park when this was taken and he was just such a ham and a crack up. Check out all the silliness at i heart faces. (Just a little sorry if I don't get you a comment back, I'm leaving town tomorrow!)

This is another photo I snapped from the local farm. Such a sweet little baby horse.

I heart faces week 30 "Slipin' and a Slidin' "

This week at I heart faces, it is a non judged week to show off our summer fun. Check it out by clicking the button above.

Every summer we set up the slip 'n' slide. The days are hot, but oh the water is cold. At first all Isaac wanted to do is stand on it to make the water go higher. He finally went down it... a couple times.

There is definitely a difference in the way a boy goes down the slide and the way a girl does...

Alex wanted nothing to do with it...

I heart faces Week 29 Beaches

This weeks theme is beaches. As soon as they announced the theme, I knew the picture. In 2007 my husbands parents took us to Hawaii to spend Christmas. We visited lots of beaches, but this one was the most memorable. It is a black sand beach. The sand feels like really soft little pebbles. It is definitely a place I will never forget. Check out all the beaches here.

Fix it Friday #21 Mr. Handsome

It's Fix it Friday again. I missed last week, but I'm back. This guy really is "Mr. Handsome". Here is the original photo.

When I first looked at this picture, I immediately thought the skin tones were very yellow. So I knew that would be one thing I would work on. So lets get going.

-Opened in Adobe Camera Raw.

Adjusted white balance a bit, added some blacks and brightness.

-Opened in PSE7

Added a Levels layer and lightened the mid tones(grey slider)
Added a Hue/Saturation layer to fix the skin tone some more. I chose to work on the yellows and used the dropper to click on a part of the skin that was really yellow to me. I used the slider to get to a skin tone I liked.

-I gave it an 8x10 crop to really give emphasis on his eyes.

-Ran Coffeeshop Perfect Portrait Action

Bright layer @ 25% opacity

Eye Define Layer: using a 100% opacity white brush I went over eyes and each eyelash.

Bright Eyes layer: using a 10% opacity white brush I went over iris' of eyes to lighten a bit.

Dodge/Burn Layer: using a 5% opacity white brush I lightened under the eyes a bit.

Sharpen Layer: at 34%

All other layers off

Edit # 1

On a copy of Edit #1 I ran Coffeeshop Splendor B/W Action
Contrast Boost layer @ 47% opacity
Purple Tint layer @ 88% opacity
Brownish Tint layer @ 73% opacity
Edit #2

On a copy of Edit #1 I ran Coffeeshop Warm Vintage Action
Turned off vignette layer
Darken Layer @ 75% opacity
Vintage Layer at 67% opacity
Edit #3

On a copy of Edit #1 I ran Coffeeshop Give it Texture Action. This is my favorite way to add texture to photos. As it runs you pick your texture. When it is done, it contains two layer that contain layer masks. One layer you can remove texture from desired areas and on the other layer you can re-add the color from the texture. So I remove texture from the skin and then added back the color from the texture. I then reduced the saturation on the photo.
Edit #4

I heart faces week 28 "feet"

These two feet...

...belong to two little boys who love summer, being outside and most of all being barefoot. I took a bunch of pictures of feet for this week's theme, but kept coming back to this one of my two son's feet which I took awhile ago. I love the calluses on the top of my sixteen month old son's feet, who still chooses not to walk, and the cuts, scrapes and scars that prove my four year old is all boy!

Check out all the feet here!