A quick Lightroom edit

Last weekend, while we were walking out to Mirror Lake, there were so many fallen leaves all along the path. I thought it would be fun to try something, like take a picture of the kids throwing leaves up into the air…

 ISO 800, 32mm, f/4.8, 1/1250

 

We had a lot of filtered light along the path, but it was still pretty dark, even with the ISO up. I wanted the fast shutter speed to try to capture the leaves in the air after the kids had thrown them. With a little work in Lightroom, here is the after picture…

In the ‘Develop’ mode in Lightroom, I adjusted some of the basic settings (exposure, contrast, highlights, etc.) and was able to brighten up the photo, which is something I wasn’t able to do straight out of the camera.

As much as I was dragging my feet on this photo editing stuff, I might just be a new convert!

Yosemite!

I was having Yosemite withdrawals and was trying to find a few friends to come along with me for a day trip to the park. I had no takers! So Kev suggested changing the day that I was planning on going and said we could go as a family…yay!!

So Saturday, we packed up our lunches and started the 2 1/2 hour drive to Yosemite Valley. On our last trip to the park, we spent time in the Mariposa Groves and Glacier Point. This time, I wanted to hike out to Mirror Lake and just spend some time walking around in the valley.

Bridalveil Falls is usually the first stop we make in the park when we spend time in the valley. Not a lot of water coming down this time of the year, so Matthew and I climbed up some of the rocks to get a different perspective for our pictures.

We had never stopped and walked through the church before. The original church building had been there since the 1870’s. Services are still held here, might need to make a Sunday day trip for one visit.

 The first of many deer we saw.

 

 Half Dome from Sentinal Bridge with some fall color.

 

As I was looking around, I kept thinking that something was missing…and it was! There was no water coming down Yosemite Falls! Can you see where the water usually comes down?

On our walk out to Mirro lake, there were many, many leaves on the ground. I thought it would be fun to shoot a picture at a high shutter speed, have my kids throw leaves in the air, and try to catch the leaves in the air in the photo. Might need to see what I can do to brighten this one up a bit…

 My favorite of the day

 

I brought along my tri-pod with the hope that I could get a good family picture while we were there. Guess I need to inform my family that this is an expectation I have. Not everyone was prepared and I wasn’t really happy with any of the pictures of the four of us. Guess we will have to go back… :o)

Mirror Lake…with no water. Last time the kids and I walked out here, there was plenty of water and I was able to get some amazing pictures with the mountain reflections in the water. I love that we can see the changes in the different seasons.

 So many beautiful fall colors!

 

 This was a group of 7 deer wandering around near one of the campgrounds.

My family had never seen the Ahwahnee Hotel. We will probably never stay there (so expensive), but it is nice to walk around this beautiful hotel.

 The dining room is amazing!

 

 But at these prices, like I said, we will probably never stay there or even eat there!

 

One last stop before heading out of the valley.

 

Until next time Yosemite! Our National Park Pass is good until May of next year, so I am sure at least I will be making another trip…soon… :o)

Week of birthday blessings!

December is a busy birthday month for our family. Kelsey had her birthday this week and here is where she wanted to go:

There is a farm near our home that does a huge light display at Christmas time. You can drive through or go on a hay ride. This is the second year Kelsey has wanted to do this on her birthday. It was a beautiful clear and cold night with so many colorful lights to see.

My birthday was this week too, and here is where I wanted to go:

Today was a gorgeous day at Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite. We were the only ones wondering around the meadow. Tuolumne Meadows is a wonderful destination in Yosemite that gets you away from the crowds in Yosemite Valley. If you have only visited Yosemite Valley, make some time to visit Tuolumne Meadows. You won’t regret it!

This week we also found special cream colored envelopes in our mail box! For those of you who sponsor children with Compassion International, you know how special these envelopes are!

First Kelsey received a letter from one of her correspondent kids:

His name is Rocky and he lives in Bangladesh. Rocky is 5 and loves vegetables and the color blue. He requested prayers that he stays healthy because it is getting cold. Will you join us in praying for him?

Another cream colored envelope arrived today!

This letter is from Abner. He is one of my correspondent kids from Colombia. I love his drawing! In his letter, he told me that his family has a parrot named Rebeca. I am going to ask him to draw a picture of Rebeca for me. He is looking forward to his birthday this month on December 26th when he will be nine.

If you would like to be a blessing to a child in poverty, Compassion International helps to release these children from poverty in Jesus’ name with your help. A monthly sponsorship is $38 a month. Just over a dollar a day. By becoming a sponsor, you too can get excited when the mail comes each day.