I don't really know why the folks at Chuck E. Cheese's thought that putting a grinning Chuck E in the back of this bus wasn't creepy. Is it? I'll let you be the judge of that. In any event, Jason didn't mind (or even notice, really), whatever it might look like in this picture. Actually, this was his favorite ride. All in all, it was a pretty successful first trip to Chuck E. Cheese's, the occasion for which was a friend's birthday party.

Technical info: Shot with a Nikon D40 and Nikkor 50mm f/1.4G lens, in manual exposure mode. Aperture f/1.8, shutter 1/125 sec, ISO 800. Post-processing in Aperture 3: straightened; curves for highlight recovery; dodged over the interior of the bus; levels to brighten midtones; edge sharpening.

Thoughts for improvement: I'd like to have included the "C" in "Chuck E. Cheese School."

"They got married."

"Yeah."

"You got married, too."

"I got married?"

"Yeah, to Mommy."

"That's right, I got married to Mommy."

"Not today."

"No, it was a long time ago. See that picture over there? Of me and Mommy looking at each other?"

"Yeah."

"That's when we got married. See? Mommy is wearing a white dress and Daddy is wearing a tuxedo."

"Oh... I'm going to get married, too. When I get big."

"Oh yeah? You're going to find yourself a nice girl and get married?"

"Yeah, just like you."

"Jason, did you use the toilet at school today?"

"Yeah!"

"You did? That's very good!"

"I just went pee pee, not poo poo."

"Still, that's very good, Jason, I am very proud of you."

"Yeah."

"And you went poo poo on the toilet just now, too."

"Yeah."

"That's so good Jason. It makes Daddy so happy when you use the toilet like a big boy."

"I'm a human being Mickey Mouse!"

"...OK."

"Jason, no playing in the water."

"I'm not."

"And no touching the water."

"I'm not."

"And no getting in the fountain."

"I'm not!"

"You know what, just step back from the water."

Technical info: Shot with a Nikon D40 and Nikkor 50mm f/1.4G lens, in aperture-priority exposure mode. Aperture f/4, shutter 1/400 sec (0 EV), ISO 200. Post-processing in Aperture 3: straightened; curves for contrast.

Thoughts for improvement: A little bit wider to get more of the tile and more of his hands and arms would have been good.

Our friends James and Mel gave us a family membership to the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center for Christmas, and this weekend we took our first trip to check it out. Jason liked the kids' area a lot but, as you can see, he had fun in the main galleries as well. I'm not sure he really grasped the science just yet, but that'll come.

Technical info: Shot with a Nikon D40 and Nikkor 50mm f/1.4G lens, in manual exposure mode. Aperture f/1.4, shutter 1/125 sec, ISO 1600. Post-processing in Aperture 3: curves for highlight recovery and contrast.

Thoughts for improvement: A higher angle might have been nice, in order to get more of the shadows in the frame. The sign on the wall is also a bit distracting.

I'm all out of new pictures for the week (actually, I ran out on Tuesday), so it's back to the archives. This one is from the trip we took to Legoland back in October. This house is part of a Duplo-themed toddler playground near the back of the park. It has stairs up one side and a slide coming down the other, and I think it may have been Jason's favorite part of Legoland. Which made me extra glad that our tickets were free.

Technical info: Shot with a Nikon D40 and Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G DX lens, in manual exposure mode. Aperture f/4, shutter 1/500 sec, ISO 400. Post-processing in Aperture 3: brought up midtones slightly with curves; burned over everything except Jason, himself.

Thoughts for improvement: I could probably stand to crop out a bit of the bottom.

There are several little girls who like to hug Jason over and over again, one of them being his friend L. This shot is from our cookie-decorating get-together last month, and, as you can see, Jason had already reached the point beyond which he was willing to put up with repeated hugging, and had progressed to the "running away" phase.

You know, when I was younger (sure, older than Jason is now, but you know what I mean) I would have killed for the kind of attention he gets from girls. I suppose he'll get there soon enough.

Technical info: Shot with a Nikon D40, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G DX lens, and Vivitar DF-383 flash (in Gary Fong Lightsphere). Manual exposure mode, TTL flash mode (+1 EV). Aperture f/4, shutter 1/30 sec, ISO 200. Post-processing in Aperture 3: curves to increase exposure; levels to darken shadows and midtones for contrast and color pop; lightly dodged over Jason; added edge sharpening.

Thoughts for improvement: I think the reason this one didn't make the cut the first time around is because of all the clutter in the frame. The photos on the wall, the door behind L's head, the balled-up sweatshirt, the baby gate, and the edge of the wreath sticking into the frame—it all detracts from the focus of the image, which is L and Jason. I absolutely love the capture, though.

I had hoped to get out for some street candids this weekend, but what with the new bed and Jason's music class starting back up and needing a haircut and so on and so on, I didn't have time. So, Sunday afternoon I took about 15 minutes and tried out some lighting techniques with Jason at one of the neighborhood playgrounds. Here I was trying to both overpower the ambient light with my flash and to cross-light using the sun as a fill/rim light. I'm not sure I'm quite ready for prime time with this technique yet, but even so it seems to have worked out pretty well, which is exciting.

Technical info: Shot with a Nikon D40, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4G lens, and Vivitar DF-383 flash (in Gary Fong Lightsphere). Manual exposure mode, TTL flash mode (+0 EV). Aperture f/8, shutter 1/500 sec, ISO 200. Post-processing in Aperture 3: a bit of retouching around his mouth; light skin smoothing over his face; curves to increase exposure and contrast; levels to brighten midtones; reduced overall brightness; brushed in Intensify Contrast adjustment on his eyes; lightly dodged over his eyes; added vignette; added sharpening.

Thoughts for improvement: Well, the expression is a little "deer in the headlights" and I wish I had thought to bring a rag to wipe the spit off of his mouth. So, as a portrait it's less than ideal. But as this was mostly a lighting experiment, I think it was pretty successful.

Another shot of Jason before his first night in his new bed. I'm staying home with him today as he's feeling a little sick, and I just put him down for a nap. It's amazing to me how easy the day has been so far. He's really starting to act like a big boy.

Technical info: Shot with a Nikon D40, Nikkor 18-55mm DX lens, and Vivitar DF-383 flash (in Gary Fong Lightsphere). Manual exposure mode, TTL flash mode (+1 EV). Focal length 24mm, aperture f/8, shutter 1/125 sec, ISO 200. Post-processing in Aperture 3: cropped to 5x7; retouched a scab on the corner of his mouth; curves to increase exposure and contrast; levels to brighten midtones.

Thoughts for improvement: I really like the quality of the light here, which I got by pointing the camera almost straight down and bouncing the flash off the white ceiling. The composition is a little weak and cluttered, but overall I think it's a nice picture.

We got Jason a "big boy" bed this weekend. It was delivered on Saturday and he got to sleep in it for the first time Sunday night. I had chuckled a bit earlier in the day when Juliette had said "He's officially not a baby anymore," but actually putting him to bed was surprisingly emotional for me. Jason had his normal bedtime routine—bath, brushed his teeth, potty, pajamas, story, bed—and was very excited to get in his new bed. He fell asleep within five minutes, so obviously he was fine with it. Juliette and I, on the other hand, had to stop for a moment after we closed his door to hug each other.

Technical info: Shot with a Nikon D40, Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 DX lens, and Vivitar DF-383 flash (in Gary Fong Lightsphere). Aperture-priority exposure mode (matrix metering), TTL flash mode (+1 EV). Focal length 18mm, aperture f/8, shutter 1/60 sec (+0 EV), ISO 200. Post-processing in Aperture 3: straightened horizon; Cloudy WB preset; curves to increase exposure and contrast; levels to brighten midtones and darken shadows; lightly dodged over his face; burned over the highlight on the headboard.

Thoughts for improvement: I should have gotten a little lower so as to get more of the bed and less of the space overhead. An even wider angle lens might also have been interesting.