A Man of Letters

Hello All!

Happy Wednesday, one more day till Thursday, I'm excited! Didn't feel so great this morning so it has been a pretty uneventful day so far. Puppy got a bath and I cleaned my house a bit so all in all today has been low key and easy going. I decided today to share some images I took on a walk downtown through the Pappajohn Sculpture Garden here in Des Moines. There are some beautiful pieces there (and some really creepy ones too!) and it is nice to view art outside of a gallery, no guide, no major rules (resist the temptation to touch the pieces, I got too close to one of the pieces and a speaker in the ground yelled at me to move away! Ha!). There is one piece in particular that I am in love with and has served as the "face" of downtown Des Moines since its installation, introducing.....

"Nomade" by the Spanish artist, Jauma Plensa

You can actually walk in beneath the piece which made for some really cool pictures with the alternate views. I got pretty lucky while I was out, it was actually really overcast and the sky went from bright blue to black in about twenty minutes. I made it safely back to my car right as the first huge drops of rain started to fall, now driving home in it safely is a whole other story. Couple of close calls and becoming completely soaked walking from my driveway into my house, yikes!

Have a great day All! See you all tomorrow!

Hello Tuesday

Hello All!

Hope you are all having a lovely Tuesday! It's been a busy last couple of days and I am scrambling just to keep my head on straight. Spent the day today racing around to complete errands for my new job, yup you heard me right, I got a new job! Now, don't get me wrong I am still in pursuit of my dream of becoming my own boss, however, this new job will align my schedule more so with that of my husbands schedule. YAY! I am excited! More than anything else it will be so nice to end my day seeing his face rather than merely hearing his voice on the phone. The beginning of this week will stay busy all the way through Wednesday so I am really looking forward to Thursday, a day off and maybe even a date night with the hubby, ahhhhh!

The picture below is of one lone Black Eyed Susan in a pot of pretty little red blooms. I seem to still be obsessed with the look of a shallow depth of field and how it changes the feeling of a picture. Pretty pretty!

Amidst all of the changes I have been making this past week and the ones sure to take place within the next couple of weeks, it is more important than ever to remember to keep my focus and not become sidetracked. I do have some powerful goals that I do ideally want to lead into a full-time business and the opportunity to do what I really love. Achieving these goals have definitely not been an easy road to carve and I am hoping that with the addition of this new job that I regain a little bit of my self worth that I have let slip away recently. I am on a path, and I am gonna make it happen!!!

Happy Tuesday All!

Hello All,

Just a quick post today. I have been all over the place running errands and trying to get my day wrapped up before I have to go to work this evening. So, quick post with my photo of the day.

This old window was found in a back alley in the East Village in Des Moines. I loved the chipped red paint and the exposed and battered brick. Again, just a boring old window with a unique view!

Happy Monday All!

Enjoy the rest of your day and a much longer post tomorrow, promise:) 

Looking at the smaller picture

Its raining here today, which means no boating, which also means lots of downtime deciding, or ahem arguing, over what household task needs done more. Clean the carpet?.. clean the garage?.., my answer: take a nap and then re-visit the issue. Ha!

The picture above is of the windshield of my car, kinda boring idea huh? But I wanted to capture a shot of rain that really showed the droplets and didn't absorb all of the natural light that was available in the shot. I love rain. I love the way it smells, the sound of it hitting the roof, thunder and lightning, I love it all! So by taking a step in and viewing something that ordinarily is not very exciting, or at least not very artistic, and viewing the smaller picture I was able change the view of an old boring car windshield. Ta da!

Baby bear

This is my baby bear, Navi. I know I have shared pictures of him before but he really is my best subject. He doesn't complain as long as there are treats or swimming involved, and tends to be very real in front of the camera, haha! I like this picture...except that I wish I hadn't cut the tops of his ears off. Oh well, I am sure that he will forgive me:)

Today has been a busy day already. Awaiting some news on a couple of different fronts, one being a large purchase and the other being the source of a new paycheck, hmmm keeping my fingers crossed! Looking forward to grabbing some dinner with a dear friend tonight and spending the weekend in a mix of boating, sun, farmers market-ing, and...work, haha I was on a roll there!

In addition to today's post about my photo, I also came across a great article about "When Life Does NOT Hand You Lemons" by Carrie Swails. It is short, sweet, and very blunt, well worth a quick read, now if you'll excuse me, I'm out to buy some lemons:)

Happy Friday All!

Romantic Details

I am in love with great detail shots. I think this fact alone has intensified my love for wedding photography. Well captured detail shots are the best way to detail a mood to really set the stage for the story being told with your photos. I captured this shot while at Saylorville Lake taking Navi swimming, normally our experience there details lots of mud, smelly water, and sand EVERYWHERE! I felt that this shot captured a romantic mood (rarely seen there:) with the muted colors, shallow depth of field, and the delicate nature of the suspended bloom.

I love Thursday's, I get the whole day to myself and then get to spend some time with my hubby. Today is no exception, we will be headed back out to Saylorville Lake to take the boat out late this afternoon. The sun is shining and it's gorgeous out today, might be a good day to try out round two with my attempt to learn to water ski (attempt 1 was met with much frustration!). Stay tuned, hopefully no broken bones:)

Happy Thursday All!

Photog Project: Day 1

Hello All,

Happy Wednesday! It is day one of my proposed photog project of taking a picture every day for 30 days to establish my vision as an artist.  Well, I am going to start off by slightly cheating....yup you heard right, but I figured since I proposed the project I get to make the rules. I want to use this project to  support my view of myself as an artist and in order to do so I feel it is necessary to back up the train a bit. During my time in college I made a decision that has since changed my life and set the stage, if you will, for my obsession with vintage, glamour, and all things chic. I studied abroad in France, and not just a study abroad but I lived in Paris in the Latin Quarter amongst all of the beautiful gardens, stunning architecture (my apartment was two blocks from Notre Dame!), mouthwatering patisseries, subway access to anywhere in the city, flea markets, Seine riverboat tours, and chic Parisians. It was amazing! I used my experiences there and the people that I met to shape my vision as a student in the Apparel Design Program so.... without further adieu I would like to dedicate Day 1 to my time in Paris.

I chose two pictures that I adore to share today.

A bridge over the Seine. Everyday views in Paris, beautiful!

A fountain of Poseidon's horses in the Gardens of Versailles, breathtaking!

Enjoy your Wednesday All!