Poetic Capture : stop for f-stops, "the birds"-in real life, nostalgic snow globes... and, etc.

A new week. new photos. new post. 365: week seven.

how are you guys? I'm doing well enough. just trying to figure out where I'm headed in this big game of life. I know I want to do photography, however I'm not altogether sure how to get there. what path to go down. photography pursued as a career is no longer a cut-and-dry path as it once was. the market is saturated, and there are many, many different ways to get your business running... and only a tiny minority of those ways being successful. That's why I'm taking this whole thing slow. Slow and steady. I want this business started well - I want plenty of time to pray and figure out WHAT path to take to get to where I need to be. it's a lot to think about. I am thankful that in the mean time I can sharpen my skills through doing things I may not normally be able to achieve... such as the 365 project... and... some other projects that will be coming up here on this blog this year/soon-ish (stay tuned!!).

This past week I have been impressed with how much practice really does help cultivate your vision and sharpen your skills. I know, I know - that's kind of a super "DUH" type of thing, but... yet it's not. I think I personally had fallen into the lie of believing that either you have it(talent) or not, and if I really were that talented I should be able to pick up my camera whenever and wherever, and be able to take a brilliant picture. however it simply doesn't work like that - even if you're an Einstein of photography. Even for the most talented among us, it takes practice, TIME, and careful molding and formation of your skill.

I'm also learning - much to my surprise - that I really like my f-stop at a smaller opening/higher number. I used to always - pretty much without fail - keep my f-stop at the smallest number said lens would allow. I liked that shallow depth of field, ya know? however... I'm finally figuring out that often doesn't capture the "look" I want. I never would've guessed I would come to enjoy using higher f-stops, but I guess I'll never stop surprising myself!

Anyway, here's to week seven!

Wednesday: photo forty-seven: I know, I take far too many pictures of my cats. however it's only my inner old maid coming out (have mercy).
Mr. Howdy was cat-napping under our living room coffee table. I appreciated the way he was framed by the glass cutout therein... and the (cat/howdy/animal approved) magazines surrounding.

Thursday: photo forty-eight: an eye. my eye. this was just an experimental shot... and I just happened to really like the result.

Friday: photo forty-nine: Friday night, after getting ready for bed - washing face, throwing hair into a ponytail, brushing my pearly whites - that sort of thing, I came into my bedroom holding my camera (lately I've been making a steady habit of that - carrying Gigi with me where I go) and saw the silhouette of my window illuminated by the evening's moonlight. you can see all the bare(and leafy) branches sprawling about - I have a huge tree right outside my window.

Saturday: photo fifty: daylight.

Sunday: photo fifty-one: lately we've been having a myriad of raven black birds come flocking onto our country property. you hear them coming - like a zillion squawking creatures soaring through the sky. it sounds and looks just like "The Birds". It's creepy... yet, pleasant, too. in a aerie kind of way.

Monday: photo fifty-two: one idea. that's all it was. it took me from going to bed at 11:30pm to going to bed at 1:00am... I decided to see what it would be like to experiment with slow shudders speeds and my favorite snow globe (i really do love this snow globe so much - my parents gave it to me as a surprise on the night of my 2008 Christmas dance recital. it's so special to me now. snow globes are kind of magical... maybe it's the cryptically beautiful music, maybe it's the way the snow swirls so softly... or maybe it's the nostalgia these glass globes seem to automatically arouse - I'm not really sure.).

While I'm not over the cliff happy with the results, i do like these pictures well enough. I think they could have been better however if I had had a tripod and someone to shake the globe for me while i snapped away (it would've opened up more creative options for me, anyway).