Pomp and Circumstance

Today my oldest graduates from the 8th grade.

It seems like just yesterday I was freaking out because I thought her umbilical cord was taking too long to fall off. :)

It's been a big year for her. She moved to a new town (my hometown),had to make new friends and deal with all new sorts of teenage dramas.

As usual my Princess took it all in stride. I was so excited to do her Graduation portraits because it's the one thing I can give her that truly comes from the heart. Using my passion for Photography to create a gift for one of the most important people in my life. It just doesn't get better than that!

Congratulations my sweet,sweet girl. This is only the beginning!

Is it your unique fashion flair,your flamable hair? Well,for the folks over at Jersey Flavored, it's the scrumptious foods that are indigenous to NJ.A couple of my good friends have embarked on a mission to capture the flavors and attiude unique to New Jersey on a potato chip! This past weekend I had the pleasure of witnessing the launch of Jersey Flavored Potato Chips at Netcong Day 2012 in Netcong, NJ. They were showcasing flavors such as Disco Fries, Texas Weiner and my personal favorite of the day, Boardwalk Pizza!

It was a beautiful day for a street fair and I was there with camera in tow.

If you love Jersey and you love chips, then go checkout their Facebook page www.facebook.com/JerseyFlavored You can also follow them on Twitter @JerseyFlavored

They are currently planning their Fall event schedule - tell them what Jersey festivals you think they should add to their list and you never know, they may pop up in your neighborhood next!

Left Behind

I was out taking pics for a job I'm working on that has brought me to several well-known New Jersey food spots. This morning I was finishing up with my shots, and I remembered that on Route 22 about 15-20 minutes west of me there was this old abandoned Diner. I was already in the car, and it was gorgeous out, so I figured I'd go look for it.I wasn't even sure it was still there the way things get developed nowadays.

It's still there. :) Hope everyone enjoyed their Memorial Day Weekend!

Washington Rock in Black & White

I live very close by to Washington Rock State Park. It's really small, but so pretty. I woke up early this morning and saw that it was very foggy out and I immediately thought about this park. My son was the only other one in the house awake, so I told him to get dressed. We took the 5 minute drive up to the park, and I was not disappointed. The fog was even thicker up there so I knew that black and white was the way to go. This is one of those places that you have to visit during all seasons, and all types of weather because it changes in appearance.

We love to go up there and figure out if we can point out parts of our town in the distance. If you ever find yourself in the Green Brook, NJ area you should check it out. :)

Sleep Eludes Me

Mild insomnia has set in once again, and rather than watch tv I decided to play with the camera. I found these sunglasses that belong to my daughter and thought they were rather sassy. She has a flair for the dramatic. I set up the tri-pod and grabbed a small flashlight and went to work. I took this photo with the glasses perched on my washing machine, with all the lights off in the whole house, except for the half dead little flashlight shining overhead. I tested different settings and finally settled on F/1.8, shutter speed 1" ISO 100. I wouldn't have been able to use these settings without a tripod because it would have been a blurry mess.

I'm rather happy with the outcome. I didn't have to tweak it or anything. At least my lack of sleep was productive... :)

A Cloudless Day

Somehow I convinced my husband to take a ride with me early this morning down to Sandy Hook. It was such a beautiful morning and the temperature was in the 60's. We drove out to Gunnison Beach which most New Jersey folk know to be the 'Nudy Beach'. For some reason I thought that a rather windy day in the 60's was too cold for nude sun bathers...I was wrong. Don't get me wrong, by no means was the beach packed, but there were a few 'mature' people soaking in the sun where it normally doesn't shine. So, like good neighbors, we stayed WAY on the other side of the beach and carefully averted my camera, and our eyes.

This picture is about nothing more than me being extremely childish about the whole situation. It really was such a gorgeous cloudless day. Seriously, not one cloud in the sky. I saw this couple strolling down the beach in the distance (fully clothed of course) and decided to grab a shot. I love how clear the day is, but the lack of clouds just makes it seem so flat to me.

So I'm posting the original shot, and then the same shot again but I added some happy little clouds.

I know, I know, it's cheating, but I feel like the clouds add more drama and dimension to the photo. What do you think? Feel free to weigh in on which one you prefer. All in all it was a nice day.

I got to walk on the beach, giggle at naked old people,

and snap a few shots. Life is good..........

Remains of the day...

Today I had to go into NYC to see a Neuro-Ocologist about getting the remaining parts of my tumor zapped.

I only had my phone handy, so thanks to some funky Instagram filters, I got some cool shots. I love going into the city, just not to see doctors. Boo.....