I’ve been neglecting my camera. Not for lack of desire, but for lack of a computer that doesn’t take 8 hours to open a single photo.
A new computer is not in the budget any time soon, so I’ll figure out a way to work with this one without wanting to take a hammer to it and smash it into a million tiny pieces. Because I miss everything about being creative with my camera.
Category Archives: Photography
Spinning Round and Round
Photo Walk
I am falling in love with photography all over again.
Not that I ever fell in love with it. It is my passion, it is what I love to do more than almost anything else. But for the past few months, I’ve lacked inspiration. I’ve let little moments with my family pass by without taking the time to pick up the camera and capture them.
I’ve missed shooting. I’ve missed editing. I’ve missed posting them here to share with you.
Yesterday, I took the kid’s for a walk on the horse trails so I could take a few photos of them. Gabby was actually excited about it. She brought along a notepad so she could write down the things she found while we walked. The boys? They were not happy about it at all. They protested. They sighed. They rolled their eyes. But in the end, they put on their shoes and (kind of, sort of) enjoyed themselves while I snapped away.
Oh, how I’ve missed you, Photography. I plan on doing this more often. I may even start my own photography business. Looking into the details now.
Sick Day
I Took a Ride on This and Lived to Blog About it.
I am afraid of many things.
Earthquakes. Bees. Beetles. Porta-potties. Bears. Raw chicken. Flying on airplanes.
And those are just a very few things. My list is long. I am a paranoid, overly cautious person who begs my kids not to dive into pools because I am afraid they will hit their heads on the bottom and paralyze themselves. And that is a true story. Just ask my boys who absolutely HATE when I come out to watch them swim (at other peoples houses because we do not have a pool.)
At the top of my Things I Am Afraid Of list is “Ferris Wheels.”
It’s not the *height* that scares me as much as the thought that the car (box? seat?) that I am in will flip over and because there are NO SEATBELTS (which, WTF, Ferris Wheel Safety Board?) I will fall to a painful, messy death.
On Saturday, my family spent a few hours on the Navy Pier in Chicago. There was no doubt in my mind that the second my daughter saw the ferris wheel she’d want to go on it.
I was right.
“Mommy, can we please go on the ferris wheel?” Is what she said most of the time we were walking around. I finally told her yes, she could go on with her brothers and her daddy because Momma don’t ride ferris wheels.
When I got in line to buy their tickets, the kids started begging me to go on with them. They said things like “it would be so great if the whole family rode it together!” and “we want you to go with us, it won’t be fun without you!”
I kept politely saying NO! WAY! until Ethan said something like “Ohh, you’re the one who forced us to go on roller coasters! You’re the one who said not to be afraid of them and now you’re too chicken to go on a ferris wheel?”
I couldn’t say no after that. I would have looked like a (rhymes with) “wussy.”
So, I said yes.
While we were in line, I made sure that my family was clear on the rules. Basically, the rules were “DO NOT MOVE ANY PART OF YOUR BODY WHATSOEVER IN ANY WAY SHAPE OR FORM.”
I realized .03 seconds into the ride that it was a mistake on my part to make such a big deal about the whole “moving your body thing.” The second they shut the little gate on our car (cart? seat? WHAT IS THAT THING CALLED?) my kids started making Unnecessary Movements. And they continued to do so throughout the entire ride. This prompted me to freak out more than once. Which of course prompted them to laugh at me and say things like “Mom, you’re being too paranoid. Calm down.” And then they’d move their arm again FOR NO GOOD REASON.
The important thing is that I did it, I rode the effing ferris wheel.
But I can promise you this– I will never do it again.
It wouldn’t be fair to my vagina.
Looking Up
Suddenly, My Obsession With Photography Isn’t “Annoying.”
I was 11 years old when my youngest brother was born.
I thought he was my baby.
I fed him. I changed him. I babysat him.
For the most part, I was The Best Sister Who Thought She Was a Mother that a little kid could ask for.
Except for the one time he almost died on my watch because I was too busy talking on the phone with a boy I had a crush on to notice that he was eating OVEN CLEANER.
I loved that little baby so much.
Last month, that little baby got engaged.
My baby brother is getting married!
They’ve asked me to be their wedding photographer.
Here’s the thing.
I love photography. It’s a passion of mine.
But! I’m not a professional. So I am very nervous about this. At the same time, I’m flattered that they think I’m good enough at it to SHOOT THEIR WEDDING.
Last weekend, they asked if I would shoot some photos for their “save the date” cards. Of course, I said yes.
I can only hope he doesn’t regret asking me to photograph one of the most important days of his life.
Red, Represented
One of my favorite photography sites, Beyond Snapshots, is giving away a red Lola epiphanie bag. All you need to do to enter is post a photo on your blog (or facebook, flickr) that represents “red.”
Because I have the ugliest camera bag in the history of camera bags, (ask Isabel, who likes to ask me if she can have a juice, because it looks like a drink cooler. UGH.LEE.) I am more than happy to enter this contest. If I don’t win, I may just have to break down and order myself an Epiphanie bag because ENOUGH WITH THE CAPRI SUN JOKES, YOU GUYS.
If you’d like to enter, visit Beyond Snapshots for complete instructions.
