photo workshop

Wow...long time!

Here are a few edited shots from this past weekend...

they all have a theme, and will be used for something special.  I'll show you that part when it's done!

The story of the sunflowers

My friend and I made a plan

we were going to photograph sunflower fields

in the waning evening light

I had the fields located

the camera batteries were charged

and the sunset looked to be beautiful

we drove 30 miles to the North

and located the fields

but to our dismay,

the flowers were nodding their heads

there would be no sunflower photos tonight

they were thirsty or sleepy

and the light had faded much too quickly.

But luckily, the carnival was in town...

real life...

Here's another edition of...'yes, this is my real life..."

Tuesday night we had a shrimp boil with some great friends. 

There was wine, laughter, and of course shrimp.

The new potatoes were freshly dug from the garden,

The shrimp had arrived that morning straight from the gulf

It was an absolutely gorgeous June evening

And an absolutely wonderful night...

slippery slope

Does your life sometimes feel like this?  Sliding fast down a slippery slope with curves and turns...Just when you get comfortable with one course, it up and changes on you?

Lately I have been feeling pretty comfortable with my life.  Changes we have made for the better, time spent with family and friends is refreshing and rewarding.  But when I took this photo, all I could think of is how well it symbolizes how I feel much of the time.  I like things to be changing and moving and growing, but when I stop to smell the tulips for a bit, I remember how nice they smell, and I have to remind myself to slow down.  I have to remind myself to enjoy this time...because all too soon, it will change...again!

so much

There is so much to say and so little time.  So little, that I am in fact writing this as I wait for the train to pass by...then I must go take Molly to swimming, pick Carson up from basketball, and then make some dinner (why must kids eat dinner?) and then find some time to go for a run before the -10 degree weather comes in tonight (along with more snow!).

Quickly though -

• The cruise was great, and the weekend at home doing laundry after wasn't so great.
• I joined the Blog Camp 365 photo a day project.  I am excited and scared all at the same time.  Hopes are that it will improve my photography and processing skills!
• I got the bestest Christmas present of all time:  Old Gringo boots!
• I am working on a photo book from Snapfish of our trip for my mom and dad & brother and sister-in-law.  I'm excited to see how they come out!
• Lots of travel coming up:  Colorado next week for a long weekend with the girls, then GA again for work.  For February...who knows?  I haven't gotten that far yet!
• I started training for the Lincoln 1/2 marathon this weekend.  I am excited and inspired to run again.  I was reminded last night of how much I love the cold, snowy nights.

and this:  This is the second of my 365 photos.  I LOVE how it turned out!

you capture - lines

OK, so I am slow to the party here.  The thing is that I have been sick ALL week.  Plus also we had a giant snow storm, the kids were out of school one day this week and we are breaking records all over the place with the cold night-time temps.  Forgive.

This is the painted brick fence at the front of our courtyard.  I love how linear it is, especially with the mounds of snow from earlier this week.

Join us:

you capture - real life

This week's You Capture theme was Real Life.

I know it is hard to believe, but this is so my real life. 

My friends and I had a sunset picnic on Saturday night in Ellsworth County, right here in Kansas. 

I was surrounded by beautiful friends, beautiful prairie and a most beautiful sunset. 

We sat still, drank wine, ate, talked

and were just plain were thankful for all that we have and all that surrounds us.

Join us!

it is autumn here - you capture

Here in Knasas, in the counrty, in the fall, I love to look at the irrigation units in the bare fields. 

There is something so architectural and abandoned about them.

join us!

photowalk 09/28/09

you capture-macro

This week's You Capture theme was macros.  I love taking pictures with the macro function, but with this new camera, I need much more practice.  It is really hard to keep really still!  On with the show:

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you capture-old signs

This week's You Capture challenge was old signs. I live in a part of the world where there are old signs everywhere. Just a quick trip down the road and I can drive through numerous old (mostly abandoned) towns. I have always loved looking at old signs, and it was fun to photograph them!

Join Us!

you capture-food

Oh! Hello there! I'm still here, but have been MIA for a while! There's nothing like a You Capture and a new camera to get me back into the swing of things. Work has been a killer lately, and school has started (see, I even didn't get to post pics of the first day of school, things were so crazy) but things appear to be loosening up, so I might be back to normal soon (whatever that means).

So, without further ado: food.

We are big canners in our family (and by we, I mean my father-in-law and I). Here you will see some of the beautiful salsa we canned this year, and grape jelly from last year...our last jar (the horrors of store-bought jelly!) You can also see the pretty pickled beets peeking thru on the right. We can and we freeze. We freeze and we can. Pictures of frozen things aren't nearly as pretty. Green beans, salsa, spaghetti sauce, and applesauce in glass jars are much prettier.

Please join us!

you capture-motion

This week's theme for You Capture was motion. As usual, I had high hopes of learning a few things about the shutter speed of my camera, but as usual, that didn't happen. However, I was caught in a major Kansas summer thunder storm and managed to get a few cool motion shots while driving.

Out the front windshield...

Out the driver's side window. Doesn't this look a little like a watercolor painting?

I really love this one!

Join us!

you capture-you (me)

This is me

in all

my glory...

this was painful

I really wanted to work on using my camera's timer, but didn't get that done this week...

join us:

you capture-friends

This has been a week of friends and friendship (see previous post). I had a great time taking photos on Saturday of Carson at his first tackle-football scrimmage. This was the showing-off of skills learned at the week long "pad" camp. Below is Carson and his buddies full pads, mouthguards and all.



Also, My mom and dad got a new puppy, and his littleness contrasted with the older dog's bigness was too cute. I suppose they can be considered friends too:

And, just because this photo of Carson is just too cute, I had to include it!

Join us!

you capture-shapes

This weeks you capture theme was shapes. I am usually drawn to squares, so it was interesting that the photos I took and liked were actually circles.

...cherry dilly bar (which started out life as a circle)

...and the circular center of the sunflower, my state's most beautiful flower!

Join us:

you capture

I read Shindig. If you don't, you should. Zackary is participating in You Capture, and I decided I needed that challenge too. Here is my first try.

This week, participants could choose from July 4th or food. Of course, I kinda forgot about taking any photos Saturday on the 4th of July, but I can always manage shots of food. Even when I don't make it. So, here it is! Any guesses what it is?

amber waves of grain

Last evening while Todd was golfing and Molly was at a sleep-over, Carson and I braved the heat and went out to the farm to ride on the combine and cut wheat. This time of the year is always such a wonder to me. In the course of about a week, all of the wheat for almost of the entire world's bread is cut all around me. Well, not really, but that's what it feels like. Every town for miles around me is focused on one thing...cutting wheat.

This year I took my camera and really tried to watch thru your eyes. I wanted to capture some things that I would have wanted you to notice. I assume most of you have never been around a wheat harvest. Let me tell you: it is dusty, hot, smelly, dirty, and amazing. When we left the house last night it was 6:30pm and still 100 degrees. When we got home at 9:30, we hadn't even cut one whole field, we had the headlights on the combine, and it was 77 degrees. Although we didn't partake in the evening meal (prepared by the farmer's wives and brought to the field), we have many times before.

We saw a mama deer, who could have been our pet. She just bounced along ahead of the combine wagging her tail and looking back at us. While Carson and I were at the elevator, my dad saw a coyote along the edge of the field waiting for the combine to scare out something for his dinner. We saw small quail, rabbits and mice running out ahead of the combine. We saw dry lightening and a storm system moving into the East. We saw great yields, and beautiful plump seeds of grain. We chatted with Willie, the farmer my dad and brother (and some day Carson) have always worked for. We drank water and sweated. We listened to country music and got dripped on by the "air conditioner" in the combine. We drove thru Falun, KS where the only activity in that town happens at this time of the year.

I took grain home with me. I am going to mill it myself this year and bake bread with my own flour. I will eat it with vegetables out of my own garden, and I will be in heaven. For a moment, time will stand still and we will know what it might have been like all those many years ago when our ancestors did just the same: provided for themselves. I will teach my children what it means to me to be from Kansas, and why it is important that we know and maintain our heritage.

At this moment, all is well in the heartland, and for that I am thankful.