Michelle is an impossible act to follow! I'm not sure I've ever taken a photo as good as either of the last two she posted but I suppose it's time to step back into the spotlight and share something anyway! :)
Here's my sweet girl, Gwen. If she ever decides that being a professional Knight isn't paying well enough, I'm sure she could fall back on a career as a hat model.
Camera: Canon 5D
Outdoors, overcast, no flash
Mode: Program
Lens: Canon EF85mm f/1.8 (our favorite portrait lens)
Focal Length: 85mm
ISO: 400
Aperture/F-stop: f/4
Shutter/Exposure time: 1/320
Post processing: Lightroom 2 where I toned down the red just a bit.
I added the sweet little bokeh of hearts in picnik (on flickr) Usually I don't fancy up my photos this way but I think this particular edit is elegant and fun. Especially with Valentines Day right around the corner.
By the way, I think I might actually prefer this photo in black and white. I just posted it on
my blog if you'd like to compare the two. It's interesting how photos takes on a completely different feel when stripped of their color. Instead of the bold pop of red, you can really see the lovely contrast between her pale skin and dark hair. I'm finally starting to really appreciate black and white photography.
Red was a fun theme though. I don't think there's a color that speaks more clearly and passionately in photography than red.
Update: I'm adding this photo of Maddy that I took just this morning. Her Chinese dress was such a pretty shade of red that I couldn't resist:

Camera: Canon 5D
Outside, morning scattered clouds, no flash
Mode: Auto
Lens: Canon EF85mm f/1.8
Focal Length: 85mm
ISO: 400
Aperture/F-stop: f/4.5
Shutter/Exposure time: 1/400
Brightened and color corrected in Lightroom2.
I posted several photos from this photo shoot in black and white on
my blog today. Maddy was in such a silly mood and the photos were too cute not to share.