I'm a full-time mummy

(* Article first published as Book Review - Photographing Children and Babies (Michal Heron) on Blogcritics.)

I have the privilege of reviewing this awesome photography book packed with cool tips and tutorials and below is my review of the book...

Title: Photographing Children and Babies: How to Take Great Pictures
Author: Michal Heron
 Publisher:  Allworth Press (October 2005)
ISBN: 978-1581154207
Paperback: 160 pages; Softcover
Dimension: 8 1/2 X 10 inches

Description from the product page:
"This family-friendly guide shows parents how to dramatically improve their baby photos and create beautiful, memorable albums without extensive experience, technical knowledge, or equipment. Featuring more than 150 striking examples of successful pictures, the book provides the skills and technique to create excellent portraits, action shots, group pictures and more. Written in an easy-to-understand, to-the-point tone, the book evolves from general to specific photographic concepts, with chapters including: seeing your children, the value of shooting close ups, portraits, capturing different moods, backgrounds and environments, film and editing, choosing b/w or color, the technical side, and family photos. Dozens of tips and instructions for bringing creativity to kids' photos are featured, including posing and catching great non-posed shots, working with children as models, advice on equipment, and more. A chapter on "Tips for Photographing All Ages" gives recommendations on how to get the best pictures in all stages of a childís life. Special assignment forms help the reader go beyond good intentions, get organized, and fulfill their goal of excellent portraiture. "

About the author:

"Michal Heron has been a freelance photographer for more than thirty years Heron has appeared on an NBC morning show to talk about children’s protraiture, and currently works on assignment for a variety of publishing and corporate clients as well as stock photo agencies. She is active with photographic associations and is a frequent lecturer at seminars and workshops throughout the country. She lives in New York City."

This is a great book for those of you who wants to take great pictures of children and babies!

When I first saw the book title, I was having some doubts as I seriously do not have any experience or knowledge at all in photography or camera stuff (see, I don't even know the proper jargons in photography world!) I researched further and found this in the product description "family-friendly guide shows parents how to dramatically improve their baby photos and create beautiful, memorable albums without extensive experience, technical knowledge, or equipment", oh hey, I'm in!!!

Like I said earlier, I have no experience in photography skills and I mostly use my trust Panasonic Lumix 10MP digital camera to take all my pictures. One thing that I always always do is to take loads and loads of pictures, since digital camera can store more pictures. I am happy to read that this is one of the tips found on page 21 which tells us to 'Shoot a Lot!' - so I guess, I'm doing something right here, hehehe...

I also learned that background (chapter 6) plays an important part in our photography as well and am glad to learn the tips and tutorials from this chapter. In chapter 7 (How Much Film Do You Need?) I also learned a lot on the things to look for during the editing process and I am practising some of the criterias listed currently too.

The pictures in this book are totally gorgeous and beautiful and I love the basic 4 precepts on page 11 which tells you how to best improve our photographs.

In my opinion, Heron's book is a good one to invest in if you would like to take better (and professional looking!) pictures of children and babies! 

You can get this book from Allworth Press, Amazon and many more.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with a copy of the book by Allworth Press in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine. And if you'd like to read my previous book reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My Book Reviews"

I received a press release on this new app available and was initially hesitant to request for a review copy as I was afraid that Ben might be too young for this app. Of course, I do believe teaching should start when children are young and so after thinking through again, I decided to request for this app hoping that there will be no issue for me in reviewing it despite the age constraints. To my surprise, Cathy from Oceanhouse Media replied with the promo code to download the app for free saying "It's never too early to begin teaching kids about the meaning of money :-)". Yes!

* Title: It's Not What You've Got!
* Price: $3.99
* Category: Books
* Updated: Jun 14, 2011
* Current Version: 1.08
* Size: 12.8 MB
* Language: English
* Seller: Oceanhouse Media, Inc.
* Rated: 4+
* Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later

Description from the product page:

"Dr. Wayne Dyer addresses the topics of money and abundance with the belief that a child's earliest thoughts and perceptions about these subjects are those that will last throughout his or her life. The aim is to help children develop a healthy view of money by using themes and images they can relate to.

Topics include Money does not define who you are, it doesn't matter what others have, and abundance comes in many forms. This is not a how-to manual on spending and saving for kids; but rather a positive, spiritual approach to the meaning of money. After going through this omBook with your child, discuss the 10 follow up questions which re-inforce the message and further develop children's understanding of the subject. "

About the author:

"Wayne W. Dyer, Ph.D., is an internationally renowned author and speaker in the field of self-development. He’s the author of 30 books, has created many audio programs and videos, and has appeared on thousands of television and radio shows. His books Manifest Your Destiny, Wisdom of the Ages, There’s a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem, and The New York Times bestsellers 10 Secrets for Success and Inner Peace, The Power of Intention, Inspiration, and Change Your Thoughts—Change Your Life have all been featured as National Public Television specials. Wayne holds a doctorate in educational counseling from Wayne State University and was an associate professor at St. John’s University in New York."

Pictures below taken of Ben while we went through the book together on my iPad... Ben was engrossed and captivated with the illustrations shown. He pointed out things he's familiar with, like family spending time together and the need to work regardless whether the job is fun or tiring and so on.

What's good?

* We can closely relate to the illustrations shown as it is more real-life (as in not cartoonish looking which might not be able to send a strong message to the young ones).

* I love the app! Even as an adult, I learned from reading this book too!

* My 28 month-old toddler is learning and applying what he learned from this book!

To be honest, after going through this book, I realised why Ben is telling us this sentences nowadays "Ben-ben buy", "Ben-ben pay money" and "Another one" (as in don't buy this on impulse, just wait for another better one!).

Yes, my 28 month-old toddler says all these sentences lately! All thanks to this book! I'm happy he doesn't go around saying 'Daddy buy for me' or 'Daddy pays for me' or 'Daddy buy now!' and so on and  the fact that he knows he's responsible and has to decide if he wants something and not just rely on other people to provide for him.

You can purchase the "It's Not What You've Got!" app from the iTunes App Store.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with the promo code by the sponsor to redeem the application for free from iTunes Store in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine. And if you'd like to read my previous iPad Apps reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My iPad App Reviews"

(* Article first published as Book Review: Mealtime by Elizabeth Verdick, Illustrated by Marieka Heinlen on Blogcritics.)

I have the privilege of reviewing the latest book from the Toddler Tools™ Board Books series by Elizabeth Verdick (illustrated by Marieka Heinlen) and below is my review of the book...

Title: Mealtime
Author: Elizabeth Verdick
Illustrated by: Marieka Heinlen
Publisher:  Free Spirit Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-57542-366-1
Board book, full-color: 24 pages
Dimension: 7" x 7"

Description from the product page:
"Mealtime—“Yummy-in-the-tummy time”—is an opportunity to teach young children two major personal and social skills: nutrition and table manners. This cheerful board book sets the stage to guide little ones toward healthy eating and positive mealtime routines—and to make time shared around the table pleasant for all. Simple but important mealtime routines come to life as the toddlers in this book remember to wash their hands, use a napkin and silverware, stay at the table, and eat healthy foods. Toddlers also learn the one big rule for mealtime: Always try one bite (“You just might like it!”).

Parents and caregivers want toddlers to develop healthy eating habits and table manners. With Verdick’s keen ability to speak directly to little ones and Heinlen’s delightful, appealing illustrations, Mealtime offers the perfect tool to engage little ones in a happy, healthy time at the table.

Part of the award-winning Toddler Tools™ series, Mealtime can be shared before (or even during) the desired “time,” or whenever toddlers need encouragement with social skills and daily routines and transitions."

I love all the books in the Toddler Tool series and I'm so glad to be able to review this latest book!

In case you don't know, since early this month, I've been blogging more about my toddler's meals, writing down and posting pictures of his meals whenever I can, as a way to discipline and motivate myself to be stricter in preparing his meals and to include more variety and nutritious stuff in his meals too.

So this book comes to me at the right time! Prior to this book, we have established some of our usual meal time routines for Ben.

With this book, I hope I can teach Ben to use a wet handkerchief (to wipe off the mess), and I'm very interested in trying to get him to try the one big rule for mealtime: Always try one bite (“You just might like it!”).

In my opinion, the Toddler Tools series are a good choice for parents to use with their children because of the positive message they bring!

You can get this book from Free Spirit Publishing, Amazon and many more.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with a softcopy of the book by Free Spirit Publishing in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine. And if you'd like to read my previous book reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My Book Reviews"