{Little bit of Winter Break - in the Mountains}

Winter break is over and it was hard to end a great time away at our home away from home.  This summer we bought a cabin in the mountains so we could get away from the heat and enjoy 4 seasons within 3 hours of Scottsdale.  This was our first winter there and I think we love it more than summer in the mountains. On Christmas Day we packed up and headed away for a week in the snow.  The photo above was just after getting there.  The kids immediately wanted to go to the much talked about 'Sled Hill' at the club on one of the golf holes.  The kids were in heaven.  I swear I've failed their childhood without snow (until now...we'll make up for it).  This trip I picked up my camera very sparingly so I only captured snippets of our trip.  We hung out with friends, spent New Years Eve with a big group of friends and went skiing meeting up with friends on the mountain.  We also had some downtime at night and watched movies by the huge wood burning fire Jeff stoked all week.  
This was the first year the kids skied!  They loved it!  And Jeff and I hadn't been on skis in over seventeen years, so it was weird at first.  But it was like riding a bike...it came back quickly.  The kids and Jeff wanted to ski everyday....while I wanted to go out and explore and photograph the snow and the surrounding area (nerdy, I know).  
 

Below is sled hill and the kids trying to 'snowboard' on 'sleds'. I thought we'd be making a trip to the ER but we lucked out lol. ;-)

Skiing below.  The kids were in ski school for half the day to start, then Jeff taught them for about an hour after lunch, and then we took on the mountain! 

The short drive home from Sunrise Resort to our little cabin. 

In a town I'm fascinated with because of it's history, I had to stop at this playground that looks decayed and forgotten.  I've never seen kids play here...only stray dogs.  It's a little eerie... forgotten childhood is what I call it.  

The same playground.

Back at home with the pups.

When the pup runs away, the giraffe saves the day.  AKA - Tyler.  

Keeping August warm with a blanket and a giraffe 

All packed up and bummed to leave.

Could it be?  Little Lulu our new pup, adores August.  August doesn't feel the same way about Lulu but this is a start.  Wow!  Had to capture this snuggly moment. 

The love continues amid dirty Converse sneakers. 

Hauntingly beautiful fog.  Something we never see in the valley.  Magical. 

{Beauty Revived: 50 Beautiful Children} Meet Mikayla

I am honored to have been asked by Michelle Gifford, of 'Beauty Revived' to be an all-star photographer for '50 Beautiful Children' Campaign and Magazine.  'Beauty Revived' is a movement to tell the stories through our lens, as photographers, of real people with real inner beauty.  Beauty Revived 50 Beautiful Children Magazine issue contains 124 pages of stories and photographs by artists in the photography industry. Dedicated to celebrating the beauty of women, this special edition issue of Beauty Revived magazine contains stories of strength and triumph of children. To learn more about Beauty Revived’s mission, visit their site at iambeautyrevived.com.  There's so much good in the world that needs to be shared and I'm honored to be a part of this mission.  I chose to explore Mikayla's story.  She's my sweet niece and I knew she represented 'real beauty' with her strength and attitude about a life changing diagnosis she received this past year.   
Here's here story: 

'Meet Mikayla'  - She appears to be a typical, happy-go-lucky, 10 year old girl.  She plays with her friends, reads quietly in the corner and giggles often.  But there’s something that she’s constantly aware of, something that prevents her from being that carefree little girl every 10 year old deserves to be.  Less than a year ago, her life changed in more ways than she could have imagined forcing her to grow up and become responsible in ways that many adults can’t handle.  Mikayla is her name and she was recently diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes.  Doesn’t sound too difficult to manage right?  We’ve all heard of diabetes, and know that it’s usually controlled with a good diet.  That’s only true to Type 2 diabetes.  Type 1 has nothing to do with how much sugar a person eats, their weight or age.  Type 1 is far more complex as I soon learned.  

Each day Mikayla wakes up, pricks her finger with a needle and squeezes a drop of blood onto her Blood Glucose reader to find out how low her blood sugar dropped during the night.  It usually drops enough to warrant an early breakfast.   But she can’t put anything in her mouth (except water) until she does some calculations.  She has to carefully determine what she’s going to eat, count the carbs of her meal and consider her activity for the morning and plug that into a detailed calculation.  I had to look at the calculation over and over as she showed me what she thinks the final equation is, she calculated correctly.  Based on the number, she measures out the proper amount of insulin and administers a shot in either her abdomen, arm or thigh.  She does this all without wincing, or flinching.  Sometimes she doesn’t really want some of the food that she included in her calculations but she can’t dismiss it like most of us can.  Since she calculated those carbs into her insulin shot, she has to eat them. She’s active in between meals since she calculated the activity she was going to do into her insulin levels.  If she doesn’t do the activity she calculated the her blood sugar levels will be elevated which causes long term damage to almost every organ and system in her body. If she’s too active, her blood sugar levels will dip and she’ll become hypoglycemic.  This prevents your brain and muscles from functioning properly and dizziness, shortness of breath and trembling occur.  She recently had to drop out of her school’s running team because of the dips in her blood sugar from over activity and her glucose dropping too quickly.  

Mid morning, she tests her blood sugar again.  Her fingers are raw from all of the needle pokes.  The results of this test will determine if she needs to have a mid-morning snack to boost her blood sugar.  The safe zone is between 130 and 160.   This process happens again before lunch, where she plugs in the carbs for lunch. She has to know exactly what she’s going to eat, and not deviate from her plan.  Again, she tests her blood sugar in the mid-afternoon, this time to determine if she needs a snack.  Dinner, is a repeat of earlier.  And finally at bedtime, she test her glucose to see if she needs carbs before bed to sustain her through the night.  Her blood sugars typically dip in her sleep so test just before bed is imperative.  Mikayla is forever planning, calculating, poking, and injecting herself.  This is life for this 10 year old.  It’s not carefree, it’s not happy-go-lucky and it’s not super easy.  But it is manageable and she’s committed to being a happy, healthy and responsible little girl.  She’s young, but she’s strong and she has an amazing attitude.  She wants to help others see that she’s not that different, that she can still keep up and enjoy life doing most of the things she loves.  

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition that causes your body to destroy the pancreas’ insulin producing cells.  There’s no way to replace those cells so Type 1 diabetics are dependent on synthetic insulin to balance their glucose levels.  Some day she hopes to get an insulin pump to help manage her blood sugar, but for now, this is a day in the life of Mikayla, 

The number of shots she administers to herself it shocking to those of us who are unfamiliar with the daily life of a Type 1 Diabetic.  

Remembering Summer: Wind, Blue Skies, Cozy Tents & Friends

This post is long overdue....it's been sitting in my to post blog page for months. What?  So better late than never right?  This was our kick off to summer this past year.  
Tents?  Sleeping bags?  Campfire Chairs?  I couldn't be more excited!  I grew up camping every summer as a kid and I have been dying for my kids to experience the same fun memories I had growing up.   And it was finally time!  I was giddy.  And to make it even better, we were going with friends!!  

What's a camping trip without an injury?  Brielle hit her head on a rock pretty hard and boy did it bleed.  She was okay... thankfully our friends brought a loaded first aid kit!

The crew!  We'll be camping together again...it was too much fun not to.  :)

{Teaching/Mentoring Session} with this beauty in 100+ degrees.

Yes, it was hot.  But that didn't stop us!  I love teaching sessions.  I get to share how I work with light, how I interact with my clients, and posing.  It's even better when you have an amazing little model who keeps you on your toes.  I learned more about the movie 'Frozen' than I ever thought I would and my imagination came to life with our make-believe search for the 'ice castle' to find Elsa.  It was honestly one of the most imaginative sessions I've had ;-)  

I'm new to Periscope but I've had a lot of questions lately that would be more easy to answer on Periscope. So I'm going to start answering questions, posting videos on editing, looking for light, interacting with clients, camera settings, location scouting, inspiration, and all things photography related.  My periscope name is: @karamay if you're interested.  

And for mentoring information, please  contact me via my 'contact' page on my website or e-mail me at kara@karamayphotography.com  

Above & Below:  Flat light...used in my favor.  Usually we frown upon that kind of light but there are times when it adds to your image.  

Above:  Portrait taken using my prism....playing with light 'in-camera'.  Isn't that a cool effect?  

I die....movement in portraits.  It can be tricky with a 3 year old since they march to the beat of they own drum but it's worth it  if you have patience.  

{my struggles with embracing the light}

I began my photography business under the cozy clouds of the Seattle landscape.  I loved photographing with natures built-in sun diffuser.  I loved the light,  I knew the light, I predicted my settings before sessions, I knew how I would execute each outdoor shoot with the soft, dark light being nothing but an asset.  Then I moved to South Carolina where the grass was green (much like Seattle) and the landscapes gorgeous but the sun was so bright.   Very different from the Seattle light I was used to.  So initially I clung to the shaded areas for shoots.  It worked, it was beautiful and I was comfortable.   But I felt confined and knew I had to learn the South Carolina sun....so I studied it.  I went out all hours of the day and photographed in it.  I learned what worked with my settings and with the light and what didn't .  Soon I was very comfortable photographing clients in SC's full sun.  The light there was amazing!  But I didn't really KNOW light until I moved to Arizona.  This light here is so strong, so bright and so unforgiving.  There aren't a lot of open shade places here so I was forced to embrace the sun.  It was daunting...and quiet honestly I went into a bit of a professional depression missing the beautiful, lush areas I was spoiled with in both Seattle and South Carolina.  After my little bout of depression (that still rears it's head sometimes), I picked up my camera and forced myself to study the light and how it interacted with the desert, reflected off the rocks, and the desert plants.  It was a light so different but it's where I lived and I needed to know it and know it completely.  And so I studied it from dawn till dusk.  

I've lived in Arizona for 7 years now and I find some positives in this landscape now and I've also found a variety of locations that look nothing like Arizona.  For a long time I didn't want my photographs to look like I was living in the desert.  I couldn't find beauty in the faded landscape, prickly plants, dirt and rocks.  But in recent years I've embraced both the landscape and the light.  I still yearn to live where there are 4 season and my heart hurts every fall and winter but this is where I am for now.  I've learned the light and know it inside and out, I know my camera settings without having to check constantly to see if everything is exposed properly.  Know your light, know your shadows, and know your camera.   Embrace the light or lack there-of.  Moody clouds and diffused light is absolutely stunning and one of my personal favorites to photograph in so I miss Seattle immensely.  And if you're in a full sun state, learn how colors are cast and shadows are effected and ultimately embrace the light.

Side note:  this was a commercial shoot for Faith Works 4U.  If you have a little girl and she likes dresses, you have to check out Faith's work.  She wow's me every time.  This dress can be all cream (with the attached apron piece tied in the back) or cream and floral.  So smart, so fun!  More detailed photos can be found on her site. 

Outtakes are the best....Brielle is rarely serious so the photos below, are very much 'her'.

In another post, I'd like to touch more on editing.  Take a boring photo and turn into a keeper.  The photo below, I edited just a couple simple steps that took maybe 45 seconds.  Learn photoshop...it'll be your best friend.  

{how to live with your tween-age daughter}

She’s growing, she’s changing, she’s still your baby girl but something is different.  Not necessarily bad different, just different kind of different.   It’s amazing to see glimmers of your future teen but still have your sweet little girl most days (emphasis on ‘most days’).   Hormones are beginning to effect her in so many ways most notably emotional changes.  Again, these aren’t all bad emotional changes.  Some of them show a smart, levelheaded way of thinking – assuring us that she’s maturing and learning.  But some are a little more irrational/hormonal triggered.   These changes, that are still new, have taught me a lot about understanding, communicating and ‘living’ with my tween-age daughter.

* Hormones = lower patience.  Some days little things can trigger my tween to tears.  They can be over the smallest things like realizing the shirt she wants to wear hasn’t been washed, the cereal she wants for breakfast has been eaten by her older brother, she can’t find her shoes.   I’ve learned to help… a little.  Reinforcing her that I care but giving her the responsibility and power to solve her own problem instead of getting angry at her reaction.  I’m still working on not getting worked up over her irrational reaction…but if I follow my own advice more consistently, we’d live in greater harmony.

*  Physical touch is important.  This holds true for teen and tween boys too.  My son and I hug often (sometimes even when he doesn’t want a hug) and I still tickle his back most every night.  With my daughter, she needs this touch too.   There’s something about physical touch that’s so powerful and as we get older, hugs and other physical touch happen less and less.  But I’m insistent on being huggy (not sure if that’s a real word) and touchy as they get older. 

*  Always end the day with ‘I love you’ even if your tween is going to bed not too happy with you.  I remember as a kid, I never wanted to go to bed unhappy.  I never slept well, when I did.  And I think those 3 little words, no matter how ordinary they sound, help reinforce to your tween that you love them and that the day is going to end on a positive note. 

* Remember that she’s new to the emotions that are changing within her too.   Being sympathetic and understanding makes a huge difference.  No matter how hard it is to bite your tongue, remembering that this is normal and you just need to remain calm and in control.  Parental respect is still a top priority.  Being calm yourself will model calmness in high stress situations.  Again, I’m still working on this too.

Having a tween is fun, wonderful and amazing.  But I'm learning every day that there are challenges too.  It’s a learning process for both of us and each child is different.   I just have to remember that this is unfamiliar territory for her as well.  We're in this together.

Side note: Below was a shoot I did about 2 weeks ago for FaithWorks4U (she's an amazing retro-modern dress dress designer).  I loved doing this shoot but I'll remember this day forever for another reason.  Right after this shoot, Brielle and I ran home, she changed and we grabbed Tyler and headed back to the Carnival. Brielle was so excited, unlike any excitement I'd seen from her.  Maybe it was the spontaneity of it all, we stumbled upon this carnival by accident, or maybe it was just a side of her that was emerging.  Either way, I loved it!  Ty saw a group of friends from school and wanted to go on rides and hang out with them so it was just Brielle and me.  She squealed, laughed, grabbed my hand and chatted with me in a way that was new.  It was on this night that I really saw my little girl becoming a tween/teen.  It was beautiful and amazing.  I told her 'this night is amazing - I want to relive nights like that again and again with you'.  It was a defining moment for me as her mom....the night I truly met my tween/teen daughter.

5 things I would tell my tween self

Childhood is fun, carefree and magical, but we all remember how it felt truly felt and most days didn’t feel magical.  They were still fun and carefree sometimes but our younger selves worried about things that later are so insignificant.  So if I could go back to my younger self these are the things I would say….

1)  Don’t take life too seriously.  I remember clearly in PE choosing teams.  That was never fun even if you felt you had some ability.  I was ‘NOT’ competitive, I was the girl who would laugh at herself for missing a ball.   I didn’t take life too seriously at that time and I wish I would’ve stayed that way during my tween & teen years.  Somehow as a tween/teen, you become more self-consciuous, insults from the so-called ‘popular’ kids hurt so much more.  I wish I had to strength and self-esteem to not be bothered by other people’s words.  Later in life, those things don’t matter anymore.

2)  Choose your friends wisely.  I made some great friend choices and some not so great friend choices.  But true friends are the ones who are there for you, lift you up and don’t bring you down.  Stay away from the ‘drama’ filled friends and those only concerned with what you can do for them, concerned with being popular, or who don’t treat you with respect.  Those aren’t real friends.  Later you will see that your ’nerdy’  friends turn out to be the most beautiful, real, successful and grounded people as adults.  Cherish those friends.  

3)  Failing is growing, and making mistakes earlier rather than later will help lead you to success.   We’re all so afraid of failing, of messing up and sometimes it prevents us from moving forward.  But I wish I would have tried more things that I may have failed at when I was younger instead of avoiding them all together.  Being able to learn from mistakes is a powerful tool.  Mistakes should help you grow and not hinder growth altogether.  

4)  Your intuition is something to listen to.  I know how easy it is to listen to your heart and not your head sometimes but stop!  If it doesn’t feel right, don’t do it.  Don’t be persuaded by peer pressure or the fear of not looking ‘cool’.  It may be hard and you may feel like an outcast but walk away from something that doesn’t feel right. 

5)  What matters now, won’t matter later - that party you didn’t get invited to, the team you didn’t get picked to be on, or the popular group that dismisses you.  It all seems so important and ‘defining’ right  now, but it won’t matter later.  The feelings you have now are real, don’t dismiss them, but know that everything will turn out okay later as long as you don’t let it crumble you.   Life changes and the kids who are popular now, will sometimes try to live in glory days of the past.  Often times they revert back to their childhood popularity and never grow up.  Your life has more important things ahead of it.  

Photos below:  Brielle and her friend Charlotte.  They let me capture them for 10 minutes in this yummy light.  I was thankful.  

A little bit of Faith - Commercial Shoot

It's been hot here in AZ!  Like super hot and very humid (for the desert) with all of the monsoons.  I don't know how many times (too many to count) this shoot was postponed due to thunderstorms, rain and lightening.  The afternoons here, when we have the most beautiful light, also bring on the summer storms.   I love a good storm (I think most of you know that) so the only bummer to it all was not being able to shoot this beautiful retro-vintage dress by FaithWorks4U when I had planned.  I almost resorted to shooting it indoors lol.  But I think it was all worth the wait.  Brielle and I ventured out for a short shoot and caught these before it started raining (yes, it was sunny and then rained while the sun was still shining).  Ha!  Perfect timing!!  

girls just wanna...run around, build forts, and swim in the rain

The first week of school ended with a sleepover for Brielle (Tyler will have a sleepover another night so the boys can have a night without the silliness of the girls).  All of their giggles, excitement, and conversations brought me back to the days when I was her age.  It's an age when your biggest worry is who you were going to play with and what you were going to do.  Getting lost in a world you created was the best part.  These are memories they'll carry forever, even though these moments are so small and seem so insignificant.  It's childhood, their childhood.  And I had to capture it. 

They started the night swimming.  Those moody clouds overhead, poured down in the midst of their fun. 

Much of the night was spent running around the house playing the 'mushroom game' with fitted bedsheets (they would run fast and then cover themselves under the sheet creating a little bubble house).  This reminds me of the parachute game we played as kids in PE.  

Waffle making...

and pineapple juice sipping (that's the best part of slicing pineapple).

It's hard to sit and be serious in our house.  

Fort building isn't just for boys.  This was the most cozy fort, the girls spent most of the next day in there.

August was forced to have fun in the fort too.  Poor pup ;)

Last week to sign up for 'Rendering' - On-line Beginners Photography Course

Photography can be intimidating.  The safe and easy thing to do is put your camera on AUTO and not think about it, right?  But when you look at your pictures, you're dissappointed because you thought you were capturing a moment that felt stronger when you took it. Your images are flat and don't fully capture the moment the way it really felt.  Changing just a few settings will add depth and emotions to your photos. Putting your camera on AUTO is easy, but learning to shoot manual will take your photos to a whole new level.  

In this course you will learn how to proficiently shoot in manual mode, how to properly expose your images and use your focus points to ensure crisp images, you'll learn about white balance, composition, focal length, lens choices, shooting indoors in low light, shooting in harsh light, and the list goes on.  By the end of this course you'll feel more comfortable with your camera settings and you'll have control over depth, light, and shadows. 

This course is all on-line and AT YOUR OWN PACE.  Yes, you work on it when you have time.   You can even learn in your PJ's!  But I'll be there to guide you when you need me.  You'll receive two lessons a week for 4 weeks and you'll be invited to a private Facebook group where we can post questions, images, and chat (if you have a Facebook account - if not, you can e-mail me questions).  This is a low pressure class.  

Requirements:  A Digital SLR Camera and a computer!  No prior photography knowledge needed.

Dates: August 24th-September 21st

Where:  On-line

For more information and to register go to:  www.karamayphotography.com/rendering

Thanks!