Mustaches and family fun | Kirkland Family Photographer
I just love when families don’t take things too seriously. This family was too much fun and its rare for parents to say, “No, I don’t care if they get dirty (or wet, or wrinkled, etc),” and this family was out for the adventure… can you tell?
Faces | Kirkland, WA Photographer
I love these faces. Its park time and you would never know based on the look they are giving me. Don’t worry, I wasn’t stalking children at the park… (Although it certainly looks like they are feeling a little that way…) Anyhow, these kids belong to my good friend and I am trying REALLY hard to get the darling little girl to smile at me. When I graduate from frowns to smiles I will be sure to post them (hopefully I will have my camera for the moment). Is it me or the camera? : )
It was a darn cold day and we were just trying to get out of our darn cold (and dark) homes. You can see that we don’t have sunshine and much light to be excited about. I brought out of my camera (since I tote it everywhere while trying to stay on top of my photo a day project) right during “My Little Pony Fruit Snack” time and you can see that I did not win.
Time flies | Kirkland, WA Photographer
This happens to be one of my favorite statues in Kirkland, WA (and there are statues everywhere). I saw this treasure on a walk one morning and loved the tender moment between two solid pieces of sculpture metal ish type stuff. I stood above, below, to the side and in the back trying to get all the angles of this moment. I think it may be one of those things that touch me personally but I couldn’t seem to capture how it made me feel. I remembered the days when my own children loved to sit and cuddle with me, the days when I could read to them for long periods of time, the time when they fit on my lap. Time flies.
Are you an artist? | Kirkland, WA photographer
What exactly is an artist? Who determines if you ARE or AREN’T an artist? The realization of this question asked by Kevin Kubota at WPPI made me stop. And think. Am I an artist? Well, I can’t draw to save my life. My stick figures look sickly and if you ask my daughter what happened when she asked me to draw a flamingo-you may laugh as hard as she did. So, what is an artist? The first thing that comes to mind when I think about an artist is some type of drawing or painting. My dad is an artist. He entertained us for hours at church by drawing funny things that often resembled ourselves. My daughter is an artist (an eight year old artist) who can depict vases of flowers and barns filled with animals. My mom is not an artist and unfortunately I have her drawing genes (sorry mom). I have friends that are called artists and husbands of friends that are artist. Who named them? When did they get comfortable calling themselves artists? How does one become an artist?
Is it education? Is it dedication? Is it earned or deserved? Is it longevity? Is it based on how much money your artistic works bring in? Is it based on who your know or who knows you? I looked it up and found this:
art·ist
1. a person who produces works in any of the arts that are primarily subject to aesthetic criteria.
2. a person who practices one of the fine arts, especially a painter or sculptor.
3. a person whose trade or profession requires a knowledge of design, drawing, painting, etc.: a commercial artist.
4. a person who works in one of the performing arts, as an actor, musician, or singer; a public performer: a mimeartist; an artist of the dance.
5. a person whose work exhibits exceptional skill.
6. a person who is expert at trickery or deceit: He’s an artist with cards.
I’m happy to say that I was then open to the idea that I might, just might, be an artist . I don’t have to draw or dance (which I do love to wear my belly dancing jingly thing and move around the house and PRETEND that I have skills) or sculpt or mime. The title, Artist, is subjective. What I call art and what you call art may be on opposite sides of the spectrum. And that’s ok.
The Flash Bus and all that jazz
I looked around the room and quickly determined that I was the minority… I was under the age of 50 AND I was female. (Which by the way, I get the same feeling when I walk into Tempe Camera in Tempe, AZ where most employees and customers are sporting grey facial hair and a scarce amount on their heads.) I embraced our differences and picked a seat squished between two grey goatees (or something like that, I was too focused on the show that was about to begin). I chose the closest empty seat and asked if it was available. Lucky me, it was. Then, I became aware of the chitter chatter surrounding my existence regarding how many years in the field, what type of work was being created, what contests were won and what famous photographers were their heroes. I felt like those around me were fluffing up their feathers, determining who was the alpha. I kept to myself, anxious to learn all that I could because I wanted to be the only one who knew that clearly I was not a flash diva, not even a lamp lover. I was there to learn and soak up, like a sponge, all the information I could hold, retain and use. Hence my reason for signing up the minute I saw promotions for The Flash Bus!
What I learned at this conference was something so simple yet so difficult. There is not ONE way to do light. Light is light. Some have a tactical approach, some have a faithful approach. The tactical approach describes David Hobby, who is a light master, has a fabulous blog, Strobist, where you can learn every about using flash and more and he has years and years of experience. His new approach to photography and blogging is very unique and inspirational. I yearn to know what he knows and think like he thinks. The faithful approach is Joe McNally. I was immediately at ease with Joe. See that, like we are friends… JOE. Anyhow, I never felt like Joe was trying to earn his superiority (is that a word). We all know him and respect him and he too has many years in the field. He was a photographer for Life Magazine so he obviously is qualified. : ) Part of my love for Joe came when he told us that he says, “Let’s see what happens,” several times during his shoots (all while keeping his assistants wondering why he hasn’t figured it out after 35 years) . He has faith that it will be something cool based on his vision and then tweaks it if it didn’t work out. Joe McNally blog is a fun way to see his latest leaps of faith. : ) Joe inspired me to stop trying to get it perfect-just go for it. I have a tendency to over study and over research. I need to put it in action now and tweak it as I go. I loved the different approaches, I loved the different schools of thought, I loved the inspiration and I loved their passion for getting the light right! I also loved the open question session at the end where we were able to put our minds at ease, learn more about them and feel like we got our money’s worth. :)
As I am typing this out, it leads me to my next thought and possible post… natural light vs. other light. Hmmmm…
To see the latest photos from Photo A Day, go to my Flickr page!
Headshots | Kirkland, WA Photographer
I mentioned THE headshots. Here is the 8 minute “studio” session involving 4 ladies that wanted headshots. Incredible, huh? I am grateful to call these ladies friends and I certainly look forward to learning from them. Come along, down the road of an 8 minute headshot session for 4 ladies (the fourth was me).
Meet Brianne Hall. Brianne and I met the first night I arrived… she was a roommate. Isn’t it funny how you can be friends but not really be friends? I had never met Brianne but knew her from a photography forum. What I learned about Brianne is that she is a solid, determined girl! She is a wedding photographer and dedicated to doing things right! When she stood up, I was surprised by her height. She is a stunning, awesome six feet tall. I have always been short-I envy those that are not vertically challenged. She is one of sweetest girls and always ready for good time! She woke up every morning ready for a new day, a new class and a new opportunity. On our day of headshots, she did not disappoint with her darling dress, cardigan and pearls. She walked the sassy walk for us just as we would have our kids, seniors or fashion models do. (do those all even belong in the same category?) She never stopped wanting to do better, learn more and achieve whatever is possible. It was a privilege to get to know her. She was a fabulous roommate and she is an excellent photographer! I loved how Brianne was ready to go at any given time and yet so independent. She was there for the right reasons! Thank you for being a great example Brianne!
Meet Kelli France. I met Kelli for a few brief moments in October while I was in AZ for some Queen Creek mini sessions. I had known Kelli for what seemed like a million years although I completed the business mentoring through Francypants Academy just last year and loved her ever since. I am passionate about business and can’t turn that business brain off. Well, I think Kelli may be a match in that area! She is always forward thinking with her business. Anyhow, we joined up at the airport and proceeded to laugh our way from gate to baggage to MGM. Kelli is a whirlwind of laughter and an excellent teacher. She is the entertainment at a midnight PJ party and up for some dancing even in those plaid PJ’s. Her style is adorable and she is an excellent photographer from bellies to babies and tots to teens (Kelli, did I just get your tagline right?) Kelli was another roommate and kept us tossing business ideas and sharing thoughts. What a great way to spend our time at WPPI! I loved the way she was asking for commitments before we left our conference-committment for growth, for change, for improvements. She is a leader! Thanks for helping me sort and commit to change Kelli!
Meet Jaclyn Davis. Jaclyn impressed me from the get-go with story of the accidental flight to Reno (instead of Las Vegas) while keeping a smile. She brushed it off like another day in the life. She was easy to be around and humble and talented. Her personality was a treasure and she was friendly to all those who came in contact with her. Jaclyn was also a roommate and although we were “friends” on the forum, it was a gift to get to know her. Jaclyn was a bucket of knowledge and was ready to share with everyone. She loved her McDonald’s mornings and often lost her shoes in our tiny room. She was fun, giggly and driven. I loved her bright colors and her simple style. I loved how Jaclyn never got her feathers ruffled. I love how she can take a horrible experience (flying to Reno and taxied to the supposed MGM before realizing she wasn’t in Vegas) and turn it into a great story that brings a room together in laughter and fun… we were laughing WITH her not at her. ; ) Thanks for being so fun and light-hearted Jaclyn. You are darling! (and I am happy to say that I finally learned how to spell your name)
Meet Katie Kulzer. I must admit that Katie was nearly a stranger but that didn’t stop me from loving her right away. I could see her spunk and friendliness from the moment I met her. I love me some spunk! Her fashion was edgy and she had a bright smile. I wish I had more pictures of this adorable photographer BUT with 4 others in your way and only 8 minutes, it is difficult to get more shots. She rocks the sassy dress and short hair. I can’t wait to get to know her better! Katie, thanks for being so kind and friendly to a stranger! I hope to see more of you on that fabulous forum! : )
What a lucky girl I am, to rub shoulders with these ladies, to know they are friends but to now KNOW they are my friends. I love sharing-sharing ideas, challenges, talent and thoughts. It was truly a fantastic conference and was not short of fabulous people. I am grateful for the opportunity to attend WPPI 2011!
If you are following my Photo A Day project, you can see more here.
Photo A Day | January 12 and 13 and 14
January 12-I was walking along, minding my business… when all of the sudden I saw this! Clearly he is being saint (don’t you see the halo) while his dear little wifey does some shopping, but the mouth was dropped and he was definitely getting in his afternoon nap-with or without his bed (and wife). My husband is no shopper indeed and certainly he couldn’t come along during his nap hour. 
January 13- There are few things in this life that drive me bonkers and I am here to tell you about one of them… stuffed animals. Why do kids flock to them, sleep with them, cuddle with them and want to own every one they see? I especially dislike them when batteries are involved. But, I do have to say that Build-A-Bear, or the founder, is pretty darn smart. I had a babysitter after school every day growing up and she sewed tiny little clothes for our stuffed animals and we LOVED it. I’m pretty sure that babysitter is NOT the founder of Build-A-Bear but she should have been.
I often try to sneak one of these furry little things out in the “donate” pile but somehow the children ALWAYS find it and act so horrified, like I was trying to cut off one of their arms. Someday…. ahh someday these furry beasts will not have a place at my home (but by then, I am sure it will be full circle and I will be begging for my children to come visit thier lonely little mother and I will buy stuffed animals for the grandchildren and watch my kids be just as bugged as me!)
January 14- I too have a front door with boots (inspired by another photo a day gal) but mine is not nearly as cute and clean (and definitely missing a sassy fun rug!). Did I mention that it rains here? It rains here. It rains a lot. Something we keep at our front door is a pair of rain boots. My son’s friend who lives next door, stops a little further in to take off his boots. Good thing he (and his boots) are so cute. I never EVER thought this would be my front door scene. Never! But here we are, living in the Pacific Northwest among the pine trees and ocean water… and rain water.
January 15- (really the late evening of January 14) Have you ever been so mad at your children that you couldn’t do anything more than threaten to put them to bed without dinner-only a piece of bread and a cup of water? Unfortunately, the end of day 14 was that for me so I figured I would put it up as picture of the day for 15 since 14 was done. My kids were wild-loud-crazy-running around type kids. My daughter was getting up on our folding table and dancing and stomping her feet and then jumping off and chasing her brother around the house. One of those chase moments involved a screwdriver-he had a screwdriver in his hand and while laughing and running, turned to throw it at her. Guess where that screwdriver went??? MY HEAD. Needless to say, I was a little mad. Just a little. Ha! Thank goodness my head was in front of the computer because it would have done something to my Mac screen. Anyhow, I turned around (probably with smoke coming out of my ears), grabbed her by the arm and pulled into an empty room and told her to sit there until I was ready to let her out. Then I grabbed him and drug him upstairs and put him in his room and told him the same. Then, it was me and her 2 friends standing there… what now? That is embarassing. I told them to get their shoes and get ready to go-we walked them home. The kids were sent to bed and I delivered a piece of bread and a cup of water to their door. They were instructed to leave the dishes at their door and I would pick them up when I was ready. The episode was at 5:30, I went up there at about 9:30 and saw the dishes and felt so bad. This was for sure the moment of the day. And just for the record, her note says, “To mom from Zoe, I’m sorry for chasing Zane, I admit it I was loud.” You gotta love a sincere apology. ; ) 
Photo A Day | January 8 and 9 and 10
Sometimes Tim takes on the “to-do” list and it is blissful. We like to call it divide and conquer. The only problem is that he can finish tasks in 1/2 the time. It stumps me but when I ask he says its because I don’t stay focused. Dang focus. Anyhow, on Saturday, I sent him in one direction while I was madly editing in my quiet house. Ahhhh, the sound of silence (a good song to listen to while editing). A short 3 hours went by and he walked back in with two kids in tow and claimed to have completed all the tasks. WHAT???? My quiet time is over???? Well, I think he was in a bit of a hurry because he added a task called, “go buy Kinect,” and he did that in addition to the others. He proclaimed that our family needed it and a side benefit was that we could get good exercise. Well, he knows a way to my heart. : ) So, he fired up the Kinect and it was a family affair. Before I knew it, we had dancing, bowling, and track and field going on right in my family room. We all participated in the games and laughter.
Our Kinect joined our family on Saturday.
On Sunday, I decided to branch out. I found a cute headband in my closet. I purchased the vintage rose wrap probably back in September of LAST YEAR (sounds so long ago) and actually bought a few colors. I got too nervous and left them sitting in my closet. It was a little “out there” for me-I have never worn such a thing in my hair. I remembered I had a few when I says my friend Jilly and Mia of Girls with Good Taste feature it as a give away on their blog. OH yes… I have some of those! So, I was getting dressed on Sunday morning and spotted them in my closet and I heard it say something like, “Are you ever going to wear me? If not, maybe you could give me to somebody who will?” I considered for a moment that I should give them to a friend but then I tied one in my hair and looked in the mirror. It wasn’t too bad but I ran downstairs and asked Tim to snap a picture. After telling me that I was going to make the whole family late, he reluctantly snapped a picture so I could see what the headband REALLY looked like. You know, pictures tell the truth. : ) Anyhow, I figured I liked enough to give my courageous “branching out” a go. And funny enough, several other people ended up liking my headband. After church, I was playing with my off camera flash. In 2011, (I suppose my 2011 goals are increasing afterall) I want to learn more about off camera flash. More about that in the future but for now, you will understand the second picture below. It is a starting point, a point to grow from and one of the main reasons I keep a blog. GROWTH/CHANGE. I was the boring subject (wow 2 photos of myself in a day?) but I am the only one that won’t get upset with myself after 50 shots of the same thing. The results aren’t what I had in my head but the good news is that I have something to work toward. I named this picture the picture of change… I hope to change personally and in my business.
On Monday, my dear son woke me up by saying, “Mama, will you play with me.” There is nothing he treasures more than his Doggie and his trains. He has several and still asks for trains for every holiday-and plays with them all. His latest addition which was purchased with his Christmas gift card to a toy store, is this train set from Tomica. Doggie has been around since the day he was born and played music for a year or so but the music died and Doggie has been through a few sets of eyes. He had a little train set up in his bedroom and put Doggie by the train-his two prized possessions. I loved the scene, as his mother, because I knew the value of those items. Later in the day he was sitting on my bed and asked, “Do you think one day when I get bigger I won’t like Doggie anymore?” He started to get tears in his eyes at the thought. He then said, “Mama, he is so special to me. I will be sad if I don’t like him anymore. Do you think that I won’t like him when I am like 15?” He was trying to wrap his brain around the possibility of not needing Doggie in his life. He went to the mirror and stood there hugging Doggie and rubbing his soft ears. I loved the moment-his simple life with Doggie. It renewed my desire to keep up with Photo A Day because someday he will be 15 and Doggie will be somewhere in a bucket like Woody from Toystory. This project will take snip-its of my life and my family life and my work life and put them together in a story… Photo A Day.
Photo A Day 2011 | January 6
I am cruising right along in this project. I shouldn’t cheer quite yet but I do get excited easily. I know its late and one of my goals for 2011 is completely being ignored (stop working and get to bed) as I am determined to get my personal project under way. I decided NOT to write as many goals as I wrote in my 2010 goals so I could stay focused. Focus is a problem-no pun intended. Ha! : ) I keep reminding myself that it is just ONE photo… not 15. I can do this. I need to wait for the moment and patience will pay off. I don’t need to shoot everything, everyday. Once I have a shot that I love-I check mark my Photo A Day project and go on to something like laundry or dinner.
Unfortunately, my extremely competitive family cannot make it through a game of Scrabble without the unpleasant argument of whether it is in the Official Scrabble Dictionary or NOT. My iPhone application of Dictionary.com is not the official word, or so says my nameless sister. ; ) Many a games have ended without a content feeling of victory since certainly more than one of the words shouldn’t be used if we had the Scrabble Dictionary . It’s ok, do not fear. Our last game together on my last night in AZ on our holiday vacation we played a mad game and I won! BUT, I also ordered a copy of THE dictionary. I couldn’t wait to get home and have my hands on that little thing. Well, the anticipation died and all my anxiety went out the window when I opened my front door and saw the Amazon reusable tote with this little goody… AND my contentious opponent was not here. I have a great reference and resource but nobody to play a good game of Scrabble with. Thank goodness for Words With Friends!
Photo A Day 2011 | January 5
I have made it 4 days into January. I know it isn’t January 4th and you probably won’t believe me but I am not behind. I am actually an over achiever at this point. On some days, I have more than one picture and I am thrilled. Should I stock pile it for later in the year? Ha. I would do something like that. So, remember that I mentioned “hitting the ground and running” in my first post for Photo A Day? We got off the plane and dropped my son at preschool on the way home-I mean what says “hitting the ground and running” like that? : ) We had not seen our house since Christmas day so coming home to the unopened gifts was a treat. My daughter kept herself busy discovering what she didn’t pay attention to the first time around and voila, that left me with time to catch up with emails. Oh my goodness the emails. So, routine was back in order which meant schedules and commitments. So, Day 5 brings me to swimming lessons at Angelfish Swimming…
She is a fantastic swimmer and her swim teacher (and me, but I don’t count because I am just mom) has tried to convince her that she needs to take swim to the next level. She is a natural. BUT this kid goes where the friends go. Angelfish Swimming in Kirkland, WA is a year-round facility with an amazing story! There are no guaranteed friends at swim team in the winter time. : ( Much to my disappointment, she has decided that she will not swim for a little while. Shall I vent a little right here about children and hobbies/talents/lessons? What is the right way to handle these sorts of things? I tried force with piano and I learned a very uncomfortable and frustrating lesson-I will just say that forcing is not the way with her… I really want her to stick with something! Darn. Anyhow, swimming and schedules and life has resumed, minus the swim lessons. : ) She is ready for violin she says.
I have loved my project! I love having my camera and anticipating moments-or waiting for something that strikes me. This documenting thing is not all that bad.
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