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Field of Dreams.

Yesterday I took pictures of Leslie and Johnnie.  She wanted some with her wedding dress and cowboy boots in the dry field.  The late afternoon sun was bright, the flies were plentiful, and even though Leslie assured me at least ten times that there were no rattlesnakes in that grass... I'm sure she was lying.  I'm still getting dust out of my ears and nose... but we did it!  (I wish someone could have taken a picture of Darlene and I carrying that ol' couch from the truck out into the field!!)

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Office Staff Portrait.

I usually don't participate in the school 'theme days', because I find it hard to work in pajamas on 'Pajama Day', or with a wild hairdo on 'Crazy Hair Day', but Char made me wear a mustache on 'Mustache Day'!

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Grandpa's Tie.

The other day Andres came to my desk before school very sad.  He was absent the day before to attend his grandpa's funeral.  I told him how nice he looked, and asked him why he was wearing a tie.  He said it was to honor his grandpa.  It was his grandpa's tie.

Andres came to the office a couple of times that day crying when he would think about his grandpa.  I took him for a walk outside and let him talk about his grandpa who died of cancer.  He asked me if I would take a picture of him wearing his grandpa's tie. 

Yesterday Andres came to the office before school, gave me a hug and told me he was feeling better but he will never forget his grandpa.

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It finally feels like fall... my favorite time of the year.  I get to look at this little arrangement all day.  It's on the counter in the office at school.  We collaborated... pumpkin from Dorothy, vase and bow from Shawna and hydrangeas from Char.

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 I received this e-mail yesterday:

"I went on your blog and looked at ALL of your postings so far.  Some made me smile, some made me laugh, some even brought tears to my eyes, but ALL of them made me even more in awe of all your talent!!  What you project thru your pictures is so beautiful, and varied, and so all about life.  Everyday life.  I am so very proud of you."

Thank you Linda.  You have no idea how much that meant to me.

Tree in clouds, Yosemite

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As much as I want to work on my weekend projects, I need to go through the wedding photos and get them to Darlene.  I came across this one.

The bride and groom chose to take their photos together before the wedding, and wanted a little private time after they first saw each other.  Thank goodness for a long lens... I think this unposed picture of them is very tender.

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It was a busy two days with pictures on Saturday and Sunday... something I said I would never do.  It was the French Family on Saturday, and 6-month pictures for Natalie on Sunday.  The fun part was getting to see Collin, Micah and Natalie.  Plus it must have been my lucky weekend... the kids couldn't have been better!  (Yes, Natalie definitely redeemed herself from the first time we 'tried' to take pictures!)

The 'boys'... Collin 3 & Micah 1 with pretty mama

Natalie at six months... growing up too fast!

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I'm trying out another lens... this time it's one I already own and forgot I had! 

I was looking at Alan and Erin's wedding pictures (loved them Alan!).  I liked the background blur effect that was used for a lot of the pictures, so I e-mailed the photographer to ask what lens was used.  It was a 50mm 1.4.  Mmmm... I think I remember owning that lens!  Sure enough, there it was in my camera drawer.  I popped that puppy on my camera and the first thing I saw to practice on was, of course, Katie waiting to be fed.  (It was 5 a.m.)  So I got down on the floor to her level (I think she thought I was going to eat with her), opened up the camera to 1.4 and shot away.  I need to practice with it some more, but I did like this shot with only Lucy's eyes being in focus and the rest faded away.

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Dave is a trooper ... he goes with me to session sites before a shoot to scout out locations and poses wherever I ask to see if that spot works.  Usually he just stands there, but this day checking out Knights Ferry, I actually got a nice shot of him.

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Yesterday our Garden Club made these.  The best part is when the pumpkin starts to rot, you plant the whole thing in your garden.  And come Spring, if you didn't scrape out all the pumpkin seeds... you'll get a pumpkin plant!

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Now I'm trying out the 85mm 1.2L Canon lens.  I didn't have a whole lot of time yesterday to play with it, but I did manage to squeeze in a few 'click click clicks'! 

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Today I have to say goodbye to the 100mm macro lens.  I didn't get to play with it near as much as I would have liked to.  I'm switching with Darlene for the 85mm 1.2 lens that she rented.  

Lemon Slice in Water Glass

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Here are a few wedding detail shots.

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One of my jobs at the wedding Saturday was to get some shots of the bride and bridesmaids getting ready.  It was more of a challenge than I thought it would be... the room at times had nine girls in it, not counting myself and Megan... a large make-up table, and another table with food.  Add to that the bedroom furniture, and there was not much room to maneuver.

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I Have an Illness!

Yesterday evening coming home from the wedding I have never been so exhausted from taking pictures.  I started taking pictures at 10:00 a.m. and stopped at 6:30 p.m.  But, as I turned down my street, the clouds were so dramatic... what did I do?  Got my camera out to take a picture!  I think I have an illness.  Carol at work said there is a pill I should take for this.  I might have to look into it!

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Wedding Day.

I'm helping Darlene with a wedding today.  (What were we thinking?!!)  Last night we got a few pictures out of the way... like the wedding rings.  This looked pretty good in my view finder... then I enlarged it to make sure the rings were in focus (they were), but I could see our reflections in his ring.  We must have been tired, because we couldn't stop laughing.  We re-shot at a different angle then went home to get a good night's sleep... we'll need it!

Here is a little closer crop.  (Yes, her stone is green... very pretty!)
This was taken with my rented 100mm macro.  So far I'm loving this lens!

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Library Time

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I am renting the 100mm macro lens this week to test drive it before possibly buying one.  This is my first attempt with it. 

I'm not sure what this dead flower is.  I pulled it from a neighbor's yard when I was on a walk.  I set in in a vase on a TV tray in front of my Apple computer box (for the blue background).  I don't usually have to look too far for a subject!

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On Saturday the Cow Palace will honor the Livestock Person of the Year who is none other than my brother-in-law, Bill Jackson.  Congratulations Bill!

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This was taken by the Foresta turnoff in Yosemite.  When we were driving by, Dave said it was sad that there was a fire that ruined the scenery.  I asked him to find a place to pull over because I loved the way it looked.  As long as I have visited Yosemite, there is always at least one area that is regrowing after a forest fire. 

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The main attraction... Half Dome.  No matter how many times I see her, she still amazes me.  Never pass up an opportunity to pull over and check out the view.  Depending on the time of year, the time of day, the weather, the light, her mood... she will always, always look different.

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These people were settled in for the day watching their friends climb El Capitan, while their son played in the meadow.

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Saturday we took advantage of the re-opened Tioga Pass and drove over to the Eastern Sierra.  We drove to the Rock Creek trail head.  This was where we were going to camp and hike if a snow storm didn't curtail our plans.  These hikers were prepared to hike in the snow... we weren't.  So we just snapped a few pictures and drove out (in four-wheel drive!).

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A little ways past the Merced Grove we came upon this cute cabin.  I wish Dennis B. was with us so he could pick the lock and we could explore inside!

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Friday morning was freezing... but at least it wasn't raining.  We took an early morning hike to Merced Grove.

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I'm several days behind in posting, so I will catch up with my Yosemite trip pictures.

These deer in Yosemite Valley didn't mind the rain at all.  I love the reflection of their 'rumps' in the rain puddle!

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Be careful what you wish for!  Storm clouds can easily turn into rain, and that's just what it did in Yosemite Thursday.  All day!  At this stop Dave offered to hold the umbrella if I wanted to take pictures.  I opted instead to stay in the car and eat my lunch.

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One storm is here and another one is brewing.  Since I LOVE clouds and storm pictures... we're still going to go.  Where?  I don't know... somewhere!