Some freebies, a toddler, and a model

Being the freebie shopper that I am, I went on the hunt for photog deals.  One of the things I really wanted to find were actions to use in Elements.  Actions are what I can only describe as files that do a lot of the work for you.  Also known as the best things ever invented.  A few photographers I knew of had freebies posted, but I went in search of more.  I went to Google of course, and it did not fail me.  I ended up with 155 free actions to use in the editing of my pictures.  I think that's pretty darn good!  Here are the sites I got the freebies from:
The CoffeeShop Blog
Paint the Moon Photography
DTPactions
Pamela Topping
Nelly Nero

On another note, one of my lovely co-workers is leaving the nest and taking another job.  We had a going away party for her, and I snapped some pictures.  Most of them were of her cutie patootie son.

I then sent a call out to my Facebook friends to get some subjects, so I could stop harassing my dog.  An old classmate of mine sent me a message, and I secured my first human model.

I studied some poses but nothing could really prepare for how hard it is to make your subject feel comfortable while also getting shots that look good.  I felt so awkward because I had no idea what I was doing, but you can't learn if you don't practice right?  All in all, it was a good learning experience, and Cassandra was a great sport!  We took the pictures on the civic plaza in downtown Murfreesboro.

Editing a human subject proved quite a challenge, and I learned that I have one fallback action that I love using...CoffeeShop Sun Kissed.  So for now, expect a majority of my pictures to have a sun flare in the background.  I might even use it for inside pictures :)