focal length: 38 mm
shutter speed: 1/800
aperture: f/2.8
ISO: 200
flash: none

This is another one of those not-so-impressive photos but it captured a moment near and dear to my heart. I had originally shot this in landscape orientation, which I liked but her uncle’s frame was also in the frame and I hadn’t gotten permission to post his picture here. So I used the cropping tool in Lightroom and dragged a corner until the cropping frame was as wide as it would have been in portrait orientation and the cropping tool automatically changes orientation without losing the aspect ratio. I can still print this as a 4×6 and it would be perfect. Just be sure your cropping tool is locked by clicking on the padlock icon. This will ensure your aspect ratio remains the same. Very nice!

Sophie and I played outside while we waited for Daddy to come home from work. I, of course, had my camera with me and snapped away while she ran to greet him. She was so happy to see him again. Or maybe she was just sick of playing with Mommy all day.

Laura is a Vancouver wedding and portrait photographer. Visit laurahana.com.

focal length: 32 mm
shutter speed: 1/60
aperture: f/2.8
ISO: 200
flash: none

There is so much wrong about this picture, technically speaking. It’s crooked, the composition is off and her foot is cut off.  Not to mention, she’s got serious nap hair, dirty dinner face and the grass looks littered.  But I love her expression and I love that she’s holding onto Grandma’s hands - something she rarely does anymore since she can walk so well now.  It’s a genuine picture of a genuine moment that I will cherish.

I love her big baby belly.

Laura is a Vancouver wedding and portrait photographer. Visit laurahana.com.

focal length: 60 mm
shutter speed: 1/60
aperture: f/2.8
ISO: 320
flash: none

Oops! I cut off her head! We’re all human and humans make mistakes sometimes. But sometimes those mistakes can turn out pretty well. Maile asked to see our lucky mistakes, so here’s mine this morning. Even though her eyes aren’t in the frame, I like the funny shape of her lips and also the fact that the cute kitty on her shirt is in focus. The composition turned out decently as well!

Yay for lucky mistakes!

Laura is a Vancouver wedding and portrait photographer. Visit laurahana.com.

*click image to download large size (1024×680)

focal length: 62 mm
shutter speed: 1/50
aperture: f/2.8
ISO: 200
flash: none

Ok!  Here’s your first What’s Your Play (WYP) assignment.  I chose this photo because it has a fairly even tonal range (histogram is pretty even) but as you can see, it needs some work.  It’s SOOC (straight out of camera) save for the JPG compression and resizing. So, download the large size file and work your magic!

Remember to link to your version by leaving a comment below.  You are welcome to add any specifics about what you did in your processing (software used, adjusted values, cropping etc) to help us learn.

I’ll be posting my play a bit later on so you won’t be influenced by my processing.

I’m looking forward to seeing all your plays.  You are all welcome to submit your photos to: play [at] dolcepics [dot] com if you’re willing to allow others to get their digital hands all over them!

Laura is a Vancouver wedding and portrait photographer. Visit laurahana.com.

focal length: 50 mm
shutter speed: 1/250
aperture: f/2.8
ISO: 500
flash: none

I tried to get a picture of Sophie holding the pinwheel out towards me but I had to surrender in bitter defeat. I wanted a shot focused on the pinwheel while she was in the background, slightly blurred and to the right of it. Alas, it never came to fruition and I ended up shooting the pinwheel on it’s own.

I liked the composition but the photo needed a bit of pop to be more interesting.

*click to enlarge

I played with exposure, increased blacks and clarity quite a bit and adjusted the saturation and luminance of Magenta. You can see the values I tweaked in Lightroom above.

I really like the before and after view in Lightroom. It’s always so amazing to see what changes you can make in about 20 seconds. Export into JPG at the size I want and it’s done!

Kate asked to see our crafty photos. I’m not so crafty myself but Sophie’s grandpa made her this impromptu pinwheel with scrap paper and a wooden chopstick. A quick, easy and aesthetically beautiful toy that provides days of fun!

Laura is a Vancouver wedding and portrait photographer. Visit laurahana.com.