panning.

Panning is a photographic technique that refers to the movement of the camera as it captures the image of a subject. While a subject is in motion (this can be anything from a car, to a person, or an animal) the camera follows that motion while snapping a shot. The exposure of the image is set at a long enough time to show the movement of the camera in the foreground or background of the image, but not necessarily on the subject.

If that sounds a little like photog mumbo jumbo to you, then here's the simple explanation. Basically you take a picture of something moving. And instead of holding still while taking the picture, you track the target of your picture with your camera. That way, everything else in the image should look blurry and your target should look sharp...or pretty close to it.

So what I'm saying is, this panning technique can be pretty tricky.

Some tips for panning:
1. Shoot in a manual setting so your shutter speed can be a little slower. (1/60-1/125) This will add even more blur to your movement...thus making your picture even awesomer. (It's a word, peeps. Trust me.)

2. Take a lot of photos. A Pulitzer prize winning photographer once told me, "If you want one great picture, then throw away 999." That pretty much sums up my style of shooting. Shoot lots, then throw away the crap.

3. Try a panning shot on a faster moving subject to get even better blur.

Here's a panning shot I took in Hawaii. The couple were spinning in a circle, so as they came around toward me I arced the camera as I took the picture. I love the blur in her limbs and hair!

school picture idea.

I don't like school photos. No. That's not quite it.
I loathe, detest, abhor, shudder-at-the-thought-of, completely-gag-when-I-look-at, HATE school photos. They're bland. They lack personality. And sometimes...if you're lucky, there's a mirror and a nicely posed child with a fist under his chin. Blech.

So this year I was inspired by a little photo I saw on Pinterest. If you're unsure what that is, email me and I'll fill you in. Basically Pinterest = best time suck ever!
This year I let the kids decide what they wanted in their picture. A favorite toy. A back pack. It was up to them. Then after the shoot, I mcjiggered a little somethin' somethin' in Photoshop. And voila! School pictures with personality and pizazz. (Can you tell I'm big on alliteration?)

It's an easy project.
1. Snap the picture.
2. Load the picture in Photoshop or another photo editing software that allows you to place text on the image.
3. Using varying fonts, type info about your kid at that age.
4. Flatten your image (if you used layers) and save a new copy so as not to save over the original file.
5. Print. If you live in Utah County go to Pro Digital Photos. They're great and I use them for a lot of my family pictures.

Here are a few samples of what I made:

LAST CHANCE to take a Class

Hey guys!  So I've gotten a little busier than I originally anticipated for this summer. I'll only be teaching one more Photography session and one more Photoshop session. If you want to take it, this is the last chance.  I am planning on starting classes again in September, however, that is just a plan.  I can't say 100% for sure if I'll still be offering classes after this summer session.  You know, life.  Just saying. 

Anyway, if you're interested or you know someone who is, follow this link:

TAKE A CLASS

Rue and Bear : Photography Tips for Kids

1. Have an assistant. I've been trying for weeks now to get a good shot of Ruby, but that squirrly girl won't have nothing to do with it. Every single time I get the camera out, push out my light and prop her little buns on a chair she starts screaming. Luckily for me, Shanna from JUST SO stopped by. She helped me wrangle in this wild one for some cute shots. Without her, Ruby just might have escaped yet another day of picture taking.

2. Use Candy. Candy works wonders, believe me, I know. If you tempted me with a box of Hot T's or some M&M's, I'd probably do whatever you wanted...well you know what I mean. In the first shot Ruby is looking at the candy, and in the second shot, she's kissing Teddy so she can get her piece of candy. 

3.  Shoot in Continuous focus on your Auto Focus or switch to manual. It takes to long for your camera to lock on a target when they're all squirrely, so make it easier on yourself.  Continuous shooting is the way to go!

To find out more random photography tips, you can always check my photo blog: www.erinsummerillphotography.com/blog

Or take a class from me.  Email for more info.

A SHOPPER'S DREAM

I recently went on a shopping spree at Albertsons and picked up:

12 bags of Malt-o-Meal Cereal (frosted shredded wheat, fruit loops, and honey puffs)

15 Cans of Muir Fire Roasted Tomatoes Diced
5 Cans of Muir Organic Tomato Sauce
10 Cans of Garlic and Herb Organic Tomatoes
10 Cans of Muir Organic Italian Herb Tomatoes

10 Cans of low sodium fat free Swanson's Chicken Broth
10 Cans of reduced Fat Swanson's Chicken Broth

20 Cans of Campbells Cream of Mushroom
8 Cans of Campbells Select Chunky Soups
4 Cans of Campbells Chicken Noodle Soup

1 Bottle of Tree Top Apple Juice

6 packages of Oreos

3 Pounds of Fresh Grapes

....And do you want to know how much I spent???

Just over $35.00!

I know, it is a modern day Grocery miracle! I couldn't even believe it myself, but I have to say I am not the genius behind the fabulous savings. No, I cannot take the glorious credit; the credit goes solely to Jen Fugal (who has proven to be very FRUGAL...hehehehehe). She told me about a website that lists all the local grocery stores in your state, and the adds they post for each week, and coordinating coupons that can be printed off the Internet. By following this site, many of the items I purchased were absolutely FREE! And most were seriously discounted. If you are in the mood for feeling like a freakin' rockstar, taking center stage at the local ALBERTSONS, then check out:

www.pinchingyourpennies.com

Have you had a Yard Sale lately?

I have often heard others refer to yard sales as being a waste of time or too much work for not enough money...I am here to prove that idea wrong.

For the last (ok, I am really not going to count); but for as long as I can remember, I have had summer yard sales to earn money for the latest and greatest item I wanted. Since I am soon to be having a baby girl, and that is something totally new and foriegn to me, I have decided to purge my home of anything and everything that I don't use or don't need and sell it. Then I will use the proceeds to buy things that I do need, like baby girl clothing.

So, what does it take to have a fantastic, money making yard sale...and lets face it, the MONEY is the most important part. From years of testing this process, I have deemed 3 necessities for having a great yardsale: Advertisement, Allurement and All-around Order.

1. Advertisement: If you are having a yard sale and you want people to come, you need to advertise at least a day ahead. Avid yardsalers check their local listings the night before or scope out the town the eve of the sale. If you want to be the hot pick on their list, you need to have your signs posted, your craigslist advertisement up and your newspaper add ready by at least the morning BEFORE your yardsale.

2. Allurement: What are you selling? Let's face it, as an avid yardsaler myself, I don't want to come to your sale and buy used underwear, a broken bra and a chipped coffee mug; hence, THROW THE CRAP OUT! Yard sales should be for items that you, yourself, would buy at a yardsale. 'Gently Used' should be your motto. If it is stained, torn or broken, it shouldn't be the front item at your sale.
In addition to nice 'gently used' items, you should include large ticket items in your sale such as furniture. Many newly married couples are too poor to hit the local furniture store and therefore are a prime target at yardsales. If you have furniture that just clutters your home, put it out towards the front of your sale to pull in the possible drive by shopper.

3. All-around Order: Nobody wants to dig though boxes of junk...yes, perhaps your boxes are filled with nice 'gently used' items, but to me or any other yardsaler, we are going to think JUNK. If you have tables, great, if not borrow them. Items are more likely to be bought if they are neatly displayed, with a noticeable price, on a table. Make sure your prices are faced towards the buyer and your items are displayed in categories. Put all your baby clothing nicely folded on one table, and your husbands electronics on another. Order at a yardsale can be just as appealing as shopping at the Mall!

Follow these three tips for success and you will find yourself in the MONEY!

OH, and by the way...if you are in the neighborhood, I am having a great yard sale tomorrow! And yes, I have sacrificed many of my pairs of 'gently used' shoes for the cause of my baby girl...

The Skill of the HUNT-- a true hunter's story

Yesterday I picked Mark up from work and took him to a handful of shoe stores. After perusing Famous Footwear for at least an hour, Mark settled on two pair of shoes that would sufficiently replace the two pair (running shoes and brown dress shoes) that Bubba recently found, chewed on and managed to rip the tongues out of. Mark found me in the women's section and produced the two pair, announcing in a 'you'll be happy with me' tone that the two pair were on sale. "Really?" My own tone showed genuine excitement and I moved in to check out his find.

"Are you kidding me?" is what came next. Although the two were on a buy one get one 1/2 off sale, Each pair was over $50.00 and together would be nearly $80.00! In my years of buying shoes, I have never spent that much on a pair of shoes. Call me cheap, but I know I could find a better deal for the same pairs or better. I convinced Mark to leave the offensive priced pair at the register and check out just one more store with me. I have often found great deals on quality shoes at Kohl's, so we drove the 1 1/2 blocks to Kohl's and ventured in to see what our bargain hunting skills would find us.

Within 20 minutes we were walking out to the van grinning ear to ear. We not only found the exact same pair that Mark was ready to purchase at Famous Footwear, but we found the two pair at $15-$20 cheaper! And to top that off, after looking at the selection Kohl's had, Mark actually found a pair of dress shoes he liked better for less than 1/2 the price of the pair he had found at Famous Footwear. We spent a total of $46.00 at Kohl's for running shoes and dress shoes! After adding up how much we would have spent at Famous Footwear and adding in Tax, we saved nearly $40.00! (Now that is what I call Bargain Shopping!)

Point of the Story: If you are going to go shoe shopping, try shopping around first...or just give me a call!

(And in case you were wondering, I did not buy a pair of shoes yesterday...)

favorite 5 for FRIDAY

I spend a large unnecessary portion of my day surfing the web, blogging, and checking my email. Sometimes I cant even explain how It is already lunchtime, I am still sitting in my sweats, surfing away on the web. To try and combat my web wanderings, I have limited myself to only checking out MY FAVORITES (a list of websites I check at least once a week, if not daily). Here they are:

1. Passwird.com -- Many of you have wondered how I find out about such amazing deals around town. Well this website is the place. It delivers a daily update on great deals across the web and at local well known stores.

2. Boucher Photography -- I enjoy most styles of contemporary photography. I especially like to see fresh takes on classic celebrations. I love the way they shoot weddings...spectacular!!!

3. Good Reads -- Do you like to read, but hate to start a book to find out that it is less than good? I hate that too, but this website gives you updates on practically any book you can think of. You can also find out what are the most popular reads right now and why. It is very informative for the literary world.

4. Craigs List -- Are you a Craigs Lister? If not, you should be. This is an online market place that doesn't cost a thing to list. And better than that, it is local so you don't have to pay shipping. I have sold and purchased many items off of craigslist. I have a beautiful couch from Crate and Barrel that I purchased off of craigslist for 25% of the C and B price. I love a good deal!

5. PGWC -- This stands for Pleasant Grove Wives Club. This is a local forum a friend of mine started and it is fabulous! It provides an online place to ask questions about raising kids, recipes, the latest shows, and what is going on in the world. Women post daily updates about the community we live in. So if you live in Utah and you want to be part of a great forum, sign up!

Hope you like my Five! High Five to you for having a great Friday!

Start your Gardening Starts

I recently attended a gardening class on 'starts.' That is, starting plants from seed in your own home. If this is a hobby that interests you, the costs are minimal but the rewards are great. For under $20 you can start enough plants to fill a 10 X 20 foot garden plot. Thus, for under $20 you will have more than enough vegetables to feast on all summer long.

Not all seeds need to be started in planters, some seeds like carrots, squash, pumpkin and corn can be started in the ground. Depending on where you live, the best time to plant starts or seeds is after the last frost. If you leave in Utah, that is around May 15th. Since some seeds can be started in the ground, you will want to wait to plant those till the last frost. If you want fresh tomatoes, bell peppers and herbs, to delight your summer recipes, you can start those seeds now in your home.

You will Need:

--Seeds (Tomatoes, Peppers, Herbs, Annual Flowers, Perennial Flowers, or what ever else strikes your fancy.)

--Pony Pack Draining Planter (small planters that have 4 to a group)

--Holder for your pony packs to catch run off water

--Good Potting Soil (Miracle Grow is always a good pick)

--Water

--Warm place in your home

--Good light source

Getting started is simple, you just need to pack your dirt firmly into your pony pack and give it a good watering. After the excess water drains off, read the back of each of your seed packs. The seed packs will tell you how far to plant your seeds and how long each seed takes to germinate (this is the time from when you plant it till it pops through the dirt and needs direct light). If you are planting Big Boy Tomatoes, you will most likely have to plant each seed 1/4 inch deep and the seeds will germinate from 10 to 14 days. Be sure to write down what you planted, the day you planted it and how long it takes to germinate. This will help you keep track of when you should expect to see plants popping through the soil. After you see the starts pop through the soil, you want to place the planters under a direct light source for 13-18 hours a day. You can use a window, but it is best to put the plants 1 1/2 inches to 2 inches under a florescent light. As the plants grow taller, keep your light always that distance from the plant. You will be adjusting the lamp or light height regularly. Keep the dirt moist and your plants will be perfectly happy. Come May, you will have a variety of perfect plants to transplant in your outdoor garden for a fraction of the price of buying plants.

STOP and see the Sites

Blogging: Have you noticed my new digs? Are you wanting to spend freakishly long amounts of time to pimp out your blog? Here are two sites that I have bookmarked and you should bookmark too!

SJH Blog Design

Tips for New Bloggers

Photography: Here are three photographers that are inspiring to me. I love their candid fresh approach and their bright clean style. They continually inspire me in my own photography quest!

Natalie Norton

Mark Lee's Holladay photo

Nicole Hill

Laughs: There are a handful of websites that I think are hilarious. Need a good laugh? Check these out.

Gurrbonzo

Nikki's Qwips

Confessions of a Pioneer Woman

Enjoy!

Buying, Bargaining, and Bypassing

This blog is a continuation of the previous yard sale tip blog.

The trickiest part of garage sale-ing is the Bartering. When do you buy? When do you Bargain and when do you simply bypass? This is my favorite part of garage sale-ing. Whether stated or not, there is a certain degree of garage sale etiquette.

For the Sellers:
On the seller's side, a seller needs to ask a fair market value for the used belonging. For example, since clothing is the most common good sold at a garage sale it is the easiest to define. The seller needs to take into account the quality of the item and the wear and tear. For children's clothing that has been gently used and show very minimal signs of wear the going price at a yard sale is roughly around a dollar a piece. If the item is in brand new condition then a seller could possibly fetch 2-3 dollars a piece. However, in most cases for worn articles of children's clothing the average rate is 50 cents a piece down to 25 cents a piece. You are probably wondering how you find out what the going rate for an item would be. Simple, if you plan on having your own garage sale, spend a few Saturdays stopping at local garage sales and then you will have a rough idea of what you should price your goods. After viewing 5-10 garage sales it will be apparent to you who is asking too much and who is asking too little. Old Summerill Proverb says: A seller who desires to gain too much will be a seller who ends up earning too little.

For the Buyer:
Just as sure as there is a clear Seller's etiquette, there is equally a buyers etiquette. Everyone out there wants to get a good deal. Whether the buyer or the seller, both want to walk away feeling that they "did good." As a buyer, it is your choice to decide whether the seller is selling the item for too much or just right. If you feel the item is a good deal, pay the money; however, if you feel that the seller is asking a little too high, ask the seller to lower the price. If you are non-confrontational, an easy way of having the seller lower the price is to ask, "Is there any way you would lower the price a little?" Most of the time this question will allow the seller the freedom of feeling they could lower the price and still get what they want out of the item. If you don't mind a hard barter, ask a more aggressive question by pinning down a price. "Will you take 2 dollars for these items?" Most often the seller will either agree or meet the buyer somewhere in the middle of the two prices. I have found that the second method almost always fetches me a lower price, but it definitely takes a little bit more moxie out of the buyer.

For those Shut Down:
In your quest to bargain for a lower price, if you have been shut down, either walk away from the item reckoning that you could find it at another yard sale for cheaper or just pay the cash. Feeling that you got what you wanted and you would probably not find it anywhere else for cheaper.

Garage Sale-ing is like exercising, the more you go, the easier it gets. For more tips and info on garage sale-ing, see my previous post or e-mail me directly.

Create Your own Garage Sale Success

Do you have unwanted, gently used belongings laying around your house that you can't bear to simply throw away? Is your house unsightly, marred with piles of odds and ends that seem to have no place to go? What you need is to have a Garage Sale. I know what you are thinking; A garage sale is a waste of time and energy for the small amount of pocket change you claim at the end of the day. I am here to tell you that you are wrong! Now is the time to De-junk, De-clutter, and re-create the sanctity of your home.

Top Tips for Garage Sale
Success:

1. Plan 2-4 weeks ahead
Allow ample time to organize your un-wanted items. During this time, zone off your house. (i.e. bathroom zone, bedroom zone, kitchen zone, family room zone...etc.) Decidicate 1-2 days per zone. Enter the zone and scan your items. For every item in the zone, ask yourself, "Do I use this item at least once a month?" If your answer is no, my suggestion is to sell it because you probably won't miss it once it is gone. The exception to this rule is keepsakes. But, be wise what you deem as a keepsake...because in all honesty, some stuff is just clutter!
2. Designate a Center of Operations
Like any large plan of action, there should always be a center of operations. This is where you will bring all your yard sale items from each zone to be priced and kept neatly until the great day! Having a space for yard sale items helps to cut down on the day before preperations because all your items will already be organized by zones, and priced and neatly kept in one area. So make sure when you bring items into the operation center, you keep the items organized by zone...resist the urge to just toss the items into the pile because then you will have the headache of having to sort through your yard sale items....more work means less fun!
3. Post Alluring Advertisement
This is the key to luring garage salers to your home in droves. This is truly the key to making the big bucks! Post your signs 4 days to 1 week ahead of time. This is important because it will allow people to plan on attending your sale and it will hype up the buyer; thus, priming your buyer to spend, spend, spend. Make sure your signs are simple to read. Use large letters to indicate Where, When, and What....Keep it to those three pieces of info. The worst yard sale signs have too much info. You do not need to list everything you are selling on your card board sign. Make sure that your letters can be read from at least 20 feet away. So make a tester sign and then walk 20 feet away and see if you can read it as you run by. If you cant, try again.
4. Set the Stage
Since you have already priced all your items and organized them by zones, all you will need to do is procure the tables and tarps you will be using to neatly display your belongings. NEVER throw your belongings on the ground or stuff them in a box. If the buyer cannot see how clean and neat the item looks, the buyer will not feel the yard sale temptation. So, get up at 6 am, set up your tables, organize the items on each table or tarp by zone.
5. Set a Bank Station
Make sure you start the day with two 5 dollar bills, 8 one dollar bills and 8 quarters. 95% of the time, this will be adequate. Make one station where people come and pay...DO NOT ROAM! Sit and allow the shoppers to shop, while you focus on totaling each buyer's purchases. It is also helpful to have plastic grocerie sacks with you so you can pack up buyer's purchases and have near your pay station tempting treats (these act as impulse buys). I have found that just having two options is best...perhaps something salty, and something sweet!

Testimonial:
If you follow the above tips, you are sure to double your yardsale money! I have used these techniqes over and over again and found them to be fool proof, success finding tips of the trade! -Erin, an avid garage saler

George and I attacked the yard sale world to day by following my tips of success. We lured in shoppers with our big signs which we posted days ahead of time. George sold caramel popcorn and of course, Spam Musubi. As Mark likes to say, we made out like bandits!!!