Day 72

It was such a nice day today that we had to get outside and work in the yard and play for awhile. To keep the girls happy I pulled out the sidewalk chalk and Sarah wanted to play hopscotch. I thought about cleaning up Sarah's shoes in photoshop but then decided that I wanted to remember it just like it is.

Day 71

We went to the park today because it was so nice in the afternoon. The girls had a great time feeding the ducks and geese.

Day 70

Today we had some crazy weather. It snowed in the morning and then the sun came out and melted the snow. While it was melting off our maple tree in the front yard, the tree was covered with glistening drops of water. The photo doesn't really do it justice but it was hard to capture the feeling of it. We also went for a walk later and I got this image. Just playing around but I kind of like it.

Day 69

I snapped this image when Sam got home from work on Wednesday. The girls really miss him during the day and it's so fun to see Lily come running in so excited to see him.

Day 68

The girls and I went for a walk today. I have a serious case of spring fever. I'm looking forward to when the flowers start blooming and we get a little more color into the world again. So, in the meantime, I was able to find this bright spot of color. Not a flower but it will have to do until then.

Day 67

Today was an uninspired day. I grabbed a bowl of fruit that we had sitting on the table and shot a few pictures.

Day 66

I had wanted to get a picture of my camera using a mirror and the timer but I didn't like the results at all. I will have to work on that. So, I decided to just hold the camera and snap a few pictures in the mirror. This is what I ended up with. I cropped it pretty tight and then changed it to black and white and added a little texture. I kind of like it.

Day 65

I did take some photos today but it was with my little Olympus point and shoot. Lily was helping her dad shave and I went to grab my camera and realized that it was still in the trunk of the car from our trip to the zoo yesterday. It was pretty cold so I wanted to let my camera warm up in the bag before I pulled it out so I wouldn't risk getting any condensation on the lens. So this is what you get today.

Day 64

Today we went to the zoo in the snow and had a lot of fun. Some of the animals were so much more active in the cold weather than in the middle of the summer. Here are a couple of shots of one of the tiger cubs that was born at the zoo this past summer.

Day 63

This is my attempt at panning. The idea is to get a moving subject in focus with the background blurry. Obviously I need more practice and to do a little research about the best settings to use on my camera but this was all I had time for today. I will revisit this technique another time.

Day 62

Back to shooting inside. I've been wanting to do something with these dominoes for awhile but I wasn't sure what approach I wanted to take. I wanted to play with setting them up and trying to capture the moment that they start knocking each other over. I liked this one best.

Day 61

This was Tuesday and the day that we left to come home. Again, I was so preoccupied with keeping the kids happy that I didn't get a photo taken that day. But here are a couple from the previous days. I had so many that I couldn't choose so I'll use them to fill in. It was a fun weekend and it was great to get outside and shoot. I hope you like them.

Day 60

Here are a few more images that I took the next day along the same trail as the day before. We went further up where the trail runs next to a lake. The lake was really low and wasn't looking really attractive but there were plenty of other things to photograph.

Day 59

This day was Sunday and in the afternoon we went for a walk along these wonderful paved walking trails. It had rained earlier in the day and everything was still wet and the colors were so rich. Here are a few of the images that I got along the way.

Day 58

Sam's grandma collects these old mason jars and has them lining her kitchen window. I loved the way the morning sun was shining through.

Day 57

I have to admit that I did not shoot a photograph on this day. We were driving fourteen hours to Oregon and I just got a little preoccupied with keeping the kids happy in the car. But I did take a lot of images once we got out to Oregon so here is one from a later day. We were driving around and these chickens were crossing the road. Why? I still don't know but I thought it was pretty funny.

Day 56

I'm sorry that I am so far behind. We took a quick trip out to Oregon to visit Sam's grandma and had no internet access. Anyway, the day before we left we got a snow storm and I shot this image of Lily looking out the window. Maybe it's just because she is my daughter and I know how curious she is about everything but I loved this picture.

Day 55

There is nothing quite like the smell of freshly ground pepper that has been ground by hand in a mortar and pestle. Plus, it's a great work out for your arms.

Day 54

Tonight I decided I really needed to get out of the house. I left Sam home to make dinner and watch the girls and I grabbed my camera and took off, with Sam's permission of course. I decided to head over to the Kaysville Tabernacle and see what I could find there. I also got some images at the old log cabin across the street. I can't decide which ones to post so here are a few to choose from. I can't decide if I really like the first one or if it just makes me dizzy.

Day 53

Today wasn't a very productive day, at least photographically, but I did get some shots of the girls swinging outside. I think we are all going a little stir crazy and are more than ready for spring. I'm a little frustrated with the way these turned out. The focus is not sharp at all. I guess I need to work on my action shots and shutter speed.

Day 52

Day two of light painting. These are images that I got using a little flashlight. I put the camera on a long exposure, around 12 seconds, in a completely dark room and then used the flashlight to "paint" the guitar. The first one I also then used the flashlight pointing toward the camera to outline the guitar. I can see how this kind of photography could get very addicting. It's a lot of fun.

Day 51

I'm experimenting some more with light painting. Sam borrowed a toy Star Wars lightsaber from a friend who does costume design and we have all had fun playing with it. Here are a few images using it.

Day 50

It's tax time! Okay, so this is actually a label maker but I was desperate for any inspiration.

Day 49

I had a great time this afternoon taking some pictures of my cute nephew. I've learned that I still have a lot to learn. Here are a couple of my favorites from today. Thanks Jen for letting me practice on your adorable little boy.

Day 47

Here is another attempt at center composition. I know this is simple but I rather like it. It makes me hungry.

Day 46

I have to admit I got this idea from a photography forum's weekly assignment on center composition. We just happened to have this decorative shell so I decided to see what I could do with it. There are a couple of things that I would do differently but it's okay. The focus could be better and I would increase the contrast to show more detail of the shell. I may have to revisit this later.

Day 45

This is a Christmas cactus at my in-laws house. They have had it for years and it blooms prolifically several times a year. It is actually a plant that my mother-in-law got after her father passed away. We have a cutting off of it and it blooms sporadically for us.

Day 44

Sarah was playing around with her dad the other night and I didn't have a picture for the day so I grabbed my camera and took this. I know I broke one of the cardinal rules of photography by using my on camera flash but I was being lazy and the light was too low for anything else. I still love the picture. It shows so much of her personality.

Day 43

These are a couple of pictures of Lily at dinner. She was mad at me because I wasn't giving her what she wanted. So here are a couple of pictures. The first is her before she got what she wanted, the second is after I gave in. It made me laugh and I hope you enjoy them.