It’s time for a new beginning.

I will no longer update this blog.

No worries – you can find me over at my new blog, The Sweet Light.  I sincerely hope that you’ll join me.

Head over – I still a few prints for sale and clearance ♥

Going from a family of 3 to 4 will definitely be a huge adjustment, and I just want to take the time that I need to settle in with my growing family.  Rest assured, my camera will be right by my side the entire time, and I hope to return and bring you more joy + inspiration from my work.

I’ll definitely be back with a birth announcement, and to say that I am looking forward to taking the baby’s newborn portraits would be an understatement!

My summer sale ends tomorrow – thanks so much for making it such a success!  My favorite part is actually preparing orders – I love to put that extra tender loving care in with each print.  Both shops will be closing on July 1 – and I’ll let you know when I will re-open!

Thanks so much for your support, kind words, comments, and e-mails! I’ll be back soon …..

I feel that the site represents me professionally – which was one of my goals.  So please have a look around, and let me know what you think!

Also, if you read my blog through an RSS reader, you may want to click through and see the small updates I’ve made on the blog.  I love the cleaner, simple look and feel.

Finally, I’m honored to be one of Today’s Top 100 Photographers on Twitter! Thanks so much to Kate for letting me know about this!

Have a great day ♥

I wanted to share the final version of the book cover with you (the graphic designer just sent me a copy)!  La verita di Corrag – “The truth of Corrag” – is written in Italian and will only be published in Italy.

I am truly honored – I *love* the way it turned out!

We are expecting the arrival of our second child in July.  This pregnancy has been completely different than my pregnancy with Gabrielle – I was sick the entire first trimester and now I have a three year old to run after when all I what to do is sleep!

I am excited about adding to our family, but scared at the same time – I’m not quite sure how the jump from one to two kids will be!  I feel so much better now that I have shared this with you ~

And now, back to my regular scheduled photography posts!

Posted January 27, 2009

I remember this cold day in January vividly.  This shot was taken on my birthday.  I vowed to spend this day doing something that I love – photography, of course.  Only me and my camera – perfect!  This image was taken with my Nikon D40, manually focused with my 50mm lens.  I was just learning my way around Photoshop and playing with curves, lighting, etc.

Another great memory of January: Capturing images in Washington D.C. for Inauguration 2009.

Posted February 16, 2009

These adorable feet belong to my nephew.  In February, he was a quiet, calm baby and now he is active toddler, chasing everyone in his path!  I absolutely fell in love with the light for this session – and this was the first time that I used my Nikon D90 after I upgraded from my D40.  I edited all of the shots from this session Lightroom.

Posted March 14, 2009

Love this image – definitely one of my favorites.  I took this image on a family vacation to Florida.  It was still a bit too cool to actually get in the water, but it was a perfect day to fly kites on the beach.  I captured this image with my Nikon D40, and somehow managed to manually focus my 50mm in my right hand and hold the kite with my left.  I also love how the blue in the sky contrasts with the aqua blue of the water.

Posted April 10, 2009.

This was Gabrielle’s Easter dress – so dainty, which fits her perfectly!  In April, I began to use less contrast when processing my images (previously, I would immediately increase the contrast on all of my images).  I fell in love with soft, muted tones and pretty much haven’t looked back since.  This style has dominated my photography this year, and it all began in April!  Also evident in my favorite images captured this month: be happy, morning cup of beauty, and urban vintage.

Posted May 10, 2009

Confession: This image was taken by my husband and processed by me!  A funny thing happens to the people you love when you follow your passion – they begin to encourage and support you.  This image was taken on the beach in Isle of Palms, South Carolina – a Mother’s Day weekend getaway.  I had such a wonderful time, and can you believe I’m actually in front of the camera this time?

Posted June 15, 2009

I love walks after dinner in the summer.  I captured this image of Gabrielle running back home.  She just noticed that her father had returned from work, and was running towards him to greet him.  I love the swing in her dress here and how she is airborne in this shot!  The perfect summer evening light pretty much made this image!

Posted July 24, 2009

One of my favorite places in the world is my bed!  It is so comfortable and also a place where my family gathers to cuddle, talk, or just hang out.  I also love to wake up to fresh flowers – and I try to keep them on my nightstand so that they are one of the first things that greets me in the morning.  These pink tulips did such a wonderful job!

Posted August 17, 2009

This was a very hard day for me.  I had just visited my aunt who was losing her battle with breast cancer.  I hardly recognized her when I saw her.  I returned home from that visit with such a heavy heart – I had to escape.  I went to a local rose garden and snapped away.  It was just the therapy I needed to lighten my mood and help me come to grips with reality.  I processed this image with Aunt Iris in mind – I imagined her sitting on that bench in the rose garden.  She lost her battle with breast cancer in September 2009.

Posted September 11, 2009

The best trip of 2009 had to be Italy!  My husband and I planned this trip for months, and we had a wonderful time.  We visited Venice (where I captured these images above), Florence, and Rome – so much history and beauty.  There is something magical about Italy – everyone is so friendly and happy there!  Don’t forget to check out the polaroids that I captured.

Posted October 20, 2009

This image brings a smile to face – mainly because I remember Gabrielle was with me for this shoot and was definitely ready to go home!  She is usually a cooperative little trooper, but this day – she had had enough.  I actually took this image with her on my hip – bent down and about to fall over.  It was the last image of the day, and when I processed this image later on that night – it literally took my breath away.  You never know what you capture with your lens until you see it larger on your computer screen!

A great accomplishment in October: my work first appearing in a gallery!

Posted November 5, 2009

I was introduced to persimmons this year – and I don’t know how I have survived up until this point without tasting these fruits!   I also purchased this blue colander earlier this year, and I absolutely love the soft blue hues.  I have used it for a number of images, including one of my favorites – apricots.

Posted December 3, 2009

This image was taken in Louisiana in my father’s garden.  He has three lemon trees along with an orange tree and lots of rose bushes.  I love my time there.  Gabrielle actually picked those lemons – they were literally holding the tree down!  And you can guarantee that we had fresh squeezed lemonade the entire time we were there….

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I hope that you have enjoyed learning a bit more about the images you see here on my blog.  I really love sharing my work with you.

I can’t wait to see where photography takes me in 2010!

I am in the 11th month of my Daily Discoveries project – a photo in a day in 2009.  I have received a number of emails from people who are inspired to do the same, which warms my heart!   If you have been keeping up with my monthly reviews, you know that I have grown so much as a photographer from this project.  I know that there are a number of people considering their own project for 2010, and I’d like to share a few of the tips that I’ve learned along the way.

1. Be prepared to slow down – This project will open your eyes.  You’ll see and notice little details of your life that you simply overlooked before.  You will find that you want to pull the car over and get out with your camera.  Be sure to make time for your new view of the world!
2. Bring your camera – Ok, this one seems obvious – but you will be amazed at how many times you will see something that you want to photograph (in the least likely place) and wish that you had your camera!  I actually bought a larger bag to stash my camera, wallet, and other personal things.
3. Go someplace new – Visit a the park on the other side of town, take a different route home from work, visit your local farmer’s market, take your niece and nephew to the zoo, go for a walk after dinner…. you get the idea.
4. Capture the seasons – Be sure to capture snow in the winter, budding trees in the spring, flowers in the summer, and leaves in the fall.  Trust me, when you look back on your images, you’ll love the change of seasons.
5. Shoot in the morning – I’m finally learning this one since the days are so much shorter.  This is also key for those days when you are really busy, or you simply can’t bring your camera along – your photo for the day is taken care of.
6. If all else fails, photograph your food – You eat every day, why not capture your meal?  Seasonal fruits are always a favorite of mine!
7. Find others who are doing the same - There are a number of groups on flickr dedicated to a 365 project.  And I can guarantee that there will be a number of photography blogs doing the same.  This will help you become accountable to someone other than yourself.
8. Don’t set yourself up to fail. This should have been #1.  Honestly, if you feel that this is going to be too much for you, or this upcoming year is going to be a year of change for you (moving, having a baby, etc), why not consider a photo a week project? It’s ok – there is no right or wrong, this is YOUR photography project.
9. Get a system in place for uploading your photos. You can use your flickr account, smugmug, or your blog (like I have done), but you’ll want a space to show your hard work off!
10. Keep going through the rough times.  Honestly, this project is UNFORGIVING.  Let me be the first to tell you that in the course of a year:  you WILL get sick, your kids will get sick, you’ll have good days, you’ll have bad days, etc.  Realize that life will happen and be prepared for it.
11. Adjust. Be willing to bend. When I first started this my daily discoveries project, I uploaded photos every day.  By April I realized that this was not going to work for me.  Instead of giving up, I decided that I would still continue to take a daily photo, but I would only upload on the weekends.  This took so much pressure off of my shoulders. In fact, it helped me feel rejuvenated and excited about my project.  Remember, before you throw in the towel, look for ways that you can adjust your workflow to continue.  It’s your project – you can make (or adjust) the rules.
12. Organization is key. You’ll want to have a system in place for uploading and categorizing your photos.  Remember, you will be taking photos every day.  Most photo editing programs take care of this for you – Lightroom works wonders for me.  It keeps my images organized by year, month, and day.
13. Make sure you have enough space. Let’s be honest – chances are you will take more than ONE photo a day (you’ll simply choose the best one to keep!).  Be prepared to fill up your hard drive with images (especially if you shoot in RAW).  This caught up with me in June – I had to purchase an external hard drive just to hold all of my photos!
14. Let your friends and family know. Yes, they will figure it out when your camera will seem attached to your body, but if they know that this is important to you, believe me, after a while they will be your cheerleaders, encourage you, and sometimes remind you to take a photo!
15. Reward yourself. This is key.  At the end of the week, or month – reward yourself in some kind of way for reaching a milestone.  I create a collage of my images at the end of each month.  For me, this simple act makes it so worth it.  I can look back and see the fruits of my labor.

I hope that these tips helped you if you are considering a daily photo project for 2010!  If you are currently taking photos daily, do you have any other suggestions?

Please update your readers to my new feed address:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/GabrielleKaiPhotography-Blog

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Again, I apologize for the inconvenience that this causes.  I hope that you continue to subscribe to my blog!

Back to my regularly scheduled visual blogging…..