So, continuing with the pictures from Charlotte (and I have just a few more) check this one out.

Can you see the pink building in there? I took this one from the courtyard of the Center City Hilton. I just thought that was a cool thing, the little building peeking through like that, and so I angled the camera in such a way as to get the biggest slice possible, and really liked the angularity it gave the photo, so I clicked.

So, now we’ve done this for 5 days. Do you like it? Is it better or worse than photos of my carpet, my clutter, my endless array of custom pens. Or have you just stopped coming long before now because it’s so darn boring? Are you giving me the silent treatment? Tap, tap, tap! Is this thing on? I;m just not sure it’s on! Honeyyyyyyyyyy, can you check my……

I saw this building when we went through Charlotte on the way to Carowinds in July, but was unable to capture it because of assorted conspiracies of nature. This time, the sun was sweet and the photo was mine. I don’t know what building it is, and frankly don’t plan to research it. I just like the architecture.

I am totally thinking I have been living under a rock. No, that’s not entirely true. I’m beginning to think I have been spending so much time generating content that I have not poked my head up in quite awhile to see what is going on around me. Good think this old dog is still able to learn a new trick, cause lookit this:

Isn’t that cool? Pictures. On a pillow. Pretty nifty in and of itself, but now think bigger and different. Obviously, I couldn’t put one on my kids on a pillow, because I have 8 and how would I choose? But the foliage pictures I took? Some of those would make nice Photo Blankets or even shower curtains. Yep, I said shower curtains.

I guess today’s lesson is just keep snapping pictures, because somebody somewhere is sitting there thinking up something really cool to do with them!

I took this shot on a bathroom break, again while traveling to Charlotte. It just hit the memory spot, because when I saw it, I was instantly transported into 4 horror novels and 211 Spaghetti Westerns. Sadly enough, I had to line up the shot pretty carefully to avoid the garbage left by some rednecks. I almost took a picture of that as well, but in the end I decided that particular memory doesn’t need to be substantiated.

I know, three posts today, all on topic. What in the world is the world coming to? Well, you don’t know yet if this third one is on topic yet, but I can assure you, since I already know pretty much what I am going to stay that it is indeed on topic: photography, specifically natural lighting and photography. Since I don’t have the kind of intense zoom that allows for amazing closeups from a football field away, I have been trying to remind myself to play with angles and light more. (Speaking of which, this sentence is to remind me to show you the prism photo and the beer shot). I have been both happy and unhappy with my results, so I am still learning, but I have noticed a couple of things worth sharing.

Number one: avoid the light. I have sliding glass doors off my living room, and we keep the vertical window blinds open over there, so we can see the children when they are outside (and also so they don’t get torn down with all the running in and out, but that’s neither here nor there) and invariably, the first shot of any great sequence is ruined as I grab the camera and aim at the child in front of that glass door. The result is a great silhouette, but since I am usually trying to get their facial expression, that doesn’t work real well for me.

Number two: embrace the light. OTOH, if you are shooting objects, or even people when your primary purpose isn’t to capture a moment in time, you can use the effects of light to great advantage. I’m sure we’ve all seen photos with strong horizontal shadowing cause by blinds, and such pictures are particularly striking when presented in black and white. But what about the waffle weave of light produced by woven bamboo shades? While I don’t have this type of window treatment myself, what I am seeing in my mind’s eye is that the shadows would give a flat surface an almost 3-D effect, somewhat like the one you get when sunlight shines through shallow water.

Number three: channel the light. Roller shades are a photographer’s friend. Natural light is the best light for capturing colors and faces, but in addition to creating unwanted silhouettes as noted above, it can also wash the color right out of a scene and cause faces to appear to flat and expressionless. Pull down a roller shade to soften the light and fire away. You’ll get true colors and vivid faces, and that’s a winning combination.

I didn’t take this one for the foliage, I took it for the name. Many folks don’t realize that the Scots settled relatively heavily here in North Carolina. Being of Scot descent myself, I find this particular welcome sign most…welcoming. I grin every time I pass it, but this is the first time I’ve snapped a picture.

So, now that I am selecting better pictures for the PAD, I’m thinking it might be something I want to publicize a bit more, yk? Yes, I know I haven’t unveiled today’s delicacy, but I just sat down to blog. I have 9.75 hours until midnight, but I can assure you the photo is already uploaded. Be patient.

Back to the publicizing: How about doing that with 100 FREE business cards? Ooprint has cards designed especially for bloggers AND you can upload your own images., logos or photos. Yep, photos! That’s just slick. When I was in Vegas some of my buddies had cards with their own photography work on them, and I was a bit jealous. Muhahahah! No need to be jealous anymore!

So, I said when I got back we were going to do something new and interesting, remember? I was talking about the PAD. See, I am a stay at home mom, that’s what I do. I can go a week at a time and never leave my house. And the kids, they are cute, but it just feels weird to post a picture of my kids being cute every day. And what about when I am aggravated at them, and don’t think they are very cute at all? You’ve already met most of my major appliances, and also my threadbare carpet. And what about the days nothing happens, and I am scrambling trying to take a picture of something, anything just so I can say I did it? Wouldn’t you rather see a good picture, with a real story behind it, even if it happened NOT to be taken on the day it was published? I would, because I love eye candy, and I know this I take some great shots that never get seen because I happened to take two the same day and had to decide between them.

So here’s what we are going to do, beginning today. I am just going to put up a picture and tell you about it. If there is a great uproar, we can go back to the old way, with blurred shots, missed shots and boring shots. You have the power, readers, you decide.

This one I took for the riotous color. It’s a view from a truck-stop about 15 minutes from my house. We all met here before heading up to Charlotte for regionals. The foliage is just stunning right now throughout the state, and it was a lovely drive. The time passed quickly as the eye flitted from one ocular delicacy to the next.

Thanksgiving Morning, before we left for Regionals. I had good hair, so it seemed like a great time to take the picture.

This is my new toy, and it’s big fat instruction book; I have finally entered the digital age. I’ll be using the phone to Utter to Mothering Many while I am gone. Moblogging. Me. Whodda thunk it?