What kind of camera do you have?
This question makes me very uncomfortable to answer but I'm shooting with a Canon T1i. I honestly believe you can get fantabulous results with whatever camera you've got on hand if you take the time to learn how to use it. I shot the first year and a half worth of blog posts with a point and shoot. When I upgraded to my DSLR, I vowed to learn how to use it. 3 workshops and a year's worth of daily practice later, and you see the images I'm posting now. I credit the hard work and learning and a fantastic stash of lenses more than the camera itself.
I have a DSLR camera, why can't I get it to do that blurry background?
It's probably your lens. If you're shooting with the lens that came with your camera, I highly recommend you pick up a 50mm f/1.8 (the nifty fifty) lens. It is the most affordable option available and runs around $100. I have the 50mm as well as the 35mm f/2 and the 85mm f/1.8. Those three lenses are the ones I use to take practically every image here on the blog and in my stock portfolio.
Do you edit your photos?
Yes! Practically every image on the blog has been tweaked. I am in love with Adobe's Lightroom 3. I've used it on almost every image since January 2011. If you are even remotely serious about photography, I can't think of a better program to recommend. I use Photoshop for designing collages and cards, but Lightroom is the way to go if you're looking for photo adjustments. It is so user friendly. ClickinMom's Lightroom 101 workshop was a complete game changer for me. If you can't manage the "tuition", Scott Kelby's Lightroom book is a phenomenal place to start.
Why did you decide to start selling stock photography?
I've always had a passion for photography. Just ask my mom. The passion grew exponentially once I had my peanuts to document. Stock photography allows me to start helping my family with a little bit of income while keeping me home with my girls which is my number one priority at this stage in our lives. It's also a fantastic place for me to grow and improve my skills. I'm hoping to do even greater things in the years to come, but the girls come first right now.
You are superwoman, I could never do all these things!
(Ok, so not really a question, but I get that comment a lot.) No, I am most definitely NOT superwoman. I share positive, creative, inspiring things on the blog on purpose. I don't feel like you've come to hear me whine. My life is busy, stressful, and I rarely get everything done that I want to. Part of the reason I'm drawn to food photography is that the images are tightly cropped. You can't see the disaster that is my living room or the laundry baskets overflowing in the bedrooms. Being a stay at home mom is a very challenging lifestyle. Blogging and photography are my outlets for me. I've chosen to let other things in my life go a little (with the full support of Handyman Tim) to make sure I don't lose myself in the years of raising our girls.
I want to eat at your house, how do you manage all these crazy recipes?
There's a reason I'm not posting a new recipe every day. In between recipe posts there is a whole lot of frozen pizza, mac and cheese from a box, and Chinese take out. I just don't think you're as interested in my picks off the restaurant menu so I don't blog about them. But for the record, I have yet to meet a potsticker I didn't like.
I wish I had your sewing skills, where did you learn to make those quilts?
You would laugh if you saw the sewing machine I'm working with. I don't think they come any more basic. It was a hand-me-down from my mom who had it as a second back-up herself. I basically learned how to do the quilting myself by reading a few beginner books and looking up free tutorials online. If you can figure out how to sew in a straight line, you can make almost anything I've posted on the blog. (Accept for my Christmas tree skirt. Don't even think about that one. I'm still suffering flashbacks.) Just be sure you have a rotary cutter & mat, good plastic quilting ruler, and any sewing machine will do but a darning foot attachment makes a huge difference. I bought an attachment set for less than $20.
