Ah! The dedicated photographer! Out in freezing cold wind gusts up to 25 mph, being pelted by ice crystals from the trees after the storm! I've noticed that it's hard to think when it's like that!

I need to remember to get some gloves with cut off fingers. Either that, or photograph things INSIDE!

Brrrrrrrrrr!!!

I mean, does anyone know what I mean?

P.S. There are more of these icy photos at my other blog, In The Sunny Spot.

As you know, I've fallen down on the 365, this month. My reason is partly because I think that I took about three months worth of photos, last month, and I needed a break - badly! I've been working on post processing and cleaning out old photos, every day, though. Also, I've been enjoying putting some priorities back where they belong. I've been, also, tackling some lovely home cleaning projects. (I'm weird! I love to clean my house!)

Yesterday, missing my camera pretty badly but being exhausted, I decided to skip the nap and go out into the chill to see what November had to show me.

Beauty!

It was a subtle evening - quiet - owl hooting in the woods and everything.

Pure joy and soooooo refreshing!

 These are a few of the sooc duck photos that "got away". The duck was practically posing for me and I didn't really get it, alas!

The moral of the story? Simply, I love my camera!

This is a pretty little thing that I took in the first hour that I had my camera. It's not quite tack sharp but I like it and just wanted to tuck it in to my journal, here. 

I'm going through a lot of my photos because my start up disk is full. oops!

I've been going through some of my old photos. This was from my second attempt on the Japanese Anemone that I was struggling with, in July. The photos aren't as bad as I thought. I just wanted to tuck them into my diary, here.

Well, I took this shot back in July - a little over a month after I got my new camera. I was cleaning out some old photos and decided to re-post process this and put it in a mini competition on the Cambridge In Color site. A few people congratulated me on my improvement and said that I was really getting into a stride, now. Ah, well! Does this mean that I'm actually going backwards? =]

Here it is in black and white. I never would have thought of THAT in July.

What's funny is that I don't post my best shots at CIC. I post the shots that I'm not sure about and I'm learning so much! I've tried to think about how much I've learned in the last two months since I joined:

1. white balance
2. better exposure
3. metering
4. exposing to the left, exposing to the right
5. camera sensors
6. a much keener understanding of DOF
7. Post Processing (sort of.... I still have to get Photoshop)
8. and much more!!!

It's been a bit awkward, though. I've felt like a gawky adolescent photographer. This happened to me when I went off to college to study voice. I immediately got so loaded up with technical things to work on that it's a wonder that I could stand up straight and remember not to cross my eyes - let alone make music. Now, however, with a pretty solid technique, I can sing anything. I guess it's just a phase that I have to go through to grow.

How about you? Does anyone know what I'm talking about?

I have a confession to make.

After the October Photo A Day for the photography community that I'm in (which we started calling a "Perfect Post a Day"), I was pretty wiped out. My family was too. I've been taking a break!

Breaks can be very bad. They can knock a person off the momentum they've gained. However, both my family and I needed it. It's been very refreshing and reorienting but, now, I need to get back to it.

Feeling completely uninspired, my Sister "kidnapped" me after church, this past Sunday, and took me into the Green Mountain National Forest.

The car thermometer said that it was just above freezing but, up in the mountains, with the wind chill...... Oh, Mommy! It was bitterly cold! My fingers - and brain, for that matter - were absolutely frozen!

See! I told you it was cold!!!

Devil's Den!

 I hope that you all are well! I sure do miss you! Just a little longer of getting my house in order (Christmas is coming) and I will be back to it.

Love, Me