I posted a few weeks ago about the photography class that I am taking online, Through the Lens: Digital Photography 101.

The first assignment was a challenging one—reading the camera manual. I am definitely a “learn by doing” type of person, so reading directions and then attempting to follow those directions isn’t exactly my chosen learning style. But, I have to say, I am glad that I did this assignment. I did learn much about my camera that I was not aware of and this helped me to approach my picture taking with a little more thought, instead of just setting it on Auto and then attempting to “point and shoot”.

The next part of this assignment was to take pictures. Anything that interests me. hmmmm. I take pictures of my family all the time… I love taking pictures of my family. I also have been wanting to take better pictures of the jewelry that I design. So, I am going to focus on photos of my jewelry (maybe I can learn a few things about placement, lighting, etc.)  And I’ll probably post pictures of my family as well–just because it makes me smile

So, here are a few photos of a pair of earrings that I designed ( I changed the background and positioning):

The next photos are of my family from various events this summer:

Let me know what you think about the photos–especially the photos of the jewelry–hopefully by the end of this online class, you will see a noticeable difference!

Let me first say that photography does not come easily for me. I enjoy taking pictures, especially of my family, but I know that I could get a better picture, if I knew how to “really” use my camera. Speaking of my camera, I have had it for about 3 years now and after taking literally hundreds of pictures (mostly of my family), I still use it mostly to “point and shoot”—even though it has many settings to help me take a more realistic photo—I just have been unable to use it to it’s full potential. Until now…..

I was fortunate to come across a blog recently that is offering lessons in taking Digital Photography, so I am going to try and learn a few things about my camera. Through the Lens- Digital Photography 101 is just what I needed to get myself motivated to take some awesome pictures (hopefully!)The first assignment was to get acquainted with the camera manual and begin taking pictures—anything—the idea is to start playing with the settings on your camera to produce the desired picture. So, hopefully, in a few days, I will be able to post some photos of my practice sessions!

HT: Heather

I was introduced to a wonderful blog recently, Wrapped Emotions. The author of this blog is encouraging others to use an artistic expression of their emotions and create something….anything….with their hands. In her words:

“So I created this blog to hold myself accountable to spend more time expressing myself creatively…connecting with my heart…creating with emotion. I want to encourage you to do the same. There is no better way to do this than working with your hands, your mind…connecting them with your heart. This blog’s purpose is to encourage you and me to do just that and share it with others.”

This is very intriguing to me. So, I have decided to join in the hope that the creative juices to begin to flow again!
I’d like to share the latest challenge on Wrapped Emotions:

“This week let loose…get edgy with your style…free your spirit…absolutely no fear. We had enough of that last week. This prompt is not associated with any tangible or figurative wrapper. I simply want you to experience the fun of creating. This week we’re working to feel the emotion of JOY. Not necessarily expressing the actual word or symbolism of joy in your art…you can celebrate shoe polish if you choose. But enJOY the process. Let’s create our own graffiti.”

I actually came up with two works. I first one is something that I created by starting with the word JOY. It actually just flowed from there. In the end result, I think I can see how I deal with challenges in my life. The mountains of patience, personality conflicts, misunderstandings, etc and the unexpected issues that seem to “rain” down on me at times, are all overcome by the light that exudes from the JOY that only comes from Christ.

The second work is one that basically evolved from my doodling. I had created several different shapes and colors with their own distinct expression. Beneath those shapes I used the same colors together unified in a beautiful rainbow. To me this symbolizes my thoughts about relationships within the body of Christ. We can live separate lives from those we call our brothers and sisters in Christ not giving a thought to what is really going on in each others lives. But when we make the choice to come together to encourage and support one another intentionally, the result is something more beautiful than we could imagine.

I would encourage anyone to do this activity. Whether you post your results or not, this is an activity that can give you a way to express your emotions and release the artistic abilities that are within you. I know many people would say that they have no artistic abilities to be released….I would disagree…I believe we all have emotions that can be released though creating art with our hands. There is no right or wrong way. It becomes something that is all you…it is something in you that is released on paper, canvas or whatever you desire to form your creation. So, be bold, express yourself!