Homework Assignment #3, no #2 {sigh}

I am loving, yet feel so behind in, my on-line photography class~Find Your Eye: Starting the Journey.  We were asked to create a file of images that bring us joy, and I went through the exercise as explained, but it is a mess.  I cannot limit my file to 20, 40 or even 60 images over the last three months or more.  I cannot limit the ones I love from each time I pick up the camera to 60 images!  In my file I have 4 pictures from the Mall shoot I took of Sunflower last month--in this one I love the expression, in this one the bokeh, in this one her eyes, in this one her smile!  Yes, I know, I'm learning I love Sunflower, but if I didn't already know THAT I wouldn't be a very good mom, would I?

Okay, that isn't fair.  I also have lots of pictures of SnapDragon and Huckleberry in my file--usually because of expression or their beautiful eyes.  So I'm narrowing some things down.

I also have photos of flowers, some bees, a waterfall or two, and lots of other people--people who I don't have permission to post.  I was surprised at how many pictures of other people made it into the file.  And they were all candids with the people smiling or even laughing naturally or interacting in some real way.  So in some ways my "style" has not changed.  I still love capturing that brief moment that illuminates a person's character and/or emotions. 

I have just expanded into nature and gumballs.  Maybe I'm not quite ready to define my eye.  Truly I feel fairly new to the whole world of photography.  I am still exploring and enjoying the exploration itself~sometimes more than the end product.  I love this photo of the river, not because I'm into landscapes, but because of the technical aspects and that they all pulled together as the books said they would to create this photo (tri-pod, slow shutter speed, narrow aperture, etc.)

That isn't to say I'm not learning a lot about myself, and I will continue to fine tune my file of images I love as I learn even more.  Reading the other participants self-discoveries has helped me clarify many of my own swimming thoughts.  For instance, I like close-ups.  I have to keep remembering to back-up or zoom out in order to capture the group or my child's outfit for the day because I do want to document those moments but I just love to zoom in on their face or a flower.

I also love narrow depth of field, but I am still fine-tuning on how narrow I can go and still have enough in focus.  The mountain last weekend forced me to play with a smaller aperture to get the greater depth of field required. 

But should this photo go in my file?  I don't know.  I am quite proud at the range of colors my camera captured and given the dirty snow bank in front of me quite satisfied with my intentional composition, but does this picture make me warm and fuzzy inside?  I am just not sure, but I'll keep exploring, digging inside, and maybe someday I will know.

Ummm, now I am even further behind in class!  This was supposed to be a post about my 3rd assignment, not my 2nd.  If it is any consolation, I have already taken the pictures for my 3rd assignment, I just need to write out my feelings about it.  Wait~you don't care that I'm behind and I do not find it consoling!  I do find it comforting to know that the reason I didn't finish both assignments today is because I went to the park with my children, let them play in the sprinkler (while I took pictures sure, but...), and watched the movie "Tangled" with them.  Life before photography, life before photography, life before...