Give a Stranger a Smile | #40 101 in 1001

November 20, 2023 by GmasPhoto 10 Comments

Give a Stranger a Smile | #40 101 in 1001

Hi, Saturday I was brainstorming on what I would share with you today. It was while I was standing in line at Casey’s (a nice gas station with drinks and food) the 101 in 1001 idea came to mind. So I instantly knew what I would do for the day and share my experiences.

After pulling up to a pump to fill the car with gas, I went inside to pay. Never do I pay at the pump. There was two at the counter and then two ahead of me. #40 of my 101 in 1001 came to mind. So I said out loud to the two people in front of me that one of my 101 in 1001 is to give a smile to a stranger. One of the two was looking at me, I gave her a smile. The second person turned to look at me and I gave him a huge smile too. Both laughed and we engaged in more small talk that ended up being fun too. As the person paying at the counter was finished, he turned and gave me a huge smile. We all then laughed. It was a spontaneous moment that was a complete success, one I will remember.

WW Update:
Since Start Date; -29.5lbs

Take Care. Best wishes, Debra

Gma’sPhoto | ge•ner•ic Linkup Party #8

November 17, 2023 by GmasPhoto 11 Comments

Gma’sPhoto | ge•ner•ic Linkup Party #8

Hi, welcome to Gma’sPhoto ge•ner•ic Linkup Party #8!

First, I would like to shine the spotlight on the featured links from the last party.

Gma’sPhoto SpotLight from the last ge•ner•ic Linkup Party is on:

Thanksgiving Activities To Do With Your Family & Friends | Grace Filled Moments

Rock Cakes | Treat & Trick

This Party’s Theme is Generic.

Each Friday a new ge•ner•ic Linkup Party will open and end the following Thursday. Link up any family friendly post, health, diy, recipes, home decor, parenting, wordless, crafts, sewing, you get the idea.

Important things to know:

-You may add up to three family friendly blog post links, linked to specific blog posts.
-Please say hi & add your link post number when commenting below.
-Those leaving post entry numbers are eligible to be featured at the next party!
-Be sure to visit other links and leave a kind comment for each link you post.
-Party opens Friday and ends Thursday.
-Thank you for participating. Have fun!

By linking to Gma’sPhoto Party LinkUp, you give permission to share your post and images on Gma’sPhoto blog and social media. Proper credit with a photo and link back will be provided.

Let’s begin the fun at Gma’sPhoto ge•ner•ic Linkup Party #8!

Take Care. Best wishes, Debra

Taking Better Phone Pictures | Typical Edits

November 13, 2023 by GmasPhoto 10 Comments

Taking Better Phone Pictures | Typical Edits

Hi, Many people when starting photography get very lost when it comes to editing. When looking at a picture you just took on a nice camera, it’s really easy to look at it and think “wow, that looks great! what is there to fix?” Or maybe “I’ve got a nice camera that I figured out how to use, but I can NOT get my pictures to look like everybody else’s!” Well don’t stress it, because I’ve got some good ways to help you get started.

The 2 main things that photographers look at with each image is the tone and the exposure. Many cameras shoot pictures where the skin tone ends up looking too orange, too red or even too blue. Fixing the image so that the skin tones look natural and like the color of the actual skin can make a dramatic difference. The other major fix is the exposure. Is the picture too light? Is the picture too dark? Even with professional cameras, pictures can come out with the exposure off. The best way to judge if the exposure is correct is to look at the skin again. It’s very important to adjust the image until the exposure is correct. Even if it means making the sky extra bright, it’s more important to have the skin be the correct amount of exposure over everything else in the image.

The example photo I am using was taken just this weekend, not of people rather of the Autumn leaves. My preferred editing app for phone photography images is PicTapGo.

taking better phone pictures | typical edits — Picture of the autumn leaves straight from the phone.

The leaves on the drive caught my eye. I just really liked them. This is a good picture. Some would find it nice, color and all. However, I adjusted the exposure and tone. Here is my edited version.

autumn leaves — Exposure and tone adjustments.

What I like about the PicTapGo, it’s simple and has many filters available that is included with the app. After picking an image to edit, click filters and apply the desired one. I chose the Warm It Up and Lights On.

Each filter has a slider to adjust the strength to the amount you prefer.

adjusting edits — Adjusting the amount applied

before and after edits — Before and After

PicTapGo is available for iPhone. There are many different apps for editing as well. Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Lightroom and Snapseed can be used with either iOS or Android. I have personally used all of these and found PicTapGo to be the most user-friendly.

WW Update:
Since Start Date; -24.8lbs

Take Care. Best wishes, Debra

Yesterday, today’s memory

November 12, 2023 by GmasPhoto 15 Comments

Today’s image was inspired by the autumn leaves that had fallen onto the driveway. While at my daughter’s home, she was blowing the leaves off the pavement. Stating she did not like the stains the leaves make. The stained pavement picture.

yesterday todays memory — Yesterday, today’s memory

Take Care. Best wishes, Debra

Back to the Norm

November 6, 2023 by GmasPhoto 8 Comments

Back to the Norm

Day Out with my Children

Hi, October was my thankful, grateful month. I am back to my usual series of postings that will be available these particular days: Monday, weekly post; Thursday, Tongue-Tied LinkUp Party and Friday, Gma’sPhoto | ge•ner•ic LinkUp Party.

Had a super fun Saturday with just me and my kids. This does not happen too often. I had asked them for a picture of the three of us. Then I wanted to have one of just my two children. It will go well with the past image series.

Picnic in the Park

This weekend Kevin asked that I go with him to the ‘Picnic in the Park’ for the homeless on Sunday. One of my 101 in 1001 goals is to go with Kevin more, and Sunday was a nice day for November. This week there was not as many people who went thru the line.

WW Update:
Since Start Date; -26.4lbs

Take Care. Best wishes, Debra

Gma’sPhoto | ge•ner•ic Linkup Party #7

November 3, 2023 by GmasPhoto 13 Comments

Gma’sPhoto | ge•ner•ic Linkup Party #7

Hi, welcome to Gma’sPhoto ge•ner•ic Linkup Party #7!

This Party’s Theme is Generic.

Important things to know:

By linking to Gma’sPhoto Party LinkUp, you give permission to share your post and images on Gma’sPhoto blog and social media. Proper credit with a photo and link back will be provided.

Let’s begin the fun at Gma’sPhoto ge•ner•ic Linkup Party #7!

Take Care. Best wishes, Debra