Photo Challenge #19, #20 & #21: B&W, Faceless Self-Portrait & Something Orange...and Edit Me Challenge

***Before I begin, I want to encourage you to read to the bottom for news on a really sweet deal***

Hello, my name is Kirsten and I'm addicted to taking pictures.  Seriously, I am. I made a partial confession the other day, but I didn't come right out and admit it.  So here I am, confessing my "addiction".

I love to take pictures of people, places, things...anything.  Just ask my husband or any of my family members.  Every now and then, I'll make Scott pull off on the side of the road so I can snap a picture of something interesting, cool, or pretty.  And a lot of the times, I make him stand in front of whatever it is.  Sorry, Scott, I know I torture you with this.  But I, mostly, enjoy taking pictures so I can keep them as a remnant of adventures we experience.  My picture-taking has evolved over the years from disposables, to digital point-and-shoots, and now to a nicer camera.  While quality may have improved (significantly), my love of taking pictures hasn't wavered.

I look forward to Wednesdays because they're best days to connect with and learn from photographers with blogs.  I know there's still a lot for me to learn and I'm open to any and all feedback.  If you think there's something I should change or a new method I should try to get a better shot, please don't hesitate to provide feedback/critiques!  After all, it was only a few years ago I was using disposable cameras to capture shots! 

*******

A couple of my friends asked if I could photograph their wedding.  This is something I've never done before on the 'professional level'.  Remember, I'm addicted to taking pictures so every wedding I attend, I tend snap lots of shots.  Anyway, I obliged their request but I was a little nervous to be the one in charge of capturing shots of their big day.  They had a beautiful wedding, and they are such a fun couple to photograph, it turned out to be a really fun experience!

Here is one of my favorites from the wedding and my Black & White photo challenge: 

Photo Challenge #19: Black & White

 Alright, I thought this one was a little awkward.  To be honest, I tried to put this particular challenge off for as long as possible in an attempt to avoid the awkwardness!  I didn't know what I was going to do for it or how I was going to capture it.  I decided to use my tripod and camera remote and get a shot of me drinking my hot tea (a daily ritual) looking out of the window. Clarification, it's not a ritual for me to stare out of the window while drinking tea, it's just a ritual to drink it.  Hmm, I guess you can still see some of my face--oh well!

Here's my faceless self-portrait:  

Photo Challenge #20: Faceless Self-Portrait

 Last week I received a request from my friend, Denise, to complete the 'Something Orange' photo challenge.  I tried so hard to be creative and find something fun and different that's orange.  I asked my husband what he thought and he responded with what was already in my head:  "take a picture of oranges."  So one morning, before devouring my orange for breakfast, I took a picture.

Here is the photo of something orange:

Photo Challenge #21: Something Orange

  *******

Also, I enjoyed the Edit Me Challenge so much last week that I decided to participate again.  This week, the photo is of an adorable little guy and it was supplied by Ashley Sisk.

Here's the photograph before:

Here's the photograph after my edit:

Here's what I did and my thought process behind it:

Oh, before I begin, I received a few questions last time about what editing software I use--I use Lightroom 3 and I love it!

• I was really tempted to turn this black & white or use sepia tones, but I decide not to.  He's an adorable little baby and I wanted to capture the baby freshness; I thought the best way to do that was to keep the color.
• I cropped the picture some and angled it slightly to the left to get him a little more centered
• I increased the brightness and exposure.  I also used a graduated filter on the left side (as you look at it) of his face so that when I brightened the photo, you could still see that side of his face.
• I increased the vibrance, the temperature slightly, and the tint slightly.  
• As I increased the fill light, I also increased the blacks & darks a bit as well. 

What do you think?  What would you do differently?

*******

SUPER SWEET DEAL:

All photographed out?  Oh man, I really hope not!  Guess what?  Tomorrow I'm hosting my very first GIVEAWAY!!!  Yes, I said it! And, there's a BIG prize in store.  

 The prize??  

A Free Photo Session With Parapet Photography!!! 

Be sure to check back tomorrow for more details!

Linking Here:

And Then She {Snapped}

Wordless Wednesday Momtog

Wordless Wednesdays

Project Alicia

Wild & Wonderful Wednesday

Wordless/Wordful Wednesday

Wednesday, Unspoken, Unwritten

Wordless Wednesday Kent Weakley

Edit Me Challenge
A Stylish Little Lady