So I've been doing this thing where I take pictures. I won't say that I am a photographer, because I'm just another person with a digital SLR and there's no need to get uppity about it. But my point is that I'm not always, shall we say, a huge fan of my life. On the bad days (and there have been some bad days lately) it can be hard to see the value in what I do. And yeah, yeah, I know "Moms are important", and I'm sure if I google that phrase I'll get a bajillion heart-felt, uplifting stories about the unsung heroes of early childhood. But my point is that it feels like a bit of a boring slog sometimes. So I'm trying to do what I do and look for the beauty. Trying to make some art. Trying to see beyond the whining and the poop and the endless making of food and engage my eye and brain and heart. So I'm taking pictures of things in my life that are beautiful. They are mostly still-life-y things, and occasionally will involve my kids. But my rule for myself is no styling and no staging. No careful choosing of backgrounds. No wiping of dirty faces. No asking anyone to do anything again while I get a shot. Just pictures of things in my messy life as they are. Like this beautifully smeared plastic-plate paint palette, courtesy of my four year old.
Though I will allow myself slight repositioning, as in the image below.Those little boots were set on the balcony railing to dry after a good soaker, late last summer. I angled the little one on the right just a bit, to get a more pleasing angle. And I might move something into a bit of better light.
But sometimes the light is just perfect, right where it is.
I'm going to try to put up a post like this once a week. Though I'm not committing to a particular day. You'll just have to wait and see.