The Idea Room

Categories

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Copyright: The Idea Room by Amy Huntley © 2016; All rights reserved.


click on images to go to posts…

Photobucket


Photobucket


Photobucket


Photobucket

 

Home Organization Course

Learn how you can get your home organized with my easy step-by-step organization course. My course is full of organization ideas as well as home organization tips and tricks to get your life and home organized and keep it that way.

ONLINE DECLUTTERING COURSE

For the past several months I have been putting together my Online Organization Course, The Balanced Home. I am excited to teach you my decluttering and cleaning process. These processes also teach you how to create simple routines and cleaning schedules which allow you to naturally maintain your clean and organized home.

No need to hire a professional organizer, or live with the clutter because you will have the skills and learn how to overcome any mental barriers or fears you might have to get started!

WHAT DOES THE ORGANIZATION COURSE COVER?

The Balanced Home Organization Core  

($1,000 Value)Contains my core Decluttering and Organization Processes, which shows you how to:

  • Learn how to declutter and organize your home–by learning processes and techniques that really work!
  • Deal with stuff you don’t know how to get rid of
  • Understand what qualifies as hoarding
  • Understand how to overcome hoarding tendencies
  • Deal with your junk room or junk drawer

The Tools

  • Workbook, Resources, Labels, and More ($250 Value). Contains everything you need to help guide you through each lesson, including:
  • An easy-to-follow workbook to guide you step-by-step through the lessons
  • Printable Labels
  • A vision sheet for your home
  • A working checklist of tasks you can accomplish in 30 minutes or less
  • Shopping and To-Do Lists
  • Monthly Calendar and Weekly Schedule

The Mental Foundation
 

The best processes to overcome mental barriers from Tony Robbins and Dean Graziosi’s Mastermind Course ($200 Value). Helps you to find the time, the energy and the motivation to organize your home by:

  • Discovering your “true, internal why” -> what motivates you to want an organized home
  • Helping you clearly identify what is holding you back from success
  • Teaching you how to organize your schedule to create new pockets of time
  • Helping you discover what is most important for you to accomplish with your time, as opposed to just urgent or habit
  • Helping you cut out the things that aren’t important and identify gaps in your schedule you can dedicate to working on your home

Your Ideal Home

The best processes to set and achieve your vision by breaking it down into actionable steps ($300 Value). Teaches you how to break down an overwhelming project into small, manageable steps, by:

  • Clearly defining your goal and vision for your home
  • Learning how to evaluate specific rooms and identify what you want to be improved
  • Identifying specific, easy to complete tasks in each room that will contribute to your overall goal without overwhelming you
  • Getting your family or others involved in the process

Cleaning and Maintaining

The best processes to clean and maintain your home after it has been organized ($200 Value).Teaches you how to maintain your home once it is clean and keep it organized, by:

  • Providing you with the basic cleaning routines you need to naturally stay in control of your home
  • Teaching you my amazing “Ten-Minute Clean-up” process, which allows you to clean an entire floor / room in ten minutes or less!
  • Showing you how to establish routines with your kids and other members of the family
  • Sharing important resources such as chore cards, favorite cleaning products, and a deep-cleaning checklist, and more
  • Explaining the laundry routine we use in our home to get our laundry done every week without even thinking about it
  • Teaching you how to deep clean your home after it has been decluttered and organized
  • Showing you how to help the other members of your household be on the same page and not “unclean” your home

During the course, we will:

  • Show you the process of how to go throughout your home decluttering, cleaning, and organizing. Then you can take this process and go throughout all the rooms in your home–including the bathrooms, kitchen, craft room, home office, basement, entryway, playroom, garage, attic, and all other rooms in your home–cleaning and organizing.
  • Clean out and organize not just the rooms themselves, but organization spaces such as closets, shelves, drawers, and bookshelves.
  • Learn how to properly use organization equipment, such as bins, drawer organizers, storage bins, food storage containers, lids, and baskets.

The Private Balanced Home Community

(BONUS – Priceless). Provides a community that you can go to whenever you need a place where you…

  • Seek inspiration and ideas from others
  • Receive support and motivation from others
  • Share your successes and see the successes of others as we all work towards finding balance and clarity in our homes.
  • Can ask questions and let me know what you may still need help with so that I can continue to cater the course to your needs
motionmailapp.com

What Do People Have To Say About My Organization Course?

“This course was instrumental in helping me organize my space as well as my time. As a busy mom, I have a better grasp on what my days need to include so that I can enjoy my family rather than spend my time spinning my wheels cleaning up after everyone.”

“The Balanced Home Course helped me to be the “professional organizer” for my family! Simple steps to follow, check lists, printable labels, suggestions and worksheets will keep you on track to successfully maintain your own balanced home.”

“I am pretty sure I have solved more issues with the seven layers and clarity tool than I have in 6 months of therapy!! I think this course is going to help much more than my home. Thanks Amy!!!!”

When I realized I had been overcomplicating the idea of organization, that simplifying was a key component, then things really started to fall into place!”

When I realized I had been overcomplicating the idea of organization, that simplifying was a key component, then things really started to fall into place!””

HOW TO GET MOTIVATED TO ORGANIZE YOUR HOME

HOW TO OVERCOME FEARS AND MENTAL BARRIERS

I asked and these are the things that are holding you back from getting started! I made sure my course helped you overcome your specific fears and developed processes to address each of the concerns below. Have you ever had any of the same concerns?

  • “I don’t have the time.”
  • “I don’t know how to break it down into manageable chunks.”
  • “How do I balance other activities?”
  • “I don’t have enough energy / motivation.”
  • “I’m overwhelmed and don’t know where to start.”
  • “I’m scared / unable to commit.”
  • “I don’t trust myself.”
  • “I don’t have the confidence I will finish.” 
  • “How do I maintain / keep on top of it?”
  • “I have a hard time with inconsistency / finding balance.”
  • “I’m afraid of quitting too soon and having it be a mess.”
  • “How do I build the habits and routines?”
  • “Keeping it clean and organized”“Staying focused and not getting distracted.”
  • “What if I have physical limitations.”
  • “I don’t have the supplies / resources / money (i.e. containers etc.) / storage space.”
  • “I don’t want to part with things.”
  • “What Do I do with all the stuff? Donate? Kids?”
  • “What if I need it later?”
  • “My family has stuff they want to keep.”
  • “Family is not being helpful or even counterproductive… How do I get my family on board?”
  • “No sense of design / vision for what I want.”
  • “Lack of knowledge.”
  • “Afraid of not doing it right.”
  • “Being okay with not having it perfect.”

STILL NOT READY TO BUY?

Because I know that sometimes it can be difficult to take that initial leap of faith, I wanted to give you something that would allow you to get your feet wet a little, something that you could access RIGHT NOW.  I think you’ll like it.  I’ve opened up a “sneak peek” section of my course, where you can access one or two of the lessons that are a part of The Balanced Home Course.  If you click the button below you will be able to create your own personal account / log in for the course and access the “sneak peek” videos.

OTHER ORGANIZATION PROJECTS

If you are interested in taking a deeper look into some of the spaces in my home, check out the following posts!

You are here: Home / Kristen Duke Photography / Photography with Kristen Duke~It’s all about the Light

· 31 Comments

Photography with Kristen Duke~It’s all about the Light

Kristen Duke Photography· Photography Tips

I felt like the last posts were super heavy and I wanted to lighten it up a little–no pun intended:)  This post is for anyone with any camera. 

**For a printable PDF version of this post click here.

*70-200 lens on 78mm *ISO 320 *f 4.0 *ss1/800

I’m going to start with a few stories that lead into today’s topic–looking for the light in photography.

Story #1 About 6 years ago when I was still shooting on auto, I started looking around other photographers blogs/websites and would often see this:  “I shoot only natural light….”  I remember calling in my husband laughing and saying, “well, sheesh, that’s funny, anyone can shoot natural light, its the easiest part of photography.”  Little, little did I know what the phrase natural light really meant.  I only knew that in my auto settings when I was outside, I got better pictures than when I was inside with my flash.  Am I right?  I think we all know that.  I used my flash outside–if the camera thought it needed to pop up–and sometimes I didn’t. 

Story #2  I still regularly peruse photographers blogs.  I love to look for inspiration and get to know them through their writing.  I am very surprised when I read their happiness that they got to shoot on an overcast day.  And this isn’t always from the mouth of mediocre photographers (me–6 years ago) but from those that I respect that produce great work.  Now don’t get all embarresed if you have thought that or said that before, because I get it.  The sun is a very tricky beast!  It can be difficult to work around.  I am going to give you some tips here on taming that beast–having the sun work to your advantage to where you actually want to have the sun around to give that beautiful golden glow. 

With all that said, I now consider myself a natural light photographer.  My flash and lightsphere diffuser usually stay at home.  I know some photographers also use them outside to even the light on a subjects face or to bring the catch light into the eyes, but I personally don’t.  I like to work with just my camera, to achieve the most natural of lights.

Light in the Eyes
I mentioned the catch light.  When photographing an individual, always look for the light in their eyes.  Turn them around until you get it.  If not, you will get what photographers often call, dead eyes (and dark bags under eyes–racoon eyes–often accompany that).  Here is an example taken just for this tutorial.

She is standing in the exact same spot.  The shot on the left, the sun is behind her.  The shot on the right, she is looking in the direction of the sun.  Now, she is still in the shade, but what I like to call open shade.  It is at the edge of the shade line, just before you hit the sun line.  I took a picture of the scene so you can understsand a bit better.

In spot #1 I have listed above, I took this shot below:
She was actually standing in the shade, but the sun still reflected on her face.  Not conducive.  Can you tell she isn’t a fan? 
The dual shot above was taken in the #2 spot on the field.  That’s ideal.  Close to the edge of the light, so you still get the ambiance of the light while not being in its direct path. 
Here’s the deal…if you used a reflector on the “dead eyes” shot, you would get the light in the eyes.  I’m just too impatient and move around too much to use a reflector.  Sometimes I wish I used one. 
#3 spot is fairly deep in, and even if you face in the right direction, it wouldn’t be as great.  That would be more “closed” shade instead of “open” shade–at the edge of the light.
When photographing people, especialy individuals or two, always look for the light in their eyes. 
But guess what?  Sometimes I break the rules.  Sometimes I am more concerned with the beauty of the background that I am willing to sacrifice.  Not an individuals though.  On families, you can’t see the eye sparkle as well and I’m ok with the eyes a bit darker, to get the scene.  Like this shot below:

*70-200 lens on 169mm *ISO 640 *f 4.0 *ss1/500
A very large reflector might help that, but it just doesn’t matter as much with a group.  I love this spot in the evening because the trees are used as a partial diffuser of the sun.  It still offers its lovely glow, but through the trees as it glistens. 
Here is another of the girls:

Here is a couple I photographed in the same spot.  The sun behind them, and their eyes look great–full of life. Because they were low to the ground and the field they were in reflected a little into their eyes.  If close enough, white shirts on the photographer can also act as a reflector. 
*70-200 lens on 70mm *ISO 320 *f 4.0 *ss1/200
Then they did a little dance…
*70-200 lens on 70mm *ISO 200 *f 4.0 *ss1/200
Notice I usually frame the sun so it is off to the side, with my subjects on the other side.  If it isn’t diffused by the trees here, it’s to the side. 
*70-200 lens on 70mm *ISO 200 *f 4.0 *ss1/500
What about a silhouette?  We need that sun for a good silhouette.  Here are two examples, both happen to be maternity, I always do a silhouette with a maternity session, and only sometimes with others.
With maternity example A here, the subject is under a tree.  It was broad daylight, and my best option was to be in the shade and shoot out to the sunlit spot.  At first, I was bugged by the “stuff” in the background, then decided I like the urban feel of it.  She ordered this as a larger wall print, so she liked it, too!
*85mm lens *ISO 125 *f 5.0 *ss1/5000
Maternity example B was in the evening sun, and I had no shade to do what I did before.  But, the sun was so low, I positioned her right in front of the sun so she blocked it from me. 
*28-75 lens at 68mm *ISO 200 *f 9 *ss1/250
In both cases, when you shoot a silhouette, set your manuel settings as if you were shooting the bright sky without someone in front.  Take a few sample shots.  You will have your shutter speed way up (just above my f-stop was up, so ss wasn’t as high). When  you see good exposure for the sky without the person, put the person in and take another–same settings.  You still may have to play a bit, but that is my silhouette secret trip. 
3 extra tips:
 1.  I always make them position their arm awkwardly back so it doesn’t look like they are an armless woman 2. ponytail helps to see the facial features
3.2nd hand should be out of site or it looks weird 
Lastly, AVOID the speckled light.  That’s my term for it. It’s when you are under a tree and getting some light speckles on the subjects face.  It happens a lot!  Move the person around (harder with a group) until they are out of it. 
Here is a gal’s before and after, I just moved her a few feet over and lovely light! (It isn’t a true before and after b/c she doesn’t have the same pleasant smile in #1, but I wanted you to get the idea).  This usually happens mid-day when the sun is high in the sky.
(right image) *85mm *ISO 250 *f 3.2 *ss1/400
Even when you aren’t photographing, watch the sun, where it falls, and your setting.  I know that certain spots are better in the morning, and others better in the evening. 
Here are a few other shots where I used the sun to my advantage:
Photographers love sun flare–most clients don’t. Notice evening sun in top corner.
*28-75 lens on 75mm *ISO 320 *f 2.8 *ss1/640
*28-75 lens on 75mm *ISO 320 *f 4.0 *ss1/500
*70-200 lens on 200mm *ISO 250 *f 4.0 *ss1/400
As a wrap up:
Look for the light in the eyes
Find the open shade
Try a silhouette
Avoid the speckled light
Watch the sun
Tame the beast!
Have fun,
Kristen

P.S. I am doing a comment appreciation giveaway over on my blog.  If you’ve commented there recently, you might be a little happy:)

Sharing is caring!

About Amy

Amy Huntley is the owner/author of The Idea Room. A mother of five, who enjoys sharing her love of all things creative in hopes of inspiring other women and families. Never miss a creative idea that she shares by connecting with her here, or read more of her posts.

Comments

  1. Christy {The Girl Who Ate Everything} says

    I have learned more from your last couple of posts than I have in the last 2 years. Thank you. One problem I still have is having blurry pictures even when I set the shutter speed to be quick. It's probably something I'm doing so I am going to play with it.

    Reply

  2. sharon says

    Great post – very insightful! Here is a photo I took in less than ideal conditions. I was just a passerby and had no control over the model so I did my best and then had lots of fun with the editing to produce the image I saw in my head…

    http://lovelybud.typepad.com/lovely-bud/2010/04/wordless-wednesday-garden-landscape-with-belle.html

    oh and the image in the banner of my blog is a wonderful day when it was CLOUDY in the garden and I could shoot flowers to my hearts content:)

    Reply

  5. Stephanie says

    I just LOVE using the sun! I used to be obsessed with getting sunsets (my favorite part about the Texas panhandle) and just recently started trying to get them in my pictures in other ways. Thanks for the tips (and the laughs from your silhouette tips!)
    can't wait to try some of these out! :)

    Reply

  7. Amy says

    Thanks for this, Kristen :) Great information and something to look for in my next session. My daughter is having her first communion this Saturday. The weather hasn't cooperated for me to take her outside for some pictures. I'm hoping to get some taken within the next week.
    Have you ever photographed a communion session?? I'm looking for some ideas on sites or positioning. I didn't want the standard kneeling with the rosary and a black backdrop… I wanted something different.

    I'm nervous! Sure wish this photography thing came naturally! LOL!

    thanks again for the info! It's all good stuff :)
    amy

    Reply

  8. Kitty Talk says

    I am SERIOUSLY loving these photography tutorials. Thank you so much. I too hate when I hear people say "Oh good it is cloudy!" I am the opposite. I LOVE having the sun in my pictures and I always look for it when taking pictures. :)

    Reply

  10. Cheryl says

    Thank you so much for all the tips! I am constantly learning new things about photography and I love it :)

    Reply

  11. Esther says

    This information is so great! I love it! I definately need to learn this stuff. Thank you, Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

  12. Katelyn says

    Thank you so much. I appreciate that I can use these tips with my regular digital camera.

    Reply

  13. Rand and Tracy says

    I am loving your posts with Kristen Duke. I have learned a ton! I was shooting with a older camera and was wanting to get more into photography so my husband surprised me with a Nikon D90. Hello, overwhelming! I am about to have my 3rd child next week and hope that after that I can continue to learn! Thanks for the posts!

    Reply

  14. Anonymous says

    Thank You! I have been struggling with lighting for a while, but I think your tips and techniques will help me out. I will go give it a shot!

    -Kelsey

    Reply

  16. Susan E says

    Kristen,
    Once again, FABULOUS post. I always look forward to reading your stuff. I think this will help me out a ton and I am going to practice this weekend. I can totally relate when you say the sun is a BEAST! Thanks again and I'm looking forward to another post.

    Reply

  18. Michelley! says

    another great post!
    thanks so much for putting all this photography stuff in layman's terms! it's been really helpful and fun to learn!

    Reply

  19. Susan E says

    Alright. One more thing – the pic with the boy on the other end of the tube, how exactly did you get that shot and sometimes when I try to put sun flare in my pics my subjects turn out blurry or almost hazy. What am I doing wrong?

    Reply

  21. Delia says

    I seriously LOVE reading these posts! Thank you to Amy for letting Kristen come on so much.

    Brooke Snow has some great advice on how to use the sun at high noon when the sun is supposed to be the hardest to work with.

    Her post is here;
    http://blog.brookesnow.com/?p=712

    I still have yet to master it but I am getting closer. The sun is a beast but once you tame it, it really can be your best friend.

    Reply

  22. Kristen Duke Photography says

    Thanks everyone! I love to hear your feedback and that what I am writing is helping something click for you!

    Susan E–The tunnel shot, I exposed my lighting for the bright sun on the other side. As far as focus with the sun, it can be tricky. You have to often get your focus above or below the direct sun and then recompose on the sun…does that make sense? I don't often plan to get sun flare, sometimes its luck, sometimes I see it when I am trying to do something else and quickly grab the flare shot before I go onto the other.

    Reply

  23. CraftyMummy says

    Thank you for a great post! It makes so much more sense with the photos to show what you're saying. Wish the kids weren't at school so I could play with my camera!

    Reply

  24. Charis says

    Thanks so much for posting your insight here for us to learn. I've learned so much more from these few posts of yours than I have in some classes (that I've paid good money for!). I look forward to seeing what you come up with next ;)

    Reply

  25. Juli says

    Thank you so much! Very helpful post. I still have trouble with getting the light in the eyes. I will have to try your suggestions and hopefully I can get it down. :)

    Reply

  26. Carla G. says

    Thanks again for another great batch of information! I look forward to these posts every week and will be really sad when they end! I have learned so many useful tips and I can already see a difference in my pictures! Shooting in manual mode is FUN!!! I can't wait to try your latest technique for some great "sun" shots! Thanks, thanks, thanks…my photo journal cup runeth over!

    Reply

  27. Susanne says

    I can not thank you enough for sharing all of this!!!! I get so frustrated trying to take a sun picture.

    I'm wondering, how do I take a picture full on sun without it looking blown out? By the way, that would be no shade.

    Reply

  31. Maria Esperanza says

    Great advice …soon I will have my first session with a mommy-to-be…and found your great advice….I’m so excited! Thank you!

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Join our newsletter

idea room

Featured In

join us

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned in some of my posts for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe my readers will enjoy. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Copyright: The Idea Room by Amy Huntley © 2018; All rights reserved.