Our Everyday Photos: June 30th

I decided to document our day a little differently than I have been, and get in to some pictures. I recently purchased a battery grip for my Mark ii (I kept having nightmares that I was called to photograph a birth and my battery was dead, so I bought two more batteries... have mercy) and it randomly came with a remote, which was something that I researched a while back and wanted to get but never took the plunge. We played with it a few days ago with some tripod family photos (much better than pushing the 10 second timer button and running) and I decided to take the opportunity to do some experimenting with my old 28mm Nikon lens and the Mark. 

It was a great day to learn more about aperture and focal width, and to get a chance to use some slower shutters than normal since my camera was sitting somewhere. All of these were taken by me using my remote, or self-timer + remote, some after quite a bit of "guess and check" with focus (my Nikon lenses are manual focus, they are older and I use an adapter so they work with my Canon) and settings but overall I am so happy with how they turned out. The 28mm has such a retro feel to it. I love it. And the full frame sensor in the Mark just... changes everything. I can't believe I lived so long without it. 

My goal these days is shooting with a higher f stop number. I've shot wide open most of my life and wondered why it was so hard to focus (there may be a metaphor in there about my personality...)  and to get what I'm looking at straight out of the camera to cut down on editing time and  maybe, maybe get to the point where I want to pull out the film camera at some point in the future (for fun). Really the only shooting I'm doing is at church on the regular, and am second shooting two weddings between now and the fall but we're approaching the end of our debt free journey (!) and I am getting antsy to bring in as much money as possible. I've got lower enrollment in my online classes this summer so I'm meditating and praying about putting feelers out for some family sessions. Waiting on God to give me the nudge-- he's usually pretty clear when it's time for me to act. July is a pretty busy month for us, so I might just need to sit and be patient, but we will see. 

So, June 30th. I just spent the whole day taking it in through my camera and it was absolutely glorious (and kind of exhausting). Real life/work caught up with me at nap time so you'll notice there aren't any photos after that, but all in all, a great day. I'm not going to leave any commentary this time, will let the photos tell the story. Not pictured: we went to the mall to Shopkick, and I brought my camera but full blown toddler meltdown required two hands and I did not have wits about me to take a picture of it while it was happening. Maybe next time. I like these pictures. I didn't get fancy dressed, or put make up on, or clean up my house. So there's dog hair, an un-made bed and unwashed hair. Get excited. 

Thank you, Jesus. I will not take this for granted. I will thank you every day for all of this. It's so much more than I ever could have dreamed up to ask for. You know my heart's desires. Thank you for the way you love us. So personal, so sweet, so big. You're the best.