Them peoples.

One of my favorite things about visiting Chicago this summer was seeing the people. We don't have a lot of diversity in my small town, so it was quite different walking around with SWARMS of people of all types. Walking around downtown Chicago, it was so so prominent that every person was distinctly unique and beautiful. Everyone had their own story. It was breathtaking. I wish I could have captured it better, I was kind of being rushed around by my sisters so I wasn't able to people watch as much as I wanted to. But this was one of my favorite pictures.

I've had to put my "photoing" on hold for a bit while I get in to the groove of fall quarter. School is a pain in the butt... But I'm doing real well. I absolutely love my new job. I'm so happy to be there. It takes up a lot of my day, but thats the way it goes. Over all, God is good, as usual, and he is taking amazing care of me and my needs. Lets hope He lets me squeeze in some time for some new photo shoots soon. :)

Luscious Water.

It's been awhile since I've really thoroughly enjoyed taking landscape or still life photographs. When I first started exploring photography, I thought that that would be my main focus. But lately I've been really focused on portraits and capturing the beauty of Gods image imprinted in peoples faces. 

A few weeks ago I took a road trip across the country with my sisters, and one of my favorite parts of the trip was when we were driving through Montana and Wyoming, and we were crossing over these beautiful rolling hills. My older sister Karen who is an art major, started geaking out about all the different colors of the fields and farmland, and then I started squealing about how beautiful the detail was, and how lovely that fence looked sitting on the side of a hill, or how wonderful the lighting was at that moment. Meanwhile, my sister Clara, the musician, was in the backseat saying "I don't get it guys...". It was pretty funny. But anyway. Point being, I've been developing my eye for landscape recently, and it's been pretty fun. I think it's a little bit trickier for me, there's a lot more to put into perspective when you're shooting big open spaces. You have to think more about what's the most important part of the picture, and what can I do to compliment it and make sure people know that it is the most important part. And I think there's also more of a chance of getting things you really don't want in your frame, so you have to be more aware of your surroundings. When I was taking these photos on the lake, I had to be careful that I didn't capture the ladies suntanning on the beach, all bikini clad and such. For me, that would ruin the picture. But who knows. Maybe that would add something for some people... Some people.

I'm not gonna lie, I feel kind of ridiculous talking about photography when I don't really know the language at all and have no credibility on the subject. But I don't know. These are the observations I'm making right now. And I think it's important to write those down so as not to forget them. Even if they are ridiculous and simple observations.
Basically, I like to take pictures.
 Movin right along.

The Grass is Greener in My Yard

I live in a beautiful city.
Not everyone I know enjoys it as much as I do. They tell me it's too small, there's nothing to do here, the weather is horrible, the people are low class, etc. But I think for them it's a matter of the grass being greener on the other side. In my eyes, the grass on the other side is long, and although it looks luscious and green, there are things you can't see through the grass.There could be little prickly weeds, there could be unexpected holes that could swallow you up at any minute. And although going into that grass could be adventurous, and after a good mowing it might be very nice, for now I am content with my own yard.

Back again.

Hey Guys. *sheepish grin*
So, recently I've been getting back into the swing of things. I reconnected with my camera again after a long period of not having time to do shoots or to edit/sift through the photos I took. I've also become immensely fond of my Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. I knew I would have fun on this program when I received it as a christmas gift, but I've been hesitant to really dive into it because I've never been really big on photo editing. I like trying to perfect my pictures as I'm shooting. I don't like the idea of having to tweak a photo so much that it looks unrecognizable from the original. Although I do believe that that's still a worthy cause, it's ended up leading to a lot of frustration once I would download my pictures and look at them and realize that a lot of the photos I thought would come out fantastically while I was shooting, were lacking something. So I sucked up my pride and started using the tools I have available to me. Earlier this month, my older sister discovered Lynda.com, which is an online database that offers video training and tutorials on how to use basically any kind software, and a ton of other fantastic things for a small monthly fee, which in my opinion, is totally worth it. I. Love. This. Website. I have learned so much that would have taken me FOREVER to figure out on my own. It's gotten me excited about photography and the endless possibilities I have at my fingertips. And I could go on forever about that, but basically it's just super cool and I've been spending hours a day learning and experimenting with my photos, and it's a blast.

Example number 1. :) (this is a screen cap, so obviously it's not the best quality)

This is a photo I took last year I think, and I had been pretty pleased with the warmness and everything. I didn't, however, like the extremity of it, and the way it almost appeared fuzzy. But at the time I didn't think I could do anything about it. I pulled it out again a few days ago after watching a few Lynda videos, and I fixed it up! And I am SO EXCITED! 

I've been geeking out all week. It's awesome. 

I took a photoshoot of my dear little sister Maleny, and these are some of my favorites. 

Alrighty, I gotta get back to my day. God is good. I am particularly grateful to Him for the wonderful self-motivated learning skill He has placed in me. I know that's not something everyone has. 

I'm excited to see what's next. 

Love and Beauty

"If we could see the miracle of a single flower, clearly our whole life would change" ~ Buddha

Beauty.
I picked up a camera for the first time in 2008. I was 13 years old. It was a cold wet November evening, and the earth was vibrant with deep, murky colors. I don't remember what inspired me to pick up the camera and walk out the door that day. I was most likely really board. I remember my parents were gone, my sisters were in the house curled up reading books, and I wondered outside with the camera, and took my first picture. I probably spent around two hours outside taking pictures until the sun went down. I remember I didn't want to go inside. Every patch of dirt, every rock, every fallen brown leaf had beauty, and I wanted to saver it all, picture it in it's most beautiful natural setting and light. I was hooked.
To me, Photography isn't about my skills. It's not about the kind of camera I have. It's not about how good I am at it, I'm not trying to make a career out of it. It's about capturing the simple things we see every day that have ultimate beauty. It's about appreciating the beautiful, perfect work that God created. It's about showing His love. His love for us, His love for his creations.
I take pictures to help show that love to the world.