Autumn Day Portraits

As a photographer, I have yet to establish my own post processing style.  Other than my brief introduction to photoshop in a high school arts class, I had always used my computer's basic photo editing program to play with my pictures.  For the longest time I used Picasa, a program that, even in its simplicity, fulfilled my post-processing needs.  It wasn't until last year that I actually gained access to a proper editing program.

Enter Adobe Lightroom.

I have personally loved using Lightroom. It's not nearly as extensive as Photoshop, but as an editing newbie, I'm thankful; Photoshop would have overwhelmed me.  Also, using Lightroom really allowed me to better understand how light works in photos (white balance, exposure, color hue and saturation etc) as I began to play with all of Lightroom's features.

With this session, I really wanted to emphasize the seasonal feeling of the day, so I wanted to try and accomplish an autumnal look for my photos with my post-process.  I edited these without the use of a preset, focusing more on the Split-tone feature of Lightroom to accomplish the look I wanted.

To be honest, I think the pictures still might have too much of a reddish/purple tint to them. I don't really know what I'm doing, and these might be edited horrendously by a professional's opinion.  But, I haven't posted in a while, and I need to start posting more of my work to both keep myself accountable and to show my work to nagging family and friends. ;)

Now on to the photos.  I took these photos back on an autumn day in November while I was babysitting Peyton.  The colors of the leaves were just too perfect to pass up, so I decided a mini photo shoot was in order. Peyton is the perfect model, he has no inhibitions and acts completely like his precious, sweet self when I stick a camera in his face.

Let me know what you think.  Do you like this edited look? Are the pictures too red? Don't you think Peyton is just the cutest? :)

 Peyton is still learning to walk, so as an alternative he scoots on his butt, no matter the muddiness of the ground. :)

Stewart Wedding: Mukilteo, WA

I don't think I can ever fully express how thankful for I am for Sarah and Luke.  They took a chance on me, a brand new photographer, to capture one of the most important days of their lives.  I had never shot a wedding before. Actually, come to think of it, I had never shot anything for anyone outside of my family before.

Basically I was really nervous to shoot this wedding. Of course, I didn't tell Sarah and Luke that. To them I was cool as cucumber, professional and in control, photographer extraordinaire.  Ok, not quite, but I do hope that I was somewhat a reference of calm in the craziness that is planning for a wedding.

Anyway, enough about me. Everyone, meet Luke and Sarah Stewart. Luke is from MN, Sarah from WA. They met as counselors at a a summer camp, and spent the entirety of their relationship miles apart.

Maybe it was the long distance, maybe it was their personality, but it seemed that Luke and Sarah really seemed to live in each moment, not taking each minute they had together for granted. They were so present, so enjoyable, so relaxed; I absolutely adored shooting them. Plus, they are both so good looking. 

It's a pretty long post, so go ahead and check out more pictures by clicking on the Read More link. :)

All Hallows Eve

Happy festivities!

Who is Eliza Norris?

I am.

Though, I am better known as Paige Elizabeth.

Yes, I am both. Please, no need for confusion. Eliza Norris is a name of inspiration, originating with my grandmothers. Elizabeth is my grandmother, my middle name's namesake. Norris is my mother's maiden name, a name unfortunately not passed on by my mother or her four sisters; thus I wanted to honor the name here. 

Together, the names are fresh and new, proudly inspiring me move forward with my photos, while simultaneously reminding me of who I am and where I come from.

Hopefully, that clarifies any confusion. 

blessings

Southern CA: Portrait

Moving down to Southern California proved to be a leap of faith.  Though I had a wonderful family to greet me and provide so much for me, I arrived with no promise of a job.  Even with the bleak economy reminding me that I probably wouldn't get a job, I was so blessed to find not one, but three jobs within two weeks of arriving!

I am currently a barista (no surprise) at Pain du Monde, and a nanny for three wonderful kids: a brother-sister duo, and a little kindergartner who uses sarcasm like a moody teenager. So, I now want to introduce you to Ashlynn and Peyton.  They are the sweetest kids, and I am so blessed to hang out with them on a regular basis.

Peyton is autistic and though he is seven years old, he doesn't use words to communicate.  I am learning daily what Peyton loves and doesn't love.  So far, I know he LOVES: playing with water, hanging upside down, elmo and friends, his big sister Ashlynn, his stuffed baseball, and his imaginary friends that he makes out of his hands.

Morgan (my sister), Peyton, and Ashlynn all enjoy fro-yo on a warm autumn day. 

Peyton loves hanging upside down.

I also caught him playing with his imaginary friends, aka, his hands!

So cute!

football practice.

Since moving down to California, I have been spending nearly all of my downtime with my family, and I love it.  Not only do I love running around town watching my brother play football or my sister at dance or lunch with my dad or just hanging out at home, I always have opportunities for new pictures.

These pictures were taken back in September, on a bright sunny evening. Cole played football, Morgan practiced her cartwheels.

Cole's football practice

Isn't she so cute!?

An introduction of sorts.

This is me. I am Paige Elizabeth.  Welcome to a space dedicated to my photos.

I decided to name my photography pen name after my grandparents. Elizabeth is my grandmother's name, and my mother's maiden name is Norris. I chose the name in high school when my love affair with photography began.

As an amateur photographer, my portfolio is quite small, my post-processing style is still in development, and my basic photographing skills are, well basic. But that is why I have created this space, to challenge myself to add new photos constantly, to help me develop an editing style, and to eventually promote myself as a professional photographer.

much love