Timeline of the Journey

Our assignment at Behind the Scenes today was to look back at our journey to today as far as our online lives go.  I never did much online and definitely didn't  participate in any online groups until Big Picture Classes.  I can't remember when I took my first class at Big Picture but they are all scrapbook related.  Then in the summer of 2010 I decided to take a photography class called "Picture Summer" that was taught by Tracey Clark and the rest is history!  Fun to create a timeline of the process.  As they say, "You've come a long way, baby!" 

Beginning Behind the Scenes

Today is the beginning of Kim Klassen and Xanthe Berkeley's class on blogging called Behind the Scenes.  I originally decided to take it to get some ideas on how to improve my posts on Focusing on Life but after only one lesson, I want to improve this blog as well.  Our assignment for today is to write about why we blog. 

When I first started blogging a few years ago, it was for the purpose of posting photos and stories of our daily lives so my mom could see them.  Then she moved where she didn't have internet and I thought it was a waste of time since nobody else was reading it anyway. Then she moved again and had the internet so I started posting again.  

As I became more and more obsessed with photography, I wanted my blog to be more of a  place to post my favorite photos rather than just a recounting of my daily life, so I created a new blog for that purpose, this one called Photographically Speaking.  But I had gone from telling too much of the story to not telling enough.  This blog as it is now says nothing about me except that I like to take pretty pictures.  

With this class, I am hoping to put a little more of myself into this blog, more about who I really am.  I hope to strike a balance between my old blog (which was more of a diary of what was going on in my life) and this blog (which so far has been strictly photographic) and create something where I can post my photos but also connect with the people who may read it, to give them a better idea of who I am and what I love.  Keeping my fingers crossed that the other lessons are as inspirational as this first one is!

Mug Love

For Kim Klassen's Beyond Layers group, we are focusing on cups and this is one of my favorites.  I used one of Kim's Ugg Love textures on it and I love the cracked effect it gives to the cup.  Can't wait to see what everybody else is posting!

Abstract Images

I've been playing around the house today (it's too hot to go outside!) and shooting some abstract images for Leigh Love's theme over at Focusing on Life, Attraction to Abstraction. Did a little research first to try to figure out exactly what abstract images were.  I was so happy to find out that macro shots of flowers qualify!  I've been shooting lots of peony shots but decided to switch it up and took this one of some gerbera daisies I have sitting on the kitchen table.  Gotta love that color!

Morning Feast

 

This morning after a trip to drop Robert off at the airport I passed this saguaro only two blocks from home that was full of birds feasting on the fruit.  It was full of blooms only a few short weeks ago and now those blooms have turned to fruit.  This is a thrasher but there were doves getting their fill as well.  I quickly drove home and grabbed my camera and went back and luckily they were still there.  It's almost too hot to go out and shoot (111 degrees and record-breaking heat yesterday) but I was able to get this from my air conditioned car! Can you see that little bit of fruit clinging to his beak?  It made me happy to be able to capture this.