I created a new local photography Facebook group called Clickin Military Mamas. It's a group for women in the Kaiserslautern Germany area who love photography and are looking for a place to share, improve, learn, and grow as a photographer or passionate photo taker.

This week we went on our first CMM shootout and while freezing, it was awesome! Here are a few images from every photographer who came to the shootout!


Tanae Sorenson






Rebecca Olson















Jenny Lewis


Kyra Wells

I've been playing around with a new photography technique this week called free-lensing and I am in love with the creative possibilities! Free-lensing is when you shoot an image with your lens unattached and slightly removed from the camera. Holding your lens up to the camera (instead of attaching it) and tilting it slightly creates a tilt-shift effect in your photo that's visually interesting and just plain fun!

I used free-lensing while photographing my daughter the other day. It started snowing outside (the first of the season) and I used the technique to help the viewer feel her curiosity and strong desire to go outside.






If you'd like to try free-lensing but aren't sure where to start, you can watch my short video that I made for the CMM Facebook page, or read my quick how to steps below. Speaking of CMM! If you love photography and are a military member living in Kaiserslautern Germany, you might want to check out the Clickin Military Mamas Facebook page. We go on shootouts, share images and support, and just have fun exploring photography!



BASIC FREE LENSING STEPS:

1. Make sure your camera strap is around your neck. (Once you separate your lens you want to make sure you don't accidentally drop that camera body!)
2. Make sure your lens is switched to Manual Focus and not Auto Focus.
3. Remove your lens, but not very far! I like to rest the lens inside the camera as if I were about to reattach it. (Keeping it close also lessons the chance of dust getting inside!)
4. With the lens "resting" in the body of the camera, look through the viewfinder and very slightly tilt the lens back and forth while using your pointer finger to swivel the manual focus ring. When you find your desired focus point, take the shot.

This is not a normal everyday photo technique so don't feel frustrated if you can't put a tilt shift effect exactly where you're hoping! Keep playing with it and have fun with the creative possibilities! Like everything in photography, it get's easier with practice.

If you try free-lensing out and love what you've created, come share it on Clickin Military Mamas!

Happy experimenting!

It poured, sprinkled, and drizzled all day every day this week. Alexa and I enjoy getting outside so between the energetic rain and her tireless cold, we were both starting to feel cooped up. Luckily the clouds took a break and even parted to give the sunshine time to play on the puddles and dance on our faces. We chose a path above Obernarnbach and it was lovely, but the chilly air refused to be ignored so it was a short one. Even so, it felt wonderful to be out walking, exploring new trails, and enjoying nature again.

Winter months don't guarantee snow in Germany, but regardless of the month it is guaranteed you'll find locals walking the trails trickling the hillsides of Germany. On cold days I'm tempted to stay indoors and snuggle up with a good book or movie, but then I see how the light is touching the hillside and the photographer in me is quickly stuffing on my boots. When it comes to exploring nature Alexa is a very willing companion. Like a true German she embraces the elements and refuses to be kept from going outside. She is not deterred in the slightest by cold or frigid weather and I too find that escaping for a walk during winter in the countryside is exactly what my mind and lungs needed.

Sometimes I plan a hike, but most days Alexa and I never know where we'll go or what we'll see. We just grab our coats and drive until we see an interesting trail or landscape. This week we tried a trail above Queidersbach that we frequently pass on our way to Kaiserslautern. Most of it was paved, but a small stretch turned into dirt and gravel and I enjoyed watching Alexa daintily try, in over-sized boots, to step around every pebble in her path.
Even without snow during the holidays, I find Germany breathtaking. Coming from a very dry place like Idaho it's odd to see everything so green during winter! I don't think anything ever stops growing here and neither it seems, does my fondness for this country.

♥ Tanae

This is the second portion in my Mother - Daughter self-portrait series, inspired by Wherever I am With You.  Every month I'm making the effort to get behind the frame with my daughter. Click here to read my reasons for doing this project and to see last month's getting in the frame moment. It's only been two months, but I'm already seeing how this project is stretching me creatively. Self portrait's in themselves are tricky for me, so adding a toddler to the mix has added a completely new dimension of challenges! Especially today having her in the Ergo carrier. Alexa is happy as long as I'm moving, which meant I had to be very quick while setting up the tripod and making adjustments in the camera. But like always, I'm impressed with my ability to adapt and Alexa's ability to make everything in life more fun. I can't imagine what this deployment would be like without her with me. I'm sure grateful for her sweet disposition and the loving comfort she adds to my life.

If you're joining me in this self-portrait challenge, or you're just dabbling in a photo here and there, I'd love to hear your thoughts! How's it going? What challenges are you facing taking portraits with you and your children in the same frame?