Another week, another “Five on Friday”!  Who’s excited?   😀  Let’s get this party started, shall we?

1.  We’re kicking off the school fundraising “season” and in addition to Gibson’s school, I’ve been contacted by a few local elementary schools for their upcoming school fairs.  I was also able to assist with a high school sports program.  I really enjoy doing work like this to help reinvest in our kids.  With the decline of our economy, our children are suffering with all of the budget cuts.  The teachers we rely on so much are buying classroom supplies from their own pockets.  I’m looking forward to events coming up this spring and you should too!

2.  Another thing I always make time for, military homecomings.   😉  They are very special to me.  I wish I knew of organizations like Welcome Them Home when I deployed.  I would have loved to have some photos when I came home to rejoin my little family.  Recently, I was asked if I could meet mom and kids at an In n Out near LAX.  Her husband was coming home early from deployment and she wanted to surprise the kids.  How could I possibly not make time for that?  I mean, look how happy they all look.

3.  I’m not sure if you’ve seen all this “news” about Manti Te’o’s “girlfriend”, but I think it’s a good reminder either way to protect yourself online.  I watermark the photos I post online to protect myself, my family, as well as my clients.  A watermark doesn’t have to be fancy.  It doesn’t have to have your name, but whatever it is that you add, I recommend adding it close to the face or over the skin.  This will make it more difficult to crop out your watermark.  For cell photos, who wants to upload them to the computer just to add a watermark?  They have this great app that you can watermark your cell photos and it’s really easy to use (and FREE).  It’s called iWatermark and you can find it here.

4.  Speaking of football (was that too much of a jump?), have you guys seen this video?  Even if you aren’t a football fan, I think you’ll enjoy it.  Now I have a new YouTube channel to follow.   😉

5.  I absolutely love processing in color, but every once in a while, I’ll process with black and white.  I’m married to color, but flirt with black and white.  Which do you like better?

I’ve been thinking of doing a feature product series where I’d showcase a different product from my catalog so that you can get to know them.  I have some favorites that I’d love to share with you.  In fact, I’m ordering a set of one of my favorites today!   😉

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and now that you have a watermarking app on your phones, you’ll a rest a little easier.