I just can’t keep up with everything these days.  On Thursday, I’m heading to Me Ra Koh‘s Discovery Workshop in San Francisco, CA.  Amidst the unpacking and organizing that still has to be done from our recent move, I just haven’t been able to haul out my studio lighting equipment and take the self-portrait that I have to bring to the workshop.  Tomorrow is my last day to do that, so I think that last-minute pressure is going to have to get me working.

I’ve also been working on processing my digital files so that my prints come out looking just right from the lab.  What a pain in the neck!  It really is so difficult to get a good print, because any red tones in the skin can easily go nuclear and make a sweet baby look like a lobster.  On the other hand, reducing the red tones too much can make the same baby look lifeless and ashy.  To complicate things, printing from a home inkjet printer doesn’t ever produce the same results as printing from a digital photo lab.  So, it’s not as simple as proofing at home and thinking that I’ve nailed it.  Instead, I have to process skin tones by the CMYK numbers (a la Lee Varis), which is pretty similar to taking stabs in the dark! And I have to go through a few rounds of back-and-forth with the lab to see if what I did came out right.  I must be too picky, but I want my prints to look good!

With all the things to be done around here, I have to come to respect immensely all those moms who have been able to raise their young children and run their own business at the same time.  Sometimes I can barely even manage to get spaghetti onto the table for dinner.  Cooking??  No, it’s reheating that’s going on here.

Things are busy, but I do have some exciting things in the works.  Here is a picture that I took of Paige while she was dancing, swishing, and floating around.  The picture is calming and optimistic, and it reminds me of the things ahead of me that are full of possibilities.