When a chance to bake for my friends arises I rarely turn down such an opportunity to get my creative head on and make something both delicious and pretty to look at.. I guess I just can’t help but be a little bit of a show-off sometimes J So when invited to a BBQ on the bank holiday weekend I set about planning the perfect, summery dessert.
I’ve been eyeing up the lilac tree for a few weeks now with such honest intentions, but alas I have been such a busy bee that by the time a perfect opportunity came to use it, it was mostly withered, aside from the odd little blossom still clinging on for dear life. I was doggedly determined to use the very last of it and salvaged what I could.
Since the lilac cake was out of the window I had to get my creative head on quickly to come up with another recipe before the Big BBQ the following day. After pacing the kitchen, juggling lemons and opening and closing the fridge door times, my eyes settled on the punnet of blueberries hiding on the top shelf. Blueberry and Lemon is a classic, summery combo but I really wanted to give it more of a WOW factor… perhaps something a bit boozy, it was an adult BBQ after-all and a Bank Holiday always calls for a tipple!
After the recent trip to Italy, my obsession still wears on so naturally I was drawn to the Italian Liqueurs. To tell you the truth, Limoncello was my first, most obvious choice to go with this one but I didn’t have the heart to open my bottle all the way from Sorrento just yet. Galleano is one of my favourites and a nice, well-rounded flavour, and so the lid was popped.
The lilac blossom got it’s debut along with the blueberries decorating the top of the cheesecake, with a drizzle of white chocolate and some mint for colour and fragrance! I think it looks super pretty and summery!
Serves
You will need a loose-bottomed, springform cake tin for this recipe
Ingredients
For the Base:
g Oat biscuits
g Butter, melted
50g Runny Honey
For the Cheesecake:
4 x g tubs of Full-Fat soft cheese (I use Philadelphia)
ml double cream
g Blueberries
g Icing Sugar
Zest and juice of 2 Lemons
ml Galleano
To Decorate:
50g Blueberries
50g White chocolate, melted
Mint leaves
Lilac blossom (optional)
Method
Enjoy every morsel whilst listening to your friends proclaim your excellence!
I use this bag for all of my light stands, umbrellas, styling mats and Mag Mod
I love to carry on my lenses, extra batteries, cell phone and wallet with me throughout the day so I can quickly grab things as I need them, so I have always used a Shoot Sac camera bag vs dual camera bodies. It works for me, and I love it. Its great for when you need to switch lenses in a flash or grab a battery in a hurry.
4. Light stand Bag Lowepro Pro Roller x AW Rolling Bag I have had my Lowepro Pro RollerX AW Rolling Bag for 12+ years and this baby is still going strong. It is technically a little bigger than the carry on dimensions for domestic travel but is still great to use for a wedding day. If you are looking for something similar, Id grab the Manfrotto Advanced III Rolling Camera Bag as it is similar to the bag I have. Then theres the roller bag, perfect for those who lug around heavier gear or if you have a lot of camera gear. This is also great for destination wedding photographers. This bad boy comes with wheels and a telescopic handle, so you can effortlessly glide through the wedding chaos. Over the years, I have paired down my lens collection to what I use the most and these 4 Sony lenses + 1 Nikon lens are what I use every wedding day. Stay tuned for a full post about what lenses I use during each portion of the wedding day. 1. 49mm Close-Up Filter Set (+1, 2, 4 and +10 Diopters) Magnification Kit : I ditched having a heavy macro lens for details and instead use these for the images I take of the rings / jewelry during bride prep and put this on my Sony ZEISS 55mm lens 2. Sony ZEISS Batis 85mm f/ Lens : My go to portrait lenses especially when I want to bokeh out a blurry background 3. Sony FE 35mm f/ Lens : I mainly use this for reception dance photos and sometimes during bride prep in small spaces. 4. Tamron mm F/ Di III VXD : I use this lens during the ceremony and during toasts / first dances. 5. Sony Sonnar ZEISS T* FE 55mm f/ ZA Lens : If I had to photograph a wedding all day with just one lens, this would be what I would pick. I love this lens so much. 6. Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/G : This stays on my 35mm film camera, and I love using this with my 55mm so that my film scans match my digital. + (3) Flashpoint Zoom Li-ion R2 TTL On-Camera Flash Speedlight: My off-camera lights that I use during family portraits and during the reception. + (1) Flashpoint Zoom Li-on X R2 Round Flash: This is my go-to on camera flash that I use throughout the day. It triggers all my other flashes and I can adjust the off camera flash settings from the camera. As a hybrid wedding photographer, I also shoot film throughout the wedding day. My film kit is a bit smaller than some other film photographers and has changed over the years. This is what I have in my current film kit. 1. Pentax N Medium Format Film 2. Sekonic L Flash Master Light Meter: I love this light meter. I keep the bulb in and meter for the shadows when I shoot my film. 3. VIJIM VL LED on Camera Video Light: I use this when I need a little more light on something. You can adjust the white balance / kelvin on it and the brightness. It is also great when its really dark and your camera is struggling to focus. 5. Kodak Professional Portra Film, : My go-to film stock for film / medium format film. 4. KODAK Portra 35mm Film 6. Nikon 65N 35mm Film Camera 7. Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/G There are always a lot of little things that I keep in my photography gear. And what I think are essential as wedding photographer. + Sandisk SD Cards :You can never have too many SD cards. I personally do not delete my memory cards until I deliver the gallery and backup the RAW files in 4 places. + Eneloop batteries + charger : My favorite rechargable batteries that I use in my flashes / flash triggers. + Plastic storage case for batteries : This keeps my batteries organized in my bag. Batteries that are charged stay in the case while loose batteries go in my charging bag so I know what needs to be charged when I get home. + Camera Battery Bag : I love having a bag like this to keep all my camera batteries organized. I flip the batteries to know if they are dead or charged. + Phone Camera Mount : I attach my phone to camera for behind the scenes while I am shooting. Want to add my camera bag to your Amazon wishlist? Here is the full list of everything I need when it comes to wedding photography gear + essentials. *Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. I only gush about products, companies and things I cannot live without, and it is my goal it share the best things with YOU to save you time from hunting down things that will make your life simpler. >>>>>Interested in more photography tips + advice? Be sure to check out a ton of free photography resources and education on the blog like how to determine your ideal client and which cameras and lens I bring with me when I travel out of the country for personal projects.<<<<<Wedding Photography Lenses
Wedding Photography Lighting + Flashes
Lighting Gear
FLASHES
OTHER LIGHTING
Wedding Photography Film Kit
Wedding Photography Gear Extras
Grocery shopping has always been one of my favorite pastimes. I love to cook, I love food, I love sales, I love coupons, I love wandering the aisles and looking for new products; shopping is simply one of my favorite things to do. After the birth of our son, I would leave him at home with my husband as I would go shopping.
As you know, our world is currently in a pandemic and things are not normal, but they are the ‘new normal’ as folks say. After my husband returned to work from his paternity leave, 12 weeks after our son’s birth, I quickly realized that I was going to need to figure out shopping on my own with a baby. I was not going to wait around for someone to be able to watch my baby in order for us to have yummy food in the house. I decided I was not going to live in fear of the virus and going in public, but just do everything in my power to prevent getting sick and to protect my little one.
The first day that I went grocery shopping by myself with my son I prepared as much as I could. I brought my hand sanitizer, Tula carrier, his diaper bag, extra food, my breast pump, and headed off to the store. I had written my detailed shopping list in order of Costco’s layout to be able to zoom through and throw every item in the cart as fast as I could. My plan was simple, but much harder to execute than I had expected.
(This post probably contains affiliate links. We receive a small commission, if you buy something using our links, at no extra cost to you!)
Costco, obviously, is a massive store, and wearing a baby on your front and picking up bulk items took quite the effort and probably looked pretty comical. I was doing squats to grab my toilet paper and bottled water and heaving the items into my cart. I had sweat dripping down my neck and my hair transformed into a frizzy puff ball from the humidity I had created with my heavy breathing and swift movements while wearing a mask. I had my arms jetted out in front of me while pushing the cart, to avoid accidentally bonking my baby’s body on the handle. People quickly cleared their paths when they saw a sweaty, determined mom speeding down the aisles. I would nod at them in appreciation as they got the heck out of my way.
I remember being anxious about checking out knowing I would have to unload my cart onto the belt quickly and under pressure. However, due to COVID, the cashiers asked me to leave the items in the cart so they could scan them without handling extra items. This eliminated another sweaty activity for me and I was grateful.
I got in and out of Costco in under 30 minutes that first trip and this was short enough for my son to not get mad about being in his carrier. I ripped my mask off my face as soon as I made it to my car and inhaled the fresh Pacific Northwest air. As I took him out of the carrier a nice breeze cooled the parts of our bodies that were previously just sandwiched together during a vigorous shopping trip. I put him in his car seat, unloaded the groceries, shoved the cart in the corral, hopped in my driving seat, sanitized my hands, threw on my portable/wearable breast pump to release those babies on the drive home, cranked the AC and drove home feeling pretty proud.
Upon arrival at home, I brought my son inside and began the unloading and lysol wiping process of our purchases. After unloading, we took a bath and put on fresh clothes. We were both clean, I didn’t feel that our health was compromised and we had just tackled our first big shopping trip together without any help; it felt like we had conquered the world.
As my son gets older, shopping has become exponentially easier. He loves to look around and take it all in and often releases sounds of joy and glee while walking around. People seem more courteous when they see a mom wearing her baby and clear the pathway.
I prefer to bring a shopping buddy with me to town, because having the extra hands makes things a million times easier, but I like knowing that going by myself is an option. Before having a baby, it was easy to not notice the parent shopping with their little one, but I have now learned how much work it really is and how much preparation it takes to leave the house. It’s pretty wild how mindless shopping used to be for me and how much more stressful it has become having a baby. But, tackling the grocery shopping with my little sidekick keeps things interesting and I am thankful for such an easy going little guy.
And lastly, don’t stress!
This is like the MVP of camera bags, with its roomy compartments and comfy design. You can stash multiple cameras, lenses, and all those little extras while keeping the weight balanced on your shoulders. While this bag is far from stylish, it has been great for domestic and international travel. I love that you can only get the gear out of the bag when you put it down.
Ever wonder what is exactly in my camera bag for a wedding day? Heres a look into the professional wedding photography gear that I have and use on a wedding day. When I first was starting my photography business, I was SO freaking overwhelmed with all the gear that I needed to own to properly have the right tools for the job. I was overwhelmed by all the choices and was trying to understand what lenses were compatible with my camera, what gear I *really* needed, where to spurge and where to save.
Below is a list of what is currently in my bag and the gear that I use. After 12 years as a professional wedding photographer, I have actually swapped out some of the more expensive gear for some more affordable options. There are lenses that I find I use all the time, so I invest in those and the lenses I only use for a part of the wedding day or occasionally, so Id rather have a less expensive. (Plus, I have dropped / broken a lot of camera equipment over the years so going with a more budget friendly option has saved me some $$$ over the years).
Every wedding photographer approaches the day differently, and what equipment is in my camera bag might not ultimately be what photography cameras / lenses / gear is best for you when you photograph a wedding. My suggestion is to not just buy a piece of gear because someone else has it but because you love it and need it to create your art.
Pro tip: When I was first starting out, I rented a lot of gear before I invested in it. I used to rent the Nikon f lens for the first year or two when I became a wedding photographer. That lens cost about $2, and I wasnt ready to invest in it that the time, so I would rent it for $50 each time I photographed a wedding. You can check out your local camera store to rent more expensive lenses or order a lens from places like eunic-brussels.eu
*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. I only gush about products, companies and things I cannot live without, and it is my goal it share the best things with YOU to save you time from hunting down things that will make your life simpler.
I keep two full-frame professional mirrorless cameras with me for every wedding and shoot I do. I believe every wedding photographer (and professional photographer) MUST have TWO cameras. You never know when / if something might happen to your primary camera, so I strongly recommend that you invest in two camera bodies.
Two years ago, I made the switch to Sony and a mirrorless camera, and I have to admit, I wish I had made the switch sooner. While I loved my old Nikon D DSRL, the thing was HEAVY and when it was paired with a flash and heavy lens, it weighed over 5 pounds. Yikes! It was a lot to lug around, so when I tried out the mirrorless system with Sony, I was in LOVE. It is super lightweight, and my body doesnt hurt quite the same post-wedding day after carrying around my gear all day because it is so light.
These are the cameras I keep in my photography bag
I joked with my photographer friend the other day, that is it impossible to have one camera bag when you are a professional photographer. Over the years, I have had a handful of different camera bags, but these are what I tend to use the most.
If you are interested in how I travel as destination wedding photographer (Ive been on nearly 40 flights in the last 3 years to photograph weddings, be sure to check out this blog post coming soon on how I pack and travel as wedding photographer).
аналитика форекс gbp кaртa мирa форекс вспомогательные индикаторы форекс как платят налоги трейдеры валютного рынка форекс лучшие индикаторы для входа индикаторы измерения температуры щитовые дмитрий котенко форекс клипaрт для форекс имхо на форексе дц форекс брокер отзывы безрисковая комбинация форекс индикаторы рынка ферросплавов