These beautiful birds were on our front lawn yesterday. We’ve seen them a few times over the years we’ve been living here, but never have they sat for so long. Usually by the time I get out my camera they are long gone. But yesterday they were happy to sit and pose and flew low enough for a few shots.

I’ve had a personal facebook page for a while now, and am happy to report that I’ve finally added a Kim Prochazka Photography fan page! Join us over there at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hancock-NY/Kim-Prochazka-Photography/48725873602. Hope to see you there!  And if you’re a past client that would like me to link your images to your facebook page, just shoot me an e-mail and let me know – I’ll do my best to upload them and tag you!

Wow – it’s been 3 years since we were blessed with these amazing little girls. Sometimes it seems like just yesterday! Teagan and Meghan are now happy healthy toddlers, but what a lot of you don’t know is that they were born very early and had a lot of struggles in their first few months. You’d never know it by looking at them now, but when they were born they only weighed 2lbs 14oz (Teagan) and 2lbs 8oz (Meghan). These tiny little angels were born at 29.5 weeks (we keep joking that it’s because they wanted to meet their big brother). Those first few weeks were a roller coaster of emotions and a long NICU stay. Thankfully, the NICU team at our hospital are amazing and really helped us get through it (and of course helped the girls too!) After 7 long weeks in the hospital, the girls were welcomed home. We were SO excited to get to hold them without tubes or wires or equipment attached. And of course, to introduce them to their big brother Colin.

It’s so easy to forget about those days, to look at the healthy little girls that are filled with laughter and joy. But on their birthday every year, I always take a few minutes to think about how far they’ve come and how incredibly blessed we are. They really are our little miracles in every way. I put together a little slideshow of the girls – on the days following their birth and now, 3 years later.

The girls’ early birth was one of the reasons why I turned my photography hobby into a profession, and that’s why I’m sharing this story with you. I realized in those weeks how important it is to have our lives documented. When I left those girls in the NICU, I went home with only a couple of pictures of them. I had done the same when Colin was born at 34 weeks. It’s an awful feeling going home without your babies. But at least I had those pictures. And that is why I volunteer with Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep (NILMDTS) and why I offer my services to any parent with a child in the NICU at no charge. It’s why I try to pick up my camera every day to capture the little moments of my family’s life. So that we’ll always have those images of each other – no matter what happens in our lives.

One thing I always tell anyone that asks about photography is to take pictures every day. It doesn’t matter what’s going on or if there’s something to capture or not. Just pick up your camera and take candids of your kids. Soon you’ll have enough to fill an album with your favorite images and before you know it, you’ll look back at those albums and remember their childhood as you have it in front of you.

I’ve gotten the pleasure of using this camera for a month now and can say that I’ve finally fallen in love with it! It did take a few weeks to get the hang of it since it is a bit different than the original 5d (and any camera has a learning curve to really get it right.)

Other than that the camera is amazing. The clarity is even better than the old 5d, noise is a non-issue through ISO 6400 (and I shot at ISO 25,600 a while ago at a birthday party and it was totally useable up to about an 8×10 size – not bad considering the only light in the room was from birthday cake candles!) The AF even seems to have improved from the old 5d, even though they didn’t update that specifically. My 1dMarkIII still beats the 5dii in AF, but it should – it’s designed for sports as much as portraits. The 5dii is designed for portraits, wedding and landscapes and I can honestly say it does that very well.

My “old” 5d is going into the camera bag to hang out for a bit. During weddings I shoot with 2 cameras, so it will be nice to have the 5d to give my assistant when she needs it.

So yes, the 5d markII rocks in every way! I’m thrilled! That said, anyone looking to upgrade should be warned that a body like this needs good glass first and foremost. And really, invest in glass before bodies – you’ll have your glass for decades if you take care of it not to mention it will make even a consumer DSLR body look good. Bodies only last a few years before the technology gets outdated and they begin to need work. But if you have your L glass (primes are my favorites – yummy!) then I highly recommend the 5d MarkII.

Check this out… This is what makes a 21mp camera worth it! This is a picture of Teagan, taken yesterday:
(This is sooc crop with only a few quick color adjustments in LightRoom.)

And this is a 100% crop of it (meaning I took a tiny little section of the above picure at actual pixel size)

Wow! I could easily print the 100% crop at a 5×7 and get an amazing image from it. Plus, the clarity is amazing at 100%. It’s a full length image and I’m getting clarity that I normally only see in close-ups at 100%! I’m digging that, for sure!

I know some of my clients are equipment junkies (like I am) but for those of you who aren’t, you are probably wondering what this means for you. Bigger, better images. It’s as simple as that (and the reason behind any equipment upgrade.)