I love my Crocabees!

Here's my yellow Crocs. Well, actually I call them my Crocabees because they're not really original Crocs, but Croc wannabes from the Buck Store!!! I love them just the same. These are t-h-e most comfortable shoes I have ever worn! They are especially perfect for camp. I love my camp. I love my Crocabees!

Which orientation do you like better?

I'm BACK!!

It's been weeks, but feels like forever since I've posted. I have been feeling ill since late January and after some extensive tests I have been diagnosed with IBD. At this time, it is suspected that I have Crohn's disease. I don't post this here to seek sympathy, but just to let some of you who read my blog know what's been going on with me lately! If you don't feel like reading the gory details, you can stop reading now! Just scroll down to look at the pic if you wish!

So, in January, it started. I had several days of unsettled stomach. If I was 20 years younger I might have suspected morning sickness. Just that ever-so-slight, gnawing feeling in my gut. Early on, the symptoms would come and go and I often felt perfectly fine for several days in a row. Then the pain started. At first it was subtle pangs that would start in my middle and crescendo into a deep, dull ache, then it would ease off to nothing again. I would get these waves only one or two times throughout the day, but after awhile I would get them several times an hour. Sometimes the pain would be momentary, but as time went on the waves would come more often, last longer and be more intense. My digestive system has always been extremely sensitive, so I thought it was just a flare-up. My doctor was at first convinced that I had a lingering virus that was causing the pains and the frequent bathroom trips. After sending me for some preliminary tests the results were inconclusive for anything other than a slight elevation of my WBC count. I was also affected by the occasional low-grade fever. When my symptom cleared up for a week in March I thought everything was over! Then one beautiful day while walking on the ice to our camp, the pains started again! I was not a happy camper. This time the doc sent me for Upper GI ultrasound and Small Bowel Follow Through x-rays. What a horrible experience. The prep for these tests gave me the WORST bloating and gassy pains that I could have ever imagined! I had to take Dulcolax and eat nothing for over 12 hours. I had to drink Citro-Mag which tastes like a syrupy lemon juice. I swear that stuff burned an acidic hole into my stomach. I was in pain all night, let alone being in the bathroom about 5 times!! Then I woke up around 4am with a fever and violent chills. I'm not a whimp by any means but I felt like such a baby. I felt like crying and crawling in a hole. I was feeling very sorry for myself. By morning I felt fine! Go figure. The tests themselves were a breeze. I was in the lab for a few hours, but the ultrasound and xrays were totally pain free!
The tests showed that the inflammation is at the Ileum, [the final section of small intestine]. Other tests revealed that I'm slightly anemic [no wonder I haven't felt creative lately] and I have lost about 7 pounds. Not that I needed to lose any weight, but it's not a concern right now.
So now I'm awaiting an appointment with a Gastrointestinal specialist. Unfortunately, until I do see him, I cannot take any medication to ease my discomfort. I imagine I'll have to go through some more testing but I've got to say that I am extremely relieved to find out that what I've got is treatable. I'm not a worrier, but I admit that the 'big C' crossed my mind! I have also learned that Crohn's is thought to be an autoimmune disease. That makes SO much sense for me. It's an even longer story to explain that aspect, but I also suffer from joint pain, [Ankylosing spondylitis] and eye problems [Central Serous Retinopathy] which are common in Crohn's sufferers! I can't wait to speak with the specialist to see if the Canker sores and Eczema I suffered as a child might have anything to do with this as well as the joint and eye probs!
I am so relieved that I finally know what's been wrong with me since January and I am looking forward to some treatment so I can get back to normal. C'MON SUMMER!!
The weather is starting to get nice and I'm looking forward to our holidays in May and June!! We went to camp for the first time this weekend and it was so peaceful. I didn't do too much except rest and relax! Doug puttered about the whole weekend. He has been SO supportive and understands that when I feel pain, I just don't feel like doing anything - especially housework!!! Hmmm, I guess I can't use that excuse once I'm on meds, huh?
That's it folks. Now you know why I've been AWOL for so long. I'm hoping that very soon I'll be back to more regular posts and updates. Thanks for being patient with me!!!

Enjoyment

I gave Gracie a new type of bone today. She's very sensitive to certain foods and can't have wheat, gluten, corn or any meat protein. Because of that, we've only been able to give her treats of fruits or veggies, which she loves - but no doggie bones or treats. Found these Checkups bones at Costco yesterday. Of course, she LOVES them. First she has to bring it outside and stare at it. Then she pounces on it and plays with it like she's killing a small animal - tossing it in the air, shaking it, jumping on it! Then she lies down and stares at it some more. Finally, I guess it's dead and then she eats it!
This is Gracie ENJOYING her new treat!!

ME!

I rarely, if ever get to be in front of the camera! And then, I rarely, if ever like the photo of me! I'm either having a bad hair day, or my eyes are half closed, or I'm chewing or my mouth is wide open, or, you get the picture!! And, I rarely, if ever show anybody the pics of me. So, this is rare for me share these!
My girls were playing around with my camera on Easter sunday and snapped these of me. I like them, I really like them - pushing-50 wrinkles and all!!

MY SITE HAS MOVED

It's been one year since I started My Own Karma Photography website. Originally, I was going to keep it only 6 months to see how it went. I got lots of hits and views, but very few gigs. Of the several photo restoration jobs I did get, they were through word-of-mouth, not through the website. The same for the photo shoots.
So, instead of spending money on maintaining the site [and updating] I have decided to go with a Blog.

I am still keeping THIS blog as my personal one, but for shoots and restoration you can visit me at mokphoto.

More people shooting!

My goal for this month was to get out and practice taking pictures of PEOPLE! I really lack experience with metering and exposure of skin. So, my youngest daughter M and her guy J were my very willing subjects. We walked down the street to the bush area overlooking Lake Ramsey and Science North. It was about 6:30pm and the sun was already quite low in the sky. I used my Grey Card for setting the White Balance. And for the first time, I shot in FULL MANUAL. I must say that I am incredibly pleased with the results. The only problem that I noticed, was a bit of a reddish tone on some of them, so I just corrected the colours in Photoshop. Most of them didn't need any extensive editing, so other than crop and the odd colour adjustment, they are pretty much straight outta the camera. Seems I also need some practice with posing ideas. Besides trying to find a unique pose, I found myself checking for limbs that looked out of place, [I mean arms and legs!!], wrinkles in clothing, shadows on the face, etc, etc. I used to be pretty good at that kinda stuff, but man, I've lost my touch!! If you have any feedback for me, I gratefully accept both positive and negative CC!!

earthdancers Performance

Well, I did it. I took over 200 photos at the dress rehearsal. First time I used the Pentax K100D for this sort of thing. I wasn't sure how it was going to perform [or more like I wasn't sure how I was going to manage the camera] as it's still so new to me. I know for sure that I NEED a faster lens. I'm still at a loss though whether to look into a prime or a zoom.
Anyhoo, here's some of the best of the bunch. I'd appreciate any and all feedback!

The end of winter

We went to camp yesterday. Daughter #2 and her boyfriend have been there all week - through the above 0º temps, the sun, the rain, the wind AND the sudden drop to -15º! In that time, the snowmobile broke. It works, but it only steers to the left! So to get anywhere, you have to straighten out the skis, drive as far as you can until it starts veering to the left... stop, straighten the skis out, reposition the snowmobile... and start all over! Needless to say, DD just left it by the shore. So, DH had to put it out of it's mysery for the rest of the season and retired it to the shed.
Luckily, we were able to take the Van across the lake. The snow that was on top of the lake had melted into solid ice, but there were tons of ruts and bumps from where the vehicles and sleds had been before. It made for very careful, slow driving, but we made it. The ice is still at least 12" thick, but there's very little snow left in the bush or on our property.
I have to go back tomorrow to bring DD and boyfriend back home. I'll likely pack up the bedding, close up the camp and wait until thaw. Forecast for next week is rain and temps back up in the mid teens. It's unlikely that we'd be able to get back to camp safely.
C'mon thaw!!!

Here's our humble, LITTLE, cottage abode.


The drive-to!


Practice with the Macro setting:

The Coldest day of the year!

After almost a week of above temps, we have very little snow left! YAY!
For several weeks I had a mini-shoot planned for some time in the March break. The young girl I was going to take pics of is a student of my daughter`s at her dance studio. This was to be a portfolio-building session for me and GREAT practice because I rarely get a chance to photograph people!!
Turns out that yesterday was the only day that worked for both me and her mom. And what happens?? The temps drop OVER 20 degrees in one day! That's Northern Ontario for ya!

We drove to Lake Laurentian Conservation area with hopes of taking some shots by the lake and on the trail. We only made it as far as the chalet because it was just SOOOOOOoooo darn cold outside. Luckily, the chalet had some neat surroundings for pics. I took a few pics of K in her coat, hat and mitts. By this time my hands and fingers were already starting to feel the bite of the cold. My DD's feet were in rubber boots [she thought it wasn't that cold out at first] and they were numb. K's mom was doing her best to cover up her daughter in between shots!

Young K brought several really cute outfits to change-up, but all she could manage was to ADD layers! I managed to find an area by the chalet out of the wind, so we did the remainder of the shots there. I can't tell you how COLD my cheeks and fingers were. OMG, so cold. The windchill was -26º C although the actual temp was only about -5º. Why is it that in the spring, when there's hardly any snow left, the wind just bites??

Well, enough of my whining. I'm only going to post a few pics because I haven't gotten the signed release back yet from the mom. Any HHCC would be appreciated as this was my first ever mini shoot for someone other than my own girls! I set custom WB and did my best at metering. I'd appreciate any feedback! Hopefully, I'll be able to post a few more!

My Goof-up

For my Cameras on the Rocks photo club, our assignment was to take photos in/of a cemetary. I had two weeks to do the work, but did I use my time wisely? Umm - no! On the last day, DH and I went to our cottage and I knew of a cemetary on the way. He had to run a errand first so I went to the cemetary and shot away. Whoo-hoo, I was all excited because I got some really great shots. There were some old wooden crosses with just a painted name on it, there were dried up floral arrangements, snow and shadows and some really neat colours.
So, we're now on our way to camp and I decided to take a peek at the photos, aniticipating some really great results. UGH, NO. I shot them ALL at 3200 ISO...in bright sun! I was not surprised that I did that, but I was so angry with myself. I had taken dance photos the night before in a low-lit studio and I totally forgot to reset my ISO.
Anyhoo, to make a long story short, I managed to get back and retake the photos, but they really didn't turn out that great. The sun and shadows weren't in the same place and there was just no oomph to them.
However, I decided to play with one of the overexposed shots and I really liked the results.
Here's the colour of my error!!

Colours of the Cottage

I really don't have a favourite colour. Well, I like red for my cottage decor. I like turquoise because it's Retro and I like to wear earth tones. Pastel yellow is awesome, but I could never wear it. I generally don't like green unless it's khaki. Can't stand blue vehicles but I don't mind a nice navy piece of clothing. Brown is one of my more likeable colours too! Orange is pretty cool too, but only for specific things.

Went to the camp yesterday to bring daughter #2 and her boyfriend. They're staying there for the March Break if they don't get flooded out first! The weather is so mild that the snow on the lake is turning to slush and there are puddles all over. The fish shacks are going to have to taken out soon or they will get frozen solid into the ice if it turns cold again.

Took a few pics with my Tamron 70-300. I'm not really used to this lens yet. I found a few of my pics turned out a little dark. Not sure if I have to do some EV adjusting or different metering. Practice, practice I guess.

So, here's a few from the cottage. The colours of the outdoors. Thanks for looking~! Don't be shy, leave me a comment - even HHCC is welcome, or just say Hi to tell me you popped in.

Bird House


Gracie's Toy. This is hung from a tree. She can play tug-o-war with it any time she wants!


We have these Hemlock trees all over the property. I love these trees.


Mighty Pine - cone!


There's nothing like a roasted weiner over an open fire. Mmmmmm. [Not sure what I was focused on in this shot - but it still looks yummy, right?]

My daughter, the Dance Teacher!

Daughter L teaches modern dance. She wanted me to take pics at one of her rehearsals for the big earthdancers show**. First time I've used the Pentax in this situation. Really had to bump up the ISO to 800 & 1600 for some. Ran them through Noiseware, but I'm generally pleased. All of them hand held, natural light, Av mode around f 4-5. No signed releases, so the faces are blocked.

A faster lens would have been SO much nicer! Perhaps a fixed aperture one or a variable? I'm so lens-challenged! Any suggestions?
Tell me what you think!


**p.s. Those are my pics on the earthdancers website!