Tagged

I have had the joy of being tagged by Lizzy! I've seen a lot of bloggers doing these fun posts, so I'm all for it! I'm not sure who I'll tag back, because most of the blogs I read have already been tagged. So if you're like me, just waiting to be tagged, speak up and I'll tag you. :)

Rules of the game:

1. Post these rules.
2. Post 11 random things about yourself. (Though this can be optional.)
3. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you in their post.
4. Create 11 new questions for the people you ask to answer.
5. Go to their blog and let them know you've tagged them. 

11 Random Things About Me:

1. One of my pet peeves is to have to read and decipher horrible grammar and spelling on fb, etc. Example:  how r u to day

 (For those of you who type in lowercase letters as a style on your blog, I'm not talking about you. In fact, I like that!)

2. I stepped on a rusty nail this week.

3. I like my coffee super strong and sweet. Italian Roast, bring it on.

4. I wear flip flops and short sleeves all year round. (How can I help it?)

5. My favorite skirts are worn over and over until they literally fall apart. 

6. I cannot stand the taste of artificial grape, orange, blueberry, or watermelon.  Any product (suckers, Jolly Ranchers, popsicles, etc.) made of those flavors are terrible!

7. I'm on a mission to shoot only in the Manual mode on my camera. I also shoot in RAW + Jpeg. Results~

After the rain...

Jenna

8. As of right now, my favorite two music albums are: In Christ Alone, Keith & Kristyn Getty and Breaking of The Dawn, Fernando Ortega. I lovelovelove Fernando O. His music is just so good~ like the hymns.

9. I love books. They're my friends. What more do I say?

10. Getting up earlier in the morning will help you to feel a whole ton better than getting up late. Proven fact.

11. My new favorite scents from Bath & Body Works are Twilight Woods, and Paris Amour. If you don't have them, get them.


1. What's your favorite music, genre/artist?

 Well, ^^^# 8 ^^^.

2. What do you like on your pizza?

Oh anything. I like pizza! Truth is, I'm not a picky eater when it comes to real food.

3. Do you like subtitled/foreign films/dramas? If so, which ones are your favorites?

O.o I've never seen a foreign film. For drama, I guess I would have to say Pilgrim's Progress: Journey To Heaven and Pendragon. I have not seen Courageous or October Baby yet, but I think those will rank among  my top faves once I do.

4. What is your favorite cartoon character from film or comic book?

Wow, I'd have to say Perpetua. I admire her strong Christian character and tenacity in the face of death. Love that short film!

5. What's your #1 fave fictional book?

Lizzy! How could you! :S M-m-maybe 'The Lost Baron'?!?

6. When you find yourself  liking a character, does it generally tend to be the all-righteous hero, or the bad-turned-good guy?

Ha! The All-Righteous Hero! Annnddd, maybe on occasion the bad good guy.

7. Where do you see yourself in 5-10 years?

You mean, where do I wish to see myself in 5-10 yrs. lol. Well I wish to see myself happily married, with a few kids by then, and living wherever that may be with my true love. Teaching my children all the wonderful things I have learned about God and his creation every day. Kissing their baby hands. Cooking for my husband~ and serving him in any & every way. Loving him with all of my heart~ Full of beautiful LIFE!

8. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you travel/live and what would you do?

I would go to Ireland, hands down. It's just such a beautiful place, and I don't think I could ever get board of the quaint villages, heather, authentic Irish fiddling (they play it in the streets all the time!) and refreshing rain. It's one of my dreams. :) But I think I'd be torn between living there, and missing the mountains and forests.

9. Do YOU like rice pudding? If so, what's wrong with you?! *cough*

Hahaha, um, I don't believe I've ever had rice pudding, that I can think of. Should I try it, do you think? :D

10. Do you often skip boring parts in books simply because, well, they're boring?

Yeah. I confess, a lot of times I'll skip over boring conversations and long, drawn-out, seemingly unnecessary parts. Though, I haven't read many books that have much of that. Sometimes too, I'll speed read, especially if the book is particularly interesting and adventurous!

11. Do you like guns?

:D Yeah, so so. 

 Okay, so here are my questions: (I'm gonna try and think of some really good ones...) :D

1. Do you like photography? If so, what aspects do you like about it?
2. Can you whistle a merry tune? :)
3. If you like to cook, what meal do you least like to prepare?
4. Rattle Snake, or Calamari?
5.  Do heights bother you?
6. What 5 things (that you think are essential) would you wish to have with you if stranded on a forgotten island?
7. Have you ever received a trophy/medal/ribbon for an accomplishment before? If so, what was it?
8. Do you like to draw, paint, play and instrument, or write stories/poetry?
9. Do you like to sing?
10. For those of you who are fashion oriented, what do you think about scarves?
11. What are some of your favorite things to do to amuse yourself on long road trips?

How's that? :)

The Assignments Of A Photography Class

I had mounds of fun going to those photography workshops, and I learned so much! It all just... made perfect sense. So I thought it'd be fun to share with you the results of my assignments from the classes.

The first set of classes I took were focused on 'camera basics'~ where I learned the basics about my DSLR functions. But I felt that the teacher did an excellent job, and that he covered a whole ton more than I thought could be included in the word 'basics'. :D But it was a wonderful workshop, and I feel very greatful that I was able to participate!

The first project was to take a few pictures using some of the automatic settings. I had many photos in my archives that I had taken already, so I just pulled a couple of those and took them to class.

Edited// exp. and saturation.

My favorite coffee cup. Edited// saturation.

So these photos turned out pretty nice, but I still edited them a lot to get them looking the way I wanted. Anyway, the next assignment was working with the Av mode~ aperture value. We also worked on setting a custom white balance and exposure compensation. That helped to take care of the need to adjust saturation and exp. which made a big difference. 

SOOC shot // Strait Out of Camera.

My little friend Becca :D Edited// exp. and saturation.

The next class project was getting some use out of the Tv mode~ Time Value. This is a fun setting to work with, because you can create so many awesome shots. Essentially, the mode allows you to choose a fast/slow shutter speed, so you can get really neat photos like this:

SOOC shot. 1/25 (which is pretty slow, but I compensated with using the flash.)

SOOC shot. 1/25 (with flash.)

SOOC shot. This is one of my very favorites!

We also worked on Focus Points. It's very important to know how to use focus points, because that will change the whole look and feel of your photo!

SOOC shot. I love the perspective of this photo, and the texture of the bark.

SOOC shot. The whole focus of this picture is different than the top. Points of Focus!!

So the second set of classes I attended, Intermediate to Advanced Photography, was very informative as well. Though it seemed that I already knew a lot of what the teacher was saying~ which was a bonus for me. :) This workshop wasn't so much about the different settings on a DSLR as it was about lighting, special effects, the composition of a good portrait, and a quick run through about how to use Photoshop and GIMP. We also went over what equipment is needful/useful.  I did learn quite a lot, and I'm glad I decided to go ahead and take these classes too. He didn't actually have us do much as far as taking pictures and bringing them to show the class. But I know now what equipment I need, and I'm going to start building up my skills and such. Very exciting, if you ask me!

Hope you enjoyed this!

~Dani Marie

On A Little Bit of Everything

  What an amazing, fast-paced 2 weeks it's been. That's all I can say. :)

  First off, we went through the house and did a total makeover~ painting, decorating, and taking care of the spring cleaning & all that jazz while we were at it. I did so enjoy working long hours with one of my very best friends (Mom!) making our home beautiful and clean. It's one of the things we can tackle together and have fun doing! Me and her, we make a good team.♥♥♥ Anyhow, we had some wonderful friends coming to visit from out of town, so we made that our deadline and set out to see how much we could accomplish before then. Everything came together so remarkably! Now, my bedroom is next... *triumphant look*
We ended up having such a nice visit with our friends~ we'll definitely have to do it again soon!!! :D

  So last night we went to a viewing of the documentary 'IndoctriNation'. Very educational and profound I might add (and VERY well done!). If you want to know more about the public school system and how it works, this is def. the thing for you! All you ever cared to know about the whole deal. And then you wonder, "why do we really homeschool? Just because our parents want us to be different, or...?" This will fuel your resolve to stay true to homeschooling!!! Posting the trailer...

IndoctriNation Trailer from IndoctriNation on Vimeo.

IndoctriNation (Official Site)

  Believe me, you want to see this! :D We even got to meet Colin Gunn, (who produced the whole thing) and got a signed copy of the doc. Yup, we is special hehehe.

***Heh, now the fun part! ***

  

  A few weeks back, my beautiful blogger-friend Lauren released a wonderful ebook that she wrote called 'A Beginner's Guide To Portrait Photography'. She is currently having a giveaway on her blog, and as an extra entry in entering the giveaway, I am posting about it here on my blog. Ok, so I REALLY want this book! If Lauren wrote it, it's sure to be spectacular!! Which is precisely why I am entering another giveaway of the same book on this lovely photography blog~ posting about that giveaway as an extra entry also. I very much encourage you to join in the fun if you would like to learn more about how to capture beautiful portraits. I really enjoy Lauren's style too, so that's a bonus for me.  I'm pretty excited!! :D Go join these giveaways!

  So that's how these last crazy weeks have been. Photography classes, violin lessons, painting everything in sight, cleaning, playing and the usual stuff. It's been fun! *winks*

Next up: 'The Assignments of A Photography Class'

Have a beautiful afternoon lovelies!!

~ Danielle Marie

Ich Liebe Dich

Valentine's Day is a special occasion~ an especially special day to say "I Love You". Of course, every day is a day to love, but 'love day' is special. And I do so enjoy spending it close to those I adore~ thinking of the small things in life that we often take for granted, but that spread our road with posies, and make the sun shine. Never forget to thank God for all the blessing He has given us!!!

Roses to sweeten your way *Photo Source*

 Sweet baby hands, the sunshine of my life! *Photo Source*

The beautiful, simple hearts little brothers and sisters give to show their love

*Photo Source*

Tea and cookies of course! *Photo Source*

Sunshine that warms the soul *Photo Source*

Goofy sisters...

And their beautiful faces~ Ich Liebe Dich!

True Love

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth.....
1Corinthians 13:1-8 

~Danielle

Ramblings // Another Wonderful Photo Challenge

Ramblings~
How have the days gone for you? I certainly have no shortage of things to do, and things to be done! I've been excelling in those photography workshops I'm taking, and having way to much fun planning small photo shoots as part of my class projects. I'm so thankful to God for not only giving me a wonderful camera (a much loved dream of mine), but also the opportunity to learn to use it! All glory to His name......!!

Today I hope to do some cleaning in my room, give a writing lesson, have another photography session with my sisters, and start working on the living room. Walls need patching, floors need mopping, and all of it needs to be repainted. :) And I can't wait to read further in 'The Swiss Courier'. I'm quite fond of WWII Christian historical fiction!

Photography Challenge~
Lucia is hosting another super-fun photo challenge this month, and as always, I love linking up. Because February is the 'Love Month', the theme is 'Black and White Love'. The challenge is to capture love~ a mother and daughter hugging, two friends walking down a road hand in hand, etc. I wanted a photo that was unique, so after thinking about it for some time, this is what I came up with:

We had such fun! I absolutely love the way this one turned out! Head on over to Lucia, etc. to view the other link ups, and please join in the fun!!!





I Love Black and White~
Shooting in black and white is very fun! I can't say I like it more than shooting in color, but it comes pretty close!! I <3 b&w! Here's a few more photos I took that I adore~

Beautiful Sue~

Beautiful Jenna~ 

I decided to throw this one in too :)

Have a beautiful day lovelies! 

~Danielle

This Olde Barn n' House

I have a busy few days ahead of me! So many things I want to do and say~ how will I ever find time for it all lol? Anyway, I had such fun snapping and editing these photos! They're pictures of our house and barn, with an olde-fashioned slant. I pretty much just did this for fun, though I do think my subjects in these photos have somewhat of an antique-ness about them. :) I've been having a blast with that editing program! 

Brass Knocker 

Rickety olde barn door~ I really like the different textures in this photo...

The ol' barn...

I love these windows~

   Another olde window <3

This one is my absolute fave!

The surrounding foliage (isn't that just gorgeous?)

{Which ones do you like?}

~Danielle 

A Few Words // Photo Challenge

How's everybody's week been? Mine was ups and downs for sure~ haven't gotten much sleep, went to my first photography class, and have been genuinely busy. Life marches on!

Hopefully in the next few days I'll have the first 'real' post up on my other blog~ The Apothecary Shoppe. I'm also getting ready to post some neat things here. I feel so behind~

So a few things in regard to my photography: For starters, I have no intention of turning this into a photography blog, (though my posts here have become much more photographic), but I've found myself really wanting to share my photography. So, I've come to the conclusion that I should have a blog just for that. I may be putting too much on my plate, but with a photography blog, it doesn't have to be all that formal, and I wouldn't feel 'pressured' to update it as often~ just a place to share the pictures I take. I'm thinking I'd keep it private for a while, (just because), but any of you who are interested can contact me (via email) and I'll send you an invitation. Speaking of invitations, someone sent me one to view a private blog maybe a week or so back, and I went to visit it. I wasn't signed into my blogger account however, so the link didn't work. I decided to come back to it later~ when later arrived, I found that the invite had expired. So I deleted the email before looking to see who had sent it so that I could contact that person and request another invite. I'm pretty sure they were one of my followers here~ so whoever it is, pretty please send me another invitation~ I would love to view your blog!!!! :)

Next, I'm entering another photo challenge hosted by one of my beautiful blogger friends, Oriana~ 'Your Favorite Photo'. This one's going to be hard, for nearly all of my pictures are my favorite.:D  But I think this picture is probably at the top of my list:

Some of my favorite kiddos.

So, tell me what you think about a photography blog...love to hear your input/advise. Everyone have a wonderful weekend! :)

~Dani Marie

Beautiful Snow

Yesterday it was snowing big, beautiful, fluffy flakes, so I ran out to snap some photos. I didn't think many of them turned out, but when I downloaded them to my computer and started editing, I definitely have some favorites!! :) Enjoy!

I love this one!

I'm pleased with the bokeh! :)

I love those red berries~ merry and bright!

And this is one of my favorites!

~Winters' leftovers~

It could almost be the beach with white sand~ :)

<3 <3 <3

~Mossy wall~

So now that I'm starting to build up a collection of photos taken with my new camera, I think it's time I had a name for my photography~ signing my photos with my name is just fine, but maybe ya'll have some suggestions. :) I was considering 'Wandering Brooke Photography'.....

~Dani