I'm stuck in colder weather

It's been a quiet couple months, huh? I wish I could say that I've been busy, but this isn't the case. I've just been lazy or unmotivated. Combined, it is the enemy of productivity and creativity.

I did rejoin the ranks of facebook after a three month hiatus. My return was not announced with bells, whistles, or any great fanfare. To be honest, I was't expecting anything anyhow. I just decided I had had enough soul searching, and was ready to hop back into my digital life.

Life is much less hectic now, since I've scaled back my job duties. I. Love. It. I'm never going back to such a break-neck pace. I enjoy having free time to pursue my hobbies and interests.

Speaking of which, I have read four books, knit 60& of a sweater, and started a vegetable garden. Spring is here, people! Take advantage of it! I am blessed to live in Southern California, where the growing season is ridiculously long. Hurray!

I've also been busy with a couple of photo gigs. I've cracked into the Maternity and Wedding venues! I think I have arrived as a "serious" photographer. (Hahahaha....)

Here are a couple of photos from the latest gig:

I changed my logo a bit. I'm not wholly committed to the name either, but in the meantime, this will do.

It's so easy to take photos when the subjects are so energetic! Isabele was a joy to work with, and her personality just leapt into the lense.

I am very proud of myself for this shoot. Especially since that backdrop was from Target! Did you know that bed sheets make a wonderful backdrop? Well now you do! Just don't be lazy like me, and actually iron yours :)

December

December usually brings about a reflective mood for me. 2010 was successful, so far as I accomplished many of my goals. 2011 has been a transition year, in many ways. Adjusting to a new, significantly busier job where I started being a supervisor and not a supervisee, as well as adjusting to life without grad school.

I set forth the mantra this year to "accomplish". I don't know what that really meant, but I started to accomplish things with gusto. Knitting. Work. School. I put my all into it and spent a lot of energy to finish the things I started. The problem was, I had too many projects and not enough time. I would throw my all into knitting, then switch gears into art and music, then try to get involved with volunteering. By May I was burnt out.

For 2012, I think I am going to balance. My 2012 mantra will be "Balance". With the job I have, it's almost all or nothing with me. I work super hard (12+ days for weeks on end) trying to get everything done, and then I crash. I go from uber-productive to a complete procrastinator. This hurry up and stop method can I only last so long. In 2012, I want to practice the art of setting limits, achievable goals, and making room for a healthier lifestyle. But instead of starting gung ho, I will start small and strike a balance between work, play, and life.

Speaking of play, I took four (four!!) days off for Thanksgiving this year. It was simply wonderful to not have to answer calls or worry about clients for four consecutive days. I spent the holidays in Colorado with my in-laws and manged to have a pleasant time. I even got some knitting done:

 Of course, I found a yarn store in Colorado and bought myself some Sweet Georgia sock yarn. I have been on a sock kick recently, and these bright colors make me super happy. I am doing the "Fire Starter" pattern by Yarnissima.

I also finally finished a scarf that I have been working on for a LONG time. I call it my "Kaylee" scarf, because I spent the bulk of it knitting while watching Firefly. Dear followers, I am a super, duper, Firefly nerd!  Though my favorite character is Malcom (swoon!), I absolutely love Kaylee's character. This scarf just reminds me of her with its warm fall colors and the XO cable pattern. 

I am such a Firefly fan that I named my Doxies after Malcom and Inara:

They're brown coats! ;)

I have also been finishing up on the Christmas Photo spree. I have learned so MUCH about posing and composing over the last few weeks. Here are a couple more sneak peeks:

I really like working with families. By far, these series have been my favorite projects ever.

Free

It's been two weeks since my facebookicide, and let me just say, it's really liberating! In the last two weeks since I have removed the shackles from my heels, I have been far more productive with my time at home.

That said, I have some fun new pictures to share. I have been donating my time to the community in efforts to provide those of lower economic status the ability to give professional family portraits in their Christmas cards. I am always game for new challenges and thus far, it has been difficult working with posed pictures. Even though I am completely in control and can manipulate everything prior to sessions, right down to lighting, it's still unnatural. That unnatural feeling translates into my photographs if my subjects are not completely comfortable. It's tough to covey the feeling of ease and fluidity when you are posed for a picture and waiting for everyone (yes, even the three year old) to look at the camera.

If anything, this foray into the realm of still, contrived photography has given me the opportunity to practice prior lessons (like frame the picture before clicking and paying attention to EVERY detail) as well as learning new ones.

Another upside to doing portraits was the excuse to purchase a super cute backdrop from Lemon Drop Stop Studios! I absolutely love their product and will certainly be purchasing more in the future. I got the least expensive option and it's super high quality. It also comes out great in the pictures. Check them out and buy a couple backdrops, you won't be disappointed!

Here are a few snapshots from the first session. I am editing the others this week.

Overall, I had fun and I cannot wait to get better and better!

Of this, I am certain

Last week I did something completely drastic. I deactivated my facebook account. In todays world, doing such a thing is akin to social suicide. That is to say, I removed my "online presence" from easy access and made it a whole lot more difficult to reach me.

I did this for several reasons, the first of which being that I am completely impulsive.

I don't meant to go emo on any of you, but lately I've been pretty down. Down for many reasons, most of which are my own fault, but I was down because I feel as if I do not have any friends. This is a pathetic statement, but it is true. Yes. I have facebook friends, but I don't have friend friends. Friends that come to visit. Friends that go out for coffee. Friends that treat me like I'm someone worth hanging out with.

I used to have friends, back in college and even after. We would hang out weekly and do things together, and it was nice. Now, time and distance separates us, and we are reduced to digital buddies. The occasional wall post, poke, or message is all that we have left. Even texting seems somewhat mediocre compared to the level it once was. I understand the convenience of it all, but in some ways, the substance is lacking. Watching this slow decline into casual acquaintances both infuriates and saddens me.

So I deleted my facebook account.

And it feels marvelous. Like starting from scratch in life. No longer do I feel the weight to update, check, and post, just so I can stay visible to my friends. No longer do I feel sad as I watch myself be replaced by closer, more convenient friends. No longer am I constrained to parameters of digital friendship. Now I can pursue those deep, meaningful, substantial friendships that I have been lacking these last three years.

I'm hopeful for this future.

I'm also incredibly busy with work and life. But that is a story for another post.

It's been awhile

Wow, it certianly has been some time since my last post. I haven't forgotten about this blog, but I have been incredibly busy. Currently, I am finishing up my final semester of my Masters program, attempting to conduct a Thesis, and managing a caseload of about 20 clients. On top of that, I am the maid of honor for a wedding in two weeks AND I'm trying to build my photography portfolio.

Can you say WOW?

The next two weeks will be the most hectic. After that, I will be able to rest a little easier.

June was a great month for me, photographically speaking. I had a chance to photograph two senior portraits and a newborn. It was quite an experience, especially the newborn shoot. You've got to be quick when working with children, or so I found out :)

I've slowly been working on my style, composition and overall approach. I am happy with the way things are shaping up.

Here are a couple shots. I haven't had time to put the logo on some. Maybe later... after this paper...

Getting better and better!

Don't Judge Me

It's a beautiful day and I thought I would spend some time with the pups. We have a massive backyard for them to run around in, but they don't do much running unless we are back there with them.

I took a few pictures, but felt really embarrassed, because the weeds in our backyard are just massive! I am not exaggerating. We haven't done anything about it though, because they're pretty much the only thing that DOES grow in our hard clay/sand soil. There are areas of the backyard that have been lasagned (See here) for a garden later, and I am so glad I covered them with tarp before the weeds grew!

Just to prove how large they are, here is a picture with our Shiloh Shephard, Ivy, who I affectionately call the BEAR. She comes up to my hip and intimidates everyone with her massive size.

Only her head pops up. Those weeds are massive.

I took these pictures on my new Quantum LG that I'm still learning how to use. This new phone that I got for work is pretty impressive. The picture quality is very clear and I can do all those things my tech savvy friends were doing four years ago, like get email and check in to foursquare and tweet. So far, I'm locked in a battle for mayorship of my local Starbucks. I swear, I will defeat you random stranger!

I can also make calls and texts. So now... I'm more reachable than ever.

Yay?

From a hermit like me, I am not sure if I am pleased with this change, but it was necessary for work. So while I get random emails all day, at least I can take cool panoramic shots of my horribly weed-filled backyard!

Video Podcast Ep. 1

Look! Its me! Oh my gosh. I just got to get over this nit pickyness. I talk too fast and weird. Oh well! Here you go!



Show notes:
The Glowing Stars
Chunky Cable Scarf
Autumn Light (Ravelry Link)