Month one of 365 - Check!

Week four of the three-sixty-five! that's something I'm pretty happy about. i'm still really enjoying this project and learning a lot - even though on some days it's wearing. sometimes it seems you've already exhausted your supply of resources/creativity (though you never can truly run out of things to take photos of... creativity is limitless. and there will always be new angles, places, and emotions to fill a frame).  

this week... what have i learned this week? i'm getting better at figuring out what settings i'd like to put my camera on for what outcome. as i've already addressed - i do know how to shoot on manual with ease, however i've never explored my full range of creativity. there's such a plethora of options and many different outcomes you can get just by adjusting a few things. perhaps that's why i've never tinkered with creative exposures too much... it intimidates me (which is silly). however my mantra for this year, 2013, is... does this make me afraid? yes? then DO IT!. so that's what i'm doing (in many corners of my life)!

i love that this project pushes you everyday to dig a little deeper... push just a tiny bit further. there's no stopping, so you're actually growing. growth takes consistency - not doing a little here, a little there, taking a break because you get discouraged... that doesn't work. it's consistent hard work that creates a masterpiece. this project doesn't leave room for discouragement... you're constantly goinggoinggoing. moving on and forward. 

this photo stinks? heck, i'm taking a new one tomorrow. and i'm getting better so today's photo is of very little significance. it just works really well mentally for me. 

these words are so true. creativity does take courage. a lot of courage, sometimes. it's scary to be out of the box. goodness, anything you don't want to fail at is scary. the more you want something, the more the thought of failing at that something makes you afraid. but that's okay. be okay with that.

Anyway, please enjoy my week four of the 365...!

Wednesday: photo twenty-two: on cloudy winter days, full of mist and cool air, i love to look out my window and wonder at the silhouetted branches reaching out to the sky. their branches all so intricate and delicate. i think it's almost as beautiful as the fresh green leaves that sprout from them come spring. 

Thursday: photo twenty-three: i like painting my nails. especially my finger nails... but sometimes my toenails too. the other day I had some extra time to paint them. what to choose? too many pretty colors! so... why not do both? yes, good idea. :) 

Friday: photo twenty-four: putting on makeup in the morning... sometimes it just looks so everyday and candid all strewn about... i like that. 

 Saturday: photo twenty-five: a good time to take photos? first thing in the morning, of course! preferably while you're still in your pjs... and from the reflection of yourself coming off the tv screen. hey, at least give me kudos for being original (aka it wasn't a mirror). this style of photography is called ghetto-ography. it's the coolest and is on the rise.  

Sunday: photo twenty-six: working at my desk in my room. i like it. it's quite, i have a big window with huge tree branches sprawling about. i like my desk. it's old - it was my mom's when she was in high school. i like the stuff sitting on my desk. i really like my cd player. it looks like a record player. 

to the right of my laptop (miss channel) i have the book i'm currently reading (Red, by tedd dekker) and a bottle of "peace and calming" essential oil. 

(do i get bonus points for hitting up two photos here?)

Monday: photo twenty-seven: when i'm photo editing i've found i often feel the need to make notes... such as if i'd like to go back to a photo and try it out in black and white later. or... other random notes i find helpful to keep. using pencil, the writing rubs right off with minus damage done. this is also a good place to write to-do lists. you're welcome. :)  

Tuesday: photo twenty-nine: my camera bag. that really isn't a camera bag. but it works as one. one day when i'm a rich and very famous photographer (*winkwink*) i will have a profesh bag with organized compartments. in the main time, this does it's job well enough. and, at least it looks cool (or i think it does). 

okay guys, that's it for this week! thanks for looking! :) stay posted for next week! 
-Rebecca

week three of the three-sixty-five. road tripping, cats, and shoes.

things to be happy for this past week... friends, coffee shops, everyday life, and... road tripping! on friday, i, my (three) sisters and a couple close friends went on a weekend road trip up to dallas, tx. we ate, we laughed, we felt the wind blow our hair, we didn't sleep (not enough), we had fun, girly convos, and just enjoyed the time away from the daily grind. it was good. oh yes... and we went to a wedding (just a minor detail - the whole reason we went on the trip). i took pictures - lots of pictures. mostly at the wedding. i took instagram pictures, like a normal soul does (bad karma for a photographer, yes, but it always feels so warming to take an underexposed, grainy, awful photo and just be like, YES, this is OKAY because it's INSTAGRAM!!! IT'S beautiful!!!).  i do however have some decent dslr photos of the wedding to share (one will be shown on photo of the day; saturday). i may also try to put up an additional blog post this week with more. let me know if you'd like to see more! 

and now, week three of the threesixtyfive...  

Tuesday: photo fifteen: when it's cold outside, having to go out can be a pain (as much as i love the cold i will admit that much). wearing thick & warm, fuzzy socks with my sperrys is one of my favorite ways to stay warm. with this method, you feel just like you're wearing a pair of the most comfy house shoes. and yes, you heard that right.

Wednesday: photo sixteen: glass bottles. 

Thursday: photo seventeen: an afternoon spent at the coffee shop. starbucks. we all know this is perfection. the perfect way to spend a cold afternoon. the perfect way to edit photos. the perfect place to people watch. the perfect way to just sit and think and feel all warm and cozy and savor a huge cup full 'o tea/coffee. oh yes, and dried mangos. don't forget the dried mangos. i love dried mangos, and i love even more that starbucks sells them in little packages up at the front now. they are so.good. and if you don't get anything else from this post... get that you must try the dried mangos at starbucks. 




 Friday: photo eighteen: friday morning was spent getting bags packed up for road tripping. on my way out to the car, miss marilla (named after marilla from anne of avonlea) stopped by, rubbing her fuzzy little ears against my legs, wanting attention. i was happy to have my camera on me, because she's just so cute.


Satuday: photo nineteen: hairbrushes, curling irons, lipsticks, powder, frilly dresses, & pretty shoes... today is the day we went to the wedding. of course weddings are always a fun time to experiment and see if you can get any halfway decent shots (and it's always impressive if you do, because either uncle bob's head is smack in the way, or you're simply in the wrong place at the wrong time). I did manage to get a few good shots here and there. and this is one. 

{the adorable (they were so adorable) couple during their first dance. it's pretty obvious how perfect they are for each other!}

Sunday: photo twenty: earrings. these represent a long day. i was tired. i was glad to be home from the bustling weekend trip, happy to be close to crawling under my own covers. i took off my earrings, which were now throbbing on my earlobes, remembering i needed to take my "photo of the day". instead of putting the earrings in my jewelry box i shuffled around for my camera, placing my earrings on my bedspread. tada, photo of the day (i know that's not putting my heart into it, i'm sorry, but it really was one of those days).

Tuesday: photo twenty-one: i love my kitten, Mo. i love shadows, i love mornings that are fresh and alive with morning light streaming through nearby windows. i love silhouettes. and i really like this photo (is that okay to really like my own photo?). 



closing thoughts - this week was hard for me. hard for me to keep up with photo taking, hard for me to get this post up today (i feel like it's a bit scattered and unfocused - and i apologize for that). however, i did it, and that's good, right?!  next week i hope to insure that i keep up with things a little better so i can offer a better post/photos. :) 

until next time,
Rebecca

crazy blue monster socks and other stuff. week two of the three-six-five project

it's time for week two of the 365 project...! 

what did i learn {or re-learn} this week? i remembered that photography is painting with light. using light to create something more. something with depth and emotion. it's using light to create multiple dimensions on a flat canvas... light is what allows you to tell a story in a frame. 
i also learned i wanted to put more oomph into my photos this week. get a little more creative. dig a little deeper instead of just photographing what's quickest (not to say i didn't do that at all on "those days"! but i'm workin' on it!). :) creating something with your whole heart says so much more than creating something with your mind. it creates magic instead of everydayness. i want to put my soul into my work, not just work with my mind. i think that's where creativity comes alive - when you let your heart and soul soar... it shows in your work. this is something i'm working on. 

let's get started... :) 

Tuesday : photo eight: i love it at night when i turn off my main light... and all that's left is the glow of my twinkle-lights surrounding my nightstand. i love the soft shadows left behind, the sleepy, it's time-for-bed feel. i also love that mound of fuzzy fabric scrunched up on my bed... my striped robe. i've had it for ages... i love it. it's the perfect green color, it's soft, warm, and cozy to wear. it even has a hood (could you ask for more??). 

Wednesday : photo nine: i was getting ready for the day... putting on make up, fixing bed head, you know, the normal, when I got this little burst of inspiration. what if I dedicated one full week to selfies? how would that look? i think it could be interesting... you could even do it in increments... different stages of getting ready in the morning (i.e., day one: starting with no make up, day seven: ending ready and dressed). maybe i'll try it this coming week... we will see. for now, here is one of my experimental photos... i feel i look too angelic in this photo (is that possible?! heh), however i am very pleased with the over all photo. i love how my face kind of fades into/out of focus/light. 

Thursday : photo ten: if you ever go into my room in the evening, just as the sun is setting, you will be greeted with a surprise... but only if you will stop and notice. shadows, beautiful, glorious, intricate golden shadows scrolled across the blank blue wall in my bedroom. it's so serene, magical, and yet simple. and so easily overlooked or taken for granted... we must stop and take these little things of beauty in, take the time to let them nourish our soul. these little things are what life is made of... these are the things that make life beautiful. 

Friday : photo eleven: lately it's been reallyreallyreally cold. for texas, anyway. i love it, however. when it's super freezing (that would be 40 degrees for this texan) my family lights this little stove in our living room. and Sunday it was super freezing. and i had a good book calling, and good-book-reading means hot-tea-drinking. which is perfect when this stove is lit because all you have to do is set your tea kettle atop, and voila, in less than five minutes you have hot water ready to go. and then you can happily plop yourself on a blanket in front of it with your hot tea and super awesome book.  

Saturday : photo twelve: it was late saturday night. i was ready to curl up in bed. when low and behold, i remembered... I had yet to take my photo of the day. rough moment. well, i pulled myself up by my fuzzy little socks and got my camera out (respect. this took a lot of self discipline). i searched my room for something to take a photo of. AH, my drawer set over there... it looked kinda cool and shadowed. that did the trick. and i actually really like the result. who knew. 

Sunday : photo thirteen: if you ever come over on a cold evening unannounced, you may find me looking like... this. a fuzzy-wuzzy blue sock wearing nut (and these socks are special because they have even fuzzier-wuzzier cuffs around the ankle as an added bonus!! almost as good as a snuggie. i swear). they're my favorite. oh, and did i forget to mention that when it's cold, i also don't like to wear pj pants - they get all bungled and bangled up when i'm sleeping, and that bugs me. so, instead, i opt for black leggings, shorts, and cozy socks to keep the chill at bay. did i forget to mention i'm special? i also keep christmas lights weaved around my "nightstand" (my very eclective green trunk that once upon a time was my grandpa's!). 

Monday: photo fourteen: 

texture and light. 

ready, set... week three, here i come.   
-Rebecca 

{three.six.five.}/week:one

 today i post my first blog post from the three-sixty-five photo project! I am hopeful that this new project will improve my skills in a number of ways. i need to be more at ease with the camera. i want to stop feeling a disappointment when I look at my photos, seeing every flaw, wishing that i were .so. much better. i want to improve on taking photos that aren't my specialty. that's big. it's easy to make pretty things look pretty in a frame, but what about the everyday, the mundane, the things that color your everyday world... how do you  capture those in a fascinating light? the one's with the less than ideal lighting surrounding them? how do you make that look good? this is what i set out to learn. so come with me as i embark on this new journey (one of many i hope to start, this year!//stay tuned) and maybe you can learn a thing or two with me. :0) 



Tuesday: photo one: New Years day (if you notice, there is a clock in the background). Happy new year! i love new year's day... it breathes of second chances and fresh starts. it allows you a clean slate. it's not just a new day with no mistakes in it yet, but it it's a whole new year with zero mistakes in it!

Wednesday: photo two: my babies, howdy and mo - siblings - love to play by the tree {or any place they can get their paws on}. this was caught only in-between moments of mischief.

Thursday: photo three : lines.

Friday: photo four : a peek into my closet... that brown purse hanging there... that's my new go-to-bag/purse from forever21 (honestly i don't really do purses. bags are the thing!). my old bag i'd loved to shreds...  so much so that the faux green leather was peeling from the straps. it was a very loved bag (and just something my mom had bought on a whim for me from target one year for christmas!).

Saturday: photo five : you know how some years you're happy to take the christmas decor down (yay, automatic de-cluttering! yay less stuff!), and other years it's a real bummer (everything feels all naked and cold afterward). this year was a everything-feels-all-naked-and-cold year. this christmas season i was really into christmas... like, wearing red and green attire every day of december kind of into it (or yelling at a random santa-clause-hat wearing soul that "omgosh-it'sSANTA!!!" kind of into it). it was just a really good christmas season (a nice change from the last two years) and i was regretful to take the decor down... however before i did i honored the last of the decor in my bedroom one last time by taking a photo of my happy & super festive little cd player.

Sunday: photo six : i love reading. most of all of love fiction suspense/thrillers/mysteries. the ones that keep you on the edge of your seat, but still end in a happy manner. right now i am working through Ted Dekker's, The Circle series. The books are quite good (not oh-my-good-they're-SOGOOD-kind of good, but definitely good). I am working through the second one... RED. 

Monday: photo seven : yesterday i sat down to pen and paper and tea (and to my pretty legit little ipod, miss daisy) to take inventory of what i want to accomplish this year... yes, that's what NY resolutions are for, but this was breaking it down into little pieces... like what do i need to be doing this month to take a step toward the bigger goal? what do i need to be doing today? 

that's a wrap. -Rebecca 

a new year.new blog post.new goals.the 365 project

i've been meaning to write... yes, really i have. it's just... you know, that thing called LIFE... it sometimes gets in the way of really important things for really-super-important things. but that's not good, and i want it to change... you make time for what's important to you, yes? yes. during this sabbatical I've come to realize how vital blogging is to keeping up with my photography. blogging helps me to have something to take pictures for. I was just thinking the other day how ever since I had let go of blogging how my photography has slid too. however, with the new year came a slew of new resolutions (and i can always think up so many)... one being to get back on board with my photography and to once again fill this blog with weekly posts. 

one way I intend to accomplish this goal is by starting the 3.6.5 project (a photo a day, for twelve months). it's something Mr. Self-discipline has been telling me I needed to do for a while now. what better way to get started on that than with the new year, yes? :) now that I have begun this new and long journey, however, it feels less like a self discipline and much more like a piece of me i've found stuffed away in the back of a closet. it's a small piece of my soul that i'm trying to nourish back to life. it's withered so much and i believe the reason is simple; the king of all joy stealers - Comparison and {too much} self criticism. it takes all the joy out... who wants to do something if you never feel like you'll be adequate to do the job you want to do? what is the point in doing something if it makes you feel guilty? the words you tell yourself are powerful and if you continually tell yourself you can't do something/you'll never be good enough... you just won't be. your brain has created a barrier and the stream of creativity and life has been barred. it's a bit of a cliche' but it's ever so true. and something I'm always having to re-learn. 

and so, i finish this blog post as i began... sipping a mug of steaming peppermint tea, glancing out the window at the soft drizzle, drizzle of rain... and... taking in the joy of blogging again. please pray for me that I will learn to cheer myself on and that my creativity would be re-filled. that i would do what makes me afraid... and in turn conquer what binds me. I know God has given me the gift of art - the gift of photography, and it is wrong to let that go just because i am afraid of failing {really, that is only pride, if you get down to the heart of it}.

i plan to start updating regularly with my 365 project {not daily, but weekly}.

-Rebecca