St. Louis Photographer | Kay Pickens » My Life

New Flowers in the Yard

Kay — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 12:49:39 +0000

This year we’re trying out some new flowers in our yard. These are photos of what I hope the flowers will look like when they bloom… First off the tuberose. I fell in love with them when my husband brought some home to me one day. I love the delicate flowers and the wonderful scent of this flower. We tried to grow them last summer, but they never bloomed.

We’re also trying to grow some agapanthus. Here is a photo of when I first saw them in bloom during a trip to Carmel. I love the spread of the bloom and the amazing purple color.

Sigh. I’m really hoping the ones we planted this year will bloom for us. Such pretty flowers, aren’t they? Stay tuned for the saga of the tuberose and the agapanthus! Wish us luck!

The Great Easter Egg Shootout-St. Louis Style

Kay — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 12:02:07 +0000

Every year my family gathers for Easter…and has The Great Easter Egg Shootout. ™ We have the best time. First, we get a target and hang it in the woods behind our house.

This year the target was a pirate. Yeah, no clue…but there you have it. A pirate.

Then we take a large slingshot…and, well…shoot at the target.

There is a lot of competition between the boys.

…and the girls

We have so much fun with our silly family tradition.

It’s one of my favorite afternoons. Year after year.

Since the kids get bubbles in their Easter baskets each year…there is usually a fair amount of bubbles floating around. (Yes, I still do Easter baskets for my grown kids.)

We believe in an equal opportunity shoot out. We’re forever young in our family.

Fall Flowers – St. Louis Photographer

Kay — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 15:10:43 +0000

While I adore shooting people, sometimes I like to go out and capture nature. I love to play with the lighting.

Since the weather has been so mild this year, we still have a few zinnias blooming in the garden. In October! Amazing.

It got down to 29 degrees last night though, so I think the flowers will soon be all gone. Sigh.

Nichole Van’s Lighting Workshop in a Box

Kay — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 18:38:59 +0000

It’s finally here! Nichole Van’s Lighting Workshop in a Box. I’m so excited, that I’m going to do an unboxing post and show you all the cool stuff. I’m kind of nerdy like that!

As expected, Nichole has outdone herself on the beautiful packaging of this Lighting Workshop in a Box.

See the luscious leather box the workshop comes in?

She doesn’t miss a trick on making her workshop look wonderful. From the pretty bow on the box, to the faint damask pattern of her branding on the box.

Inside the box are all her goodies for this workshop.

I’m sure I’ll miss telling about some of the goodness, but here are just some of what is in the workshop. The manual, of course. Oh, I love the size of this one. Much easier to hold than the size of the original workshop in a box manual. Yay! The DVD of lots of goodness. A gift certificate to her online shop. A envelope of vendor specials. A troubleshooting guide and lighting practice cards. Pen, stickies. Well I’m sure I’m missing something.

I’ll post a review after I’ve had time to read the whole workshop and work with more with off camera lighting. While I have played around some with off camera flash, it’s on my list to really master next.

I did go to Nichole’s in person professional workshop and it was the best workshop ever. She’s an amazing teacher and I’d recommend her workshops to anyone who wants to take their photography business to the next level.

Well, I’m off to immerse myself in the workshop.