[photo book pages]

I spent the afternoon creating a photo book for a friend of mine who is in the midst of very difficult time.  She lives in another state and because we don’t get to see each other face to face, I thought this would be a good way to encourage her.  I had so much fun putting the book together and am hoping it will bring a little cheer to her life.  Here is a sampling of the pages…

butterflies

It only took me two weeks, but I finally got all my butterfly pictures edited!  Yay!  For the sake of any new visitors, all of the following shots were taken at Frederik Meijer Gardens in Michigan.  Their ‘Butterflies are Blooming’ exhibit is one of our favorite attractions each spring.

I don’t have a super great zoom lens yet, but my 100 mm macro worked like a charm when I couldn’t get quite as close as I would’ve liked to the butterflies.  I seriously love that lens.  It never fails me.

I didn’t do a lot of editing to these pictures – just a few minor adjustments in ACR and some sharpening in PSE. 

Aren’t butterflies amazing?  So intricate, delicate and colorful!  And so much fun to capture with my camera!

[linking up with Deb for This or That Thursday]

creativity

One of my very favorite blogs is Ann Voskamp’s A Holy Experience.  I love it mostly because I always learn something, am always encouraged, and am often challenged to see things in a different way.  Yesterday she shared a post about how to foster creativity, which was wonderful and comes highly recommended by yours truly.

I’ve always considered myself a creative person.  When I was a girl I was constantly creating cards or notes for my parents and one of my favorite activities was to cut pictures out of magazines, glue them onto paper and create my own magazine.  I’d write stories and advertisements and then staple all the papers together for my very own “publication.” 

One of my very favorite memories from childhood is of spending the night at a friend’s house when I was twelve years old.  We had recently experienced a death in our family and I was struggling with it.  I couldn’t sleep that night and so my friend and I sat up in the middle of the night and wrote songs based on verses in the book Psalms.  That act of creativity calmed me and helped me get through a difficult childhood experience.

Perhaps that’s why I fell in love with photography.  It taps into the creative side of my personality that can easily be shoved to the back burner in order to make room for all the responsibilities and duties that come with being a wife and mom and it also calms my heart and can many times encourage me when I’m feeling down about a particular circumstance.

I love creating, not only with my camera but in the editing process as well.  One of my favorite things to do is to take an ordinary picture and turn into a work of art.  I can’t explain the joy that brings me.  It’s just part of who I am.

But there can also be fear associated with creativity.  What if no one likes what I’ve created?  What if it’s not ‘good enough?’  What if someone criticizes my work?  These are all questions that play out in my mind when I’m feeling my most vulnerable.

Ann shared some thoughts on being creative in her post yesterday that encouraged me … maybe they’ll encourage you as well …

“Creativity, it’s good theology; it’s what God did in the beginning.”

“The essence of creativity is essentially risk, believing enough to leap into the yet unseen.  The theological term for this is faith.”

“When we stop fearing failure, we start being artists.”

“The only trees that ever grow tall keep relentlessly stretching into unknown territory.”

“Bury your fear in faith.  Otherwise you bury your talents.”

happy

I am slowly working through my pictures from our visit to the Frederik Meijer Gardens a few weeks ago and found a few more that I love…

Oh I am such a sucker for flowers.  They just make me happy.

But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.  [Psalm 68:3]

[linking up for Sweet Shot Tuesday]

getting in front of the camera

I must be getting braver because last Friday – on my birthday – I actually asked Joel if he’d mind capturing a shot of me.  I’m still not a lover of being in front of the camera, but I keep coming back to the thought that someday my kids are going to appreciate having pictures of me.  It may not be in my comfort zone to have my picture taken, but I know that it’s important to preserve memories for my kiddos.  My hope is that someday they’ll look at this picture and be glad we took the time to capture the day I turned 39.

I just have to say - I’m so thankful for my husband!  He truly went out of his way to make my day special.  I don’t know why God blessed me with such an amazing partner in my life … I’m truly humbled every single day … but I’m glad he did!  And I’m thankful for another year of life … another year to see what God has in store for me … another year to learn and grow.  Praise God!

spring

Spring has sprung here on the blog and in my neck of the woods.  It’s the middle of March and yet there are flowers blooming in my front yard, the grass in greening up nicely and all the trees are budding.  It’s amazing really … the earliest I can ever remember seeing this much spring in our area.  It’s delightful in every way.

So, it only seemed appropriate to give the blog a spring makeover.  I sometimes think I should just settle on one look rather than switching it up every couple of months, but then again, change can be good.  Right?

Pretty in Pink [Sweet Shot Tuesday]

If you’ve been visiting my blog for any amount of time, you probably know that one of our favorite places is the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  As my Mom put it yesterday when we visited, “It’s just a happy place!”  And it is.  Especially during the Butterflies are Blooming exhibit which is going on right now.

We went to see the butterflies, but also to enjoy the spring flowers that were blooming in the conservatory.  The shot below is my absolute favorite from the day and since my daughter’s room is pink and green, I’m thinking I must get this one printed and framed.  Or perhaps order a canvas.

f/2.8 … 1/640 … ISO 400 … 100 mm … auto WB

And yes, since it was a butterfly exhibit that we visited, I will have LOTS of butterfly pictures to share in the coming days as well!  Just have to get caught up on my editing…

[Linking up for Sweet Shot Tuesday]