my moment in the sun

I have been trying to acheive sun flare in a photo for so long, and have never had any really success. Yesterday I was getting ready to go out and the sun was blaring into my bathroom in the most beautiful way. I ran to grab the kids to attempt a shot and they would not have anything to do with it. I was so mad, and knew I only had about 5 minutes before the sun went below the trees behind me house, so I ran back upstairs and started taking pictures of myself....in full on model fashion. This made me laugh so hard that I had tears flowing from my eyes and I almost peed in my pants. Then I couldn't get the shot because I was laughing so hard. I love those moments when you make yourself laugh so hard you almost pee in your pants...they happen a lot with me. Anyway- as I pretended to be a model and snapped away and laughed so hard at the rediculousness of the moment that I cried, I kept snapping, and posing, and snapping, and posing. I had so much fun all by myself at my photo shoot. When it was all over, my eyes were so damaged from the sun and the tears that I did not think I got any sun flare looking through the camera screen. I didn't care at the time. I had just had so much fun that it was worth it for that kind of laughter. I moved on with my day, and keopt my little photoshoot to myself. As I went through the pictures this morning, I got to re-live the hystercial, all by myself laughter all over again. Then I saw this picture. Figures that I would be randomly be snapping pictures of MYSELF and get THIS kind of sunflare. Because who, past the age of 25, want to look at pictures of themselves???After some smoothing of my skin and some over all color fix, I actually really like the picture. Especially the memory of snapping my own vogue photo shoot in my bathroom and having so much fun doing it. At least I can entertain myself, and I got a great picture out of it with the most gorgeous and colorful sun rays I've ever seen thru my own lens!

{My mom told me something about pictures that is so true. She said that no woman likes to see pictures of herself past a certain age because you see yourself aging and it upsets you. Angie and I were just talking about this and I couldn't agree more. I avoid being in pictures like the plague now that I see myself getting older. And I know I look young, but it's still strange to wacth yourself age. But she said to think of it this way....you will always look back at that picture years later and see yourself as younger than you currently are and think you looked fantastic! I challenge my photog friends who are always behind the lens to do this very same thing. Do your own photo shoot and post it on your blog! Have some fun! Know that you are beautiful on the inside and out and stop beating yourself up about aging! I'll try to practice what I preach. And remember, you will look back on those photos and think you look awesome someday! }

Here is the original. It's amazing what a little airbrushing of the skin and lighting changes can do to a picture! I made the edited one look kinda 70's because I felt like it.