Claire is in Vogue?!

Hello! No, I am not in Vogue. I did however take a couple self portraits inspired by the classic styles found in the iconic fashion magazine.

While the grain was accidental, I thought it accented the classic black and white. I posed toward the window to create blown out highlights that contrast with the shadows behind me. 

I really wanted this photo to have a majority of blue accents to reflect my mood recently. I have spent most of my summer in my bedroom thinking. Taking these photos have hopefully gotten the ball rolling again.

You will be seeing more from me soon, I promise.

Thanks for reading!
Claire Y.

Couple Photo Session: Tori & Zach

Hello! I had the pleasure of photographing Tori & Zach yesterday. We created some pretty great images in the limited area we had. I had a great time and I look forward to shooting with Tori again soon! :)

If you are interested in a photo session, whether it be senior photos, family photos, or a couple session like this one, feel free to contact me! All of my contact information should be listed in the "Contact" tab above.

Thanks for reading!

Claire Y.

9/52 | Head in the Clouds

Hello! I know this is a little late, but the editing was a huge pain! I am pretty proud that all of the components are photos that I took.

I wanted this photo to represent the way that I feel when I read. It's like a daydream!

Thanks for reading!

Claire Y.

Day 5,840

Hello! Today marks my sixteenth year on planet earth. That's a total of 5,840 days, if you were wondering. Now, when it comes to birthdays, it is totally acceptable to celebrate for up to a week in advance. It also makes a brilliant excuse for any troubles that come your way.

"Why didn't you do your homework?"
"It's my birthday week."

"Why were you late?"
"It's my birthday week."

"Why did you eat my lunch?"
"It's my birthday week."

By expanding birthday celebrations to a week, you vastly expand the list of excusable opportunities. Trust me, you'll thank me later.

Because my birthday falls on a Sunday, my friends brought my wonderful presents and goodies on Friday at school. Thanks guys!

Because our area was expecting large amounts of snow on my birthday, my family and I celebrated on Saturday by eating out for lunch and doing some lite rug shopping, among other types. I found a really cool cat watch and was unable to find a camera bag that doesn't scream "Camera bag!". We finished off the day with some froyo, as seen here.

Don't let the photo fool you, Jack actually loves froyo.

I also took this last photo of me as a fifteen year old.

Last night, I received a confusing phone call from Taylor requesting that I go to my front door. I did not find a Taylor. Instead, I found cupcakes, balloons, and presents! I didn't get them on my actual birthday because of the awful snow, but it was still an awesome surprise! Thank you, Taylor!

Because today falls on my usual posting day for my 52 week project, it will have to wait. Today, we party!!

Thanks for reading!

-Claire Y.

8/52

Hello! On Friday, I took photos of my dear friends, Molly and Kyra. Here are some photos from the shoot!

Thanks for reading!

-Claire Y.

Land of Dreams | 7/52 {Behind the Scenes}

Hello! Today I tore open an old pillow and hung the stuffing from my living room ceiling. In my house, this is totally not weird because I am always doing something weird for a photo.

Who would have thought that pillow stuffing would make such awesome clouds? I also wanted to show you a couple of steps in the editing process because I love seeing how others edit their photos!

These two photos were merged...

To create this!

After cropping, increasing the contrast, burning, dodging, and curving, this is the result. I still felt like the photo was missing something.

After adding a dark bluish purple tint, it was complete! 

I hope you enjoyed this post! Thanks for reading!

-Claire Y.

5/52

Hello! Jackie and I went on an adventure in the snow on Saturday and here is one of the photos we got!

I usually don't like using spot color, but I thought was cute with the red accents on Jack's hat and the berries on the tree. 

Here is Jackie riding her scooter on a snow covered driveway. We obviously can't wait until summer.

Thanks for reading!

-Claire Y.

4/52 {& Behind the scenes}

Hello! I discovered two new fascinations today while experimenting with food photography. The first being how lighting and different perspectives can affect the end product. The second is this incredibly simple topping that will change my breakfast for ever. I will be posting a separate description of how to create that later.

I have read many articles about how to properly set up for food photography. After experimenting with lots of angles and my reflector, I have found a way that works for me. Because I love seeing these on other blogs, here is a pull away shot of how I situated the set up.

There is a sliding glass door off screen to the right which provides the natural light for the photo. I sat in the chair on the right of the image. You can see the pancakes on the table. I have the reflector wedged between the table and chair on the left. I used the reflector to fill in the shadows behind the pancakes to give them a brighter, more appealing look. 

I hope you enjoyed this pancake picture!

-Claire Y.

Lazy Sunday

Hello! I took this photo a couple of months ago, but I thought it would be appropriate for a lazy Sunday like today.

Homework and a big piece of hot fudge cake is calling my name!

Thanks for reading,

-Claire Y.

3/52

Hello! This week's photo is of my little sister, Jackie, again. This week I captured her in her game mode. 

Such focus, such concentration! She is playing her favorite, and only, Xbox game: Minecraft. In order to see Jack's face, I had to ask her to sit a little closer to the television, which ended up being three feet from the screen. I may have started her on a bad habit. Also, whenever she went down in a cave or dark area, I had to ask her to place a torch so I could have enough light!

Shooting in the low light was definitely a struggle. I am still learning about setting up manual mode, so most of the photos had lots of grain. I was able to boost the contrast a smidge while editing, and that helped. Everything is a learning experience!

Thanks for reading!

-Claire Y.

2/52

Hello! This is the second week of my 52 week project. This week I bribed my little sister, Jackie, with a half hour of Minecraft to model for me. I wanted to portray my vision of winter through this photo with snow (which had begun to melt), bare trees, and a pale, frozen face. Here is my winter inspired photo for week number two!

Jack and I also found a tree in our front yard to stop at on our way inside from our adventure. The branches made focusing difficult, but this cute picture of Jack was worth it.

The poor girl was not only freezing, but also swimming in my winter coat. So, a big thanks goes to Jack for putting up with me today and going on a snowy adventure with me in our backyard!

Thanks for reading!
Claire Y.

1/52

Hello! I have decided to do a 52 week project to motivate myself to make time for photos. With school being my number one priority, it is difficult to find time for photography. I think this project will help me with that.

For my first week, I wanted to go outside and take pictures with my new 50mm lens, but the below zero weather made me think again. Instead, I took this self portrait indoors, wishing for warmer weather.

Thanks for reading!
-Claire Y.