The one that got away...

Alternately titled: A case for Manual Focus

Living in the country, we get a lot of "visitors" to our home. We have a small family of deer that drop by regularly. There are songbirds and butterflies, despite the incredible number of cats between ourselves and our neighbours. You know spring is here when you hear the spring peepers singing (frogs) and fall and spring are heralded by the ducks and geese flocking overhead. In the summer I love to fall asleep listening to the loons on the lake and there's a flock of Canada geese that nest just down the road and are one of the reasons for purchasing a lens with telephoto abilities--those goslings are adorable but their parents are crazy protective!

Then there are the occasional visitors, the ones that you don't see all that often. There is a nesting pair of bald eagles on the lake that occasionally come and rest in the trees outside our house. We've never seen them here by the lakes, but a couple of kilometres away at the farms coyote sightings are not uncommon and the farmers are often serenaded. We've seen black bear and moose a couple of times (not together of course). On one very memorable occasion we saw what we think was a bobcat. Those are the sightings that you miss if you don't have the camera on and ready, the ones that make us call up family and friends to make them play the "guess what we just saw" game.

And they rarely believe us. Skeptics, one and all.

So when I looked out the window the other day and saw something I hadn't seen at our place before, I knew I needed photographic proof of its visit. I grabbed the camera and flipped to auto so I could get a snapshot or two before it disappeared.

Big mistake.

Oh auto mode, how you failed me. I know it's hard to focus through the screen on the fleet-footed black animal in the white snow, but come ON! Can't you do better than that?

Unfortunately it was gone before I could do anything about my settings or my lens. I've been frustrated quite a bit lately by the camera's focus points differing from MY focus points, and this was the last straw. I flipped the switch. My lenses are ALL now set on MF, and I'm having a blast.

So, two questions:

1. Do you shoot on MF or AF (and why?)

2. Any guesses as to what our visitor was?

Project 365

You've seen the challenges all over the place: A photo a day. A photo a week. A self-portrait a week. A self portrait a day (I cringe to think).
Maybe you think they're crazy.
Maybe you secretly want to join in.
Maybe you already do it.
Maybe you've tried and failed.
Maybe you're wondering what you'd DO with those photos when you're done. Do they sit on your hardrive forever? Do you post them to Flickr or some other site and let that be enough? Blog them all?

I don't have the answers.

But Becky Higgins has a new kit that I'm incredibly excited about. Aptly named Project 365, it's an album and all the "stuff" you'll need to scrapbook your own photo a day project. I've only purchased one other kit through CK because the shipping costs to Canada are MORE than the kit itself (and what is UP with that? Ticks me off), but I'm seriously tempted by THIS kit.

Check out a video of the contents HERE and then tell me what you think. Do you already do a photo a day challenge somewhere? What do you do with your photos? This kit is very simple and not a traditional scrapbook, so if you're a scrapbooker do you like it or would you rather do your own thing? If you're not a scrapbooker, does this appeal to you?

ETA: This doesn't go on sale until January 1st, but I'll be sure to add a link then.

Choosing Favourites

Irene at Shutter Sisters has challenged us to choose a favourite photo of 2008 and this is definitely mine, for a ton of reasons.

First, I love my little boy and his Blue Teddy. I love how much HE loves his Blue Teddy. Blue Teddy used to be his constant companion, his voice, his courage, his best friend. Now that he's four though, Blue Teddy doesn't get out the way he used to. He's quieter and content to play with the other stuffies while his Boy is off exploring the world without him. Because I see Blue Teddy less, I know my Boy is growing more, and I'm so happy to have this photo that captures a bit of that to look back on in a few years when Blue Teddy is no longer a major part of our lives.

On this sunny fall day the Boy wasn't feeling so hot. He had a bit of a cold and it was no surprise that Blue Teddy would decide to come with us when we drove Hubby to work. On the way home I was struck so much by the way the sun was hitting this tree that I just had to stop and see if I could capture it. It was the last tree with any leaves on it in our village and all the more striking because of it. I dragged the Boy (and his Teddy) out and started playing. When I was done with the tree I couldn't help getting some of my Boy. I had just finished my first (I hope there will be more!) photography course and was confident for the first time picking my own settings, getting out of the presets and doing what I wanted to do. So there's a bit of pride in the technical aspects as well as the emotional aspects.

Finally, Fall is my absolute favourite season and I'm going to love just about any fall photo anyway. Just look at those colours! I love the blanket of leaves glittering in the background and the way all the colours just pop. This day was the first we had had a really heavy frost that prompted us to pull out the winter gear, so we have the anticipation of winter there as well.

What's your favourite photo of 2008? I can't wait to see!

New Toys

Santa Mom came through with a couple of new toys for my bag. I am now the proud owner of a Remote Controller AND a gorillapod. I'm hoping both will help me get even better night and nature photos, as well as getting MYSELF into the photo more often. One of my greatest regrets in life is that there are NO photos of myself with my babies. I think that's tragic and it must stop now--and now I have the tools to make it happen.

Thanks Santa Mom!

What great gadgets did you get from your special santa?

Christmas Break

Father Christmas is almost here, and so I'm spending more time with the family (away from the computer).

Have a wonderful holiday, filled with peace, joy and love.

See you in a few days!

Glow

I missed yesterday's prompt altogether so didn't want to miss today's; even though life is no less hectic. These countdown days to Christmas are just jam-packed, aren't they? But one of the reasons I wanted to participate in HSMSHS is to get me thinking about my space everyday and (ideally) picking up the camera EVERY DAY.

With that said, today's photo was actually taken a couple of weeks ago. At this time of year, I am often found in the office right around sunset, and this is the view out my window by around 4:30 in the afternoon. Perfect for the prompt of "glow". You get an older photo instead of "fresh" because I won't be in my office at the right time today, more's the pity.

No wonder dinner is so often late...who wouldn't want to linger for the chance to see this every day?

Golden

Today's HSMSHS prompt is gold, and the photos are bee-you-tee-ful! Pop on over and have a look if you haven't already done so!

For some reason I've always preferred silver. I'm not sure why, because after real life and virtual home tours this year I've seen a lot of gold and it is beautiful! I think I'll have to let a little more gold in my home in the future.

Anyway, I do have this lovely bauble on my tree (and a matching one of an angel, come to deliver the Glad Tidings!). It has a gold base and hangs from a golden thread, and I cherish it. I have several mini-nativities on my tree as I try to surround myself with things that remind us of the true reason we celebrate at this time of year. Watching my children grow in understanding of this is golden to me.