The Best Weekend.

Ok, I'm exaggerating greatly.  I've had a migraine on and off since Thursday.

But.

Thursday night I actually took my {soon to be} step daughter to the beach, where we began a very pretty beach glass collection.  And Friday, I found a dress for my engagement pictures, and a shirt for my fiance to wear for them.  (And granted, I *had* already found a dress but...I totally changed my mind once I found the other one.  Ooops.)

& Saturday...was...the day...

Of our Engagement Pictures!!

Clearly I was (still am!) quite excited about them.

We have the BEST PHOTOGRAPHER EVER.

I am not exaggerating.

She is amazing, and anyone who dares to say otherwise will suffer my wrath. Such as it is.

{I did scare my fiance into jumping out of a moving vehicle...but that's a story for another day}

Anyway. I am so excited about the pictures, that I totally snagged some of them from her FB page.

Enjoy.

 

 

 All images are c/o Elizabeth Pellette

So, how was your weekend?

Happiness is...

...being surrounded by your (many) siblings, the only people on Earth who can verify that all the stories you tell about your parents being crazy are true.

...your hometown.  Sure, you complain every day about how badly you want to leave, but then you wouldn't run into all of your old high school friends at WalMart, now would you?

...bare feet on your porch on an unseasonably warm day.  Come on, summer time.

...a really cute outfit, just for lounging around the house.

...watching your incredibly talented friends perform in what used to be a church.

...getting to marry your very best friend.  <3

And...Actions!

Last month I decided to invest in Photoshop Elements.  Because Picnik was closing its site and I didn't have another way to edit my Etsy pictures.  At first, I figured I'd just get Photoshop.  It couldn't really be that expensive, right?  HAH. Wrong. So very wrong.

Not willing to spend a fat grand on a photo editing program, I shopped around and found Elements.  The newest version of which I found for around $90, versus $900.  

And immediately upon installation of Photoshop Elements, I fell in LOVE.  It's really pretty easy to use, provided you read directions (which I don't generally, but in this case I had to), and there are a TON of easy online tutorials to follow.   

Then, whilst perusing online tutorials, and being so jealous of how cool other people's pictures look in general, I discovered that there are some Photoshop Actions that have been modified to work in Elements, and there are some Actions created especially FOR Elements.  Which means I can make my pictures look PRO, with a click of a button.   Muy easy.  (That means very easy in fake Spanish).  

There are a ton of great photography blogs out there, and so many awesome tutorials it's hard to pick any of my favorites.  But I did find some uhhhhmazing FREE actions here:  { Pioneer Woman }

So I made these:

My ridiculously gorgeous fiance.  I miss that mustache.

oh hey. I'm just that pretty all the time. Thanks.

These ladies are pretty darn awesome too:

{ Texas Chicks Blogs and Pics }

And if you're looking for a way to make, say, a lovely blog header or a Christmas card, look no further than:

{ Birdesign }

What are your favorite photography tools, hints, tips, tricks, blogs, or shops??

<3