the spark

MANY years ago my dad got a photography itch. He wanted to take nice professional looking photos of my brothers as they played highschool football. He went out and bough a super nice camera and lenses and jumped right in. He became the schools unofficial photographer for years; even after my brothers graduated. One thing that sparked my dads interests was capturing landscapes. He traveled around the state, and into other states to capture images. He blew them up and hung them on a wall in our basement family room. And honestly, I loved looking at them. They captured such breathtaking images of life. It was right then as I looked at the wall of photos that my own photography spark went off.

SINCE then I have kept my eye open for these same photo oppportunities. When there is a pretty sunset from our back porch I hurry and grab my daughter and have her come look with me. If there is a rainbow, I watch it until it disappears.  I love the sparkles in a freshly fallen snow and twinkling stars at night.  I love living in a place that gets to experience winter, spring, summer and autumn. 

WHEN you stop and look around at nature it is breathtaking.  I want to freeze those images.  I want others to see the same things I do. 

this blog

THIS is a completely new hobby for me.  Even though I have thought about it and wanted it and dreamed about it for years....this is the first time I have actually had the opportunity to do something about it. And good grief.  From the research I have done the last few weeks in anticipation of our new camera, there is a whole heck of a lot to learn.  It kind of scare me. 

I have big plans for what I want to do.  However.  I will be realistic and honest.  I need to start with day 1.  Then day 2.  Then day 3.  I will start by just learning how to turn the camera on!  But I will always have my goals in the back of my mind because they will be what keeps me learning.

Why I want this blog:

I want to document photos.  The lens, shutter speed, aperture, etc etc etc that is used so I can keep things straight in my head and compare differences.

I want to go back and look at all the great photos, but also the awful ones.  This blog is going to help me learn!!

RECORD tips, articles, ideas, thoughts, photo challenges

And of course, I want to be able to go back and see how beautiful the world is.  For me, for my kids and for whoever else wants to take a peek.


I love taking pictures of my kids. I think they are the cutest and want to remember every single thing they do and every change they make. I have 10's of thousands of pictures of them on disks, on computers and printed in boxes.  So obviously portraits are one area I want to develop.  However, I have had a mental debate with myself for awhile about whether to post photos of my kids on this blog.  I probably won't since it is not private. I have a private family blog that will include my kiddos and what I am learning about portraits.

My other love is nature.  Landscapes. Insects.  Animals.  Sunsets.  Mountains.  Lakes.  Weather.  These are the photos that will end up on this blog.