How about meeting up - you and me and other friends - and having a long and nice chat, while knitting together in a cozy shop full of wool......?????

Sounds nice, doesn't it?
Well... if you are in Berlin this month - we can definitely do something about that!

On two Saturdays (the 17th and the 24th of May) we will have 4 hours to meet, discuss, learn, chat and knit together! You will get my e-book "Shaken, Not Stirred!" and we can work through the pattern, start the project and mix and match our own cocktail side by side and needle by needle...

There will be new, detailed material and tutorials on the different techniques used in the pattern and we will work everything out together in German (or English or both... whatever you guys prefer).

The whole event will take place in lovely Berlin (at the bouclé shop) in the Nassauische Strasse 11-12, 10717. You can call Gabriele to book a space or to get more information about the whole workshop (Phone: 030-81853014) or you can write to info@boucle-wolle.de.

I am so excited to actually meet (like really physically meet) you guys.... there are so many ravelry connections and cyber-friends that I have made over the last couple of years - and now I will be able to see and talk with some of you!
This fact alone makes me EXTREMELY happy... 
but anxious, too.... I am feeling a little bit like an adolescent on a first date with a pen-pal!
haha...

I have gotten some emails from people asking me about my pictures: 
What kind of equipment I use and how I take them.... 
....So I thought that a "photography" post might interest you guys!

First of all you'd need good day light to take a picture that shows the true colours (of your yarn?) and has a crisp and bright image! The best light one can get is on a cloudy but bright day (you know, when you get this very "white" and cool light). 
The clouds act almost like a giant diffuser in an enormous open-air studio and you won't get any harsh contrast lines, as you would if you'd take a pic in direct sunlight!

Well... here is my equipment!
A tripod: This one is a light one for travels. My "good" one is at home... it is quite a heavy and sturdy thing - and it should be one, since I don't want my camera to be blown away while I strike a pose!
My camera of course: A Nikon D5000. I have it for 6 years now and it has never let me down...  
I am very happy with it, although the lenses are much more important than a camera body, so try to invest in a good lens and buy a basic camera body (that's my motto, anyway).
The remote: Very important piece of equipment! How do you think that I get my photos taken, if not with a remote control (some of you might have noticed that in most pics I hide a small, mysterious, black device in my hand)... Without it I would need to wait around until somebody would be kind enough to snap some (probably unflattering) pictures of me and I would feel bad to ask them to take lots more (you can never take enough pics, by the way: I take around 100-150 photos and then I choose the best 10-15 at most). Nobody would have the patience to take that many pictures whenever you (and the weather) want them too... so a remote is the best way to go! Another bonus point is that you can get as goofy as you want, since there won't be any witnesses out there, after all bad pics have been deleted!
And the white balance lens cap: That's the latest of my babies! It's a very handy little tool that doubles as a lens cap but is essentially an integrated grey-card. With this little disc you can measure the white balance right before you shoot a picture and save it as a preset. Mine is a cheap version I bought on Amazon and it does a very decent job, but there are a lot of them in quite a large price range out there...

But I have taken pictures where I am wearing the top, too today. I just need to edit these later on Photoshop: What I do there is to adjust brightness and contrast and I usually also crop the hell out of the pictures - because that's what happens when you take pics with a remote control, you usually end up with a shitty frame! Thankfully editing programs can help you get a much more dynamic and interesting frame out of the far away shot you took with the remote control.... (and you don't need Photoshop, lots of free programs can do most of these edits).

One can get so much information on the internet about photography (yes... the net can be used for stuff besides knitting!). There are lots of boards on pinterest with technical information and tips, that you can browse while procrastrinating in a productive way.
Here is mine for example (although I definitely need to add some more pins).

And probably the most important thing about photography is to get out there, get inspired and have lots of fun!!!! This usually is the best method to achieve anything anyway!

Tell me if you have any preferred equipment, app or program that you use -
I never feel like I know enough... especially when it comes to photography!