Here is just a small representation of Chandra’s work, with more to come.  Enjoy!

For some assignments I chose to use uninteresting, inanimate objects simply to demonstrate the objective (such as depth of field) but for most of my assignments I practiced on my awesome boys who were not only willing to help, but wanted to make it FUN too!  You can see this clearly in the first example of my youngest as I practiced different light metering techniques.  By the way, this is just a fraction of all the work I did but these examples illustrate the progression of my practice and understanding.  And I was often not concerned about the beauty and composition of the photos when concentrating on a particular objective, so these are not the photos I would frame for my walls!  Still, my favorite objective, by far, was nailing the exposure when composing with back lighting:

Then I also practiced metering the light and freezing motion by adjusting the shutter speed (See? These “practice” photos, while not beautiful at all, still illustrated my ability to adjust my settings so that I could end up with different effects!):

Jessica even had an entire lesson on editing.  This is just one of my favorite photos from that particular lesson:

If you’re at all interested or thinking about doing a workshop, please take the time to check out Jessica Cudzilo’s 503 Workshop.  It is truly one of the best things I’ve done to improve and enhance my skills, and it was worth every penny and every second of my valuable time.  Doing this workshop online worked perfectly with my schedule and my life…because I have a family I am not able to simply run out the door and off to class, so this workshop allowed me to work at home, on MY time.  I learned MORE than I thought I would, and it was a blast!  The forums were amazing and all of the students worked together to help and encourage each other.  But I have to say the best part was Jessica herself.  She sincerely cares about each one of her students and from the moment you take your first step into her 503 World, she is with you all the way, cheering you on.

You know you want to check out this workshop…so….don’t just sit there….DO IT!   You’ll be so glad you did!!!

First up is our fearless, fabulous leader herself, Miss Scarlett!

Next is my adorable Canadian roommate, Erin Campbell:

And then there’s the super-cool Jess McCrea:

Also the super-smart Leeann Marie: (Photo by Lydia Shannon)

And the awesomely funny Lydia Shannon:  (Photo by Lan Bui)

Also the sweet Kayla Mercedes:

Here’s down-to-earth Heather Caudill:

Easy-going and sweet Susan Justice: (Website in the works!)

And last, but certainly not least, the Bui Brothers…We are so fortunate to have met and hung out with these guys while they filmed us for Scarlett during the workshop.  They are well-established leaders in this industry but have not forgotten where they came from, and blessed us with kindness and graciousness as they willingly shared their experiences and gave us priceless advice.  Thank you both!  We are all so grateful!

First, Vu Bui:

And Lan Bui (with Stephen Knuth and his Starbucks in the background!):

In the coming days I will have more workshop photos and experiences to blog…. I SO loved every minute of this and look forward to hanging out with all the girls, Scarlett, Stephen Knuth, and the Bui Brothers again one day!  Thank you all again for your intense hard work and brilliance in putting together this workshop for us.  It was awesome!

To all of my amazing friends outside and inside the photographer community, and to my phenomenal family, thank you, for your support, encouragement, and love.  Words just can’t express how incredible you all are and how grateful I am for you.

Last but not least, although 2009 is coming to an end, it is still, as always, just the beginning.  It’s a big world out there with so much yet for all of us to learn…Every day holds such promise and possibility!  We all have dreams, wishes, hopes…what is yours? And what is keeping you from actively pursuing your dream?  I want to tell you — Take that risk!  Challenge yourself!

Now is the time and you can do it.   It’s still just the beginning…