Blog

2-14-12

Springtime in the Bay Area - Honeybees rolling in Pollen!

Honeybees only fly when the temperature reaches about 57^oF or above and with our mild temperatures in the bay area this winter, they are out in force working Iceland Poppies in bloom. In our mild climate, bees can find many things to feed on all winter. They’ll go back to their hives full of pollen on their hind legs and tell their fellow worker bees where to find pollen sources. There is much concern in our environment that is affecting the health of honeybees, check this link for more information on honeybees by the UC Davis Department of Entomology, http://entomology.ucdavis.edu/courses/beeclasses/index.html.

Photographing bees, butterflies and birds requires patience and observation of what these creatures are feeding on. Stay in place quietly, with little movement, to capture images.

12-1-11

San Francisco, the city where “little cable cars climb halfway to the stars”…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Be sure to have some fun this holiday season! An ice skating rink has opened in Union Square in San Francisco. This is a magical time in the city. So many things to do and all of the beautiful lights. San Francisco is a great city to visit, anytime of the year. Just remember that summer time is the coldest! http://www.sanfrancisco.travel/

11-24-11

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope your day, however celebrated, was a nice one. At FPP, we are thankful for our customers, who we know have shopping choices on the web!

10-15-11

Fall Garden Visitor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was delighted to see this beautiful Monarch butterfly in my garden this fall. They migrate to the Monterey Bay area this time of year. Check this link for more information,
http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/finder/monarchbutterflies/monarchbutterflies.html.

8-15-11

Back to School

A time to learn new things. A time to share our experiences of summer. A time for change in our seasons. Enjoy all!

7-4-11

Happy 4th of July!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quote:

“Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory,” John Adams, second President of the United States. Quote from http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Adams.

6-7-11

Family Reunion - Group Photo

There is always at least one moment that highlights a summer vacation or family reunion. On a recent trip it was a funny moment, one that had us all roaring with laughter! We were taking the Verde Canyon Train in Clarksdale, Arizona, http://www.verdecanyonrr.com/, and I guess you had to be there. Laughter is the best medicine, they’ve proven it medically. At the end of our train ride, we organized a family portrait with a local photographer. We took our planned group photo to another level and dressed in the same color shirts and pants. The result was stunning and the group had a very cohesive look. On the train, everyone wanted to know who we were!

5-8-11

Mother’s Day

On this special day we remember our mothers, special people in our lives that were “like a mom” to us and our own experiences as a mother. We have pictures that commemorate this day from many occasions over the years. Honor all those you love by sharing those pictures and memories today. Life is best lived in the moment with a good plan for the future! Happy Mother’s Day to all!

4-1-11

Retro Art!

 

Back in the day, not soooo long ago Hambly Studios produced some groovy posters and other stationery products to l-o-v-e! My favorite were the calendars printed on mylar, when no one else was doing it, as they have a certain “bling”. I’m always making lists to stay on top of things, when did life get so busy?! Are you putting an Easter basket together for someone special? Check out these cute monogrammed notepads at Hambly Studios, http://www.qbaroo.com/HamblyScreenPrints/main.cfm?type=1&categoryoid=3&productoid=72, which are the same colors as Easter eggs!

I wonder if they’ll bring back those groovy posters from the sixties. Oops, I guess I’m showing my age!  Happy Spring!

3-4-11

Proper Storage for Photos

Springtime is just around the corner. Yippee, more sunny days! When you start your spring cleaning, you might want to take a look at your photo storage for some updating. You may have shoe boxes full of photos and some of those old magnetic page photo albums around your home. Without proper storage, plain boxes and certainly the old magnetic album pages are quite possibly causing damage and/or deteriorating of your precious photos.

As time passes its best to store photos, negatives and slides, CD’s in proper archival materials. You will find these archival products at better local camera shops and certainly online. Here are a few online sources: http://www.lightimpressionsdirect.com/ or http://www.universityproducts.com/. It’s also a good idea to scan your photos, etc and store at another location. Online storage is also an option.

I enjoy assisting with the restoration of very old photos. I previously did a restoration from a photo that was printed on tin. Yes, I said tin! That was a first for me. I estimate that that photo was over 100 years old. I find it very interesting to see photos of another day and time depicting the lives once lived.

I recently had a video copied onto a DVD. My video contained old family movies that were copied onto this “new” technology in the 1980′s! Well, long story short my video tape had deteriorated to the point that most of it was white or fuzzy. So, my advice to you is to check the condition of your media. I’ve read that CD’s need to also be recopied after 10-15 years too!

Preserving your family photos is a gift to future generations. I can’t express how much joy our old photos have been to ours. Every family has a story to tell through photographs.

2-1-11

Happy Groundhog Day!

In celebration of the day and to get the word out that we’re back…The 100th person who “likes” us on our home page/Facebook link and signs up for our mailing list, will win a FREE Rocket Pen! Hey, no worries, we don’t share your info with anyone!

1-12-11

Improving Ones Photo Skills

A New Year brings a fresh perspective to many things. It’s also a good time to learn something new! A good way to learn about photography or improve your photo skills is through your local photo club and fees are usually quite reasonable for what you get. Most photo clubs offer educational opportunities and there is a lot to learn from participating in photo competitions. Being a member of a photo club is also a great way to socialize and make new friends with others who share your love of photography.

In the Bay Area, check this link for the Northern California Council of Camera Clubs (N4C) to see what club may be near you.

12-25-10

Photo Tip: Creative Filters

To take a photo like the example above, create a filter by tearing a small hole in a tissue and place over your computer or cell phone camera! You could use colored tissue paper, flower petals or pine tree branches too! Works for regular cameras too. Try it!

12-10-10

Taking Great Holiday Pictures!

 

I can’t underscore knowing your camera equipment really well. Take the time to read the manual! The holidays present a great opportunity to photograph friends & family and you’ll miss the shot if you’re fumbling with your camera!

The most common error I see are an unflattering crop of our precious subjects! Whether you’re looking through a viewfinder or at a digital screen, notice what you see in the frame and look around the edges of your photo before taking the picture. The exercise of training your eye to go across the top edge, down the right side, across the bottom going left and finally up the left side – keep the edges clean of obtrusive objects – like really bright or really dark objects – will keep the focus on your subject. If it’s a portrait you’re trying to capture, include the person’s head and shoulders – could be cropped close, tilt the camera slightly one way or the other to add visual interest.

Knowing where to crop a photo is key. When photographing a human subject, crop in the following manner: 1) head and shoulder, 2) head to mid-chest, 3) head to the mid-thigh, lastly 4) head to toes – leaving a little breathing room around the subject. No need to put your subject dead center in the photo, place subject slightly off center – watch the background, nobody wants to see a plant, flag pole or a tree looking like it’s growing out of their head! Besides photographing people, do take some pics of the details of the day, decorations, food or snowflakes and mittens or toes in the sand – depending on where you live! Cheers!

[Cookie photograph by Sweet 'n' Pretty, check out their blog: http://www.sweetnpretty-sweetnpretty.blogspot.com/.]

11-27-10

Food Photography

While we’re all consuming a holiday meal, some of us are photographing it! Check out this link for Lou Manna, a photographer who makes his living from doing just that, http://www.loumanna.com/. Lou Manna has published several books on photographing food with a digital camera. You’ll find his first photo book available through Amazon, http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Food-Photography-Lou-Manna/dp/1592008208.

11-1-10

The History of the American Front Porch

We just love the information or rather history of the American Front Porch on the Virginia State University website by Scott Cook. Well done Scott! (Photo posted with permission) Check this link to read all about it: http://xroads.virginia.edu/~class/am483_97/projects/cook/first.htm