Baby You're a Firework. #imagelogger 4th of July Weekend

Summer is in full effect in Southern California. This 4th of July found us beach side, at Omni La Costa Resort and Spa for fireworks and up to LA for some fun in the pool at my parents house. 

I've had tons of fun playing with the automatic features of my Samsung NX300 this week - action shots, fireworks and creative settings have helped capture some great moments this past weekend. Also loving the new 30mm "pancake" lens I'm trying out. It makes the camera much smaller, and I love the way it focuses on the subject while blurring the background. 

Also celebrated my Dad's birthday this weekend with some of my FAVORITE CUPCAKES EVER: Sprinkles!

Even little Daisy May got a special treat!

I couldn't get enough of the late afternoon light in parent's backyard... 

All images in this post were taken with the Samsung NX300 SMART camera. Samsung provided me with a camera to participate in the #Imagelogger program. All opinions and photographs are my own. Over the next few months I will be sharing images taken with the NX300 SMART camera on Twitter, Facebook and here on my blog. If you want to follow along and check out some of the images the other Imageloggers are taking - just follow the hashtag: #Imagelogger.  

Are You #PenReady? You NEED an Olympus PEN E-PL3 Camera & I Have 1 To Give! {GIVEAWAY!}

I've been posting a lot of pictures over the past few months. I've been inspired by views and images, both grand and simple, and thanks to my new Olympus PEN E-PL3 camera, I've been able to capture these moments with beauty and ease.

visions of NYC thru the eye of my Olympus PEN E-PL3 cameraI'm the annoying photographer that keeps stopping you on the street to take pictures of the minutia of life. FDNY shield on the street, an old lock set on a brightly colored door, or one of the many fabulous window displays lining 5th Ave. But to me, those are the moments of a trip. The sights that are burned into your brain. The images that make up your experiences. 

While NYC is a {wanna-be} photographers DREAM, think about all the amazing photo opportunities afoot now that it's FALL! Changing leaves, apple picking, Halloween and the holidays... all things you NEED a new amazing camera to capture.

Well - YAY! I have one for you. 

The nice people at Olympus want you to love this camera as much as I do, so they giving one HipMamaB reader their very own PEN E-PL3!

Valued at (aprox) $599, this 12 MP camera gives you the benefit of being smaller, but with the chance to have more artistic control of your images (if you so want). 

Olympus PEN Lite key specifications:

• 12MP Live MOS sensor
• 120 Hz 'Fast AF' focus system with 35-point area AF
• Clip-on flash (included)
• Built-in autofocus illuminator light
• 460,000 dot tilting LCD screen (16:9 aspect ratio)
• Dual-core TruePic VI processor
• 1080i60 movies in AVCHD format
• Shadow tone adjustment control
• Revised and expanded Art Filter mode (with quick preview option)

Let's be honest. This camera is just, plain, RAD.

And I get to give one away! Wheeee!!!

Contest is now closed - winner will be announced shortly 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good Luck!

*disclosure: Olympus cameras gave me a PEN E-PL3 camera to have, and one to giveaway. Thoughts and feelings about the camera are my own.

Wordless Wednesday: Late Summer Beach Days...

The best beach days in San Diego always come late summer/early fall. With Jason's knee recovery, our beach fun has sorely lacked this summer. Last Sunday was a picture perfect day, so we grabbed the kids and my little waterproof Cybershot and hit the sand...

I love the water pics this little camera takes. Being able to be in the sand and the water with the kids while getting some amazing pictures makes this camera perfect for those long, hot days living the So. Cal dream.