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Welcome
Welcome to my blog! My name is Farrah Braniff and I am a photographer in Houston, Texas. This blog is a place for me to feature my own personal imagery, images from my studio, my travels and the news and happenings of my family. I have two little boys (ages 6 and almost 8). You will see them a lot on this blog. They are my inspiration in so many ways. This is a great place to learn a little about me and my work. I hope you'll take a moment and look around. Use the navigation links at the top to find the entries by category and explore my other sites and projects. Have something to say? Please leave comments on my posts or email me: farrah@farrahbraniff.com. Thanks for stopping by! |
And the moon sees me.
Thank you moon for being there whenever I look up in the late afternoon or night sky. You follow me around even when I don't notice you. Every day you offer me something new - a different side of you. Sometimes you are small and delicate and remind me of one of my favorite lines in a country song...
"It's a a quarter moon in a 10 cent town. Time for me to lay my heartaches down. Saturday night gonna make myself a name, take a month of Sundays to try and explain..."
Sometimes you're big and orange and remind me of the first time I saw snow. I was in my twenties and road tripping through Colorado. I woke up in the car to the sound of Neil Young's Harvest Moon and snow was all around, glittering as the sun came up.
I'm not sure why (a myth?) but, when you are full, I always think something strange might happen and that makes me kind of nervously excited. Thank you for taking me by surprise so many times. You are quiet, ever present and keep so many things in balance down here on Earth. You are under appreciated.
You caught my eye today as I was walking to my car after a late afternoon photo session in the park. I appreciate how you always help divert my attention to the larger things in life and not all the small, tangled thoughts in my head. I cannot imagine our Earthly sky without you.
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How about you guys? Any favorite shots this Friday? Please submit them to our Favorite Shot Friday Flickr pool or leave links to them in the comments below. Happy weekend my friends!
Thank you moon for being there whenever I look up in the late afternoon or night sky. You follow me around even when I don't notice you. Every day you offer me something new - a different side of you. Sometimes you are small and delicate and remind me of one of my favorite lines in a country song..."It's a a quarter moon in a 10 cent town. Time for me to lay my heartaches down. Saturday night gonna make myself a name, take a month of Sundays to try and explain..."
Sometimes you're big and orange and remind me of the first time I saw snow. I was in my twenties and road tripping through Colorado. I woke up in the car to the sound of Neil Young's Harvest Moon and snow was all around, glittering as the sun came up.
I'm not sure why (a myth?) but, when you are full, I always think something strange might happen and that makes me kind of nervously excited. Thank you for taking me by surprise so many times. You are quiet, ever present and keep so many things in balance down here on Earth. You are under appreciated.
You caught my eye today as I was walking to my car after a late afternoon photo session in the park. I appreciate how you always help divert my attention to the larger things in life and not all the small, tangled thoughts in my head. I cannot imagine our Earthly sky without you.
----
How about you guys? Any favorite shots this Friday? Please submit them to our Favorite Shot Friday Flickr pool or leave links to them in the comments below. Happy weekend my friends!
One of the best ways to practice your camera skills is with little assignments. So, today, I have one for you. I teach a photography class to a group of teenagers on Wednesday afternoons through Hope Stone. A few weeks ago, I gave them a scavenger hunt assignment. It's a list of things that you have to go find with your camera. The idea is to challenge yourself and find the most creative way to represent each item.
1. Your reflection (I collect images like this of myself)
2. Repeating circles, like Joseph's here
3. Repeating squares, like Aaron's here
4. A leading line: lines in the composition lead you to the subject
5. A natural frame: use the shapes and lines in the scene to create a frame around your subject. Think about doorways, windows, openings between two trees, and so on
6. Less is more. There is an entire group on Flickr devoted to this style of image
7. Something off center (anything, just not in the center of the frame)
8. Frozen action / motion
9. Blurred motion
10. Drama. I love this one because you can do anything and it's all up to you to get creative with a little story in your image
11. Peace
12. Shallow depth of field, (your background or foreground is blurry but your subject is in focus) maybe something like this
13. Interesting architecture, like this
14. Shoot up, like this
15. Shoot down
16. A close up, like this
17. An image with a story
Now it's your turn! Hunt away and please share your images with us! You can add them to my student Flickr group here, add them to the Monday Lesson Flickr group or just leave links in the comments section below to your blogs, etc. When you share with all of us, you inspire us.
1. Your reflection (I collect images like this of myself)
2. Repeating circles, like Joseph's here
3. Repeating squares, like Aaron's here
4. A leading line: lines in the composition lead you to the subject
5. A natural frame: use the shapes and lines in the scene to create a frame around your subject. Think about doorways, windows, openings between two trees, and so on6. Less is more. There is an entire group on Flickr devoted to this style of image
7. Something off center (anything, just not in the center of the frame)
8. Frozen action / motion9. Blurred motion
10. Drama. I love this one because you can do anything and it's all up to you to get creative with a little story in your image11. Peace
12. Shallow depth of field, (your background or foreground is blurry but your subject is in focus) maybe something like this
13. Interesting architecture, like this
14. Shoot up, like this
15. Shoot down
16. A close up, like this
17. An image with a story
Now it's your turn! Hunt away and please share your images with us! You can add them to my student Flickr group here, add them to the Monday Lesson Flickr group or just leave links in the comments section below to your blogs, etc. When you share with all of us, you inspire us.
Beth Crocker says:
Hi Farrah. I have to say that I adore your shot of your son in the pool! Just brilliant! These are all fun, but that's my fav. Thanks for sharing again!
http://www.thewayiseeitthroughmylens.blogspot.com
(11.18.10 @ 11:47 PM)
Back in art school I always photographed things and never people. Now, it's hard to imagine that. People are amazing to photograph. One of the things that I love about photographing people is how faces change, quickly and almost imperceptibly. The tiny changes make huge differences. A lean might soften a face and a lip curls to creates a bit of sass. Something changes and the eye sparkles just a bit more than it did a split second ago.
Meet sweet little Olivia, leaned in and checking me out
and with her little chin up, almost ready to smile
and, there it is...sweet, sweet smiles!
and then, after a little hat change and a few tears, we have this amazing vulnerable face.
Thank you Miss Olivia for sharing your subtle and beautiful expressions with me.
Lea Ciceraro says:
OMG those hats are adorable, on an even more adorable baby! She looks so soft and beautiful in these photos. Nice work! And where did she get those hats? Especially love the owl one!! :)
(11.12.10 @ 07:14 AM)
Lea Ciceraro says:
P.S. My one-year old son is completely enamored with her and these photographs. He's just in a trance staring and smiling at her! :)
(11.12.10 @ 07:16 AM)
I think this sweet little face speaks for itself, right? This is Skylar. I think it might be one of my favorite shots of the year and not just the week. I love that moment when you and the camera just CONNECT with the subject. It's like you can see their spirit. It's especially true of little ones because they're always running around crazy. So, when they stop for that moment and you get a glimpse, it's so wonderful. Thanks for letting me see you Sky.
Jfo says:
She completely melts in my mouth.....This pic! Sooooo sweeettttt. Thank Farrah can't want to get these on our walls:) you did an amazing job of capturing it!
(11.05.10 @ 10:13 PM)
Jfo says:
She completely melts in my mouth.....This pic! Sooooo sweeettttt. Thank Farrah can't want to get these on our walls:) you did an amazing job of capturing it!
(11.05.10 @ 10:14 PM)
Meet little Olivia.
One of my very favorite things is when newborns smile in their sleep. This little babe shared so many sleepy smiles with me!
She was a little peanut too weighing in at a little over 5 pounds when she was born (she decided to come a little early).
One of my very favorite things is when newborns smile in their sleep. This little babe shared so many sleepy smiles with me!She was a little peanut too weighing in at a little over 5 pounds when she was born (she decided to come a little early).She was patient with me as I moved her around and posed her. Her entire family watched as I photographed. It's clear, this little girl is surrounded by lots of love.
Welcome to the world Miss Olivia!
Mark meeker says:
Awesome,
(11.03.10 @ 10:51 PM)
Kerin says:
Thanks for taking such GREAT photos of our sweet baby Olivia! Memories to last forever.
(11.03.10 @ 11:04 PM)
Alvin Gilmore says:
How can someone question if God exists after see these pictures of Olivia!
(11.03.10 @ 11:59 PM)