Picture Practice {A&B October 2015}

So there was that one time...
Anna and I got together and took "senior" photos of each other.

I'm only halfway kidding.
 There are a couple things about taking photos that you can't possibly tell from the subject side of the lens. 

1) It's hard. Like really, really hard to capture the perfect shot.

2) Manual mode requires a lot of practice.

3) You have to act FAST, photos where lighting is ideal (sunrise or sunset) also mean things are changing constantly adjust, adjust, adjust and adjust again.

4) Practicing on your kids is not the best way to practice (they only tolerate so much before they check out).

So what are a couple of moms with DSLR's  wanting to improve their skills supposed to do?
Practice on each other I suppose.

We got all dolled up to go take some "glamour shots" of each other and today I am sharing the photos with you ... but only if you promise not to laugh.

We even managed to snap a couple of photos together thanks to my handy dandy timer and finally getting the settings right.

This one is iconically me #goober.

 Overall with a really challenging lighting situation I think we did pretty well.
More importantly I felt like I learned quite a bit.

I was able to take that knowledge and capture some pretty fantastic photos of my parents a few days later. I'm sure I'll share some of those another day. Anna and I already have made plans to practice again before it gets too cold and I might try to take my girls out too. The more I practice the better I'll get, I'm hoping.

I was already thinking I want to work on my photography skills in 2016.
I think I'm just getting started a bit earlier than expected.

Do you have any questions, advice or tips on photography?