How I took it - Redding CA photography

Can't wait!!!!, I'm attending a few events for people that I care deeply about & I'm just pretty darn excited about that right now. I love Jon so much for helping me get to where I need to be, I love him more than he could ever imagine (......but somehow I think he has just a little idea by now, wink wink!). Hope everybody has a great night & fulfilling weekend, I know I going to.

Here are a few resident finches tearing up the gay feathers to get to the seed. I LOVE these plants even more now, definitely getting more for next year, the finch love them.

NOTE: I didn't have the ideal conditions to get this shot but it was well worth what I came out with. The plant is on our front porch, I didn't want to spook the finches so I couldn't open the door all the way, it was about 11am so the sun was reflecting brightly on the entrance flooring & into my face & lens. I used my Canon 24-70 2.8 lens, set at 70mm & I still cropped the photo.

My Manual camera settings were aperture f-4, ss 1/400 & ISO 125. The wind was blowing, which made the plant bob & weave, so I increased the aperture for that movement, I kept my ISO low which left the shutter speed at 1/400, not enough to freeze the wings but pretty close. I didn't expose for the entire photo, I was worried about the bird, not the background & those finches are fast, this was such a lucky shot. It may not be the right way but it's how I took it. Enjoy!

Monsoonal clouds sunset - Kimberly Kester Photography

It was the end of the monsoonal clouds this night & it made for some awesome photos, especially the last one with all the sun beams darting across the sky. The valley was filled with smoke from surrounding fires, you can barely see the mountains in the distance. I got down low on purpose for this photo, so I could get some golden, dry weeds in the foreground. Thought it turned out pretty good.

I LOVE this last photo, it's so peaceful to me. Click on it to view it larger.

Trash the dress - Storm style - Redding CA

Just spending a bright, summer morning at the creek.....or shall I say, in the creek. I really want to do a sunset version of trash the dress next.

She's ready to go off into the military so we had a little fun before life became too serious.

Good luck Storm! I hope you achieve all you strive for.

Sunrise over a fire area

These photos were taken August 14th when the sun was rising over a fire area, beyond (far beyond) our front yard. We typically don't even have clouds this time of year but I've been blessed with monsoonal moisture that's been hovering over Mt. Lassen lately, creating some gorgeous sunrises from time to time.

 In this last photo below, you can see the sun barely peeking out around the clouds, it wound up being an overcast day all day, it could have been smoke from the fires that created the overcast feel but I don't think so & none the less, I thought the sunrise was beautiful & I felt lucky to got to witness it. 

When I first looked out the window this morning (& of course I couldn't capture it in time), the sun looked like hell rising to heaven. The sky was red-red on the bottom of the scene & there were blue-blue sky above it, by the time I grabbed my camera & made it outside, this was the best I could get & these photos do it no justice. I guess you had to be there or I need to be quicker with my camera, lol.



School starts in a matter of days, Matthew starts his last year of Jr. High & my daughter Marissa, turns 18 on the same day, my babies are growing up, this will be an emotional week for me, lol.

In the moment - J & D

I love how some people simply relax so easily in front of the camera, it makes it easier to capture "In the moment" photos like these, they're the best.

Matson Vineyards - Marc Cooper

Matson Vineyards hosted Marc Cooper again on Saturday during their Members Pick up Event. I love listening to this guy play live.

It was a great weekend all together, with this event on Saturday & the beautiful family I posted yesterday, I had a great weekend. I hope you have a great day & enjoy your week!!!

Ahhhhh, I miss my Chipmunk Cheeks

...especially after spending the morning with this handsome little guy & wishing I had photos of me & my kids together like these. I used to call Richie, my now almost 23 yr old son, Chipmunk Cheeks & this little guy had the same cheeks I remember Richie having (and never grew out of, hehe).
I'm sincerely honored this mom & dad allowed me to capture these quick moments in their life. I miss having babies, not like I'm going to go out & do anything about it but it sure does help me to decide what I want to do in the future with my photography.

I've been making some much needed decisions in my business lately & my heart feels unusually settled with them. I hope to be announcing the news soon. Thank you, to this beautiful family for spending some time with me. Have a great day!!

How about a little snow this summer

The other day, Jon & I were talking about this day with Lady back in 2010, we both recalled how we laughed & laughed, so I decided to share it with you. We adopted her right about 2 years ago & she's been such a great dookie & although she's older (she was 6 when she became part of our family), she's still full of life.

It snowed her first winter with us & I don't think she's ever seen it before but that didn't stop her, she dove in face first....

Check out all the snow on those whiskers. She found one of her toys under the snow, after nose digging it out, she wound up playing, then eating the snow. I've never seen a dog eat snow before. She was so goofy.

At the top of the driveway, Jon took off  running back to the house, she got all excited & took off after him. When she caught up, she grabbed his robe & tried to drag him back to the house. So flipping funny, it was like she was getting onto him for running in the snow. I couldn't stop laughing, she made our morning.

I thought maybe seeing snow would cool you off, you know reverse psychology, lol. I felt the chill from that morning when I was editing them,....Well, can't blame a girl for trying. I hope you enjoy today!