Art Village in Namhae, South Korea

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Meagan & Dave | HappilyEverExpat.com

After our stay at the Hi Class Pension in Namhae, we had breakfast at the Hilton and then set out for some sightseeing. If we hadn’t been going to the Hilton, we might have never noticed the art village, but we are so glad that we stumbled across it.

Can you spot the Hilton in the background?

Namhae Island is a really rural area full of rice and garlic fields. As we pulled out of the Hilton, we spotted a mural of The Simpsons.

I decided I wanted to explore further so we drove up the narrow street through the village.

Continue reading →

Capture the Colour 2013

Posted on August 26, 2013 by Meagan & Dave | HappilyEverExpat.com

This is my entry for the Capture the Colour photo contest run by Travel Supermarket.

Each color will be judged individually and the category winners will get their choice between a 128GB iPad with Retina Display, a Fujifilm digital camera + lens, or £750 to spend with Arc’teryx. And the overall winner receives a £3,000 travel fund!

I thought I’d take my chances and enter some of my favorite travel photos.

If you’re interested in entering, you can find all of the details on the Capture the Colour contest page.

Part of the contest is to nominate 5 other bloggers to participate. My nominees are:

Kimmy from Afterglobe
Nicole from Suitcase Stories
Jessica from A Passion and A Passport
Anna from The Legendary Adventures of Anna
Kathleen from Our Favorite Adventure
*Note: You don’t have to be nominated to participate.

Red – Poppies in Ulsan, South Korea

Yellow – Buddha Statue in Phuket, Thailand

Green – Boseong Green Tea Plantation

Blue – Maiko in Kyoto, Japan

White – Lotus in Gyeongju, South Korea

Tokyo Tower

Posted on August 18, 2013 by Meagan & Dave | HappilyEverExpat.com

It’s been such an amazing week. Dave was off work so we spent a long weekend in Tokyo and then enjoyed the rest of the week relaxing and exploring. Couldn’t have wished for a better week… just sad that it’s come to an end and Dave has to go back to work tomorrow.

Here’s a sneak peak at our trip to Japan, the view from Tokyo Tower…

The Men of Haeundae Beach

Posted on August 7, 2013 by Meagan & Dave | HappilyEverExpat.com

As you learned in my last post, Haeundae Beach (Busan, South Korea) in the summer is more than a little overwhelming. If you find yourself at this chaotic beach in summer, my advice is to soak up the scenery…

… then head towards the Westin Chosun Hotel.

Don’t forget to people watch along the way!

Take a left just as you see the Westin and head towards the rocky end of the beach. Once there, it’s now time to check out what I’ve decided to call, “The Men of Haeundae.” They are an interesting bunch!

Continue reading →

Lotus Ponds in Gyeongju, South Korea

Posted on July 30, 2013 by Meagan & Dave | HappilyEverExpat.com

The lotuses are out in full bloom in Gyeongju, South Korea and it’s a beautiful site. Not only did I get to see some amazing lotuses, but the Shilla Flower Gardens were full of beautiful pink and purple flowers and there were also tunnels covered in hanging gourds. Full blog post will come later, but here’s a sneak peak.

Playground Photo Shoot

Posted on July 18, 2013 by Meagan & Dave | HappilyEverExpat.com

I spent all day Wednesday with my best friend, Ashleigh, and her two gorgeous little girls. I try to spend as much time with them as I can when I’m home because they are all amazing and I love them so much.

We had a great lunch with lots of hilarious conversation then made our way to Eureka Park in Denton, Texas for a photo shoot.

Ashleigh

If you thought Ashleigh was beautiful, her two little girls will melt your heart! Continue reading →

Our Favorite Travel Photos: 10 bloggers share the stories behind their favorite travel photos

Posted on June 14, 2013 by Meagan & Dave | HappilyEverExpat.com

I’ve taken thousands of photos in really amazing places, but this one is my absolute favorite. I realized this as I was going through some of my photos and came to this one. As soon as I saw it, I filled with joy and pride and I could remember the exact moment that I took it.

Dave and I were on a trip with his parents in Kyoto. We split up with them for a bit because I wanted to head to Gion to see the geisha and maiko. We spotted this gorgeous maiko in an alley just behind the old famous geisha school in Gion. We had been perched there for ages, waiting patiently, as if we were stalking our prey. We spotted her from a ways back and tried to contain our excitement so that we could get a photo before the other tourists could block our shot. She walked expressionless and looked into my camera as I took her photo. Out of all of the places I have been, this moment and this photo is by far my favorite.

I got so inspired after seeing this photo that I decided to ask my blogger friends what their favorite travel photo is. Here are the results… Continue reading →

Family Photos

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Meagan & Dave | HappilyEverExpat.com

When I was back in Dallas I found a Groupon for a 4 hour photography class by Beaux Arts Photography for only $50. I decided to give it a try.

The class was broken up into 4- 1 hour segments.

The Art of Photography – covered basics of photography as an art form and photo composition
Camera & Lighting Essentials – Aperture/Shutter Speed/ISO, JPG vs. RAW
Practice – We were given assignments and were sent out to take photos
Adobe Lightroom 101 – How to backup, store, organize and edit your photos

The class is designed for true beginners. The instructor, Sam, explaned things in very simple ways and made things that are a bit complex a lot easier to understand. He was very patient and was willing to answer every question. I thought he was a great teacher.

The most valuable part of the class, for me, was the last hour on Lightroom 4. This is a program that I was already using, but not well. Sam taught me several new tricks that I wasn’t aware of that have really improved my photo editing skills.

I decided to take what I learned and put it into practice by taking some family photos for my brother and his family. This was my very first portrait photo shoot and I am really happy with the results!