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Welcome
Welcome to my blog! My name is Farrah Braniff and I am a portrait photographer in Houston, Texas. I specialize in contemporary portraits of babies and children. This blog is a place for me to feature my own personal imagery, images from my studio, my travels and the news and happenings of my family. I have two little boys (ages 5 and 6). You will see them a lot on this blog. They are my inspiration in so many ways. This is a great place to learn a little about me and my work. I hope you'll take a moment and look around. Use the navigation links at the top to find the entries by category, check out the FAQ, jump to my websites and so on. Thanks for stopping by! |
I am really going to miss the fog. Tomorrow morning we hop on a plane back to Texas and away from the incredible San Francisco fog. I know, for some, the fog can be gloomy. For me, it is dramatic. It comes and goes. When it goes away you appreciate the sun all that much more. When it slowly rolls in and engulfs the entire Golden Gate Bridge, I stop and appreciate the amazing power of Mother Nature.
When the fog is particularly dense and low you can feel it hit your face like a cool mist. It changes every day and changes throughout the day. It reminds me every day that I am absolutely not in charge. It gives you another reason to stop, look up at the sky a few times a day and appreciate the magnificence of our planet.
How about you my friends? Any favorite shots this Friday? Feel free to submit links to your images, blogs, Flickr, etc. in the comments section below OR submit your images directly to my favorite shot friday Flickr pool.
Happy weekend!
No visit to SF would be complete without a stroll through Chinatown. The boys loved all the shops. It seemed like every window had either ninja weapons, cool carved sculptures, bizarre foods or Pokemon toys. It's like little boy shopping heaven.
cable car fun!
There was no way to get out without this...
For me, I love the way Chinatown looks. It's a feast for the eyes- lots of cracked paint, little shops, crowded old sidewalks and great colors everywhere. It feels old yet you look up and see the top of the Transamerica Building. It's a cool contrast of old and new.
I love the graffiti here in SF. It's inspiring me to do some public art of my own. I may have to convince my BFF, Danny Clark, to take me out on a little late night graffiti adventure in Houston. You up for it DC?
cable car fun!
There was no way to get out without this...For me, I love the way Chinatown looks. It's a feast for the eyes- lots of cracked paint, little shops, crowded old sidewalks and great colors everywhere. It feels old yet you look up and see the top of the Transamerica Building. It's a cool contrast of old and new.I love the graffiti here in SF. It's inspiring me to do some public art of my own. I may have to convince my BFF, Danny Clark, to take me out on a little late night graffiti adventure in Houston. You up for it DC?
Bren says:
Love these! What an adventure for the kids. I can't think of a better city!
(08.04.10 @ 02:35 PM)
DC says:
Only artist with balls get up in the daylight. nightine is the right time for love only.
(08.04.10 @ 07:11 PM)
Leah says:
Farrah: Ten p.m. and I'm batting .333. Isaiah, asleep. Baby, still up cruising crib to chair to my leg to chair to crib... Grey, still up in MY bed behind me, pipes up as I pass the graffiti photos, "Oh, that's MY favorite pictures, I love it. Go up again. I love it, I so much love it! I want to send it! I love it - it gots a heart and the car thing. Go down please, Mom. I love the cave one, too." So, there you have it. A four year-old's expert opinion.
(08.13.10 @ 11:54 PM)
Leah says:
Farrah: Ten p.m. and I'm batting .333. Isaiah, asleep. Baby, still up cruising crib to chair to my leg to chair to crib... Grey, still up in MY bed behind me, pipes up as I pass the graffiti photos, "Oh, that's MY favorite pictures, I love it. Go up again. I love it, I so much love it! I want to send it! I love it - it gots a heart and the car thing. Go down please, Mom. I love the cave one, too." So, there you have it. A four year-old's expert opinion.
(08.13.10 @ 11:54 PM)
At one end, the city of San Francisco meets the ocean. It's a dramatic place with big, cold waves, rocky outcroppings, cliffs and ruins. I'm a big fan of Ocean Beach. It's almost an anti-beach. You don't see rows of people suntanning or prancing around in (shudder) bikinis. It's filled with people playing frisbee with their dogs, runners, surfers in wetsuits, people reading and a few brave soles swimming around in only swim trunks. On one end you can build bonfires. On the other end you have Seal Rock, the Sutro Baths and The Cliffhouse.
The boys loved the ruins of the Sutro Baths, especially Finnian!
The boys loved the ruins of the Sutro Baths, especially Finnian!
He loved digging around in the sand inside the ruins. I was just holding my breath hoping he didn't find something gross or cut himself. He was super excited about all the "sea glass" he was finding. He knows that I love sea glass and I didn't have the heart to tell him it was just broken beer bottles. He loved it just the same and I left with a pocket full of treasures.
Steven, taking in the awesomeness...
The tide was out and the kids enjoyed the combing the sides of the rocks for starfish, crabs and other little sea creatures. Steven took them up on top of the rocks.
some more favorites from the day. This first one is the sun peeking out from behind the fog.
some more favorites from the day. This first one is the sun peeking out from behind the fog.
Aric Hoek says:
I of course love the silhouette of the two of you on the top of the hill. Very nice. Going to be at the next meeting? I know we need to talk before hand.
(07.31.10 @ 04:45 PM)
Incredible! If you are ever in the San Francisco area, make sure and visit the Muir Woods. Quick tip, I would recommend going on a weekday. We went on Saturday and it was pretty crowded but, even with the crowds, it was still very cool. Anyway, the Muir Woods is the home to the magnificent redwoods. If you ever need to feel a little small, this is the place to go.
This is an example of the "be careful!" moments. One the other side of them was a small trail and then a sheer drop, eek!
I'm a huge fan of Moleskine books. The boys each have one that they draw in (or collect stickers or write or whatever). Our favorites are the ones with the elastic closure and the inner pocket. On this day, Sayer used his to keep a record of all the animals and plants that he saw, so cute!
Winter Wren, I'd like to take this moment to publicly apologize. 5 and 7 year old boys are incapable of doing much of anything quietly, including tromping around the redwoods.
Sayer did take a moment to meditate. It only lasted for about 3 seconds. Despite the very frequent "get down from there!" and "be careful please!" warnings, we did manage to soak in some of the magic. It's a truly beautiful place.
This is an example of the "be careful!" moments. One the other side of them was a small trail and then a sheer drop, eek!The view up was so amazing that it was hard to pay attention to much on the ground.
This one is my favorite from the day.
Julia says:
I love that area with those redwoods! Truly wonderful photos.... I'm sure you have a ton more that you didn't post. can't wait to go there sometime again myself...
(07.29.10 @ 09:10 PM)
Ashley says:
I really want to visit the redwoods someday. They are so majestic. Your photos are great I love them all, but if I had to choose one that I could call my favorite it would be the last. I just love the texture! Thanks for sharing!
(07.29.10 @ 11:32 PM)
Alyne Harding says:
I love that last one, especially! You should sell it as a poster. I'd love to hang it on the ceiling over my bed!
(07.30.10 @ 09:35 AM)
Z says:
I just got back from San Franscisco and these pic are so great!! It was nice to see some familiar sights.
(08.06.10 @ 09:13 PM)
I've given a few lessons here about how to make the background of your images soft and blurry by using your f-stop controls. One of the things I think people forget about is that depth of field works behind AND in front of your subject. You focus on the subject using your camera's auto or manual focus (in the case below, a rock out in the ocean). Your choice of f-stop will decide whether or not the background AND foreground are also in focus.
Image 1, the foreground is blurry
f-stop 2.8, shutter speed 1/8000 of a second, ISO 400
Image 2, the foreground is in focus
f-stop 22, shutter speed 1/200 of a second, ISO 400
Now, it's your turn! You have an assignment this week. I want you to go out and take sets of images like this one. Focus on a subject further away and put an object on your foreground. Experiment with making the foreground object in and out of focus. I really would love to see your results. Post links to your images in the comments section or add your images to my Monday Lesson Flickr pool. Good luck!