Picture Spring: Day 5, Ground Level

Just couldn't choose between the two.

Both shot by placing the camera on the ground and aiming/estimating from above (instead of through the viewfinder). It took a few tries, but I love what I came away with. Above is Josh watering the grass with a little watering can, and below, Josh playing with a yoga ball that blew up against our fence.

I was "allowed" to look through the viewfinder and just lay on the ground, but I did that 2 days ago for the 30 steps assignment, so I thought I'd give the viewfinder-less approach a whirl.

Picture Spring: Day 4, Sky

Today's assignment was to take a picture of your sky. Most of the day was a blue sky with a hazy whitewash. In late afternoon the clouds actually had a bit of form to them and then the planes started adding their mark to the sky.

That is my sky, we live on the approach path to the airport, we see a lot of planes.

As suggested by the course teacher, I converted the photo to black and white. I liked it in color, the sky was a lovely blue shade, but when flipped to B&W there was all this texture you couldn't see before in the clouds and the contrail popped more than in color.

Picture Spring: Day 3, 30 Steps

The assignment for the day was to take 30 steps from where you found your camera and then find something to capture. I headed toward the backyard and my kids joined me. I had to pause at step 11 and put on shoes, and then my son was absolutely insistent I follow him. Step 30 left me in a rather unremarkable spot next to a cherry tree. I took a few photos of some buds, got yelled at to come play and departed.

Later I came back to the spot as from the top of the playset I had noticed these little white flowering weeds that I had completely missed when standing right next to them. I laid down on the ground to take this photo. I would like to think I would have found them had I been able to stand at step 30 for more than 45 seconds the first time, but maybe I wouldn't.

Picture Spring: Day 2, Morning Ritual

Today we were encouraged to capture a vignette of our morning ritual. And while I read the message at midnight as I went to bed, I did not have the time to take such a picture this morning, I even tried after Josh was in bed when there was some waning evening/psuedo-morning light to compose a shot I would have taken this morning had I the time to have done so.

But then I was reading over some of the course materials, and a line jumped out at me, "shoot from the heart." This course isn't about completing assignments but about discovery as a photographer.

This is my morning routine right now, most days, and especially this week. Him.

I do my best to fly out of bed, corral Josh into the car, match the local high speed traffic into the city to the hospital, and then excruciatingly drive up all the floors of the visitor parking garage, behind inept newbies and spaced out frequent flyers, and of course, past an array of open spaces.

Because Josh likes the roof, he likes the number 5, and he likes red. All these align in a trifecta of perfection as the roof is the fifth floor, and the giant number 5 sign, it's red.

And on sunny mornings, he runs around and laughs and goes to his regular roof spots and I take part in his hospital visit ritual, which always includes him telling me not to take pictures, to come with him "hurry!," and after his little routine we always come down the elevator. . . late.

But that too is part of the routine it seems. And we go through all the other steps of the day hospital routine, signs to read, art to say "good morning" to, buttons to push, paths to choose, familiar faces to find and chat with, fish to greet, ice cream to grab from the kitchenette--all so we can go sit in a windowless 6'x10' room for hours, and poison him.

And even though his routine can be tedious, as we sit in that room, I know we both are wishing we were back on that roof, enjoying the sun, and that is the part of our morning ritual I remember the most clearly, because that one does more than provide a comfortable set of steps to follow, it sustains.


april 2, the last friday I poison my son.




(I would have loved to compose this better, and got his whole shadow, but as I said, getting sassed for trying to capture it is part of the routine. in the backpack is his IV infusion pump)

Picture Spring Day 1, in two parts

I enrolled in a month long class, this month.

I know, I need something else to do this month like I need a hole in the head, let alone something to do every day of the month. But I did it, because I think I need something else to do, for me.

The course is called Picture Spring, "a 30-day guided e-class that will encourage and inspire you to use photography to celebrate the season of new beginnings while honoring and nourishing your creative spirit." She sucked me in at, emphasizing losing yourself in the process, and immersing in the joy of just taking the photograph, for you. Getting back to why I had to have a camera for my high school graduation sunk tons of money into film taking rolls of pictures of the same local park.

Of course my month this month isn't all about daffodils and private moments at sunrise. And I think I may have either over-achieved or broken a rule on the first day. . .either way, um, I think I can get a doctor to write me a note. The prompt today was about beginnings. Any kind. Just looking around and finding them.

So I have two pictures to share as my day was in two parts, with a hopeful, and very important beginning dominating my day. Today, hopefully, was the beginning of a lot of ends, for real this time. My 3 yr old has cancer, for the second time, it relapsed immediately after the first course of treatment. By summer we hope to finish the second treatment. So today marked the first of what I hope are the beginning of a lot of lasts.

With my first diptych, I documented a beginning happening for this family, the last thursday I will drive Joshua to Nationwide Children's Hospital, to sit in the Day Hospital of the Oncology Unit most of the day and poison him. Because we are more than ready to move on in our journey, to better things, like "no evidence of disease" and "remission."

But being a sucker for nature, I couldn't let Day One close and not get some nature in too, because, this is my life. These are my days, where 2/3rds of a day can be consumed and utterly focused on Mr. Handsome Pants, and then there is that other third. And in the mix of other jobs of wife, daughter, sister, mother, friend. . .somewhere in it, I get a second to shake my head at the blue bells. . .again.

Because they like me, can be in such a hurry to start on an awesome new beginning, that they do it the hardest and most astonishingly absurd way possible. They thrust up through the leaf litter, not breaking between the leaves, but through the leaves themselves, carrying them up with them as they grow. Constricted, blanched from lack of sunlight, practically incapable of blooming, they squeeze upward until I come out, every year, and pull the leaves of last year away and allow them to have a chance at saving the show and blooming this year. Again.

Me and blue bells, we learn the hard, really awkward repetitive way in some cases.

You know like staying up till midnight trying to pass off 4 pictures for 2 diptychs because your day totally had 2 different parts to make up your assignment on the first day.

You know, when one would have sufficed. . .and was asked for.

I ♥ Faces Week #13: Dramatic B&W

This week's theme is Dramatic Black and Whites and I thought it was a perfect opportunity to introduce some thing to my blog readers, all 2 of you. This year I want to not only share my sessions with you but some of my personal photographs both recent and from the past. This one was taken after summiting Mt. Kinabalu in Malaysian Borneo in September 2003. Can't wait to share more photos that inspire me with all of you.



see more black and whites with drama over at I heart faces.

I ♥ Faces Week #12: Focusing On Angles

Ok I don't know how often I'll enter the weekly challenges over at I Heart Faces in the future, but I have to admit I am having fun re-visiting pictures I have already taken. This week's theme is "Focusing on Angles" either in the angle you are in for photographing or by tilting the camera or cropping. I'm a huge fan of angles, sometimes I angle too much. I do encourage all of you mom-tographers out there, experiment with angles, get up high, get down low, lean the camera, don't allow yourself to be confined to straight on head and shoulders shots. Angles can provide so much depth and character to an image. Go forth and experiment!

Anyway, when I read about getting a new angle on a pose, I immediately thought of this photo. You have to understand this is a boardwalk at the top of a rather small hill in a local metropark, but there is still a painful drop to the left of this photo.

My gorgeously pregnant friend joined me with her 4 year old on a blistering 90 degree day (for central Ohio, that's uncomfortable, stagnant and muggy). Before I got in position for this photo we both looked at her 4 year old and said a few things to the effect of, "You are never to do this." And then I climbed on the railing, which as you can see is about 4 feet high and only a few inches wide. I am 5'10" and with a 50mm lens I still was on my tiptoes trying to get as far above her as possible.

I actually came closest to falling off trying to hold the camera up and get more in the frame with some blind aiming. So I stuck to what I could fit in, and I love how it turned out, both my perspective angle and the angle the railing and walkway planks takes through the photo. Need to find a higher wall next time, or buy some of those lenses on my wish list! Baby girl was born about 6 weeks later.

See more angles here at I ♥ Faces.

I ♥ Faces Week #11: Bundled Up

Oh I debated a number of adorable in the snow pictures of my own kids (Josh's were all dominated by the eyes on his favorite lightning mcqueen hat), but they just couldn't beat out this all time favorite photo of niece during her 18 Month Photo Session. It may have been blistering cold in the wind that day, but that doesn't stop snack time! As my brother says, "We have personally kept graham cracker makers everywhere in business."

and no I did not boost the color on this photo, her coat is that fuschia.

Check out more Bundled Up pictures over here at I ♥ Faces, and say goodbye winter, hello spring!

In Charge

Jake was short and in charge at Franklin Park Conservatory! He was beside himself that he was in charge of exploring this whole new place. We could barely get his attention, he was having way too much fun investigating every path. It was just joy to watch him run around, and at right above, lick water from the fountain off his hands. . . "Who me? I'm not licking the water you told me not to lick?"



And yes this little guy was just full of expressions and moods (all of them fun!). He was everywhere (even out in the snow on the roof, see the gallery) and even showed off that he totally knows how to quickly go up and down stairs, he just needed some that were interesting!







And for the next month you can view their whole gallery here:

Mr. Man

Oh Evan, I've known you since before your mama took the pregnancy test to confirm you were on your way. How can you not be head over heels for those chubba cheeks? We tried out a little session in the bay window of their front room under the careful supervision of Charlie the dog. You'll have to watch the slideshow below to see his trust for me did not increase when we moved to the nursery. Big sister Avery, loves to help take care of her little bubba. The two of them are just precious together.





You can view the entire gallery here for the next month:

I ♥ Faces Week #10: Jump for Joy!

(click on photo to view larger)

Things are crazy busy right now with my son Josh this week, and I wasn't going to enter a photo this week, then I remembered about the most joy-filled jumping photos there are out there, the Fisher Five Puddle Jump Session. We were trying to squeeze a family session but the threat of rain loomed, and then mom decided to embrace it and have a rainy wet and wild session.

In the this shot, sister had gotten huge air on this jump and is almost back on her feet as she makes the most amazing splash. You can see how impressed her little brother's expression is in the background. There were so many jumping shots from this session to choose from, but this has always been in my top 2 of the whole gallery even if you can only see the aftershock of her jump for splashing joy. You can see more of the session here.



head on over to i ♥ faces to find some more jumping joy.

New Friends

This week I held sessions with three new friends, and one very alert newborn (you'll have to wait till after his birth announcements!). It's always a delight to meet new clients!

On my screen

Just two of my favorite little people. . .how about you?

Baby Boots

Baby Boots was a stubborn one getting out here to meet us and he was just as willful during his first session. First, Nolan, the baby who sleeps all day and is up all night. . .wouldn't go to sleep. He wanted to have belly time and show off his head holding skills at less than 2 weeks old. Then he thought he was in charge of posing and had his own ideas for his hands and arms. By the time we made it to the bean bag for the classic backdrop he was ready to feel his mama near again.



I already knew we had caught some wonderful shots, so we moved to mama and daddy time in the family room where we caught my favorite shot of the whole session in his mama's lap, the left of the two below. (Oh and that hooded blanket is an original, made with love by his grandma, so you'll have to as her if you want one for your newborn session!)



You can enjoy the proof gallery slideshow for the next month before their gallery expires.

I ♥ Faces Week 8: Hands On Fun

The family that surfs their crackberries together, stays together.


This is my first time entering over at I ♥ Faces. A little about when and where this photo was taken. Taken 10/30/2009 at 8:52 PM on 3 Tower of Nationwide Children's Hospital. Camera Mumbo Jumbo: Nikon D90 with a 50mm f/1.4 lens; SS: 1/30 sec, A: f/1.4, ISO: 1000. I was using Aperture Priority mode at the time so the camera set SS and ISO.

This photo is of my husband and my 3 year old son, Joshua, who has metastatic kidney cancer. I took this photo from the couch next to his bed, about 4 feet from their hands. On Josh's forefinger is a pulse oximeter, his heart had been racing all day. On this day he had been unexpectedly admitted to the hospital after maxing out the hem/onc clinic thermometers with a fever from a lovely combo of H1N1 and an intestinal infection C. diff.

I love this photo for many reasons, but first and foremost because it really was the one sweet moment of a day he had mostly spent blankly staring as the fever raged on. Daddy came for a visit after putting big sister to bed and had some pictures on his phone to show Josh from her. So there they were, cuddled sideways in the bed, and of course Josh wanted to hold his phone too, and by his, I mean mine.

This photo also appeared on our family blog, in this entry about his surprise return to the hospital 6 days after his previous admission for radiation and chemotherapy.

Warm and Snuggly

Just a little peek of what's on my computer these days.

Here are a few of my favorites from this great session to kick off my 2010 photography season. Rachel's momma and I are two very busy ladies, so we decided to take a laid back approach to this session and have a little pizza playdate at my house. Rachel arrived with a bag full of adorable outfits to change in and out of, and well, we dressed her up in all of them.



And yes, she is nearly sitting on her own, and loves to stand up! It is hard to believe 6 months have lapsed since the bleary-eyed morning when she finally came out to meet all of us.



And of course we couldn't resist one of her and her two best buddies, big sister Alison and big brother Charlie. You can see the full session here for the next month.

A friend of mine was kind enough to subject her boys (and her toes) to a very cold day for my first ever snow shoot, and my last photo shoot of 2009. The boys were on winter break and agreed to put up with us mommy types. . .sort of. As you'll see we had one brother who I couldn't get not to smile, and one who made us work for it. Sometimes the latter are the most fun.







Thank you boys, and mom, for just an awesome session! Can't wait to see you again in summer, you know, sans hats and coats and numb toes! I like the photo on the right better than the left, I have 2 older brothers and the second is so much more real brothers than the first.



Told mom I could catch him, and this didn't even have mom goofing next to me.

Sweet Little Man

Welcome to 2010! It's be nearly a month since I posted a new session, or any post for you all. It was the holidays, and two in-patient rounds of chemo, but also a much needed hiatus. Sorry I didn't announce that, hope none of you were wondering where I was hiding! If you check out the "In the Queue" list to the right you will notice that in the next 8-10 weeks it is going to be literally raining newborns! Two of them are family, two of them are old and sweet friends, and the other two are new and wonderful friends. And for the curious out there, of the five, only one has announced himself, the rest are all surprises! And that first one is past due date as I type, maybe calling him/her out on the internet for being tardy will get some labor started!

But until the newborns start killing me with their yumminess, I have other things of my own cooking. Like two sessions to finish from 2009, yeeeep! I also am working on getting the official CTS photography site up, but I am atrociously behind and my webmaster just moved across country, so it's coming. I'll be hosting a little portfolio contest on facebook to help narrow down the field of photos from 2009 for my official portfolio albums. It'll be a lot of fun.

I've also been sprucing up my proof hosting site so feel free to click on over there and take a peek. When I get my portfolio albums all picked out I'll change that slideshow to reflect my work, but until then the album of my family is running, because I love it.

On to the photo goodness! Here is the final shots from my session with my favorite little nearly 4 month old and his big sister. Mom has waited a long time for these, and if I didn't deliver soon she was never going to set a date for his 6 month pictures in you know. . . 2 weeks or so. I'd love to swear "Never Wonder When in Two Thousand Ten!" but let's face it, that's just like challenging my son to thwart me, and he is always ready for a challenge.











Who needs a studio? I love client home sessions, love love love them. Ok momma, can I please book his 6 month session now?