Fall

Yesterday, I walked a little bit around town with my camera, camera bag, and tripod. [Yeah, I'm sure I looked like a freakin' weirdo, but oh well.] It was nice to walk around and take photos. I went out for a photography assignment and had a fun time. I don't like that it gets cooler [I am such a summer girl], but I absolutely love the colors of fall!!

Here are some photos I took while I was out walking around.

Finally Back!!

I am finally back in Ohio!! Let me tell you, I am very happy!! To me, it is very important to have family around, and it's my main reason for coming home while Mark's deployed. [However, this will be the last time coming home during a deployment since Michael will be old enough to go to school next year.] I grew up surrounded by family, and I look back at all of that family I had around me and truly appreciate it. Actually, we got in yesterday morning around 3:40, and today we went to a birthday party for one of my cousins. [I'm telling you, my family is very close, and I will never take that for granted.] I want my children to be able to have as much family around as possible growing up. I don't want them to wonder who their family members are and what they are/were like.

But now that we're back, that means that I am just that much closer to starting school!! In a couple of hours, I will be able to say that I start school next month!! HA. Within the next few days, I am going to be filling out my student loan application. Once that is taken care of, I will just have to schedule my classes and order my books and software, and then I'll be ready to go for school!! YAY! You have no idea how excited I am to start school!! It's going to be so exciting!! I am so ready for everything that's to come!! I am ready to learn something else that I am so passionate and serious about!!

Today, I stopped at Staples and finally got my 1 TB external hard drive!!!! I've started to transfer some important stuff to it, and once that's all taken care of, I am going to see if my cousin can wipe out the laptop and start over from "scratch". Something's still wrong with the laptop, and I just need to wipe everything out. I'm just transferring my fonts, music, and photos that are saved on the laptop. Then after the laptop's been wiped out, everything's been restored, and I get my new $510 16-program editing set, I will be ready to go!! I can't wait!! I am going to be doing some serious "damage" around here with all of the photography stuff!!

Monday Night's Game

As you should know, Mark and I went to the Indians game on Monday night. We lost - those stupid Red Sox beat us. But let me tell you something, it was a great game!! Pitching from both teams was great!! [Of course Cliff Lee was going to deliver. After all, he did win the Cy Young award last year!! HELL YES!!] It just sucked though that my Indians lost Monday. [However, they beat the Red Sox Tuesday night!! WWOOOOOOO!!!!]

Mark and I had tickets for seats in Pronkville. We only stayed there though till the end of the 4th inning. After that, we went and sat on the Party Deck for the rest of the game. If I stood up, bent forward, and leaned over a little bit, I would've been touching the foul pole in right field. There was only one row of seats in front of us, too. So we were right by the field, and we were right next to the visitor's bullpen. OMG it was amazing!! I took 300-400 photos throughout the game, plus a few before the game. [We got there early and walked around Heritage Park and stood in the first row by right-center field during the Red Sox batting practice. We ALMOST got a ball that one of Red Sox players hit.]

During the game, Grady Sizemore made this amazing diving catch!! I was so ready for it!! My camera was right on Grady - I knew he was going to dive for it and catch it!! As soon as I pushed down on the button to snap that shot, my husband just had to stand up RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME, RUINING THE SHOT!!!! Ugh! I was so pissed - and still am!! SERIOUSLY!! I could've had this absolutely amazing shot of one of my favorite Indians players, but noooooo, my husband had to leap up out of his chair and cheer for Grady. ::rolls eyes:: I told Mark that I will never let that moment die down for as long as I live. HA. [Seriously though, I probably won't let it go - ever.]

I don't have the photos I took uploaded yet. I actually don't even have them tranferred yet because I don't have enough space on the flash drive I brought with me to Ohio. So once I get back to NC, I'll get to transferring and uploading them so I can share some of the photos with you!!

OH!! After the game, since we were right by the visitor's bullpen, Mark asked for a baseball, and we got one!!!! To me, it doesn't matter if it's a ball used by an opposing team - a ball touched by multiple multi-million-dollar professional athletes is better than nothing!!!! HA. I'm going to buy a case for it, I kid you not!! It's going to go in our next house when we [or should I say I?] deck out a room or wall in Cleveland stuff.

I had so much fun at the game Monday night!! I'm hoping to go to a few more games this summer once the boys and I are back up here. I want to go and see my favorite baseball team of my entire life play, and take some photos of those guys playing baseball!! I ♥ baseball!!

Also, Cleveland has a single-A team in Kinston, NC. That's not very far from where we live down there. So we're going to try to go to one of their games before Mark deploys in May. I can't wait!! We're going to take the boys, too - their very first baseball game!! So if we go to a K-Tribe game, I'm going to take photos there, too!! Maybe one day they'll end up playing in Cleveland for the Indians, and then we'll get to say that we saw them when they were playing in Kinston. [We're also going to try to get some autographs, if possible.] Mark always says, "Maybe we'll get to see the next Grady Sizemore." And he's right - maybe we will.

Understanding My Camera

Over the last week or so, I have been learning a lot more about my camera. I've read the book that came with my camera at least 20-25 times [no joke], but reading can only get you so far. Lately, I've been using different modes on my camera that I wasn't comfortable using before. I made myself use those modes and nothing else for a short, yet decent, amount of time. Now, I am very comfortable shooting in A [Aperture Priority] and M [Manual]. So I can add those two modes to the list of modes I am comfortable using. [Next mode I need to work on/get comfortable using is P [Portrait]. Sounds pretty easy, but I'd like to just get the chance to use it more often.] I'm very happy now that I know how to use those modes, and what to use them for. Honestly, I find it very exciting to be able to know how to use multiple shooting modes on my camera and know what mode is best for different situations.

I think it's so funny to think back a month or two ago, and think about how little I knew about my camera. I know so much about it now, and I love learning more!! [Good thing I want to go to school for photography, huh? HA.] I know I have a lot more to learn, but that's a good great thing!! I hate when I've learned so much about something that it gets boring and I have to move on to the next thing. [And I can get bored with things pretty easily, too.]

Well, it's a beautiful day here and Mark's outside with the boys - so I am going to join them and, of course, take lots and lots of photos of them playing around. And I can't wait till tonight because Mark and I are going to the Indians vs. Red Sox game!! YAY! I don't know when I'll get more photos up though because our laptop is messed up with viruses and spyware, so it all needs to be wiped out before we can use it again. [Thank God we're visiting family in Ohio and can use my parents' computer/Internet. But it's so slow that I don't even want to attempt uploading photos.]

Enjoy your day, people!!

Cleveland: Firework Photos

After the Indians game on Friday, there were fireworks. [There are always fireworks after Friday night games, as long as the weather permits.] I LOVE the firework shows they put on there!! They play music and set the fireworks off. AMAZING!! They play the song "Cleveland Rocks", and then songs by Jimi Hendrix, Beach Boys, The Who, and a bunch of other great artists/bands!! But it only makes sense that they play the best music because, after all, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is in Cleveland!!

Here are some of the photos I took of the firworks. They aren't great, but it was my very first time photographing fireworks.

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I can't wait till the Fourth of July because then I'll get another chance to photograph fireworks. I really want to work on photographing fireworks and having great shots!!

Cleveland: The Cavs & Quicken Loans Arena

On Friday night, Mark and I went to the Cleveland Indians game. We got there before they opened Progressive Field, so we walked around the outside of Quicken Loans Arena for a little bit. [The Q and Progressive Field are right by one another.] People were already standing outside The Q, waiting to be let in to view the Cavs/Pistons game. [At The Q, they allow people to go there to watch the away play-off games. Pretty cool, huh?]

Well, here are some of the photos I took of The Q.

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Today, the Cavs swept the Detroit Pistons!!!! HELL YEAH!! I hope we will sweep the next team, too!! Crap, let's just sweep everyone we play till the end so we can win the NBA Championship!! Cleveland is so ready to bring home a championship win of some sort!! LET'S GO CAVS!!!!