..... life is all about perspective!!!! And everyone's perspective is different!!!! That is what I love about photography... It is a reflection of the inner ME!!!! I capture what I see the way that I see it.... and I love how others view the same thing so differently!!!



Saturday, March 26, 2011

.....architecture........





       First United Methodist Church Montgomery Alabama
Everything has its beauty
but not everyone sees it.....

  
                                        
WOW!!!  It's hard to believe that Nicole and I are at the 2 month mark....  week 8 and our word is ARCHITECTURE.  Be sure and head over and check out Nicole's take on this weeks word too.  I have to admit that I was VERY intimidated by this word....  When I think of architecture I think of large scale shots and I am more drawn to the simplicity of detail....  so large scale things like buildings and landscapes really overwhelm me!!!  However, I knew that the First United Methodist Church here in Montgomery was what I wanted to photograph!!  When we first moved to Montgomery we actually lived right across the street from this church....  every day THIS was my view!!  And what an amazing view....  changing with the seasons....  majestically perched up on a hill...  the bell tower chiming on the hour....  and while Montgomery is FULL of historic buildings and homes THIS building by far wins the "beauty" contest!!  :)  This Neo-Gothic style church building was constructed from 1928-1941.   The FIRST church building was erected in 1835 and it was called “Court Street Methodist” Church. In 1928, the congregation decided to relocate and a long process of construction began in the new location of what is now know as Old Cloverdale.  What is VERY interesting is that the lead glass windows that are in the tower of the house that we now live in are said to have come from the OLD Court Street Methodist Church building....  I think that is pretty darn cool!!!  :)  So while I really like my shot....  (used a fish eye lens to get the really cool effect!!) I just don't feel that it does this amazing structure justice!  It is in the details that I find the true beauty of this place....  the intricate details of chiseled stone arches... stained glass windows... the hand carved curves of each door...  the countless stories that could be told by this historic place... beauty that can only be truly appreciated with a closer look!  Kinda like people... Too often we are quick to formulate an opinion of someone based on our broad view of them...  never taking the time to REALLY see them!  Just like this AMAZING structure... we pass by and notice its beauty but unless we stop and take some time, we will never really appreciate the depth of the beauty that exists.   We too often miss out on the fact that REAL beauty lies in the details!!  :)  Soooo...  my challenge to you and to myself is this...  may we all take the time to notice the beauty in the details of the things and the people that surround us!!  :)

Monday, March 21, 2011

....chasing the "super moon".........


I see the moon,
And the moon sees me;
God bless the moon,
And God bless me!

Well, "super moon" Saturday came and went....  we saw the GIANT orange moon that night....  so big it seemed as though you could just reach up and touch it!!!  We ooooh'ed and aaaaah'ed over it....  but no photo's :(  It was a busy day....  But Sunday night was a different story....  I had though all day Sunday about how sad  I was that I didn't get a shot of the "super moon" and how I would be 65 years old before I was ever able to capture such a spectacle again....  HOLY COW!!!  I realized that I should really try to get a shot of that big ol moon!!!  So darkness fell and we were out the door...  camera and tripod in tow!  We live in a rather wooded and low area and the moon was not visible from the house yet, so we jumped in the jeep and took off for clearer and higher ground...  but where the heck was the moon????  There was no moon in sight!!!  The sky was clear as a bell and stars were shining everywhere.... but still no moon!!??  We droving all around trying to find it....  but no moon....  so now what???  "Lets park over in that big parking lot and wait for it to come up", Rick says....   and that is just what we did!!  So there we sat....  in the empty parking lot of a church....  windows rolled down..... warm spring-like breeze blowing through the Jeep....  listening to Journey!!!  I was transported....  to days void of responsibility.....  carefree days spent exploring....  just me and my guy!!!  For a brief moment I was 18 again and I didn't have a care in the world....  But it was getting late....  work tomorrow....  and we should be getting home....  still NO MOON!!!  So we decided to head back home... disappointed!  No photo  :(  As we pulled out of the parking lot and headed up the street....  THERE IT WAS!!!  Big ol fat orange moon!!!  MAGICAL!!!  EXCITING!!!  But we really needed to get out of the city for the perfect shot.... so off we went!  On our "super moon" adventure!!  Just outside of the city we found a little dirt road and a wide open field... great place for a shot of that big ol orange thing!!!  For about an hour we drove to different spots....  trying to get the perfect shot.... did a little off roading, discovered "bunny hill" (heeheehee) and almost did a Thelma and Louise off a GIANT cliff....  and today as I reflect and SMILE thinking about our little adventure.... I realize that last night was about sooooo much more than a  fabulous moon shot....  it was about TIME....  time spent together doing absolutely nothing but PLAYING, LAUGHING and SMILING with the guy that I love most in this world!!!  A guy who is willing to get up off the couch and go moon chasing with me....  who "gets" me and all of my crazy ideas....  I love him with my whole heart!!!  So what started out as a drive down the street to get a shot of a big ol orange moon turned into an adventure and memories that will last me far beyond the next "super moon" photo opportunity....  and I am sure that my guy will be right beside me when I take a photo of that one too!!!

Thursday, March 17, 2011

....reflection.....


            .................so that others may see You through me........

Week 7....  and the word of the week for Nicole and I is REFLECTION!  Be sure to head over and check out Nicole's interpretation of this word too.  I must admit that this photo was an accident!!  Well, the first shot was... but several purposeful ones followed!!  :)  I was actually trying to capture the steam from my coffee cup....  but instead captured the reflection of the trees....  AWESOME accident!!!  :)  I took tons of other shots of REFLECTION but kept coming back to this one because of the emotion and thought that it evoked in me....  it is soooo interesting to me how I never noticed the REFLECTION of those trees in my coffee cup until I stopped to edit my shots...   made me really think about what kind of REFLECTION others see in me that I don't see in my self....  we all have one....  a REFLECTION that is!!  And it's not just what we see when we look in the mirror!!!  The most important REFLECTION is the one seen by others...  and just like the trees in my coffee cup, WE almost never notice that REFLECTION!  It is the REFLECTION of our heart....  of our true self....  of what we believe in and how we feel...  however, we seem to value that REFLECTION the least...  we allow the negativity of others to affect what is reflected in us!  I struggle daily to let MY reflection show...  and boy is that a tough struggle some days!!!   For as long as I can remember, my prayers have always included.. "that others might see You through me"....  pretty profound that often times my REFLECTION is not of Him, but of my situation, circumstance or surroundings.  I allow others to affect what I reflect!!  :(   So... YEAH for the word REFLECTION!!!!  It has helped me to look at myself....  to focus on what I want others see in me...  and realize just how very important MY reflection is...   :)

Friday, March 11, 2011

....joy.........



   In the end, what affects your life most deeply are things too simple to talk about.

This weeks word for Nicole and I is JOY!!   Be sure to head over and check out Nicole's AMAZING work!!!  Man o' man did I over think this word!!!  I have always considered my life to be filled with JOY but struggled to figure out how to capture that in a photograph....  so with some help from my guy and the above quote I began to think about the things that actually bring JOY into my life....  and they are all  things that are "too simple to talk about"!   Holding my husband's hand, my son's laugh, Big Jake's soft as velvet ear's and little Scout's crazy gimped one!!  :),  crossing the finish line of a race....  not because I won...  but because I finished!!, a road trip home to see my folk's (who I miss sooo much), the smell of the ocean, my morning cup of coffee, the first bite of a Chocolate Espresso cookie....  OH YEAH...  the second bite is NEVER as good as the first!!!  The list of things that fill my life with JOY is endless!  Simple joy's....  too simple for words!!  May I never struggle to recognize these simple things again! 

Thursday, March 3, 2011

...fresh.......

                              
      Every day is a fresh beginning, Every morn is the world made new

Well....  it kinda looks like spring is here to stay and what better word for Nicole and I this week than FRESH!!  :)  I only think of goodness when I think of the word fresh!!!  Fresh baked bread....  yummm :)  Fresh sheets on my bed....  fresh strawberries right outta the garden!!!  :)  Fresh cut flowers like these AWESOME sunflowers that I picked up at...  drum roll please....  FRESH Market!!!!  :)  heeheehee   All good things that I LOVE!!  This prompt really got me thinking about WHY I don't have more FRESH things in my life....  why do I just settle for what is left behind.... what is day old....  what is stale or artificial???  Is it because of the convenience??  Maybe....  it is just easier to settle for what is left over....  And I find myself doing the same with my everyday life...  dragging the leftovers from yesterday into today....  subconsciously I guess... stuck in the rut of the same stale life day in and day out.  So I'm thinking that I REALLY need to work on the presence of things FRESH in my life....  I LoVe the quote...  "every day is a FRESH beginning"....  and I'm gonna really work on trying to see it as just that!!!  A fresh new day...  full of promise and goodness!  Be sure to check out Nicole's thoughts on FRESH too!

About

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I'm a simple girl, in a complicated sorta way.... love to buy shoes... but hate to wear them!! :) I am drawn to light!!! In life and in my photography.... it fills my soul.... it makes me happy... it takes my breath away!!! So welcome to the world inside my head.... captured one photo at a time!!! :)