Keeping the Sharp Edge

If you follow the professional athletes, you would see all of the hours of practice they dedicate to their sport. Golfers hit hundreds of balls a day. Baseball players are constantly in the batting cages. Swimmers, runners, drivers, and all athletes alike, know that to be on top of their game they have to practice and practice.

The same is true with photographers. The winter months can make us a bit rusty. The reflexes are dampened. And the adjustments of the camera controls require some thought instead of the normal second-nature response. But alas it is Spring!

Like the professional golfers who head for the putting greens after a round of golf, I try to keep the cameras clicking. Using different lenses, different flashes, and maybe different exposure settings, I work on keeping the sharp edge. I am always studing the works of other photographers that I admire and I take inspiration from them. I also like to scout some venues of upcoming weddings and begin planning the event. I drive the countryside when I can to see possible photography locations.

My daughter is great for the practice. Full of energy and full of life, she can be a challenge to follow with a camera. All too often Riley will hear me say, "I have an idea for a photo, let's go to the park!"

I even tagged along on Riley's Easter Egg Hunt this week to practice with the Nikon 300mm 2.8 lens and monopod. The lens is my favorite for baseball, NASCAR, football, and soccer. It is true that the larger the lens takes a bit of practice to get dialed in. On our cameras the lens shoots like a 430mm lens due to the sensor cropping.

I have been taking pictures for over 40 years. I have never grown tired of the craft and I don't think that I ever will. It is my passion. There is always something new and always room for improvement. But it does take practice and practice to keep sharp edge.

Randy

Where the Yellow Flowers Grow

All photographers have a special place where they love to take photographs. A place where they can enjoy just being outside and taking pictures becomes a reflex. After one of the coldest winters we've had in a while, today was the day to go our family's special place. A place with a lake, ducks, a petting zoo, and a large field where the yellow flowers grow.

We first brought our daughter, Riley, here at the age of nine months. We were ready to leave when I saw the field. Lisa saw it, too, and placed Riley in the middle of the flowers and we recorded this image that makes me smile whenever I see it. Riley likes it also.

As I drove there today, we saw the flowers and just had to try it one more time. Two years later than the first visit, but still sporting the same sunglasses. The smile just comes natural whenever she is near flowers. Who says you can never go back there again?



















Lisa got her to run around like little children love to do. What a great family day and the photographs will let us relive it again. Perhap this will be a tradition or a rite of passage for the spring. Are you capturing the moments in your life?






















We have been busy this week. On Sunday, Lisa and I had a booth at the Georgia Bridal Show at the Cobb Gallera Centre where over 400 brides ventured by. We enjoyed meeting and listening to their wedding plans.

Early Monday found me on the road to Charlotte, N. C. to the Joe Gibbs Racing garage for a photoshoot with Max Gresham. Max will be piloting the number 18 car for Gibbs in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East. Gresham's P.R. man, John Close, was a big help as well as the Gibbs staff. Max is always fun to work with. I really enjoyed the session and the challenges it brought. I detoured on the return trip to have dinner with my sister and her husband. I also visited with my mom, brother, and my other sister. Yes, I am a Carolina boy who joined the boy scouts only for the free trips to the Darlington NASCAR races.

The warm afternoons bring many engagement sessions and portraits in the upcoming weeks. We welcome the spring time!

Randy