1/4/10

January 4, 2010 | Category: 2010 Project | Comments Off

Emma.

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1/3/10

January 4, 2010 | Category: 2010 Project | Comments Off

Mt. Bonnell – Austin, TX

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1/2/10

January 3, 2010 | Category: 2010 Project | Comments Off

Josh, Katie, and my wife, Carole at Mt. Bonnell. Austin, Texas.

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1/1/10

January 2, 2010 | Category: 2010 Project | Comments Off

Shot of Katie and Josh at the Rector home.

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New Tool…

August 9, 2009 | Category: Announcements, Processing | Comments Off

…or “toy” as my wife would say. I just got a new HP Mini. It’s what’s commonly referred to as a “netbook”. It has a 10 inch screen, a keyboard about 92% of normal laptop size, and an Intel mobile processor. It’s very small but I think I have some good uses for it. First, a couple of pictures:

It’s very stylish and I really like the looks. The keyboard is smaller than a conventional laptop keyboard but a few minutes of typing gets you up to speed. Some of the vital stats are:

OPERATING SYSTEM: Genuine Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 3
PROCESSOR: Intel Atom Processor N270
PROCESSOR SPEED: 1.60GHz
PROCESSOR CACHE: 512KB L2
MEMORY: 1024MB DDR2 System Memory
BATTERY: 6-Cell Lithium-Ion Battery
VIDEO GRAPHICS: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950 / shared with up to 128MB total available graphics memory
HARD DRIVE: 160GB / 5400RPM Hard Drive / SATA

Not bad for the format. I could have got a system with 16gb flash memory storage but really I wanted the 160gb storage capacity to make it more useful. I’ll also be upgrading the memory to 2gb as soon as my Ebay purchase of the 2gb module arrives.

So why did I buy this “tool?” Well, for one the size. I wanted a computer that I would be more likely to carry with me. A lot of time we go out in the evenings to Barnes and Noble. Without exception, I’m ready to go home long before my wife is ready. Since B&N now provides free WiFi I’ll just take my trusty netbook with me and spend some time on the net. Another use will be for blogging. I don’t blog as often as I want to and using this netbook with Microsoft Live Writer will make it easier. I think anyway. I will be able to compose my posts off line with Live Writer and publish them when I get an internet connection. I also plan on using it to temporarily store photos after a shoot.

Lastly, I plan on using it to fire my Canon DSLRs from time to time. Especially when doing portraits. I just purchased an application for my iPhone called DLSR Remote Pro. I basically allows you to control and fire your Canon (And soon Nikon) DSLR cameras.

This program from OnOne Software it a thing of genius. From their site:

  • Remotely fire your Canon EOS DSLR camera
    with your iPhone or iPod Touch
  • Remotely control the camera settings like
    shutter-speed, aperture, white-balance and more
  • View images saved on the camera from your iPhone or iPod Touch
  • Look through your camera’s viewfinder remotely
  • Great for remote-firing at weddings, sporting events, for kids, and for self-portraits

DSLR Camera Remote is the next-generation cable release for your Canon EOS DSLR camera. Just connect your camera to a WiFi enabled computer and the DSLR Camera Remote software enables you to use your Apple iPhone or iPod touch to wirelessly adjust cameras settings, fire the shutter, review images, even get a live viewfinder preview. DSLR Camera Remote is a must-have for remote shooting applications like high or low angles, self portraits and children. With its advanced timers it makes remote monitoring a snap. No internet connection required!

 

On site with this small netbook I’ll be able to setup an “ad-hoc” network and connect my camera and iPhone (Wirelessly.) and fire away. I’ll report back when I’ve had time to try it out.

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Test Post – Windows Live Writer

August 5, 2009 | Category: Technology | Comments Off

This is a test post using Windows Live Writer. I’m not sure how it will go but we’ll see.

Here’s a picture:

Not too bad rendering a picture. This is my grandson Noah by the way. Loves to stick out his tongue.

Well, Windows Live Writer looks pretty good. It’s working great from my new “Netbook” computer. That’s all for now.

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I had the pleasure of participating in Scott Kelby’s Worldwide Photo Walk on July 18th, 2009. It’s where photo enthusiast all over the world go out into their community and take pictures of whatever interests them for two hours. The Houston area had about four official groups. I walked in the group in The Woodlands, TX and had a great time meeting new people and taking photos. Sometimes it’s fun just to take pictures for the sake of taking pictures. Not that I don’t enjoy weddings and portraits. Here’s a slide show of some of my favorites from the day.

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SBFYC 2009 Group Slideshow

July 15, 2009 | Category: Everyday, Portrait, Travel | Comments Off

I had the pleasure of being the conference photographer at the Saved By Faith Youth Challenge this year. It was held in Bolivar, MO and was a blast. Here’s a slideshow of the group photos from the week.

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Jessica and Fadi E-Session

July 3, 2009 | Category: Engagement, Portrait, Wedding | Comments Off

I have the honor and pleasure of shooting Jessica and Fadi’s wedding next April (2010). I’m looking forward to it and hope to be a part of making their day special. This past April we did and engagement session at Creekside Park in The Woodlands, Texas. Jessica and Fadi really wanted to have their pictures done during Texas bluebonnet season. Usually April is a good month. However, the bluebonnets were a little sparse by the time we made it to the park. Still, we had a great time and I really enjoyed working with Jessica and Fadi. They were up for any suggestions I had. You could tell they love each other and that their wedding will be a special and fun time.

Here are a few of my favorites from the session.

JessicaFadi-2

JessicaFadi-3

JessicaFadi-5

JessicaFadi-6

JessicaFadi-10

JessicaFadi-12

JessicaFadi-16

JessicaFadi-19

JessicaFadi-20

See more from the session at my flickr stream.

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Two new books created

July 1, 2009 | Category: Album, Artistic, Wedding | Comments Off

Last month I was able to shoot the wedding between my niece Heather and her now husband Jeff Klusek. The wedding took place in Brockport, New York. It was a great wedding and lots of fun. I’ll blog some of my favorite shots soon. In the mean time take a look at the album I designed for them. I decided to design it with a consistent look between most of the pages. Consistent border colors, background and embellishments. For a 15 page preview click on the announcement below:

Heather & Jeff June 6, 2009
Wedding
By Jim Rector
Book Preview
Make a photo book with Blurb

I also got to witness my parents Phyllis and Jim Rector celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. That is quite a milestone. They renewed their vows at their Church on Sunday, June 7 and the family and friends had a great dinner at Glen Iris Inn in Letchworth State Park. I’ve also created an album for their special day. On this one I used the book vendors design software. I like how it turned out. For a preview click on the announcement below:

Phyllis and James Rector - June 6, 1959
The 50th Wedding A…
By Jim Rector Jr
Book Preview
Make a photo book with Blurb
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