Testing, 1,2,3.

When D asked me what I wanted for Christmas I was serious when I said nothing. I said I cold buy some things and put them under the tree. I honestly didn't want anything, back in November at the parent party for K's school D bid and won a beautiful ring at the live auction. I thought we were doing a nice thing by simply attending but he raised the bar and made all the other husbands look bad. The ring is completely beautiful, absolutely perfect and pretty expensive. For the first time it was me that concerned about spending money.

Anyway, Christmas morning I was given a present to open first. This never happens. Inside a nondescript box was an amazing Canon 24 - 105 f4 L professional lens. While I said I didn't want anything, I meant it. I wanted a new lens but it wasn't something I really thought about. Having a best friend who is also a professional photographer puts any picture taking in the back of my mind since I am now enjoying the styling part of the shoot. So for the days that followed I tried out my new toy, I saw a difference but I needed help. I called my buddy and asked for help. She suggested I bring my crew over to hang with hers and she can give me some pointers.

In between glasses of wine she showed me the best setting for getting what I want (and what I wanted was the look she gets!) We decided to test it out, having kids that model helps out tremendously. I grabbed her daughter and shot her for a few minutes. With the proper settings and an incredibly gorgeous kid I got the kind of pictures people pay a fortune to get. I couldn't wait to try it out with K.

Today was that day. I curled her hair, picked out an outfit that made her look like a little French girl and went to the village. At first she was annoyed, but she soon realized that people were watching and she went right to model mode. When she was finished I paid her in ice cream and we ran home to see what we got. I was beyond thrilled to see images that I always knew I create (with the help of a professional). K gave me her best "told ya" smile and took off to play with her iPad. I posted some faves to Facebook to show friends and felt the love in the form of "likes" and comments. I even got a few requests to do headshots and shoot the new line of a designer we know. The headshots I will gladly do, the job I will pass on to my buddy until I fully manage the crazy manual settings I will now have to master.

All in all it was a great day. K and I are already planning our next shoot, another fist. She never likes the clothes I pick but once she saw her French girl images I became cool again.

Oh la la.