Rothenberg, Germany 2015

July 4, 2015, 11:15 pm

≫ Next: Bamberg, Germany 2015

≪ Previous: Wurzberg, Germany 2015

Happy 4^th of July! I miss America on this special day of the year, as I am thankful to be an American, but we are having a lot of fun on our honeymoon. We explored Rothenberg and ditched our guides today because Leo and I were debating about a work topic, I know we are on vacation, and forgot our headsets on the boat. This was the best day ever! We explored the medieval walls of Rothenberg and made our way around the city. We prefer each other’s company over most and bought items in the Christmas store, ate a true Italian lunch, and visited St. Jakobs church. I love visiting European churches!

Lisa Laporte: Rothenberg, Germany 2015

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Bamberg, Germany 2015

July 5, 2015, 7:26 am

≫ Next: Nuremberg, Germany 2015

≪ Previous: Rothenberg, Germany 2015

Today started with a lecture about World War II from a German political historian, which thrilled both Leo and I because we would rather listen to a historian than to a tour guide, and then headed out for our walking tour of Bamberg. Our bus stopped at the edge of the old town, which landed us in front of a Segway rental shop, and we decided to ditch our tour guide and take our own tour on Segways. What a ride!

Lisa Laporte: Bamberg, Germany 2015

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Nuremberg, Germany 2015

July 7, 2015, 2:53 am

≫ Next: Regensburg and Passau, Germany 2015

≪ Previous: Bamberg, Germany 2015

Today wasn't as exciting as the other cities, except the weather has changed and it was at least 10 degrees cooler so it was a fabulous day. Here's a few pictures of the town and cathedrals.

Lisa Laporte: Nuremberg, Germany 2015

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Regensburg and Passau, Germany 2015

July 9, 2015, 11:43 pm

≫ Next: Melk Abbey, Austria 2015

≪ Previous: Nuremberg, Germany 2015

Once again we explored churches and castles in our last leg of Germany as we entered Austria yesterday. I haven't been posting on my blog because of bandwidth and time issues but I almost caught up and only captured a few pictures in these two towns. I thoroughly enjoyed the organ concert in Passau!

Lisa Laporte: Regensburg, Germany 2015

Lisa Laporte: Passau, Germany 2015

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Melk Abbey, Austria 2015

July 11, 2015, 6:33 am

≫ Next: Vienna, Austria 2015

≪ Previous: Regensburg and Passau, Germany 2015

Today we visited the Melk Abbey, which is an active Benedictine monastery that fully supports itself. The library was impressive and while we couldn't take pictures in the library we were able to walk through it before we entered the Baroque church.

Lisa Laporte: Melk Abbey, Germany 2015

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Vienna, Austria 2015

July 11, 2015, 8:19 am

≫ Next: Budapest, Hungary 2015 - Part I

≪ Previous: Melk Abbey, Austria 2015

I wished we had a few more days to explore Vienna as we enjoyed our evening of clasical music, opera, and dance. The next day we ran around to see the Klimt exhibit at one museum, hurried out to another museum to see Rubens and more, and then explored Maria Theresa's palace.

Lisa Laporte: Vienna, Austria 2015

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Budapest, Hungary 2015 - Part I

July 14, 2015, 2:30 pm

≫ Next: Budapest, Hungary 2015 - Part II

≪ Previous: Vienna, Austria 2015

We were in Budapest for a few days and on the first we explored the city by doing what the locals did and visited shops, centers, and parks. The first stop was at a market/grocery store, which reminded me of the grocery stores that were around when I was a child 40 years ago in the US. We also rode a tram, used the subway, visited the modern city, as well as the late 19^thcentury market which was still in use today. Our guide, Gabriella Kiss (pronounced quiche), was born when the Russians still occupied Budapest and she was also a historian. She took us to a small, quaint park that she was overly excited to share with us and kept asking if we thought it was nice. Out of respect I said it was beautiful but it truly was an average park and I didn’t realize until later that they didn’t have nice parks in Budapest and she took us to the nicest park the city had to offer. Gabriella took us to Parliament, which was the first historical building that we saw without scaffolding because they finished the restoration process at the end of 2014. Gabriella was honest with us when she took us to visit the bronze shoe memorial at the river by sharing the horrific story of the Nazis final push to kill the remaining Jews before they had to surrender in World War II. We also discovered that Hungary is a poor country that has been occupied by others throughout history and they lost most of their country before World War II began. She said Hungary joined Germany because Hitler told them that they would get their country back. Gabriella also showed us a Hungarian memorial, which portrayed Hungary as a victim in World War II by Germany, which she said was controversial because they joined Germany and they were not victims.

Lisa Laporte: Budapest, Hungary 2015

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Budapest, Hungary 2015 - Part II

July 14, 2015, 2:35 pm

≫ Next: Sonoma County Fair Fun 2015

≪ Previous: Budapest, Hungary 2015 - Part I

We left our boat to stay at the Hotel Corinthia for two days and we had a Transylvanian guide named Romulus who took over our tour. My first impression of the Hotel Corinthia wasn’t good. I didn’t like the twin beds, old magnetic key card system, and windows without screens on the 4^thfloor, and lack of security to access the guest rooms. Then I remembered the park and in Budapest this was a five star hotel and may have been the best in the city. We went to dinner at a gypsy restaurant and listened to music, watched dancers, and ate goulash. It’s an event that you should do but I only recommend doing it once and eat a lot of goulash because the main course is terrible. He also took us to an old part of town that had tourist shops but also the home to small family restaurants and we ate more goulash. Romulus was gregarious, hardworking, funny, and also informative about Budapest and Transylvania. Romulus appreciated his new life because he was raised under communist regime in Transylvania, which was worse than living in Russia, and he shared his history with us. Romulus’ charisma was so amazing that I woke up at 3 am to catch our flight home and didn’t growl at anyone (I am not a morning person) because Romulus was seeing us off.

Lisa Laporte: Budapest, Hungary 2015

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Sonoma County Fair Fun 2015

July 25, 2015, 4:17 pm

≫ Next: Beach Day 2015 - Dillon Beach

≪ Previous: Budapest, Hungary 2015 - Part II

Yesterday I took Michael and his best friend Aiden to the annual fair that takes place in Santa Rosa. This is the first time that Michael went on ALL of the big rides with Aiden and loved it. I had fun editing the pictures and making some artistic while others are more realistic. Enjoy!

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Scream

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Scream Louder

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Best Buds

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Twirl

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Twirl 2

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - The Drop

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - The Drop 2

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Superman

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Best, Wet Buds

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Ready

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Jester

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Jester 2

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Jester 3

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Hard Rock

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Serious

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Sonic

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Michael

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Serious

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Tiger

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Michael

Lisa Laporte: Sonoma County Fair - Aiden & Michael

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Beach Day 2015 - Dillon Beach

August 8, 2015, 2:52 pm

≫ Next: 2015 European Vacation - B&W People Pictures

≪ Previous: Sonoma County Fair Fun 2015

Every year my son's entire school goes to Dillon Beach for a day of building sand castles, digging holes, and burying friends in the sand. Michael has one more year to enjoy this experience.

Lisa Laporte: The Boys in B&W

Lisa Laporte: The Boys in Color

Lisa Laporte: Bodies in the Sand

Lisa Laporte: Diving in the Sand

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2015 European Vacation - B&W People Pictures

August 9, 2015, 10:34 pm

≫ Next: Halloween 2015

≪ Previous: Beach Day 2015 - Dillon Beach

I took several people pictures in Germany, Austria and Budapest as I was inspired by children, young lovers, friendly locals and old people. Humor, boredom, happiness, and perserverance were captured in a few of these photos and I hope to continue to see growth in my photography.

Lisa Laporte: Young Lovers

Lisa Laporte: Lunch in the Castle

Lisa Laporte: My Favorite Old Man in Germany

Lisa Laporte: My Favorite Old Man in Germany #2

Lisa Laporte: Cafe

Lisa Laporte: Museum - Austria

Lisa Laporte: Homeless in Budapest

Lisa Laporte: Watching a Boy Drive his Mom Around

Lisa Laporte: German Sunbather

Lisa Laporte: Budapest Couple

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Halloween 2015

October 31, 2015, 10:30 am

≫ Next: TWiT.tv Halloween 2015

≪ Previous: 2015 European Vacation - B&W People Pictures

I thought trick or treating would end last year but we are going out again this year and I just love Michael's Riddler costume! I will be adding to the blog post later but here's a few of my favorites including my first moon pictures as I hope to improve over time. Enjoy!

Lisa Laporte: Michael aka The Riddler

Lisa Laporte: The Moon - First Attempt

Lisa Laporte: Michael aka The Riddler

Lisa Laporte: The Moon - First Attempt

Lisa Laporte: Shy Riddler

Lisa Laporte: Five Nights at Freddys

Lisa Laporte: Elvis is in the House

Lisa Laporte: The Gang

Lisa Laporte: Adult Fun

Lisa Laporte: The Gang

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TWiT.tv Halloween 2015

October 31, 2015, 8:39 pm

≫ Next: Boulder, CO 2015

≪ Previous: Halloween 2015

Our wonderful "New Screen Savers" staff dressed up this year and few friends dropped by the studio. I couldn't decide on which processed photo that I liked best so there are a few duplicates. Enjoy!

Lisa Laporte: Anthony & Alex

Lisa Laporte: Carly, Anthony, Alex & Jerry

Lisa Laporte: Carly, Anthony & Alex

Lisa Laporte: Anthony aka the best Joker that I have ever seen

Lisa Laporte: Anthony aka the Joker

Lisa Laporte: Carly aka Daenerys Targaryen

Lisa Laporte: Jerry aka Unicorn

Lisa Laporte: Carly and the Party Crashers

Lisa Laporte: Candice

Lisa Laporte: Carly, Shauna & Candice

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Boulder, CO 2015

November 8, 2015, 8:06 pm

≫ Next: TWiT 2015 Holiday Card Photo Shoot

≪ Previous: TWiT.tv Halloween 2015

Michael and I went with Leo to Colorado to visit Henry for their father and son frat weekend. Don't worry - Michael and I went out on our own and enjoyed the first light snowfall, walking down Pearl Street, and watching horror movies in our cool hotel room at the Boulderado. Good times!

Lisa Laporte: Michael and the Beaver

Lisa Laporte: Boulder Sky

Lisa Laporte: The Man

Lisa Laporte: The Boy

Lisa Laporte: Michael Parts the Rock

Lisa Laporte: Cool Boy

Lisa Laporte: Michael Sleeps

Lisa Laporte: Family Portrait

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TWiT 2015 Holiday Card Photo Shoot

November 17, 2015, 9:01 pm

≫ Next: Michael's 13th Birthday

≪ Previous: Boulder, CO 2015

The official TWiT holiday photo will be photoshopped and edited elsewhere but here are my favorites that I processed in simple B&W photos.

Photo Processed by: Lisa Laporte

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Michael's 13th Birthday

December 11, 2015, 7:15 pm

≫ Next: 7th Grade Dance 2015

≪ Previous: TWiT 2015 Holiday Card Photo Shoot

I can't believe that my baby boy is 13! Here's a few shots from his birthday party and his surprised face when I wrapped his birthday present, an Apple watch, in several boxes.

Lisa Laporte: Michael's 13th Birthday Party

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7th Grade Dance 2015

December 11, 2015, 7:38 pm

≫ Next: iFly Experience 2015

≪ Previous: Michael's 13th Birthday

Michael and Aiden are off with Tanner to the 7th grade dance and all three kids are wearing Santa hats. There are a few shots with Ozzy too.

Lisa Laporte: 7th Grade Dance

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iFly Experience 2015

December 21, 2015, 8:46 am

≫ Next: Learning shutter speed January 2016

≪ Previous: 7th Grade Dance 2015

Michael and I went with our friends to iFly in Union City and I highly recommend buying 10 minutes in flight time and you must pay extra to fly high in the air with an instructor.

Here's my first video that I just had to clip and save because it shows Michael, who was supposed to go first, change seats with me to make me go first:

Here is my second video of my actual flight:

Here's Michael's video of his flight:

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Learning shutter speed January 2016

April 3, 2016, 11:15 am

≫ Next: Trip to Mendocino March 2016

≪ Previous: iFly Experience 2015

I realized today that I have been busy setting up Artisanal Agency which includes hiring three new employees, calling other tech networks, finding new advertisers, that I haven't posted anything to my photo blog, and I have a lot to post! For those of you who missed why I set up Artisanal Agency, well here it is, and the website will be done mid-May, early June.

Now back to photos! I am finally starting to learn more about the cameras I use because I feel that I know what I want to shoot, but I am not capturing the light that I want in my pictures. Leo tried to have me learn several features on my camera at once, and I don't learn hobbies this way. I need time mastering one feature because I am not taking photos every day, and I want it to be fun. Here is a photo that I love from Christmas and few pictures I took out the window of Leo's car while he was driving to Sonoma. More pictures to follow!

Lisa Laporte: Christmas Joy 2015

Lisa Laporte: High Speed Photo - Headed to Sonoma 2016

High Speed Photo - Headed to Sonoma 2016 #2

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Trip to Mendocino March 2016

April 3, 2016, 4:43 pm

≫ Next: Michael's 7th Grade Bug Project & Presentation March 2016

≪ Previous: Learning shutter speed January 2016

I realized that I wouldn't get full days off after I started my own company ten years ago and then I switched my schedule to Saturday through Wednesday to have some time off with my husband on his days off and to be available to my son during his school week. Therefore, I shifted my mindset to taking moments off instead of traditional days off. Here are my photos from a quick trip to Mendocino in March along with a few photos of me that I processed. Enjoy!