leading line

Yesterday afternoon I was at a county park/farm with a friend, my hubby, and Bean. I had three photo "jobs" to attend to in the space of two hours, two of which were for two different websites (can share more later), and one was to get my mindful Picture Inspiration photo assignment completed.

Although I wasn't really in a mindful mood because I was completely distracted by a perfect moment of beautiful light, perfect background, and my precious Bean standing in the middle of it.

These were my three favorite pictures from the two hours we were there. She was in another world. I was a whisper away. I look at these photographs and lament at how fast she is maturing, yet in awe of how she grows more beautiful each day.

We walked a little further from our spot and my P.I. pic found me. The assignment this week was a further exploration of the rhythm and motif, this time incorporating repetition, a diagonal, and a shallow depth of field to carry the viewer's eye through the picture. It is called a leading line. Photographer's jargon, blah blah blah.

But when you see it you intuitively know and like it because it is pleasing to your eye. Whether you know it or not, your eye likes to enter a picture, move about it comfortably, and then exit it smoothly. It likes a turbulent-free ride. Well at least mine does. But then, I have always been one to get extremely motion sick so there you go.

So here is the picture that found me.

Ok class...please take note of the repetitive pattern on the fence, your eye traveling diagonally across the photo following the fence line, taking a brief rest stop at the just out of focus Bean in that shallow depth of field (I put her there because I really like a human element to photos), and then continuing on out to the old barn and exiting off the photo. You entered one side of the photo and exited off the other, left to right, like you read. (Unless you read Anime/Manga novels then you read right to left, back to front, but whatever, that's beside the point class.) This is not a rule for every photo you take but it is one I employ often, because I like lines and diagonals and sometimes I am kind of a geek about them. Kids, if you own a camera, this is safe to try at home.

And so here ends my rambling. I think. You know, sometimes I think I am good at photographic leading lines but not so good at using them in writing...like now. How do I exit this post smoothly? I led you in, carried you through, and now am at a loss as to how to land the plane and let you off easily.

Maybe I should just end it here.

Or here.

The end.

(See you tomorrow.)

my little umbrella adventure

Last week I shared this photo...

Today I will share some others that I snapped while on my creative weekend escape I took with my art group. It was a stormy weekend so I had to take advantage of the lulls in the rain when I could. I dressed my camera in a plastic bag, borrowed a rain coat, and went out with my friend to exercise my creativity.

(Photo note: I also got to exercise my creativity when it came to editing. I usually love a good clean photo, but some of them were just too fun not to play with.)

God bless my sweet friend: she had left her boots out by the back door overnight so when she went to go put them on the second day they were full of water! She wore them anyway, for me. She was a true model.

And there she is smiling at me on her way back up the stairs to the beach house. I thanked her that weekend, but I want everyone to know how thankful I am that she was willing to walk up and down the beach for me, leap through the waves a million times, sacrifice her dry feet for me. 

Look at her...I hope she knows how beautiful she is both in body and soul. I wish you all knew her so you could agree. :)

capturing a birthday moment

Over the weekend we had a family gathering to celebrate my sister-in-law's birthday. I am sure she would like everyone to know that she turned twenty-one. I can vouch for her. ;)

Because I know that I rarely get a picture with my children, I insisted on dragging her and her daughter outside to capture them in her birthday moment. I wanted her to have this moment.

I love the feeling of giving something to someone that I know is needed to restore, encourage, remind them of what they have. (And believe me, my sis-in-law needs some encouragement in this present chapter of her life.) I would want to have the same for myself...a beautiful photo of me and my children on my special day. The joy in the giving is worth more than any dollar amount I could earn in photographing people through my lens. I guess this is what it feels like to have your gift become a gift. And this the place where my joy finds root. 

I do not ever want to lose this feeling.

my little inspiration

This kid rocks. He's really does dance to the beat of his own drum. 

He is soft spoken, full of cool break dance moves, and has his own ideas about style.

Love him.

While he was watching the big kids shake their groove thing to the Dance Off game and I just tried to be stealth with my camera. He sensed my presence and then gave me a few smiles, and socks.

Love him.

(This last picture makes me smile.)

On this Monday morning, I am reminded that the best thing I can do for my creative self is to be me. Like listen to the beat of my own drum, rather than trying to follow others. Be not afraid to show people my striped-socked feet to bring about a little laughter. Be content to just watch from the outside of the circle and join in when I feel comfortable...

....or even remain in the background to do my own dance moves.

Happy Monday.
xoxo

willing:

Willing:    to be wrong

              to go last

              to listen

              to not nag

              to sacrifice my time

              to be renewed

              to give my best

              to submit my thoughts to the truth

              to kneel in humility

              to go without

              to be grateful

              to stop what I am doing to be present

              to be used for a greater purpose

              to sing praises when my heart is sad

              to trust

              to be silent

              to believe despite what I cannot see

              to go one more day

              to open my hands and let go

              to follow

              to sacrifice

              to grow

              to choose love

And when my heart fails...

Willing: to pray for the heart to choose to be willing. 

              

Just a few things I am praying for these days. 

Deep thoughts on a Friday, I know. 

Have a blessed weekend.

xoxo

T

stacked

After the storm I wandered the beach and decided to capture what the ocean had coughed up during the wind and rain. Everything was photographed just as I found it except for (ahem) one picture. It's kind of a "which one is not like the other" game. Can you guess "which of these things is not like the other"? (Remember that Sesame Street song?)

You are so smart blogger friend. I am assuming you guessed correctly, otherwise you may need to review a few Sesame Streets to get your game back on.

This week, my mindful photo assignment from Picture Inspiration was to capture something "stacked". 

We were give the encouragement to arrange our own stacked items if we so wished. So as I was combing the shoreline I kept noticing these little caps and scooping them up into my pocket. I believe they are some seed pod caps (not acorn, there are no oaks nearby) that blew down from the trees on the bluffs that overlook the shore. The wind carried them to rest on the sand and I marveled at their various colors and shapes. 

They reminded me of that children's story I used to read to the kids, Caps for Sale.

I delicately stacked them one on top of each other, all the while singing in my head...

"Caps! Caps for sale! Fifty cents a cap!"

Do you know the story? I read it a million times to both of my kids. If you have read it, now you too can have that little line ringing in your head all day.

You're welcome.

embracing the rain

When the rain refuses to leave, step out and embrace it.

And so I did, with my camera and a friend who happened to have her rain boots. We were spending the weekend at a beach house with a group of talented women artists that meet once a month to encourage and challenge each other. I am the only photographer in the group, the others are all painters. So while they sat near the large windows and worked on their paintings for our approaching art show, I looked for opportunities to be creative through my lens.

I wrapped a plastic baggie around my camera and headed out and captured my friend strolling the shoreline. (She was such a trooper.) I have many more umbrella pictures to share and more from the weekend too, but this one seemed to stand alone.

It spoke to that emotional place in me that is learning to embrace the figurative rain in my life. I am discovering that much beauty can be found when I am willing to step out and walk in it.

Literally, I would have never snapped this picture if I stayed inside. But it makes me wonder what else I am missing by not embracing the rain?

paradox

Sometimes I find myself wrestling with life's paradoxes. No matter how hard I try, my mind cannot hold two completely opposite, yet true realities. 

Like how I can feel so painfully small, a drop of life against the expanse of the universe, yet I hold infinite value in the hands of purposeful God.

....Or how I am but a vapor, here and gone in a blink, yet my touch and influence ripples throughout generations whether I want it to or not.

...And how I can feel so alone as I trek across my life's landscape. How I am settling with the weight that the journey is mine alone and it is up to me to make decisions, listen, and get about the work of living.

Yet others are right ahead of me, and right behind me, making this trek too.

But even greater is the other truth that I am not alone. 

The God of the universe, who created me and time, walks with me...this significant, and valued drop of life. 

Can you tell these thoughts are all very weighty on my heart this Monday morning? 

clinging to peace

Sometimes I trust God with the hope of an innocent child. Those days I know Peace.

Other days my fears are untethered, no longer weighted down by rational gravity.

There is so much going on in this world lately that I find myself painfully, curiously watching with my hands up to my eyes, nervously peeking through my fingers. I try not to live in denial, but sometimes I just have to turn off the radio, the computer, get off Facebook, because I just cannot emotionally filter the barrage of information and photos: earthquakes, predictions of more earthquakes, tsunamis, nuclear meltdowns, radiation exposure, political unrest, economic collapses.

I guess my sensitivity to all of this should drive me to pray, but sometimes I just wanna be a mom trying to decide what special elective my son should take for his jr. high class schedule next year. (If we are all still alive by then.)

Some fear is rational. Like fleeing from a tsunami constitutes rational fear.

Fretting over events, and prediction of events (like the earthquake that is "supposed" to hit California today) that are out of my control is fear untamed. Right?

Anyway, this is where I have been this week emotionally. The picture of Bean has nothing to do with this all. It just happens to be my favorite image that I captured this week, and one that brings me to a better place when I look at it.

I know where my personal peace comes from. It's just that some days I am desperately clinging to it.

green green, everywhere green

The Leprechauns caused mischief at school today. They left desks overturned, papers strewn about the floors, and piles of gold coins and chocolates. I took my camera out at lunch time to snatch up all that green. Believe me, there was a TON of it!

I was inspired to capture all the green today when I remembered that I had done a similar thing last year.

I think I have begun a St. Patrick's Day tradition here on this blog...

...a collage o'green.

let's all just gush over the baby

Last week I held the honor of babysitting Little Miss. Her mom handed me to her and then waved goodbye and told me she would be back in a few hours. I closed the door and looked down at this beautiful face. She looked at me, let out one quick scream, fussed for two seconds and then promptly closed her eyes and never opened them again for the next hour. (Not kidding about the promptly closing her eyes and never opening them up again.)

It was such a warm and friendly greeting.

I carried her upstairs and laid her on my bed and covered her with her blanket and walked out. She remained in her passed-out stage for an hour and then woke up and shouted into the silence of the bedroom until I rushed up to get her.  I fed her a warm bottle, which she completely guzzled, and then we hung out for a bit in front of the computer and did some Facebook and Pinterest. (Screen time isn't an issue with them yet right?) And then she passed out again from being in the warmth of my arms. Or maybe it was the milk coma?

Later on we picked up the kids from school, who were very excited to have a little passenger with them. They held her hands the entire way home and made sure she was comfortable and happy. My son made quite the impression on Little Miss. She gave him the biggest flirty smiles you have ever seen. Of course Bean's feelings were hurt because she did not get the same reception so I had to coax her back and encourage her not to take it all so personally.

She eventually resumed the big-sister role and cuddled with her, fed her another bottle (which she guzzled), and hung out on the floor with her. Little Miss reciprocated with smiles and coos and Bean was quite in love.

I have not babysat a tiny baby in years. Funny how it all comes back to you. The way you pick them up, swoosh them in your arms, bounce them. I even found myself understanding the baby-talk, the revving up of her "I'm hungry" engine with small little short cries as she tried to communicate, get my attention. I explained this all to Bean and we listened and smiled and then watched her come unglued as we got her bottle ready--watched her attack the bottle with a ferocity of a hungry cub.

We loved watching her little legs kick and pedal in time with her arms. Her eyes followed the bright lights and then locked on to my big camera lens. She studied everything with rapt attention, soaking it all up like a sponge.

All this made me want another baby...for like two seconds, and then the feelings passed.  But those two seconds were filled with such grief over the passing of those days when I had my own babies. They have grown so big that I cannot believe I am actually beginning to think about what it will be like to be a grandma. (I know!)

Holy cow. I gotta slow down or I'm gonna age myself faster than you can say "let's all gush over the baby." For now, I think I will stick with just being the babysitter.

And gush over this face...

What's not to love about that face?! (The bunny was Bean's idea.)

iheartfaces: sun flare love

This will remain forever as one of my most favorite pictures I have ever taken. 

Our girls had just finished riding lessons and we were lingering in the last of the daylight. I love how mom and daughter are washed in sunshine, caught in the sun flare love. 

A beautiful sun-drenched moment.

I can still hear their laughter and feel their joy, authentic and pure. I love that about this photo. 

For all these reasons I couldn't help but to post it for iheartfaces "sun flare" week.

Head on over there to see all of the other amazing sun drenched moments.

motif

There are times in my life when happiness seems to be elusive. Struggle as I might to rise above my circumstances, I feel as if it is something only reserved for those who have good jobs, a nice house, a healthy family, and "enough" money. Although at first you may deny that you struggle as I do, deep down I think we all honestly do struggle with the belief that happiness is something to be obtained when all the other things in our lives "fall into place". I know I am always embarrassed to admit this, but my emotions always reveal the truth as to what I believe.

It is my motif...a pattern in my thinking that I have prayerfully been addressing these last few years. (Perhaps you can relate?)

I spend so much time dreaming, sometimes chasing, after that elusive happiness, that I fail to recognize that it has always been near and available to me because it is not dependent upon my circumstances. It is dependent on my choice to find it in the things that circumstances cannot take from me: the love of my family, the laughter of my children, meaningful friendships, the gifts of creativity, the unconditional love of a God who values me as important and worthwhile.

Its just that sometimes I am caught in that warped pattern of thinking, too preoccupied with "life", to see what I have been missing.

******

Week two of mindfulness comes from the weekly Picture Inspiration theme: motif. A motif is a distinctive and reoccurring form as in a design, as in a painting, or on wallpaper.

When I found this wall of happy faces over the weekend I was delighted to find a motif that spoke to me on many levels. It captured the basic idea of a motif (the reoccurring happy faces) but it also encapsulated a mental motif, a pattern of thinking that I know I am not alone in struggling with--this truth that happiness is something we often miss because we believe it is to be obtained through things or circumstances. Our repetitive mental motif (which breeds debilitating emotions) needs some serious divine intervention, and some personal effort, in choosing to renew our way of thinking if we are ever to experience the contentedness for which we long. I wanted to photograph someone walking by this wall o'happiness to illustrate this struggle.

the golden gate (and possibly my dad)

This is where I will be for the next couple of days
celebrating my fifteenth wedding anniversary with my Pal....

No, not on a bridge.
But in a hotel room with a view of this bridge, which is much nicer than actually being on the bridge, if you ask me.

I have driven/walked across this bridge many times in my life and I have many photos documenting it because even if you live near this bridge, when you travel across it and under those towers, the sheer beauty and enormity of it is always breath taking.

But I have to say, that the last time I walked across I almost passed out...

First off, heights are not my thing. Adding to this fear is the presence of a suicide hot line number posted on signs along the bridge. Just thinking about people leaping over the rail crushes my heart with such sorrow that I wind up standing on this bridge with tears in my eyes, rather than enjoying the beauty from my perch.

Second, this bridge almost has a micro-climate of its own and it is often windy and cold up there. Sometimes the bridge is completely shrouded in fog. Unless it is an amazingly beautiful, unusually hot summer day here, you have to bundle up. The last time I walked across it, I feared my family would be blown right off it.

And thirdly, the last time I walked across it they had been doing some repair work on the pedestrian path  and there had been a story of a toddler who had fell through the construction cracks. I cannot believe I am even writing about this on my blog because it was a horrific story, but that story scared me enough to pretty much leash my children to me and swear that I would not walk across this bridge with them again until they had turned fifty.

Well now, isn't that pleasant?

Moving on...

So these photos were taken a month ago when we took the kids up north to a coastal state park. We were heading across the Golden Gate and I pretty much crawled onto my dashboard so I could take an unobstructed view out my windshield. It still has a little bit of a "through the windshield" blur to it, but oh well.

In the first picture (the one at the top of the post) you can see the top suspension cables and if you look carefully you can see handrails. Handrails. Without fail, every time my hubby and I drive over the Golden Gate we have to discuss them. Because there are people who actually walk up those cables to do inspections, repairs, and paint. Every single time we look at each other and say...

Who ARE those people?! CRAZY!


They are not me, that's for sure. This is why I will be enjoying the view from my hotel room this weekend. 


Happy weekend.
xoxo


p.s. There are many old pictures of the golden gate bridge being built. I just googled it. Go see for yourself the daring men who risked their lives to build California's pride and glory.

p.p.s. Top picture, bottom right hand corner, the man in the baseball hat, dark sunglasses, looking at the camera....I swear that is my dad. Go look at the last picture from this post and then come back here and tell me that it is indeed my dad. Different color jacket, but still. Dad???