Foto Story Friday #76 -- Desire for greatness

I think we all have a desire for greatness inside us. I look at others and see their greatness, but it is much harder to see the greatness in ourselves.
I desire to make great pictures.
What exactly makes a great picture: Clarity? Beautiful subject matter? Seriousness or humorous? Knowledge of lighting and proper use of equipment?
Photography is a form of art. Beauty in the eye of the composer of each shot. Sometimes we can convey our perception of beauty to others and sometimes it falls flat.
Here are a few examples of the way I see my surroundings, what inspires me and things that contain beauty. (Of course, my kids are beautiful and inspiring!) I love a good showing of colors in the sky but sometimes I try and look elsewhere for the beauty and inspiration that surrounds me.
Humorous:
From the recent construction on my street, which thankfully is complete, I was inspired and humored to find this port-a-pot........... the first I's seen on a single trailer like this. It is truly a portable potty!
Beautiful/ Curiosity:
I like to improve on capturing my human subjects. Robby gave me that mischievous grin and this turned out to be a favorite photo of him taken at a volleyball game.
Beautiful/Growing up:
The fleeting tween years and the ever changing portrait of childhood fades. ANd maybe I need to look with my eye before I look with my camera....... how could I miss the strand of hair?!
Humorous:
Typical kid doing dishes, listening to the iPod and chewing gum..... bigger and bigger until it pops! Which it did all over his face!
Beautiful:
Photo night put on by the young men and young women at church. Props can help a person to loosen up. Learning lighting..... need lighting!
Dreaming/Inspiring:
Old time photos taken at Kmart........ shooting from the hip. The photographer was not well pleased to see that I had a camera hanging from my neck. She grumpily informed me that I could NOT take pictures of her backdrop they are protected! Well you can see that it is located in a store and they are stetting up and I didn't even try to conceal that is was a photo shoot. Props. Yeah could sure use some cool props.
Beautiful/ Sneaky:
In my ever growing attempts to take good people shots, I do have 6 mostly willing subjects. Everything worked that time!
Thoughtful/Beautiful:
Mostly this child doesn't stop moving and trying to get and acceptable photo of her proves to very difficult. She was busy looking off into space and I got my chance.
Inspiring/Thought provoking/Beautiful:
Patiently awaiting his turn and wishing his mother would not point that camera at his face, I got lucky to look up and see this glimpse at teen life. What was he thinking? Was he wondering if he could ride the rails on his board? or was he simply wishing the "photo shoot" were over?

So what inspires you? what is beautiful to you?

Hosted by Cecily and Sue

Foto Story # 75-- Beautiful Skies

Thanks to a high schooler who also has an early morning religious class, seminary, I have been forced... er, blessed with the opportunity of being up before the sun rises. Tuesday morning dawned in radiant splendor! I could not believe how bright and beautiful the colors were. It is difficult to get him to class on time when I really just wanted to have him pull over so I get out and compose a shot or 20! The morning sky changes SO much faster than the evening sky. The bright colors quickly fade and are gone in a matter of seconds.


That same evening the setting sun put on its own display of colors. Evening sky usually gets more colorful as the minutes pass and the challenge is not the loss of color but the loss of light in which to capture the range of colors that have appeared.

May we each take a moment to enjoy the sky whether you are a morning or an evening sky the beauty painted there is calming and inviting.

Hosted by Cecily and She's a moron and can't remember...

Foto Story Friday #74-- a devine smell and a weird helmet

When the smell of fresh baked cookies wafts through the air in your home, what do your children do? Well Scott goes in close for a big whiff!
I looked up and saw him "just smelling them mom!" I couldn't resist a shot to preserve the moment. It's torture when you haven't had dinner yet and the cookies are cooling on the rack!


And totally unrelated picture....
Scott was going to be Spidey for Halloween until the Monday before when he informed me that Spiderman was "not cool" and he HAD to be Darth Vader. Well, since I live in the middle of NOWHERE, my only choice was Kmart and they didn't have Darth. SO I figured I could wing it... come on it is only black and the helmet. So I visited the Attic for some second hand stuff in the shade of black and possibly something to bulk him up. I lucked out in the bulking up department. I spied 2 motorcycle chest protectors for a whopping .50 cents each... I grabbed both! A nice big piece of black fabric for 2$ and a black sweatshirt for 1$. Then I did a google search on 'how to make a Darth Vader costume/helmet'. Well there were some easy but not cheap ways to make the helmet but since the kids can't wear full masks at the Church Halloween party/trunk or treat I didn't want to make it that way. I figured I could make one.
I stared at a photo of Darth's helmet and got some supplies: cardboard box, scissors, tape and black poster board and set out to figure it out.
It wasn't looking too good so when Cody came home from school I asked for his opinion and we set out to cover it with the black paper. When we were nearly finished Cody said: " this looks more like Dark Helmet from Spaceballs rather than Darth Vader. Seriously google it!"
SO I set it on the table and called it done hoping that Scott would like it.

Well he got up the next morning and told me: "This is WAY better than Jace's Darth Vader helmet!" Thanks for the ego burst! So here are Darth and Ninja Girl!
Trunk or Treat just after getting all gussied up in the bathroom. We got some very nice comments like, "that is the coolest costume I've ever seen!" I was well pleased with the reactions and nearly everyone knew who he was! :)

Foto Story Friday #73-- The not so perfect perfect shot

While sorting through and converting the format of my recent photos (from Aug to present) I ran across some not so perfect, perfect ones:
First up, I give you this very blurry one of Shantel. But look at the personality that is showing through..... She just grabbed the props and had fun, too bad mom is not so good with the quick shot!
Next, Trunk or Treating 2009. Shantel invited two friends and they were hanging out in the dark. I failed to open the flash so my not so steady hand captured this interesting shot. Probably I'm the only one who can enjoy this shot, and that's OK! The ghosty figures of Shantel and her 2 buddies.
This last one was taken in the hour I spent in Kindergarten helping with Centers on the 23rd of Oct. I was trying to capture Scott in the midst of his learning. So to me this blurry photo is the constant motion of childhood and their eager quest for knowledge.

Hosted by Cecily and Carissa

Foto Story Friday # 72---- Construction Equipment Dance

So around the first of September they decided to tear up our street. Wouldn't be the time of year I'd have picked in Eastern Montana, but whatever!
As we watched the progress daily and I snapped a few shots of the big machines making a ruckus out front I began to see it differently.
It started to look like a loud dance performed by huge pieces of equipment. A scoop here..
a lift there carefully directed by the guy on the ground...
a back-fill and compact there.....
A scrape here as the bucket gets empty....
This picture reminds me of the book: Are You My Mother? just looks like the Snort is ready to drop off the baby bird right back in his nest.
The sound of the dirt filling the bucket.............
Little tighter action shot of the scooping up of the dirt.
The bucket starts to be in the way, a tiny lift and drop (which totally shook the house), all part of the well choreographed dance.
move the dirt from here to there.....
This thing is made to make it safe for the workers to be in the trenches and position the pipes. It was kinda cool to watch them scoop it out and see the guys head down.
The dance continues, turn, lift, dump.....
A shot through the front screen door...
The other dancers are working on their moves with a little smaller trench retainer.
The smaller trench wall retainer.
I liked watching them pick these up, they were so heavy that it lifted up the back of the excavator..... a bit unnerving when it is only feet from your yard/house.
The sound of the saw as they cut the pipes to fit all parts of the intricate dance of construction/road work.

So it is nearly Nov and the road is still not finished..... the dance has not ended.

Hosted by Cecily and Kelli

Foto Story Friday #71-- New look

I have been wanting a new look for awhile now, finally on Tuesday I went and did something about it. I just knew that I wanted it short. I was looking thru the magazines and the stylist came over and asked what I had in mind. I told her I wasn't exactly sure but that I wanted it short. She said that she thought I'd look good with a cut similar to one Lisa Rinna had did I know what hers looked like? I said I think I remember that look.... I trust you go ahead and do it.

Then the stylist said she really wished she could take before and after shots of me. Being me, I almost always have my camera on me, so I opened the bag and handed her the camera. After a short lesson, she took my picture, wet my hair down and got to work with the razor.
It's not styled like Lisa's but I do think the cut is similar, and I like it. Looks better than the long stingy stuff, huh? I do it a little different than the gal who cut it, I like a little more bang on my forehead.
Styled by me.

Hosted by Cecily and Carissa

Foto Story Friday #70-- Missoula Children's Theater

A few weeks ago, The Missoula Children's Theater (MCT) was in town. All the local kids that were interested arrived at the high school for try-outs. This year thankfully we had a small number and everyone got a part. It is no fun when you get cut ----- trust me I've been there, done that. When I was in grade school, the MCT came to town every year and I would always try out. I once got the assistant manger part, I was SO excited! When practice was over, my big brother, Brandon, came to pick me up, because my parents were out of town. He was chewing gum and I really REALLY wanted some.... well, if you have a big brother or are a big brother, you can probably guess that he didn't just hand it over. He ran up the wall and placed it on the back of the basketball hoop and said: "If you can reach it, you can have it." Not wanting to let a challenge pass, I tried and tried to get that stick of gum. Brandon eventually had to lift me up to reach it. The trouble started here.... he let go of me thinking..... who knows what... I, of course, was not holding on to anything and came crashing down, landing strangely and broke my ankle. Guess what? If you have a broken ankle, you can't be in the play! That was the one and only time I ever got picked for a part in the play. Robby has also experienced the getting cut, so we were all happy when no one was cut this year. My kids have been much more fortunate and have all gotten the opportunity to be in one or more MCT productions. The girls didn't try out this year because they are in volleyball. Cody is too old now that he is in High School. So that left the 3 youngest to give it a whirl.
The play was Robinson Caruso. After 5 evenings and one day of intense rehearsals, they performed to a near full house.
Robby was a member of the Very Hairy Frownie Face Tribe. They were cute and Robby was SO loud! We had NO problem hearing him.
After many years of having a child in the play, I stayed and watched the try-outs. It was way fun to watch them saying lines and trying to be loud.... which they have no problem with at home! Scott and Em were chameleons and they were too cute up there on stage singing and dancing.

The little guys are always my favorite, cause they are almost always off step in their dancing or just plain doing their own thing and it makes me smile!


Hosted by Cecily and Angie