Spring time in Texas

Happy Monday!  Just a quick post to share our Texas Spring time beauty with those of you that aren't lucky enough to live in Texas, giggle.  Spring time is my favorite time of the year in my part of Texas and this year the weather has been so oddly different!  Lots of cool days just when we think the warm weather is here to stay.  This weekend started out warm and ended rainy and chilly!  As part of my project 365 I have been spending extra time seeking out safe spots to take photos of our Texas Wildflowers.  Lucky for me I found a few fields that don't require I be parked on the side of the road as cars fly by.  Here are some of my favorites so far.  What do you love about Spring time?

You can keep up with my Project 365 photos on my photography site HERE or on Instagram.

For my instagramming friends aren't you loving all of Rhonna's continued add on's!!  I truly enjoy creating my little pieces of art #nwcreateyourownart with #rhonnadesigns and the #waterlogue app too!  As always if you have any questions please let me know, I'm happy to help!

Have a great week my friends!

Surprise!

Surprise!  I've been such a terrible blogger, I just lost my spunk.  Today I feel like being "REAL" just letting my thoughts spill out so here goes...

Life has been busy, I'm trying to put my focus on my photography business when I'm not at my full time job during the day.  I have to be honest, I get sad at times during the day because I'm not doing what I truly love.   Starting my business was scary, not knowing what others would think or say was scary.  I had hoped that it would bring me closer to some that are on the same path but it didn't.  But, it did bring me closer to those that were already far along in their path of photography.  I was so amazed how several friends came to me and wanted to mentor me.  I know we shouldn't depend on others to be our cheerleaders but come on….it is  only human to want for those that you love and care about to encourage you.  

So, when these women I barely knew reached out to me it was so amazing.  I don't go to them too often but when I do they are there ready and willing to help me see things in various ways.  For that I am so appreciative of their new friendships.  It's awesome to be able to throw around your ideas with someone who gets you.  And it's also awesome to be able to offer them some help in return too, who knew I could be of encouragement for existing photographers.  I have also been taking some online courses, reading lots of articles on how to run a business.  Taking photos is fun and it's what I love but I don't want forget about the business side because that is important too.  Getting contracts, packaging, it's all part of it and so trying to be sure to cover all my bases.

Then there is Project 365, I have been steadily taking my daily photos so far I have only used two photos not taken on the day that they were taken.  I am really doing my best to push myself to take a photo daily and sometimes when I think I won't have the shot it all works out.  It has been so much fun too and sharing it with friends via Instagram and FB has helped grow my friendships too.  Women, we women are such cool people.  I have come across all sorts of women too, sweet kind, downer types, pushy types, totally uplifting types and some that are sometimes too busy to reach out in return.  But, overall I have found that there are so many women that are ready to lift each other up.  And WOW, that is so important for us all.  

I've been missing some of my friendships to women from years ago and some from recent years.  Life gets busy and many just don't have the time to reach out.  I have always been the kind to reach out time and time again but lately I am just sad that it has to be me.  I guess I just have to learn that the saying not all friends are meant to be life friends is still true.  Again, that is when social media has helped me out.  I got sad when my friends didn't have time for me so I reached out and made more friends.  Lucky for me I found some local friends who do have time even if it is just a text now and then.  Life is precious and having my husband is awesome.  But, we girls need girlfriends and so still hoping to build a good relationship with some of the amazing ladies I have met over the last year.  It's time to stop chasing those that are too busy to reach out to me.  It's time to stop allowing the downers to consume my time.  It's time to only allow the women who are truly real occupy a place in my heart.

OK, my ranting is over for now.  I'm going to do my best to come back to blogging, we'll see how it goes.  Heck, there may not even be anyone out there anymore, ha!

And because I can't post without a photo, here is one I took last week on my way home one night after work.

Oh, before I sign off I wanted to mention that we are doing a master bedroom remodel, finally!  If you want to follow along just look me up on Instagram I'm @_nancywyatt  But, I will be sure to blog some of it too.  Bye for now.

Kaitlyn's Promise

For some years now I have heard about an amazing crop event that was held at a local church to help raise money for Drug Abuse awareness.  A mom had lost her daughter to "dusting" and so she promised Kaitlyn that she would raise awareness so that others would know how normal families are also affected by this. That drug touches all types of people, not just the ones that look like they are into drugs.  I finally got to attend the Crop this past weekend.  The event kept growing and so now they hold it at larger venues.  It was so awesome!  You get your own big table to sit at and they provide snacks and you can spend one or two days there having fun with your friends!! It's not just for scrapbookers either!! There were women there with their computers doing digital scrapbooking, some were sewing and I could see some doing mixed media there and more!  If you think you might want to learn more here is a link to their site HERE  At the very least will you hit the share buttons below and help me spread the word.  Thank you so much.

Project 365 in 2014

Hello friends!  It's been way too long since I last blogged!  I have been keeping really busy but you can always find me on Instagram HERE.   I am in the process of getting my photography business going after a year of friends encouraging me.  I know it will be tough, my style isn't for everyone and I still have more to learn but I'm ready to start on a new adventure!  I chose "Brave" as this year's OLW to help me on this new adventure.

I'm still part of Rhonna Designs as a creative contributor so I will be back to creating projects with her amazing designs and sharing them here.  And of course I use them in instagram often, love creating my own art with her app!  I am actually using rhonna designs app to create small layouts with my P365 photos.  So fun and easy and I love how each month they will have a coordinating design below the photo.  Here is what I have so far and you can find them by searching this hashtag #nw2014p365 sadly I just saw someone tagged one of their photos with my custom hashtag so now i'm going to see a belly every time i pull up the hashtag. oy vey, i even checked it before I started to use it, lol.  Might need to rethink that hashtag.  Thanks for stopping in and Happy New Year!

Click on below collage to see in a larger size.

Bringing back some great old ornament Tutorial posts.

Re-Post of two past Christmas projects that I recently shared on Instagram that sparked lots of interest:

DATED BACK TO 12/13/2011
Today I asked a friend of mine if she had seen my ornament post HERE and as we chatted about it an idea came to mind.  I told her that I was a bit sad to mail off my ornament and so I would have to make myself one. Then I thought how about creating an ornament with a monogram for my nieces and nephews to put on my tree.  I think that it would be special for them to see "their" ornament on our tree.  So, I changed out one side of the ornament when creating it and changed up the junk bow a bit.  I also took step by step photos, if  I had not taken photos I could have finished this up in 20mins. If you try your own I would love to see a photo!

*Click on photos to see them in a larger size*

Lady in waiting

This is my friend Brittany, I met her online via her blog a few years ago.   She isn't blogging anymore and I do miss her blog!  She used to share some of the yummiest recipes that she would make!  We took a class together a few years ago and have stayed in touch.   Funny thing is we live on opposite sides of town but never get the chance to see each other.   She is a photographer in the Clear Lake area so if you are in that area and want her info let me know.  Or simply go HERE to visit her FB page.

So, she is engaged to Calvert and is so ready to be his bride but has been waiting for the US to issue him a visa so he could move here from Jamaica so they can start their forever.  She asked me to join her at the airport on the day he was arriving so I could snap a few photos for her.  UHM, ok.......me?  The girl who isn't nearly as good as you, to snap photos for you?!  In an airport with no natural lighting? UHM, ok.  Giggle  His plane arrived at 5:07 but he didn't walk through those doors until about 9:30pm.  Yep, we waited and waited and so at some point I couldn't resist taking this snapshot of her.  She had been gazing at those doors beyond her.  So, after getting a few of her from the back I asked her to look over and I got this shot.  I love it and I love all the graininess in this too!  Thanks for asking me to take some photos on this special day Brittany!! 

Will it be a He or a She?

This past Labor Day weekend I was asked to attend a gender reveal party and snap some photos of the Mom and Dad to be finding out along with their guest what they would be having.  It was so FUN!  Who knew how exciting it would be to find out along with the parents that it would be a boy!  I had asked them if they had a preference and they both said boy first girl second and well, their wish came true on the boy first part.  I just wanted to share a collage I created of a few photos taken at the reveal.  Pictured above is Kasandra with her mom, it was her mom who made the cake and all the yummies pictured on the cake table.  She did an amazing job and I will be sure to come back and edit in her contact info for any of you in the Austin area looking for a cake or cookies for your event!

Now, I have to admit that showing up to a home that I had never visited to photograph a party was a little nerve racking!  I'm a natural light photographer (in the making) and so I was hoping that there would be light for me to capture the photos she wanted.  As I walked in all the blinds were drawn and all the lights were off and my heart started to beat quickly. LOL.  But, I pulled the blinds open and made it all work as best I could.   I'm happy for the most part on the photos I got, I will say that having the camera that I have helped me out when using the higher ISO.  I am so grateful to Kasandra for having faith in me to capture the memories made at this important event!

Thanks for stopping in and see ya back soon.  I promise to share a few more photos from the reveal!

Just a quick hello, I'm still around!

Hello friends!  I have been a bad blogger girl huh!  Yesterday I met Meagan, one of my Instagram friends in real life over lunch!  I truly wish I had the chance to meet more of my "online" friends, I have so many wonderful friends that live so far away!  That is one thing that is so awesome about technology huh!  We meet many wonderful people!  So, before I go on if you get a chance stop on over at Meagan's blog HERE and say hello!  She shares some amazing recipes that she comes up with on her own!  I promise you will be glad you stopped by!

So, I've been busy working on some behind the scenes stuff but what I can share with you is that I am still in LOVE with the Rhonna Designs App.  And I have not been paid to say that, LOL.  It truly is a fun app and it really has sparked my creative energy!  If you don't already follow me and want to please do!  You can find me @_nancywyatt and my old feed is still up under @nct621 although I'm not posting more photos to that feed.  It stopped allowing me to comment on mine and other peeps photos.  So, I opened up the new one but hated to close out my old one since I had so many photos on it.  It is on Instagram where you will find me sharing often.  I'm sorta growing tired of the FB scene, gasp! 

If you are using Rhonna's app and need any help please be sure to give me a shout and I will do my best to help you out.  She has tutorials listed HERE and there is even a link to my Youtube channel there and also on my blog sidebar.

Before I head out I wanted to share with you a photo I took a few years ago on a trip the hubby and I took.  I die at that Texas sky! Love it!!  We were headed to visit my SIL in West Texas, this photo was taken not far from Fredericksburg TX in May.  We were driving along and my hubby spotted this field and pulled over and told me I could snap away.  So, I climbed into the back of his truck and took some photos.  It was fun!  There wasn't a shoulder on the road so we were in the thick of it and when it's hot there are snakes out so we had to be super careful!  I think next year I will be sure to make that trip again and get some new shots now that I'm not afraid to use the "M" setting of my camera!

Thanks for stopping in and hope to see you on Instagram! 

How to Tutorials for Rhonna Designs App

*App Logo and art above courtesy of Rhonna Designs*

Hello friends!! If you are using the new fun app from Rhonna Farrer found only in the iTunes Store for a mere $1.99 I'm sure you are having a blast!  If not visit this blog post HERE and Rhonna will introduce you to it. 

I made two very last minute apps if you are interested.   One is on how to add layers of designs and text and the other on how to use the Mask feature.  The app released while Rhonna was off on a family vacation.  And I'm sure once back from vacation Rhonna will have some awesome tutorials but wanted to share a couple till then. 

I might add more and if you have specific requests let me know and I will see if I can do a tutorial on some of your requests.  

And lastly, feel free to follow me on Instagram at my new IG profile name _nancywyatt and if you know others that need help send them my way, I'm happy to help. Thanks!!

How to work in layers http://youtu.be/ADQZOgRCobo

How to use Mask feature  http://youtu.be/DfVrN9XpJEg

*Edited 7-7-13 Figured out the link to my YouTube channel, click HERE

Hope they help!! Let me know if you have any questions!!

Rhonna DESIGNS: Rhonna Designs app: Photo editing app for Instagra...

Rhonna DESIGNS: Rhonna Designs app: Photo editing app for Instagra...: Love to add personality to your photo edits? With Rhonna Designs App , you’ve got all the tools right at your fingertips to uplift and insp...

Rhonna Designs App

Hello friends!!  Well, if you follow me on instagram via my new IG name @_nancywyatt (formerly @nct621) you have seen me playing around with the beta version of Rhonna's new up and coming app!  Well, it should only be a couple of days before the Apple store gives the approval and releases it into it's shop!! EEEK!!  So, if you love giving your instagrams a fun artistic look then this is a great app for you!  Here is a little snippet that Rosemary Watson created to get us all excited and ready for the release!  We will be shouting it from the rooftops when the app is ready for purchase but a little bird told me that it could be on the 4th of July so hopefully all goes as planned and we see it there then.!  Have a great week friends!!  If you want to see what we have created with the app just do a search on Instagram on the hashtag #rhonnadesigns_app

Rhonna Designs App Showreel from Rosemary Watson on Vimeo.

**I almost failed to mention that the first release will be available in the iTunes store only.  They hope to release it to the Android market at a later date.  It turns out that it is a lot more work and money to get app into the Android stores so hopefully with enough sales of the iTunes version they can move on to the droid version**

My Photography Journey - I like it clean and you?

Hi there!  Well, I hope that those of you that got to know me via my craft and digital art aren't getting tired of my photo sharing.  I promise that I haven't left behind my other hobbies just have been doing a lot of online classes in hopes of learning as much as I can on photography.  I wanted to share with you how my obsession is slowly headed in the right direction.

I love, love, love seeing other photographers photos and at first I was doing the whole are mine as good yet?!  Will I ever get there?  I love how there are so many styles to photographing and editing.  As much as I love when I see photos with extreme color saturation added in it doesn't seem to fit my style but in so many photos I see out there I do love it.  For me I keep going back to a more clean natural look with a little pop.  

Here is what I'm talking about, I like to think that my edit doesn't look too over the top.  As you can see the top that Moses is wearing has some really bright colors and didn't need much pop.  What I do still need to work on is learning how to work on the reflection that clothes gives on skin some times.  If you look at his lower right cheek you will see how the red bounces off his face.  Still working on it but I'm getting there.  What say you?  Does it look too over done?

*ignore my poor body cropping! ooops! that is another thing I need to work on!

The Jakemeister!

This picture slideshow generated with Smilebox

This little guy is a gem! He loves to smile!  I truly enjoy snapping photos of him and love that his mama  is like minded in that we love the lifestyle photos.  I enjoyed showing up minutes before this sleepy head woke up and in such a good mood I might add!  We hung out and although we changed his outfit a few times we let him play and I simply snapped away.  Being his personal paparazzi these past 6 months has truly been a pleasure!  He is helping me on this photography journey of mine!  How can photos of this cutie not turn out good!  With the exception of a few "too soft" shots I was content with what I came away with.  I am getting SO much better at in camera editing that I don't have to do much tweaking later on.  Who knew I would end up learning about White Balance, Exposure and manual mode only!  Seriously, I feel blessed for the time that I get to snap photos of my friends!   I am looking forward to my long photography learning journey!  So much still left to learn and a forever learning process right!?  Happy Weekend friends!!

Her Little Sailor Boy!

Sweet Jake!  If you are a regular then you know this precious one belongs to my friend Christina whose maternity photos I took.  I still am so flattered that she has chosen me to photograph some important times in her recent life!  She is who I get my most practice on and I appreciate her for that!  And how could I not enjoy snapping photos of Jake, right!?

He has the neatest highchair and so when he was having his morning snack of yogurt and carrots I couldn't resist snapping photos!  And those eye lashes of his! I die!

After his messy yogurt he got cleaned up for just a few moments before digging into some crackers.  As you can see the lighting in their dining room is fab and my photos turn out very much to my liking.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you have a great week!

Beauty Before and After

I'm seriously obsessing with photos I took of Christina a few weeks ago!  She and my niece Brianna were awesome models for my photography practice session!  Had to share this one with y'all!  I wanted to share the SOOC (straight out of camera) version verses my Extreme Black and White Edit.  Thanks for stopping by!

BEFORE SOOC photo

If you look closely at Christina's eyes in the photo above you can see the reflection of my reflect disk that I had leaning against my legs.  I didn't mean to use it in this shot but made the mistake of not moving it away and so you can see the little circles of light that the disk produced. When I edited the photo below into a black and white they were distracting so I edited them out.  That was all the touch ups I did on her besides turning it into a black and white and adding a little swirl to it.  Love how it turned out!

AFTER Extreme Edit Photo

Prom...Was it really that long ago!

**Edited on 5.22.13 with additional photos*

It was!  My prom was back in 1986 and I can barely remember how long we were there and if we danced!?  I recently found out that the guy who I went to prom with passed away in 1997, so sad!
Here is a snapshot of a page from my Senior Scrapbook of us before our prom.
Oy! Look at my mullet and glasses. LOL

Why am I even thinking back to my prom you may ask?  Well, my friends son, Hunter asked me to take some photos for them before their prom.  I agreed and boy I had no idea what I was getting myself into!  It was crazy HOT, Hectic and so many other kids and parents at the same location we were at.  I got a few shots that I'm ok with but if I had it to do all over again.  I would have found a private location that was not visited by anyone else and cooler!  Ha!  The lovely girls were melting.  They were gorgeous!!  And the guys so handsome!  Here are a few shots from that evening, the photo resolution looks a bit off but you get the idea.  Thanks for looking!

Personalize a slideshow

Creative Team Tuesday - Custom Graduation Party Invite

Hello there!  Today I wanted to share with you an idea that I am playing around with for a party I hope to host in honor of my niece Brianna who is graduating this year.   I simply used Photoshop Elements and some Rhonna Designs.  Creating these three pieces truly was so easy!  And I simply created the invite to a size called out at one of my favorite print shops.  I will then print out the labels at home on full sheet sticker paper and the Thank You cards on matte card stock.  Or you could easily send those off to a print house too.  As long as you know what size to create the artwork, it is easy to upload to many sites.

  If you are in the process of planning a party and want to design them and need help please let me know.  I can post a few screen shots and or answer questions.  You can find my email address on the right side bar of my blog.

The items I used to create these are found by clicking on the following links:

Quatrefoil Tool Kit for pattern paper and Shape for Photo Frame

Insta Banner Kit for Ribbon on invite

Insta Chalk Kit for flourish

What I love about using these kits is that I can then create other custom pieces for the party!  I will share more ideas next week on how we can continue planning a custom designed party!  When you have digital art the possibilities are endless!  You basically always have a supply of party goods at your fingers *wink

*I replaced our address with a pretend one*

Still here?  Are you wondering how I got my niece's photo in that shaped frame?  Well, that frame is a png from the Quatrefoil Kit that I linked at the top of the post.  When creating the invite you end up with multiple layers.  The first is the background layer, then for me it was the square on the left that holds the text, then another couple of layers were for text, then the layer that held the cute banner, etc.  So, I decided that I wanted her photo in this shape to tie in with the background paper.  I simply added the shape to the file being sure the png layer was on the upper most layer.  Then I clicked on that layer over on the left side of my PSE layers window so that when I dragged my photo in that photo layer was over the shape png layer.  Then I chose "Layer" at the top of my tool bar, then chose create clipping mask.  Then the photo is magically popped into that shape!  I then simply move the photo around and resize as needed.  Easy peasy!!   And for an added pop I added another layer for that same shape and just made it a tad bigger and filled it in with a color.  Working with layers is fun and easier than most realize.  Really it is!

I found an old blog post Rhonna shared back in 2009 that shows using layers.  It is found HERE

See ya next week!

Everything is bigger in Texas

Is what many people say and this ring is proof of that! Ha!  I was asked if I could take some senior photos of a graduating Texas Aggie up in College Station.  It's only about 45 mins from my home so I was happy to do so!  More practice!    This ring is outside the George Bush Library and a popular spot for photographs.  I am still working on finding the best pixel size to share photos so the resolution on these isn't the best but hopefully you get the jist.

And I also wanted to share a couple of photos I took of my niece and her sister.  I know, you are wondering why I am not calling her my niece right?!  Well, I suppose I could, she is the daughter of my nieces step-mother.  Confusing? Giggle.  Any who, I asked them to spend a little time with me one day after work to take a few photos and they were totally in!  Such beautiful girls!  I only shoot in natural light so we had to meet up soon after work and the day was a little overcast but overall I think the photos look pretty good.  I like to use a reflective disc when possible.

The photo above is my niece Brianna. Love that girl!  She is her mama's mini me and I like to think she looks a little like me too. 

And this is Christina, she loves the camera!  I did a very light edit on their photos, no touch ups.  They are that gorgeous naturally!  A few of my friends have said that Christina resembles Madonna from her early years.

Thanks for stopping in!  For those of you wondering if I have given up my crafting, I have not just a little obsessed with photography at the moment.  giggle

Bluebonnet's and Mr. Tough Guy

I had to share this photo I took of Hunter a couple of weekends ago.  I absolutely love how tough he looks yet is standing in a field of pretty Texas Bluebonnets!  He is a total sweetheart so don't let the serious face fool ya!  You can see the photo a little larger if you click on it.

And let me let you in on a little secret......the sky.  Although that is a true sky it is not the sky that was out for our photo session.  That day was overcast and the sky was a very pale almost white sky and so I couldn't resist trying out a sky overly from The CoffeeShop Blog found HERE.

Not sure if it's too much but for now I am digging it, I did another version that isn't as stunning and so maybe that one will look a bit more natural.  For now I'm sharing this edit, what say you? Did it look fake when you first glanced at the photo?

Gray Living...I LOVE you!

Hi there!  I know, it's been a while since my last post huh!  Not sure why but it's just life going on ya know.  I have been busy photographing friends and family, having so much fun!  This past weekend I went to McKinney, Texas to co-host a baby shower for my niece Kayla.  While there we also had a mini maternity session, fun!

After the shower on Saturday I decided to take some time to browse the awesome shops located in the square of downtown McKinney.  I mean, I had no hubby in tow this trip so it was the perfect time! Right?! 

Here are some photos from one of the shops that I fell in absolute passionate love with!  So much eye candy!

Hope you enjoy a peek into Gray Living......

This digital slideshow customized with Smilebox

I truly hope you make the time to drop in if you are ever in the area, it's just north of Dallas Texas.