The Light Chasers

One major thing I’m learning about photography via trial and error (mostly error! ha!) with the new camera is that lighting is everything. 

Some fun shots tonight from the arboretum:

I have to give Brent credit for this one.  Brilliant! (said in my very best Simon Cowell voice, of course.)  How creative!  I love it.  Favorite one of the night, hands-down.

     

We love the camera!   Slowly but surely I am learning about the different settings. I know that I am making technical errors like crazy, but that is okay with me because I am just doing this for fun. I have decided that taking a formal class or learning the instruction book would suck all of the fun out of it. My perfectionistic and obsessive tendencies + all of the complicated camera settings and techniques + a creative subject like photography = disaster.  I tried looking through the tutorial online and it stressed me out and discouraged me.  I remember thinking “I will never learn to use this camera!”  Then I remembered that my goal is just to play and the camera is really a just a toy.  This is why I have no patience for photo editing.  It frustrates me because there is an infinite number of possibilities. I would just rather take pictures and see what happens and maybe one day I will be as good as Brent. :)

For the past 2 years I have been taking pictures of my “everyday life” – all of the random, normal, ordinary things  -- and it has helped me become so much more aware of things in the present moment. It is honestly like therapy for me; similar to how scrapbooking used to be back in the days of film and actual prints.  There is so much beauty in the world that is just too easy to overlook. When I take pictures (especially on the macro setting), it is like a game to try to make something very ordinary look beautiful or interesting. Some things look better – even magical (oh Lord, this is getting weird) - through the lens, especially with the right lighting. Other things just look better in real life, no matter how many different angles I use and I just never can tell until I try! Even though our neighbors probably think I’m crazy + creepy for taking pictures of random weeds and clouds all of the time, I just love it!  I think I could spend entire days on end just out and about taking photos.

Clearly this rambling post is evidence that Brent created a monster when he bought me the DSLR.