a few of my favorite things

What would you take with you with if your house was burning down? 

This website, http://theburninghouse.com/, challenges people to answer that question.  What can't you live without? What is irreplaceable? 

It got me thinking about what is most important to me. What would I be devastated to lose?  Of course people and animals come first, but what else? Photos, especially old family photos. Setting aside those practical items that you'd grab like a wallet or phone -  what are those items with real significance that are truly irreplaceable?

So I decided to start taking photos of those "burning house" items  as sort of my own mini-challenge. I had to start with my Jamie Doll (yes, her name is spelt differently than mine. It's hard to find stuff with the name Jaime on it...). I believe that my Grandma got Jamie for me when she went to visit my aunt and uncle when my cousin was born. Basically, I've had Jamie as long as I can remember.  I love her string hair, the freckles across her nose and her sweet little smile  :-)

Jamie has a crew - Felix (no no, not Felix the Cat. Felix the frog. He's way cooler than Felix the Cat and even has a wife, Felicia, who belongs to my sister) and Dribble, the sea turtle. The three of them hang out on my 'Jaime' chair, another relic of my childhood that I love. (Again, its hard to find things with the name Jaime on them, I think that's probably why I made sure to keep them all of these years!)


previous weekly challenge: toys



I'm going to be adding to this mini-challenge going forward and I'm extending the challenge to all of you!  Take some time to think about the things that are most important to you.  Email pictures of your favorite things to jfoto518@gmail.com and I'll share them here (anonymously if you prefer).

family photo shoot

Had a little photo shoot with my landlord and his beautiful wife and daughter today.  This was my first family photo shoot, and I'm very grateful for the opportunity.  They're super nice and it doesn't take a camera to see that they're crazy about their little girl!

eco-friendly auto center

Several months ago the daily Groupon deal was for the Eco-Friendly Auto Center for a $15 oil change.  Sweet! I happened to be in need of an oil change and I'm all for being eco-friendly! (something I'm actually working on increasing)  I didn't even know that there was such a thing as an eco-friendly auto center - turns out they're the only green-certified auto center in the state of Florida.

The owner, Sully Dawson, is a former Marine and is extremely nice! On my first visit there, I overheard him talking to another customer about the work that needed to be done on her car, and it was clear that this was the kind of place that isn't going to jerk you around.  He also didn't do that talk-down-to-women-like-they-don't-know-anything that you get at a lot of car places.  And did I mention that they run coupons regularly?!  Score!  With an 11 year old car that isn't going to start magically getting younger, I was very glad to find a good auto center!

Across my couple of visits Sully has been very kind in answering my questions about re-refined oil and replacing the air in your tires with nitrogen and of course questions specific to my car (pecky check engine light!)...  He was also kind enough to let me come by the shop and let me snap some photos!

If you're in South Florida and need to get some work done on your car, I recommend you check out the Eco-Friendly Auto Center!

poocharific

As I mentioned previously, my dog Shadow is one of my favorite subjects.  And it's not just because he's conveniently located :-p  He's sweet and waggy - not to mention adorable! 

If you are thinking of getting a dog, I really encourage you. Of course you should do your proper research in terms of what breed and where to look (and here I encourage the humane society, shelters and rescue groups...) and be 100% sure that you are ready to take on the responsibility.  But having a dog is wonderful! There has been scientific research detailing the special bond between canines and humans. They really are man's best friend!

And so, here are some new pics of my peppy little puppy...



Shadow and another of my favorite subjects, my nephew Matthew

Shortly after that picture was taken, a shaggy Shadow went to the groomer and came home extra sleek, soft and good smelling :-)




Weekly challenge (from a few wks ago):  zoom while shooting

 Looking forward to a special photo shoot this weekend, so be sure to tune in again next week...


 

bon festival

I've been really looking forward to this weekend, because my sister, brother-in-law and nephews came to visit!  In addition to just hanging out with them we went to the Obon (or Bon) Festival at the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens.

What is Obon?
Obon, or the Bon Festival, is a traditional Japanese observance held over a three-day period in the summer.  Obon signifies a time when the spirits of deceased family members are believed to return for a brief visit to the world of the living.  Obon is a joyous as well as solemn occasion, serving to honor ancestors and thank them for contributing to the quality of life enjoyed by the living (http://www.morikami.org/).

To help celebrate the occasion, lanterns are decorated/written on to commemorate your loved ones, lit and floated across the lake. Also, you can decorate a slip of paper, which is then placed on a boat and set on fire as it floats across the lake.  Sounds pretty cool, huh?!

Now that I've learned how to actually adjust the settings on my camera (bonus! :-p) I've really been looking forward to photographing this festival. I have to admit that my visions of grandeur got a sharp smack down by my amateur knowledge. Everything was coming out blurry! I was lining up potentially great shots, but because it was night time, the distance of the subject and the fact that they were moving, everything was blurry!  Example:

What was I doing wrong?!
I kept adjusting all of the settings that I know - which, while I admit is certainly not all of the settings that are on the camera, these are the really important ones.  I was getting a little frustrated, and a little disappointed.

I mentioned to my sister that I didn't know what I was doing wrong and a random stranger asked my what my ISO was set at.  ISO is for light sensitivity, so for an evening/night time festival you're going to want a high ISO.  I told him my ISO was set high, and gave him a few of my other settings.  He said that they all sounded correct for this type of shot and that most likely my problem is the need for a tripod. When its dark, your shutter needs to stay open longer to be able to capture the light, and since it's hard to keep a camera perfectly steady, the images come out blurry...  Thank you random stranger!  You certainly made me feel better that I was at least adjusting the settings correctly!  While I do own a tripod (Thanks Dad!) I, of course, didn't have it with me...  Well, at least now I know.  And while I didn't get very good pictures, it was a good learning experience!

Here are a few more:

lighting the lanterns

two boats with the paper slips on fire



dancing light