Milestone

This photo of backlit Fireweed taken on Mary's Peak, west of Corvallis, OR, is not spectacular, but it is special for me. Seven month's to the day after getting my Canon 7D, I took this, my 10,000th photo, with it.

Every time I think of the days of film, I am reminded how much I love the freedom of being able to take as many photos as I want without the prohibitive cost of processing. It's not that I am trying to take a lot of photos as an end in itself. I take many shots of things to try new subjects, try new ways of taking photos, and capture them at a "perfect" moment by taking multiple shots. It's great practice. And I just like taking pictures!

Photography, like plein air painting, is my way of seeing subjects very closely and very thoroughly. You start seeing details and things that were not even noticeable before and you get to know your subject better. Knowing my subjects better helps me to produce better photographs of them. So, hopefully every time I look through my viewfinder, I am learning something.

Now, to get more of those 10,000 photos online to share... at least the better ones (always more to learn!).

Colored Pencil Sketch

It has been years since I have used colored pencils, but I recently bought a pack and wanted to try them out with a quick sketch. Found a handy subject in an African Violet in the living room. Tried a fairly representational approach, good practice for the hand/eye coordination, drafting skills and seeing details - colors, shapes, textures.