365 Project - Day 227

I have experienced a lot of firsts the past year and recently had the opportunity to sit through a dance recital rehearsal for the first time since I was 16. This was more fun as a parent than I recall as a child, although I'm not sure my mother would agree. I wanted to capture the spirit of this rehearsal. Parents watching in the dark in the auditorium, having received their child's costume. The leader and instructors on stage with last minute coaching. The kids almost, but not quite there.

This is two days prior to the recital for Lisa Mennilli's Dance Academy and the kids are working on the closing act. Perhaps my favorite part of the photo are the preschoolers. There is nothing more adorable than small children absorbed in their own worlds. It looks like they want to pay attention and participate, but they simply cannot. There's so much to see and experience.

I wish we could extend that sense of wonder far longer into our lives. As my 14 year was begging to steer the car recently, I asked him not to be in such a hurry to grow up. "Please," I pleaded, "enjoy this time of being young and full of curiosity and awe before you jump into being responsible and that is stolen from you." My mother reminded us this evening of how he and his best friend in preschool used to giggle and play on the soccer field without paying a moment's attention to the game. That's what I want him to hold on to for as long as he can. As adults, we can recapture wonder if we allow ourselves to live fully in the moment, without harsh distraction and without judgment. I encourage you to be in awe at least once every day, it refreshes the soul.

Best wishes.

Today's Photo: Time to Dance!

"At the time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, 'Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?' He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.' " Matthew 18:1-5










EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 1000
40mm
f3.5
1/125s

365 Project - Day 226

Tomorrow is the big day! It is hard to describe the swirl of emotions. Everything was complicated by the fact that my parents, who were too busy to arrive early, missed their flight today. I called them 5 hours before departure. They were packed last night - good news, but had not checked in despite my calling last night to remind them - bad news, and my dad was chasing errands - the worst news. I know this situation well. It has been repeated numerous times, but we always hope, "just this once". Now, I have to hope they will make it to the graduation ceremony. To be candid, I could not even speak to them when I heard the news. I suspect the Lord knew how this was going to play out because I left the house without my cell phone. So it was up to my husband to break the news when I came home with our Chinese take-out.

Back to today's photo ... this photograph invokes a flood a memories, like walking down the block with him when he was 5 years old and those big eyes looking up at me upon hearing a man shouting the words, "shut up!" to his dogs. My son said, "mommy what does that mean?" Or the local children's musician referring to him as "the Mayor" because he saw my son at all of the birthday parties he booked. And the first day of school in Paris when he was so excited to see a charter school bus, rather than our traditional yellow school bus. The football games, recitals and theater productions. And, the most beautiful and infectious laughter ever. He is a spectacular young man. And while I am excited about his future, I'm sure I will mourn this past a little bit tomorrow.

I have held up remarkably well during this senior year. I have the luxury of another one at home and I have tried to soak up every moment, not wanting to be lost in sadness and melancholy, but thrilled for each and every opportunity. My children are extraordinary gifts. I am fortunate to have been chosen to guide them on this journey of life and hope I have prepared them well (or at least well enough). These are talents bestowed upon me to nurture, develop and mature and then deliver to the world to make a better place. I would be remiss if I did not do that well.

Blessings.

Today's Photo: Done!

"We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscience of our treasures." Thornton Wilder






EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 200
50mm
f2.8
1/15s

365 Project - Day 225

"Sing to Him a new song; Play skillfully with a shout of joy." Psalm 33:3

My husband has a last day of school ritual and he's out of town. He texted me asking for confirmation that it was the last day of school. Without thinking of the implications, I answered. And then came the series of instructions. Let's be clear: I do not have a last day of school ritual with our children, however, since my husband is away tending to family matters, I thought I should attempt to oblige.

The instructions were something like, find the water gun in the garage; fill it; hide in the woods; jump out and spray Brooks when he gets off the bus; video with your phone!

Say what?

As a businesswoman traveling all over the world for weeks at a time, being home on the last day of school was not a priority. I needed to be home the first day of school, for major school events and theatre productions. Not for the last day of school. That set of instructions reminded me why.

I found the pump action water gun. I spent time trying understand how to pump it and film at the same time. What you see below is the gun and where I hid while waiting for my son to get off the bus. I chose to film the event on my DSLR. I turned my camera on as soon as I heard the bus approaching, pumped the water gun and crouched low. I then shuffled out to attack Brooks when he headed up the driveway. It must have been a silly sight. There is little of it recorded, since my primary focus was the attack and I had so much fun squirting him.

The older son was a bigger challenge. Since he had rehearsal after school, I didn't see him until later in the day. We went out shopping for a costume, so I hid the water gun in the garage before we left. When we returned, he parked his car outside and I hustled into the garage, picked up the water gun and waited for him to step inside. I got him. This is not recorded, but it was done. And that is good enough!

Success!!

I enjoyed seeing the smiles on my children's faces, a reminder of the joy and healing of play! I am thankful to have had that moment with them.

Best wishes.

Today's Photo: Last day of school

"The body heals with play, the mind heals with laughter and the spirit heals with joy." Proverb






EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 250
35mm
f5.6
1/30s

365 Project - Day 224

"Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." Galatians 6:7

I've been anxious to spend time photographing flowers in my garden. I remain astonished at the amount of growth since I planted the garden a year ago. When I started my garden project last year, I was hopeful, but also realistic. Planting 70 flowers was hard work. I lifted rocks from the beds, tilled the soil, added fertilizer, watered and continued to nurture the flowers through the summer. I expected to enjoy one good season. Little did I know my investment would pay off so nicely, in spite of the long and harsh winter, or perhaps because of it.

This photo was taken as the skies were darkening, a moment before a heavy downpour. I continued to photograph while standing under the eave of our front porch. Despite the clouds and rain, the beauty of the flowers was still visible. In fact, the dark dreary weather appears to have highlighted the flower's beauty.

In the same way, when we work hard, committed to our plan and investing more than is necessary, we reap more than expected. And though we may suffer through harsh seasons and heavy storms, these are moments in time with opportunities for renewal and growth, and even enlightenment.

Blessings.

Today's Photo: Weathered Flower

"Make a pact with yourself today to not be defined by your past. Sometimes the greatest thing to come out of all your hard work isn't what you get for it, but what you become for it. Shake things up today! Be You...Be Free...Share." Steve Maraboli






EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 500
50mm
f6.7
1/125s

365 Project - Day 223

At the time, this made perfect sense to me. Lovely deep red flowers, an interesting bottle to serve as a vase and a mix of fruit to add interest and additional color. The photo session had all the usual limitations: the space was tight as I wedged the bottle between the edge of the table and the painting on the rear wall. Nonetheless, I was happy with the photographs as they appeared on the back of my camera.

When I processed them, however, I noticed that my set up was out of balance. Since the lemons were larger than the delicate flowers and were positioned in front, they overtook the scene, making the flowers a less important component. I had the same issue with every photograph. To resolve the imbalance, I adjusted the crop, cutting off part of the lemons to resize and reduce their impact. In doing so, I improved focus on the flowers, but it still didn't feel strong enough. In the final version of today's photo, I sacrificed the lemons altogether, despite the amount of time I had already invested.

Isn't this a lot like how we try to deal with the very things that shift our lives out of balance? We often don't recognize the impact or even the source initially, we just know that at some point the wrong things started taking up too much of our time. And then we declare we must get control. So we cut a bit and are marginally pleased with that improvement. Yet, we've generally left our lives in tact, when the best action would have been a drastic elimination of the very thing throwing us out of balance. Had we done that, we would have been truly happy and at peace.

It was difficult to make the decision to crop out the lemons, but the 2nd photo is just better. This drastic measure was the right option. Sometimes you simply have to lose something to gain something better.

Best wishes!

Today's Photo: Proper Balance - Still Life Flower with or without Fruit

"The right thing to do and the hard thing to do are generally the same" Steve Maraboli

"No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening - it's painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained this way." Hebrews 12:11




EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 200
35mm
f13
7/10s

365 Project - Day 222

I have an affinity for straight lines. I'm just not a big fan of circles. In fact, when purchased our home, I did not like the huge round chandelier in the foyer and immediately replaced it with an equally large rectangular one. I follow the same straight line approach when photographing. If I choose a different perspective, I've noticed that I pause to make a conscious adjustment and then take a deep breath. This is simple. I'm a highly creative square.

During Scott Kelby's Shoot Like a Pro session, I was intrigued by his focus to get the best photo, unencumbered by the angle required. I thought I should push myself out of my comfort zone and worked my way up to this photograph. I began with my typical landscape approach, standing up, looking down. Then sat / laid down on the ground for the rest of the photos. The first angular attempt actually made me dizzy. I shook it off, caught my breath and stuck with it.

I'm glad I did. I am pleased with the results. The next time, though, I might try to improve my basket contents with actual picnic treats and a few ants! I also believe a board under the blanket would keep it from looking messy.

Focusing on illustrating the story through incorporating content in a different way allowed me to successfully stretch my limits. I realize that when I am not shooting headshots and still life, I'm not challenging myself enough. What's important is whether I am forced to think through the photograph and develop or expand skills. If the exercise takes little thinking, I am not improving. 10,000 hours of walking for a runner will not make them a world class runner. Achieving expertise requires full-on exercise of the essential muscles for the sport. Increasingly pushing and stretching those muscles is the only sure way to mastery.

Best wishes.

Today's Photo: Fixin' to Picnic

"If an ax is dull and one doesn’t sharpen it first, then one must exert more force. It’s profitable to be skillful and wise." Ecclesiastes 10:10






EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 200
45mm
f16
1/30s

365 Project - Day 221

“Man’s mind stretched to a new idea never goes back to its original dimensions.” Oliver Wendell Holmes

My husband was out of town and my children were both tied up in school all day and busy with after. It was a bit risky, but I decided to drive an hour to attend a rare opportunity to see Scott Kelby's Shoot Like A Pro Reloaded event. I doubted he would ever be this close again, so I took the chance.

I enjoyed his openness and candor. One the most entertaining moments was when he walked us through the realities of a seasoned professional's photographic moments. He was comical in sharing what really happens behind the scenes. The great shot, he said, does not happen in 4 or 5 takes like most believe. It is almost as iterative for him as for me! Perhaps the biggest learning moment, however, was when he illustrated how to take photographs outside or in a garage without backdrops that look like they have been shot in a studio. My favorite was a photograph of the chrome of a car with a jet black background that had been taken in a garage filled with other cars, automotive accessories, people and bright lights. Now if I could just get my kids to wash my car!!

I decided on a mini-tryout of these techniques to photograph flowers in my garden. There were two problems with this: I cheated on nearly every important dimension (I guess I really needed to lug all my gear outside) and it's very hard to transform a garden to an in-studio look. I might have been a bit over my skis on this one. While I did not get the results I wanted, I do have a better understanding of the process.

One of the reasons I love photography is that I am in constant wonder. Whether it be because of the moment I am capturing or the challenge of capturing the moment, all of my senses are engaged. More than anything else I do, my photography forces me to practice mindfulness. I am present, open, free and often filled with breath to embrace the moment.

I am also perpetually learning. Since everyone sees, feels and experiences events differently, there seem to be as many ways to capture and process images as there are photographers. I believe you can be influenced and guided, but you must determine your own style and unique vision. I remember being in a group of photographers capturing an event and asking, "how will we know which of our photographs will be published?" The response was, "you will know because you know your own eye."

Whether we are photographers, musicians, film makers, actors, business people, homemakers or something else, we are each uniquely special. In all professions, we must use the full extent of our gifts to bring our unique vision, our own eye to the marketplace.

Best wishes!

Today's Photo: Faux Studio

"To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.” Winston S. Churchill







EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 200
45mm
f22
1/125s