February Evaluation

Time for my monthly goal check in.  This has been a roller coaster of a month.  Some days I am doing well and others I am not.  The good thing is that I am only being measured against myself and I can always do better.

1.       Scrapbooking – For the most part I am where I want to be.  Did I do a lot of scrapping this month, no.  Do I still have a lot that I could do, yes.  I am still trying to achieve that balance between being “caught up” and still having pictures to scrap. 

2.       Photography – This month I worked on black & white picture taking.  I have learned several things.  One thing that I learned was to not take black & white pictures on your digital camera.  You want to take them in color because the camera is made to see in color and then convert to black and white in the editing process.  Here is an example of color, black and white in camera and black and white conversion:

 

 

 

Another thing that I learned and am working to put into practice in to see in black and white.  Seeing in black and white takes practice, but I am enjoying to process. 

3.       Eating healthy and exercising regularly – This is the area where I struggled the most this month.  It is so easy to come with an excuse to not get up at 4 AM and go to the gym.  I need to just decide that that is what I am going to do and get up and go workout.  Which also means I should probably go to bed earlier.  Eating healthy hasn’t been too much of a struggle.  Although, I have had my moments, like today, I ate six cookies when one would have been better.

4.       Reading – I feel that this has been my best area this month.  I finished two non-fiction book this month.  Of course the second one was pretty short.  I read I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education by Malala Yousafzai.  I really enjoyed this book.  It was inspiring.  Here are a few quotes from the book that I particularly liked “If people were silent, nothing would change”, “if you want to achieve a goal, there will be hurdles in your way, but you must continue” and one last one “Malala, you have already faced death. This is your second life. Don’t be afraid-if you are afraid, you can’t move forward”.  The second book I read was Believe in What You’re Doing, Believe in Who You Are by Hilary Weeks.  This too was an inspiring book.  My only complaint is that I wish that it was longer.  Some of my favorite quotes from her book are “Don’t worry about what others think of you. Worry about what they think of themselves when they are with you” and “Scripture study is like cinnamon. It doesn’t take very much cinnamon to flavor a whole recipe and make it taste good. It takes just a little scripture study to make our whole day good”.

Even though I haven’t done my best in certain areas, I can just start from where I am and move forward.  I haven’t failed.  I don’t need to call it quits.  I am not a loser.  I start each day fresh and do the best that I can.

“Don’t count the days.  Make the days count.” – Muhammad Ali

The Big 1-0

Yesterday my baby girls turned ten.  I can’t believe that she is ten already.  So much has happened in the last ten years.  When Alyson was born, Scott started a new job and he was called to serve in the bishopric in our ward.  I had four children ages 6 all the way down to a new born with the 6 year old being the only one in school.  Needless to say I had my hands full.  Even with l the changes that came that year, I wouldn’t change any of it.

                Alyson is a smart, talented, caring and sweet girl.  She is my hugger.  She loves school and has lots of friends.  In Kindergarten, there was a classmate who sometimes had a difficult time behaving, but as long as he got to sit next to Alyson he was fine. 

                Alyson is my only red-head and a red-head she is.  It is said that the freckles that red-heads have are the souls they have stolen.  Don’t cross Alyson.  She will give you this look and steal your soul.  She is also my crazy child, so she fits perfectly into our crazy family.  At the dinner table when we all tend to get a bit silly, Alyson has this cackle that just cracks us all up.

                Alyson loves to read.  This year she is participating in the Book Club at school.  She has the opportunity to participate in the Name That Book Competition in April.  They have to read the 20 books that are on the list and be prepared to answer questions about the books.  She has already read most of the books on the list.  She has been challenged by some of the books because of subject matter or higher reading level.  Through this process she has founds some book that she likes and wants to read more of.  Who would have thought that one of her favorite books would be Dead City, a book with zombies?

                My baby girls is growing up!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Black & White

Color photography is beautiful, but there is just something about a black & white photo that says so much more.  You see the object in its natural form with no preconceived meaning.  I have always loved black & white photography and the feelings in brings to the observer. 

This month I have been working on taking black & white photos.  As I have been working this month I have been trying to implement several tips on taking black & white photos. 

1.       Practice. Practice. Practice. – An experienced black & white photographer can see the world without color.  They have trained their mind to pick up contrast and tone while blocking the distraction of color.  I am not experienced enough to be able to do that.  That is where the practice comes in.  I want to be able to look at a scene and see it in black & white.

2.       Focus on contrast – Black & white photography is about the black, the white and all the tones in between.  When you take color out, your eye becomes more sensitive to the light intensity.  I want to be able to find those scenes that naturally show signs of high contrast.

3.       Focus on texture – Texture is a form of contrast, but is perceived quite differently.  Black & white photos lend themselves to texture because color generally adds another layer of complexity hiding subtle textures.

4.       Capture in color – With a digital camera I have the option to shoot in black & white or in color.  I took some pictures in black & white and some in color which I converted to black & white in post-processing.  I feel that taking pictures in color and then converting them is the way to go.  I will share some of the pictures I took in color, in black & white and those that I converted from color to black & white.

Taking good black & white photos takes thought and skill because anyone can take a black & white photo.  I need to really think about these things before, during and after each shot.  I want to be able to take good black & white photos.  The only way I can do that is to practice, focus on contrast and texture, and capture in color. 

I have been having so much fun thinking about black & white photography and trying to become better at it that I will continually work on throughout the years.

 

Original Color                                        Converted to Black & White