whimsy

I have a tendency to get so caught up in the technically perfect side of photography that I forget to create whimsy. I was taught in photography class, so long ago, that photographs should be sensual. No, not sexual. Sensual. I think too often these two words are used interchangeable but they are very different. Here is a definition.

Sensual. 1: relating to or consisting in the gratification of the senses or the indulgence of appetite.

Five sense: Hearing, sight, touch, smell, and taste.

I was also taught that a photograph should tell a story. “What stories does your photo tell?”  So when I try to create a photo I ask myself, could I imagine touching the texture on that egg? Can I smell the wet grass? Does my photo tell you a story? I tend to get so caught up in creating these worlds of texture and stories that I forget the whimsy. 

I also find that sometimes when I’m trying to manage all the settings on the DSLR I forget what it’s like to just relax and let the photo happen. Toy cameras help me do that. Yes, you may have to think a tiny bit. Very small bit of  the thinking. Is it full sun or cloudy? Is my subject (focus area) close or far away? That’s it. Those two questions. No focus. No shutter speed. No f-stop. Just shoot and hope something magical happens. I do mean hope. There is also no instant gratification of a viewer screen showing you how you’ve done. You have to wait for actual film to be developed. But there are very few things we have to wait for anymore and waiting is not always a bad thing. 

 

So without further ado, The Girls

admittedly bad pic and bad post processing on my photo 

Hmmm…wonder what is on these rolls of film.

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make me happy

I don't sit down to write tonight with some profound insight or inspiration.  What I do have are some pics.  I'm proud of these pics for a couple reasons.  I also self-critiqued them and know what I would like to change and how to change it for the next life shots.  Life shots?  Is that what I want to call them?  You know, the shots that are not for a shoot and not for art.  Shots that chronicle your own family and family's life events.  Life shots.  I'll have to let that roll on my tongue and see if it sticks. 

Enough already.  My Boys.

My little Indiana Jones
55 mm 1/200 sec. ISO 100 f/5.6 A-priority w/Flash
Adjusted Levels in post-processing

Although I love this pic because of the subject, I'm not completely fond of the composition.  The little man moves doesn't really slow down much so next time it might be beneficial to back up or zoom out. 



I do love this pic
55 mm 1/125 sec. ISO 110 f/5.6 NoFlash
Again, only Levels adjusted 

I must say, I'm in so much love with this pic.  I don't know that I would change anything.  It is perfect in my opinion. 

This mini-maze made him so happy.
55 mm 1/125 sec. ISO 110 f/5.6 NoFlash
Obvious BW in post processing.  Also some contrast adjustment.

 I was having issues with my auto-focus.  I'm still not sure I got it corrected but I'm working on figuring it out and fixing it.  I also think I want to revisit this pic in it's BW version and highlight him in someway, maybe some vignetting. 

Overall, I'm happy.  Happy that I tried.  Happy that I played.  Happy that I succeeded with some good (at least one) shots. 




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M is for Manual

We met up with some friends of mine last night.  Couple of people who also have an interest in photography.  Along with knitting/fiber and cooking; photography is one of those artistic loves that has followed me through the years.  As we sat there chatting about photo related topics I realized I had lost something.  I had lost my ability to speak photography.  I realized that I theoretically knew what I meant but not how to form those thoughts into words to explain what I meant as it related to photography. 

Anyway, I also realized that a lot of my photos have been very, shall we say "point and shoot" esque.  Not at all what a photographer is trying to accomplish. 

Where does this leave me? I have this list of things I want to start doing when we finish moving.  Couch to 5k, plant a garden, cook "week in a day" meals, and so forth.  I'm also gonna add something else to the list but this my friends will be started ASAP.  Like today.  Get more familiar with my lovely D60 and shoot.  I made this effort in the past and previously I did learn some new things.  It appears it's time to get motivated again. 

My goal, take pics that can be posted/used/published SOOC (straight out of camera) or at least with very little post processing.  Again, I've said this all before and much of this is just a playback but with different words.  But I need to proclaim it again for myself. 

I do have a challenge.  I still have a film mindset.  It's hard for me to get past the limited frames of film.  It's hard for me to just shoot.  Am I alone in this? 

Also, although my friends did a great job tyring to persuade me, I will not be shooting in RAW.  Here is a great explanation why.  I will however take Mrs. Pioneer Woman's advice and use the RAW editor which I'm gonna get the Husby to re-install tomorrow. 

I'm also getting myself a 50mm 1.4 (maybe 1.8) lens.  They are not that expensive and my current lens will only go to 4.2.  This is not nearly as low as I like.  It just doesn't give  me the depth of field control that I need so I'll be purchasing one that does. 

There will be no pics with this post.  I don't like to post without a pic but in this case there is just nothing that works.  But I'll have some pics in the coming week that will hopefully tickle my inner photographers sweet spot.  although that statement read kinda dirty, it's not so get your head of the gutter. 

Canvas of possible

Me at about 3:30pm everyday: "What am I gonna fix for dinner?"
My response to me: "oh cwap, I didn't take anything out of the freezer!!"
Me: "um, um, um"
My response "I really don't want to feed my family boxed food or fast food, I want them to eat something healthy"
Me: "I'm such a slacker not to get anything out of the freezer and then forget to ask the hubster to take something out this morning"

I could go on and on but really, you get the point.

Here is what I came up with and realized that it really is a blank slat to create many different (maybe even a little healthy) dishes.  This was totally inspired by an article in Parent Magazine, just so ya know. 

So here is the breakdown.  Not calling it a recipe, more of a guide. 

Broccoli.  Grocery store had broccoli on sale this week.  I picked up 2 bunches and when I got home cut the heads off the stalk and put them into a container in the fridge for ease of prep at meal time.   In this dish I just cut the heads into smaller bits. 

Chicken.  Sunday I had cooked 8 or 9 leg quarters and then once cooled, shredded the meat.  For this dish I used about a handful and then put the rest in vacuum bags, sealed and froze.

Yellow squash.  Thanks to my friend Jessica I remembered a trick to up the health value of a meal by adding shredded/grated squash and/or zucchini.  This idea was gonna work perfectly in this meal.  I used about 1/2 of the squash.

Philadelphia cooking cream.  Not too proud of this ingredient, but in a pinch it was good.  Not good for us but good tasting.  The sauce is actually where I think the most experimentation can fit.  I was telling the Hubster at dinner that I would like to try and make this more of a stir-fry dish by using some Asian type ingredients for the sauce. 

Whole grain pasta.  I will admit that this is the first time I've used whole grain pasta.  I've used the garden pasta stuff that is all different colors but no whole grain.  I felt that maybe the family would need easing into this part so I used 1/2 whole grain and 1/2 traditional pasta.  The fam didn't seem to mind the whole grain, so that will be our pasta of choice next time. 

So here is what I did, and what I will change next time.  I first boiled the pasta.  Then I blanched the broccoli.  Next time I'll do it in the reverse order so that the pasta can absorb any nutrients left behind by the broccoli.  Then in a skillet I added some butter (yes, the kind I made), I then added some garlic infused olive oil.  The butter helps to raise the smoke point of the olive oil.  I then got the skillet hot and threw the drained broccoli in the skillet.  This steamed it some more and gave it a nice garlicky kick.  I then added the squash, chicken and cooking cream.  Then, the pasta (which BTW I made way too much).  I tossed to coat everything with the sauce.  YUM!

I admit that I had to get past the "it's not dripping with sauce" thoughts in my head.  I'm not used to fixing a pasta dish that doesn't have sauce dripping off every bit. 

Now for some variations that I'm considering.  How about grilled chicken over a bed of the pasta/veg mix with an Italian vinaigrette type sauce.  Or an Asian noodle inspired dish using soy sauce and other stuff that I haven't figured out yet. 

So, yeah, this was a revelation for me in my cooking.  Revelation one: I'm so glad I had the fresh veg in the fridge to use in my meals.  Revelation two: I've acquired enough skill and confidence in the kitchen to fake it when in a crunch, which then manifested into a meal that will go into regular rotation as long as there are wonderful veggies for us to use. 



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Like Butta'

I must admit that I'm a huge "I can't believe it's not butter" fan girl.  In the last few weeks or so I've really been wishing it would go on sale so that I could stock-up on.  Well, I recently found out that margarine is one molecule away from being plastic.  Plastic people.  Can you believe it.  I was fully shocked by this news. 

In light of this disappointing information I decided to make ridding my family of margarine one of my steps towards healthy living.  No more margarine in my family.  I must admit that I'm so not happy about this.  But, there is a morsel of yumminess in this decision.  We will be using more oils and butter.  Real Butter.  Like homemade Real Butter.  Say it with me with your best Julia Child impression "mmm, buttaaa". 

Homemade Butter - YUM!

Now don't bow down to my domestic godessness, it's not nearly as hard as it might seem.  Can you pour some cream into a food processor, mixer, or blender?  I'm really quiet positive that the answer to this is going to be yes.  Then you can make butter.  I don't want to bore you with the explanation here so I'll linky link some You Tube vids for your viewing pleasure at the end of this pot. 

Want to use your real butter that you've made.  How about an Egg-in-a-hole breakfast?  I was watching Pioneer Woman (her blog, and her Food Network page) this morning and she made them.  They are sooo easy and very yummy.  Honestly I wasn't expecting to like them so much.  I mean, it's only butter, bread, and egg.  But yes, it was really good.

Made in my grandmother's iron skillet using homemade butter just made it just that much yummier.

So here are some linky links for ya (in addition to the ones in the post):

Foodwishes butter in a Mason Jar - I warned you that I love Chef John's food vids.  And there is a rim shot in this one, fair warning.

Making butter in a food processor

Making butter in a stand mixer - this is how I do it but without all the mess.  I use a whisk and don't turn it up nearly this high.  I may take a little bit longer but not messy at all.  I don't however, but will in the future, clean my butter this well. 




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one at a time

I had a lot of time to think lately.  I mean A Lot.  I've done a bunch of laying around resting and recovering.  This time to veg has lead to time to think.  People who know me best will know that this is not always a good thing and seem to think that I think too much.  you know who you are.  Anyway, what has all this thinking lead too?  Health.  Lots of thinking about health.  The health of my body and my families bodies.  Nutritional health.  Physical health.  Going for my, I don't know, what is this my 5th surgery in a lifetime got me thinking.  Look, the others were probably just the way life goes, I don't think cholesteatomas (link has really gross image of the thing) were going to be corrected by healthy eating or more exercise.  But a torn rotator cuff might have been.  It became a much bigger deal to me to go into surgery, even one as "normal" as this one, when I thought about my little guy being left behind.  Melodramatics aside, it was scary for me. 

check out 2 of the 6 stitches above the "eye" of the peacock feather.  I think the Dr. tried to cut in between the feather lines.

So after all the thinking and pondering and sitting on my arss I came to a conclusion.  Da Da Da Da...I need to heal myself and keep the family healthy in the process.   This might prove more difficult than I'm willing to admit to myself right now but I have to make the effort to make a change. 

I have a tendency to go against the grain in a lot of areas, why should health be any different.  See: cloth diapering and making baby food.  ahem

Here is where it gets tricky.  My main hurdles will be $$, time, and change.   As most of my friends know I'm totally into couponing and saving money at the grocery store.  As most of you may also know finding good deals on organic and healthy foods is a bit of a challenge.   Time is also to be considered.  It's called convince food for a reason.  Busy families need fast food.  By "fast" I mean quick.  And by "quick" I'm talking 30 mins at most.  That's about all the time I'm willing to spend in the kitchen.  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE to cook, but I also LOVE to spend time with my family.  3rd hurdle is change.  Change is sooo hard.  Why did they have to make change so hard.  insert me whining here. 

So how have to figured I would clear these hurdles?  One at a time.  Seriously, I'm not gonna be able to change everything at once.  It's gonna have to be one at a time.  Changing one thing at a time.  For instance, adopting a new recipe.  Stocking up on organic foods when they are on sale.  Growing my own organic garden.  Learning that I don't have to change everyones' opinions about my changes.  That's a hard one. 

I love to give resources/links so here ya go.  If you're interested in some of the sites that I'm visiting lately, here they are. 

Christina Cooks - She is amazing.  Her story is amazing.  She is hardcore though so it's not for the faint of heart.  These are the recipes I hope to incorporate into my meals, One at a time.  It's gonna take some convincing to get Paul to accept eating tofu and he may never but I can certainly try making it tasty enough to assist in the convincing. 
The Krazy Coupon Lady - they list matchups for Whole Foods.  It does mean that I'll be making more trips to Tampa but that's workable.  We do have a local Chamberlin's Natural food store so I'll hopefully become more familiar with their products and be able to score some deals. 
I want to start practicing Yoga again.  I felt so good when I practiced.  So I think that Yoga Journal will be lots of help, it's like I'm newbie again.  My biggest concern now of course is not re-injuring the shoulder but helping it to heal properly. 

I think that's enough my rambling on tonight, besides I've got to choose a great tofu recipe for Paul.  ;-)


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vino wino

FYI - This is not a resolution.  Just so we are clear.  However this post is a declaration of a goal. 

It is my goal to visit 5 wineries in the coming year.  That is my goal, but I don't know how practical that will but so fine print reads: "or at lease purchase and taste wine from 5 wineries that I would have liked to visit in the SE region of the United States but due to financial restrictions could only afford to buy a couple bottles of wine."

It is also my goal to attend 3 wine tastings, not counting the tastings at the wineries. 

I've picked out the wineries I'm interesting in visiting.  3 in Florida and 2 in Georgia (we plan on vacationing in Georgia in April).  The wineries are:

Lakeridge Winery

Keel and Curley

Chateau Elan Winery

Habersham Winery

Schnebly Winery

I've listed these in likely hood of visitation.  Let's just say that I will most probably be ordering wine from the last two. 

As far as tastings are concerned, these will be done locally and maybe with groups of friends.  Hopefully with groups of friends, I think that would be really fun.  Ooh, I would also like to throw a couple of wine tasting parties. 

So yes, the vino is a new obsession, and not for intoxication purposes.  For instance, I just tried a wine that had the obvious "hey I contain alcohol" and I'm about to pour it down the drain.  I've even allowed it to breath and open up.  Still not good.  This is a good place for a wine review using my very unorthodox terms and young palette. 

First wine review by Julie Ford...how exciting (for me and nobody else I'm sure).

Brand: the Little Penguin - Shiraz
Price: $5 (2 for $10)
Year: 2009
I know, I'm such a sucker for a cute label and name and I'm such a nubie that I'll buy a $5 wine and then expect good things.  First impression: burn.  I felt like I was sniffing everclear liquor.  The taste was not bad, there was a fruitiness that wasn't bad, but then the alcohol burn on the back end.  This is what I mean by the "i contain alcohol" statement.  This just hit me with alcohol burn.  I opened and let it breath for over an hour.  Still burn, a little less and I tasted other nice fruit flavors.  But then burn.  Maybe this wine just needs some time on the shelf to mellow out, maybe in another year I'll try the 2009 again.  I still have another bottle of a white (can't remember which).  Here's hopping it doesn't scream alcohol too. 

Welcome to 2011

Sitting here and thinking about what to write about for my first post in 2011.  Do I reflect on 2010?  Do I write about my wishes for 2011?  Do I list out a bunch of resolutions for 2011?  So much pressure to write a thought provoking insightful post on the first day of the year.  This might be more pressure than I can handle as I've only had 4 hours of sleep.  

So I'm going to share what I've been thinking about all day.  The future.  My plans and hopes for the future. 

I'll start with family and friends.  I think my biggest hope for the coming year is to make more time for family and friends.  Although it's hard when I think of how busy we are with Nugget.  But, with every challenge there is a solution.  I also hope to work on myself as it relates to family and friends.  Try not to be as quick to judge and put up shields.  I had a reason and I had circumstances that brought me to this point.  Mainly it was a form of preventing hurt and protecting myself.  This has resulted in people not know who I am.  They know who I want them to know.  The parts of me I want to people to know.  It's not about lying, it's about keeping my shields up.  Aside from that I hope to be able to build loving, supportive, and compassionate relationships that I've avoided up to now. 

I've also thought a lot today about things I like to do.  Photography.  Mead making.  Cooking.  Reading.  Knitting.  How do I work these things into my life while not taking away from anything else.  For instance, how do I make it out to the Photography club meeting without taking about from Nugget's bedtime (which I've missed twice since he has been born).  This is when I have to ask myself, "is it really going to hurt Nuggy to miss 1, 2, even 3 bedtimes in a month"?  Really?  As much as it pains me to say...it's not going to hurt him.  It may hurt me, but not him.  And to knit, brew up some mead or cook doesn't take time away from Nuggy especially when he is playing within eyesight.  Now that he plays a lot more one his own.

I've also been thinking a lot about money today.  Who wants to think about these things on the first day of the year?  Nobody, but I did.  Without going too much into is personal subject, my hope is to have a sizable savings by this time next year.  

Okay enough with this retrospective introspective gobblely gook and on to the fun of 2010.  Making plans for 2 vacations this year.  1 for sure, 2nd is a possibility.  Really looking forward to these.  Also looking forward to finishing my family cookbook.  Also excited about Nuggy's first birthday and all that this year has to bring as it relates to him.   

And one final note.  I look forward to sharing the year to come here.  I hope we can start conversations.  I hope we can get to know each other through this meeting place. 

my future's so bright...

Happy 2011

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that boogie eludes me

As a parent my biggest arch nemeses so far has been the boogie. The ever present and super regenerative boogie. It’s like it has some sort of magic power over me. My new mom nails are too short to dig it out. If I go after it with a q-tip it just gets smashed to the wall of his nose only to perk back up and laugh at me. Or if I get really aggressive with it and declare war, it is only to the detriment of my son who makes this snorking noise that makes it seem like he just can’t breathe at all. And then the ultimate boogie slap in the face is if I do get it, another one appears in its place with super sticky abilities. It’s all just a huge boogie blot against me. I have a feeling me and the boogie will be doing battles for years to come. Damn you boogie!!!

And worst boogie offense of all...it shows up in pictures.  See the evidence below.

Drats

Now for a pic with lots of cute factor but no boogie.

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