An Assignment

It's not the assignment that I was given.

I thought I would have a great time in sunny Florida taking pictures of well lit things and looking at objects abstractly. But, I was drawn to something different as soon as all the kids gathered together and well, it was the kids. I really wanted to focus on photographing all the children in their natural element. No posed pictures. I wanted to get them on the run.

In order to do this, I used two different lens. My 75-300mm lens and and my macro, 100mm 1:2.8.

I liked the telephoto lens for the beach. I didn't feel intrusive and got expressions that I would normally miss if I was in their faces.

I also set my camera to the sport feature. I use this feature a lot with my boys, especially when they are playing a sport or are really active.

(This may not be the best picture, but I just like the way Ry is hanging out in the water...just waiting for that shark to come nibble at his toes.)

I'm also a fan of the silhouettes. It sets a calming tone, which I enjoy.

Believe it or not, I was pretty close to sweet Millie (daughter of Joslyn) when I took these. Still had my big lens on and set at sport. Click away, you never know what you might get!

Next up, using my macro lens at the pool.

I Went On Spring Break

and all I made was ONE washcloth(the white one was competed before I left). Actually, I finished it on the plane coming home. Oh, I had grand hopes. I brought three skeins of cotton to make washclothes and the socks that I'm knitting. It's apparent that I hardly touched it! So, since there really isn't anything new in my knitting world, I'll direct you to some people that are actually practicing the art of knitting. Enjoy!

Leslie is making a sweater

Sarah is starting a tea leaves sweater

Kerstin is working on a blanket

Andrea has cute leg warmers

Sarah made a very cute little girl's sweater

Rachel made booties.

Kim crocheted a scarf

and

Rachel made socks

If I missed you, I apologize. I have to get back to my knitting!

5 things...vacation style

We are back and ready to hit the ground running. Well, maybe I am, I'm not too sure about the boys. Vacation was one of the best yet! The boys are more independent and able to do a lot on their own. That in itself, made for a much more relaxed week.

1. The biggest decision we had all week was to go to the pool or the beach. The beach won out this year. Again, due to the boys being more independent and thrill seeking.

2. Many good laughs were had over dinners.

3. I thoroughly enjoyed deep sea fishing this year! We went out 23 miles from shore. The farthest I've ever been out, and caught grouper, snapper and amberjack. But the best part of the day was seeing the 300 lb. sea turtle swimming by. He lifted his head as to say hello and went on his merry way. So cool...and not one picture of him.

4. We had a picnic this year in the schoolyard. Everyone was commissioned to get their own dinner, meet back to eat and then play whiffleball and freeze tag...with a little dancing thrown in.

5. But most of all, I just enjoyed spending time with the whole crew!

Be Back Soon...

Be back soon with the last assignment...I'm busy playing in the sand.

Can You Sense the Excitement?

Matt and Ryan made this a few years back for their friend Audrey(her mom is the owner of the blog, Simple Lovely). Even though this is a bit dated, the boys' excitement still permeates our house today. See you soon!

5 things...

1. Another bittersweet day...the sandbox was taken out and a firepit replaced it. Can you say s'mores and libations?

photo from Project Wedding blog

2. I'm addicted to this site. Why? I have not a clue, but everything is so, so pretty!.

3. It's been a year since that fateful phone call. Last year,we went away on our spring break looking like a pair of deer caught in the headlights. Things are better, with minor adjustments along the way. The travel has diminished and he has a lighter work load. He doesn't like it, but that's okay. He's gets to be home more, which is great! Now, if we can only do something about that outfit!


4. We all have Spring fever!

5. Go give my friend, Sarah, a warm bloggers' welcome. She has decided to enter the blogworld, and I think she's sorta dragging her feet. Let her know that we aren't all that bad. I think you just might enjoy what she has to say!

Happy week y'all.

A Color Story

Week three of my photography class had me using a color (along with its compliment) to tell a story. If you have been a long-time reader or you are new to Upper Pond, you know that my children and my home are most important to me. Sit back and enjoy a tour of Upper Pond.

Diptychs

Complimentary colors and negative space

(matt made this bowl for me in 5th grade)

Playing around with squares

Changing of the seasons

Looking at things a bit differently!

Friday Round-up...

Not much to report this week here at Upper Pond. Just cleaning and getting things organized. I took a pretty big risk towards something this week. It involves some of my photography. Will fill in the details in the next few weeks. I'm excited and so is the family.

The weather has been so nice that I have been using the clothesline.

My jeans. They are faded and well worn...but it's my everyday wardrobe. When the boys were young I would go through jeans like water...at the knees...where I spent my days...on the ground playing.

But I still lust and dream over these:

Just basic black pumps, but oh so beautiful!

5 things...

1. The weather has been glorious!  So, so good to be outside again!

2.  This guy is making me laugh.  Quite a turn around from a year ago.

3.  The boys pooled their monies and have been working odd jobs around the house to buy this jump.  They play for hours with the boys across the street.  Waiting for some bone to break.

4.  Have I mentioned how glad I am to have my camera back.  I sure didn't realize how screwed up it was until I've been playing with it again!

5. And my new computer is amazing!  I'm writing blog posts in half the time I was, because the wait time is gone.

Happy week to all!

A Study of Rocks

So the assignment this week was to play around with still life. This was a tough one, as I am usually a shoot on the run gal...and really, that's what I did this week too. I was out working in the yard picking rocks out of the grass and thinking about what I wanted for my collection. When the thought occurred to me that my collection should be rocks. So here they are.

The eye shot-taken straight on.

Rocks from up above.

Using negative space

Out of focus

This one was hard for me. I was using my 50mm and it wasn't giving me what I wanted. I ran in to get my macro lens and when I came back my husband had moved my rocks. Oh well!

And, because of that same lens issue, I didn't care for any of my close-up pics either. So, I'm offering up another use of negative space.

I really liked the way these came out. The colors of the rocks didn't seem all that apparent to me when taking the pictures, but when editing, the gentle reds and greens were nice surprises. Also, these are field rocks/pebbles that have been in the soil for hundreds of years. They could tell a story of the farm that once stood where our home stands now.

Thanks again C and C for creating a wonderful project. It's got me thinking.

For anyone wanting more information, click on the widget in my sidebar.

enjoy!

Friday Round-up!

I haven't given an update in awhile on my knitting progress, so here it goes.
The tea leaves cardi is knitting up well! Just need to find some time to finish those arms up. I might just go tackle them after I leave this space. Sorry for the cruddy picture...I was trying to do ten things at once.

photo courtesy of Chez Danisse

But, as I was knitting and reading blogs, I came across Denise's cute washclothes. So, of course instead of finishing the sweater, I found myself in JoAnn's cruising the cheap cotton and found Lion Brand organic cotton. The softness factor is incredible!

Swish, I pulled out some needles and away I went. I am using size 8 needles which are way too big for this yarn. The package says lay, anything that is made out of this yarn, flat...maybe I'll just try shrinking it when I'm done. I definitely will make more of these.

Enjoy the weekend everyone and Happy Easter to all who celebrate.