You asked, I say...

Thank you all so much on the comments you left on my last entry on my first ever "maternity shoot". LOL Sorta my first gig only I didn't get paid for it. But it's all good. I'm getting practice and that's exactly what I want and need before I actually call myself a "professional photographer". Taking pictures of objects and flowers just doesn't make me feel like one. LOL So photographing other people definitely helps improve my skills, I think. Of course, my favorite subject is and will always be, Sofia, my daughter. *hehe* I don't know if my nephew's wife liked the maternity pictures. I texted her for her email address and then sent them to her and I got no reply. Oh well... She did say "Thank you" after I was done so I guess that should suffice. LOL! Eh. Anywayyyyy... So ok. I'm going to go ahead an answer those questions you guys left for me in my "Feel Free..." entry. Like I said, I'm not a pro by any means but I will share what I do know. LOL I'm still an amateur! =)

Betty asked: I have a digital Olympus camera. I love it. I like to just take different shots to play around with it. Thinking of progressing to an SLR one day. How do you pick one? What is the best kind? Well what I’m saying is what do you recommend without breaking the bank. lol! Well... I would follow the advice that was given to me that I didn't follow! LOL Go to the store and pick the one that feels right to you! LOL I say that because I didn't do that with my latest purchase but I love it, so it doesn't matter. I would definitely recommend a starter DSLR. If you go with Canon, the Xti or Xsi is a good choice. If you go with Nikon, I recommend the Nikon d60 which is the one I had before the Canon 40d. I have experience with both brands and I can tell you that both brands are awesome. Just go pick one up and see which one feels right to you. But yeah, either one of those are great starter DSLR's! =) Good Luck and keep me posted! BTW, sometimes you find good deals on used cameras. I was going to go with a refurbished one but decided not to last minute. I dunno how you feel about buying used products but look into that too. Cheaper!

Chris Rhee asked: How come all my pictures turn out crappy? LOL! Well what is your definition of a crappy picture because all the ones I've seen you post on Cut & Taste are NOT crappy. So, ummm... I dunno? =/

KimmyK asked: what photo shop program do you use to edit your photos? Or do you use your iMac to do it? I have Paint Shop Pro, but I’m looking for a new program to use.

ALSO!!!

Do you have any websites with good photo editing ‘fun’ type programs you can share?

Thanks!

I use Adobe Photoshop to edit and alter my pictures. It took me a good while to master it (I'd say about a year or so. I'm slow, what can I say!) Before I had PS, I used Paint Shop Pro and I loved that. The only reason I went with Photoshop is because I switched from a Windows Computer to an Apple. And they don't have an apple version of PSP. I missed it so much! I still do sometimes. I knew it like the back of my hand but PS isn't that bad once you play around with it. I guess it just took me a long time to get over my fear of PS. Believe me, once you figure it out, it's SO MUCH FUN! Some other programs you can use for free to edit and alter picture is "Picnik", "Gimp" and "Photoshop Express". Even "Photoshop Elements". I hope that helped. =)

Cecilia asked: Do you use actions/how do you get the nice pink tones in your photos. I love the effect! I do use actions on my pictures. I like the ones that leave pink tones too! I have found a LOT on Deviantart.com FOR FREE! You just have to dig for the good ones. And see what works for you. Which ones when you use, give you that result you like, you know? Also, now that Sofia's room is pink, I get a natural pink tone in my pics which is awesome. I love it. LOL Other actions I've purchased that I love are Autumn Love Actions & Elusive Actions. Check them out!

Stephanie and AnaBanana asked what program I used to get the effects I get in my photos. I think I answered that with Cecilia's question but yeah. Photoshop. And that Vintage Look Steph, a lot of the times, I play with the balance, brightness, saturation levels in Photoshop and I get that look. That's why I'm saying, practice practice in Photoshop girl. I know you can master it! =)

I want to add too the book "Understanding Exposure" has helped me a lot! I've read it at least 4 times. It's always good as a refresher too! Also, joining photography forums has helped me a lot. Learning from other people. But most of all, I've learned a lot on my own. By trial and error. And I still make a lot of errors, believe me. I'm farrrrr from being a pro. But that's ok because we all get to that "Pro" level differently. And when I do, I'll be making $! haha. Someday. When Sofia gets older. Because right now, it's all about her. LOL

Hope I was of some help y'all!