Portland Headlight

Yesterday some family members and I got an exclusive opportunity to go to the top of Portland Headlight in my hometown of Cape Elizabeth.
(Don't ask how, or if you can go. The answer is I'm not telling, and no.)

Not familiar with it? It's that lighthouse that you probably think of when people say the word lighthouse.  I promise if you google it you'll probably recognize it.

It was overcast and hot. But don't worry, it burnt off by the afternoon and there were blue skies for the rest of the day. Just like it always does.
I of course brought my camera and took too many photos.
Here are a few.

Door out to the balcony at the top of the lighthouse. I guess this is the "Favorite"?

I think this is a bird house? This isn't on the lighthouse, it's just on the lawn. But man am I a sucker for chipping paint.

The spiral staircase on the inside painted blue.

On the way up there were a few porthole windows.

Probably one of my favorite photos from the day.

The beacon.

The view from the top.

Other side from the top. Fort Williams is probably one of my favorite places EVER. If you ever come to Maine, this place should totally be on the top of your list.

On a totally less exciting note, we went to breakfast afterwards. An old Chevy LUV pickup was parked on the street. It was teal.  Therefore the camera was out!

This is my first time participating in Sunday Snapshot or Finagle a Foto. I do love photo link ups but I definitely had a tough time picking my favorite photo!

Have a fabulous Sunday!

(My shots were taken with my Nikon 5000. I used my kit lense (because that's all I have, sad face), and edited my shots with Gimp. I changed up my settings, the entire time.)

What I'm Loving Wednesday

This Link Up never fails to make me feel better about life.

1. Yoga. It is love.

I have been taking free yoga classes as mentioned here.  I officially feel taller and bendy-er twice a week.

I love it! Such a great break from the gym.

I may not be all that great at it, especially the balancing poses.

But no matter.

It feels MAGICAL.

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And since it's so obnoxiously hot, it's kind of like that fancy sauna yoga where you sweat and loose water weight.

2.  I'm loving breakfast on the porch in my P.J.'s with my husband, dog, and a little bit of a breeze.

3. I am loving good customer service.

Thank goodness my windshield cracked.

Let me explain.

In my birthday post I mentioned that my windshield got a little dingaling.  I sent it off to the glass place to get it replaced, which was quoted to be about 240 bucks. Fine.

Well, they couldn't get it done in the two hours that they promise customers due to backups. They called, asked if hey could hold it another day and apologized PROFUSELY.

And when I picked it up? They gave me a discount. I paid $195!

Also, my wedding pictures came in. We got the package where we got all of the pictures on a CD to do what we wanted. When we got them, about 100 of the pictures were tinted and shifted.

UM WHAT?

I called the our photo company, and after being connected a few times, I got someone who apologized and promised to send another new CD.

They think it had to do with the burning process. Another one is in the mail, and if that one has something wrong it'll be on the way!

So good customer service? Not always likely, but awesome when you get it.

4. I'm loving the fact that I found both of these shirts for $6 dollars on the clearance rack at American Eagle. 

I have this one in coral.

And I have this one in green with a blue stripe in the middle.

Absolutely perfect shirts for summer!

5. All of my followers! I can't believe I'm up to 30 already! Thank you for deciding I'm important enough to read and for all of your comment love!

6. And the last but certainly not least thing that I am loving is my new Nikon d5000 that I received as a gift from my whole family. It is so much fun! I'm still learning, but with some practice and some learning I think I'll get the hang of it!

I'm still on the fence between camera bags, I'll make the decision soon I'm sure!

(Those of you who haven't weighed in on your opinion PRETTY PLEASE leave a comment on this post or the original post on your thoughts. Thanks!)

I've had a few "photo shoots" and will be sharing those pictures soon!

Happy Wednesday!

<3

So Many Choices!

As I mentioned in my last long-drawn-out post about the most wonderful day of the year (a.k.a. my birthday) I got the most wonderful gift a girl could ever hope and dream for.

A Nikon d5000.

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It is wonderful, does crazy mad cool stuff, and has capabilities that are beyond my expertise.

I've been able to mess with it a little,  but I haven't had much time to play with it and get used to its controls between traveling and work. Since it's summer I would hope to have some opportunities in the near future to take more pictures of my dog running around, photos of flowers in bloom,  and close-up photos of Dave drinking his coffee and get used to my new toy.

And I guess all of my adventures.

Now, I also mentioned in my last post that Dave wanted me to pick out the case for said camera, and this my friends is where I come at a crossroads.

I could always head to the Nikon website or Best Buy and get myself one of these:

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These are great bags to carry and keep my new precious cargo safe.

BUT

There are just so many other options!

There is the slightly out of my price range but more than slightly adorable Kelly Moore collection that includes some gems such as this one:

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I mean how cute?

Again, another that is slightly more expensive than I'm looking for but have no shame in peeking at online, is this bag from the Jill-e camera bag collection.

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Now these bags are in my price range and it's like they caught brightness and happiness and forced them into a fabric and turned it into a camera bag. These are  the Glee bags from "The Joy Bag" collection.

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From what I can tell, these are basic top load bags. I don't know if it has the space that I want and the ability to take the lens off etc when traveling.

There is always the messenger style bag as an option with plenty of space and a long shoulder strap for comfort. This is from Golla of Finland. They have a lot of modern looks that are simple and fresh.
I'm not an expert in converting euros to dollars but I think this is in the range to being affordable. I think.

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Finally, before I even knew I was going to be receiving,  a camera, one of my favorite bloggers CMae over at "Happiness Is.." was looking for an easier way to carry her gear. 

Her issue with the bag that came with her camera is that she feels as though she's always carrying around a bunch of bags all bag lady style. I totally get that. Her solution?

She headed over to the Etsy shop "Seasons Totes" looking for a better way to carry around her camera while not looking like someone on their way from a moving truck.

She found this:

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It is an insert for your purse or bag. You pick out a bag you already have, insert this puppy, then pack up your camera. It also has organizers for stuff other than just your camera! That way instead of having your camera bag, purse, and whatever else you may be carrying around that day, it can all be in one.

What a cool idea huh?

Crumpler also makes something similar called the Haven.

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I think this is such a neat idea. But then there's also a traditional part of me that says that having a separate bag will keep things more organized and that I don't always carry a purse.

I just don't know! I'll be browsing and comparing over the next couple of days, but would love to hear your thoughts.

Which one do you think is best? Do you think fashion and praticality can meet? Or are the regular bags sold in stores the old standby tried and true for a reason? Do you have a camera bag that you just love?

Help a sister out and either leave a comment or send me an email letting me know what you think!