The Daily Shoot- Break the Rules

 Today's assignment at The Daily Shoot was actually kind of hard for me, as I'm only a baby photographer and don't know tons of "rules" of composition and whatnot. I took a class a few years ago, but I've forgotten a lot in the time my photo taking has been stagnant.

September 30, 2011 (Day 684), Assignment:
"Rules" can be stifling if taken to extremes. Break the rules today with focus, composition, etc, and see what happens

Here's my homework...

I didn't go full blown rebel on this one. I played with composition a bit, mostly just that the object is slightly out of the frame. My photography teacher always said you want to be really careful when you cut something off in a photo- it either needs to be dramatic or not at all, basically. There needs to be a point in cutting something off. I only cut off a bit at the edge, and I also did the focus a bit differently with the parts closest to the camera out of focus and the bottom right in focus, which is the part of the object that's further away. This isn't really rule breaking, just a bit different from what I'd normally do. I'm not sure if it's a big success as the assignment, but I like it.

Not much news- it's been unseasonably warm, I'm told. I have no other English Autumns to compare it to, but it's in the mid-high seventies farenheit this week. Mick said it shouldn't be freezing yet, but it should be a lot cooler. The back of the house where the tv room and kitchen are catch the sun all day. This is also where I spend most of my time. Our bedroom/Mick's office is also on the back of the house. These rooms are really hot and stuffy and uncomfortable when it's warm. We've both retreated to the front sitting room which stays nice and cool all day.

Feeling less homesick, which is good.
Mick bought me some spicy candles that I can burn in the house, which reminds me of home, because mom always had spicy candles in autumn and winter.

Later guys :)

The Daily Shoot- Cucumbers and Crackers

My husband is a pusher- sometimes the good kind, sometimes the bad kind. Just what kind he is mostly depends on my mood. You see, I am not a pusher. I'm one of those people that needs to be pushed. I like to think of him as a little cattle dog biting at my ankles, trying to get me to go, go, go! Because, I'm a bit slow out of the gate. Once I get started with something and force myself to do it for a while, it eventually becomes habit, and I do well with it. But starting is always the hard part, and that's why it's a good thing I married Mick.

Lately he's been pushing me to do more with my photography. Homesickness is pretty ugly right now, and his sage advice is to do the things I can do that make me happy. And since I'm far from the people I love and miss, this means hobbies. I've always had a creative streak, going back to 4th grade when I wrote my first short story because my awesome teacher really pushed (see? pushing) us to write. We had a glorious silent half hour every morning where we could write anything we wanted. I took advantage of this, and my first story was a scattered conglomeration of the macabre- mummies, werewolves, spiderwebs, etc. Then I wrote my first poem at age 10, something that I've tried to stick with. But as I mentioned the other day, photography makes me feel really good about myself, and that's something I really need right now.

So this afternoon I sat down to my laptop and started looking for photography groups online. I found one called The Daily Shoot. Basically, this guy gives you an assignment every day and you take your photos and then share them on twitter to @dailyshoot. Now, I include my twitter feed on this page, so you should be able to see my name. If not, it's @aindrealm. I think this is a great idea, and today I completed my first assignment. It was technically yesterday's assignment, but it's okay if I'm a bit late, right? Like I said. I'm slow out of the gates.

September 28th, 2011(Day 682) Assignment-

Breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Make a photograph of a yummy part of one of your meals today.

My selection- snack of cucumber and Cracked Pepper Ryvita cracker. I love the way the sun shines through the skin of the cucumber on the left, the texture of the cracker, and the way you can even see where the serrations on the knife left indentations on the flesh of the cucumber.

So there you have it. I may not do this every single day, but I plan to do it several times a week and I'll try to share them all with you. If I forget to, just check my twitter feed on the right side of this page and you should be able see if I've done any.

See you soon :)

I promise to...

Spend more time doing the things that I love. This includes taking pictures.

I've been really homesick lately, the worst since I've been here. I guess that's to be expected though, but it doesn't mean it's easy. I don't want to dwell on that though, what I've come to say today is that I'm going to start doing things I love because that's what life is for, isn't it? I like the way I see things when I hold the camera, how I notice things that you'd never expect to make an interesting photo. But they do. Today I focused on the dog, Sasha. She sat still, not because she wanted to be my model but because she'd found a warm sunny spot to park it. Here you are.

Ahhh, off center and relatively shallow depth of field. I've missed this stuff.

Don't you just love the texture? The deserty, cracked nose and the fine hairs.

Such pretty paws.

And extreme angles.

I'm going to try to take pictures nearly every day and share them with you as often. I hope you'll enjoy seeing them.

Honeymoon

 Sorry I've been gone for so long, but I have a good reason- Mick and I just got back from our honeymoon on Saturday. We spent a week in England's Lake District in Cumbria, which is in Northern England. We had a great time, and apart from the three days of rain we had, it was beautiful. Everything was so green, but unfortunately I wasn't able to capture how green that green was, because cameras just don't do the color justice. It's literally like a florescent green. We visited various yummy restaurants, went fishing and visited Hadrian's Wall, built in the second century AD to act as a sort of border between The Roman Empire (England) and Barbarian Lands (Scotland). It was pretty cool and we both learned a lot, like Romans were very literal dudes.

So, we had a great week, but it's really good to be home. Here are some pictures.

Here's our hotel- it was really cool and old and even had one of those old fashioned elevators with cage doors. Legit.

Bullying the husband into a photo op on our fishing trip. It was cold!

Lake Windermere, the lake our hotel looked over.

Birthday Boy!

I think it's safe to say that Mick had a very nice 25th birthday yesterday. I snuck out of bed before him, made him a cup of tea and put a birthday banner on our bedroom door and crept in with his tea. I wanted to make him breakfast in bed, but he's one of those people who doesn't like to eat right when he gets up. So tea was all I could really do, but he was happy with this. He hadn't slept very good because it was really windy and all night we could hear it whipping around the house. He had his tea and I gave him his card and one gift- a little stuffed Gizmo from Gremlins, because he reminds me of Mick's dog. The rest of the gifts were saved for the evening.

We got up and I made breakfast- French toast and bacon. Kind of bacon. Did you know you could melt bacon? Well, you can. I've never cooked bacon over a gas stove before, and apparently I made it too hot. I looked one second at crispy, slightly burntish bacon, and turned around and it was literally just a sizzling pile of gooey carbon. I sustained a nasty burn  on my knuckle trying to not set the house on fire, and the smoke alarm went off twice. The kitchen still smells of burnt bacon. I salvaged what I could and Mick still had a nice birthday breakfast. We ate at the table- something that's not common around here. I grew up always eating at the table, and lately we've been trying to do this together because I think meal time is talk time, social time with one another. We usually eat in front of the tv and then everyone just ends up shushing one another.

I hopped in the shower and we caught the bus into Chichester. I found a pair of boots for winter and to take on our honeymoon in the Lake District (rainnnnny. why do you think there are so many lakes?). Turns out I don't really like them and will take them back.... We met Mick's mum for lunch and I snuck off to book the table for dinner and buy a cake to leave with the restaurant. Mick hates any kind of public attention, and loads of strangers singing to you in a restaurant counts. I went back to the cafe and avoided his interrogation and we had our lunch. We walked down to the snooker club and played for a good two hours. Snooker is a pool type game, but with different balls, rules, and a massive table. Then we saw Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which was actually really really good. We went back home and Laura was waiting for us. We all went out to dinner and yes, Mick was surprised with that cake, although when he saw the waitresses bringing it out, he mumbled some very ungentlemanly words that I will not repeat here.

Then we came back to the house and played Apples to Apples which meant many laughs were had by all. Mostly me and Laura.

Here are some pics of the day. 

Didn't you know I married Osama? Getting dressed after I woke him up with tea.

French Toast (or eggy bread as they call it here!)

Playing snooker.

And avoiding the camera at dinner. As always.

Happy Birthday, babe! I love you and hope the coming year brings you (and us) everything you hope for.

And I'll leave everyone with an amusing quote on birthdays:

There is nothing better than birthday cake. It's like a slice of concentrated love with buttercream frosting.

Takayuki Ikkaku, Arisa Hosaka and Toshihiro Kawabata, Animal Crossing: Wild World, 2005

Go Fish

We had another nice day around here. Mick and I slept in late again, had a quick breakfast of cereal and decided to walk down to the beach. It was really windy all day, and the water was incredibly choppy. I couldn't believe how high the tide was, and with the choppy waves rolling in... the water was way higher than normal.

 

We wandered around town for a bit, then decided to have Mick's favorite meal in the world- a fry up at the little cafe up the road. The rest of the day was spent doing simple, enjoyable things

like mowing the garden

Watching the dog eat the grass that the mower didn't pick up (doesn't she look like Gizmo from The Gremlins in this picture? Sometimes she holds her ears in a certain way where she looks like him. Cracks me up!)

And playing card games in bed. Do you have any threes?

Tomorrow is Mick's 25th birthday. I have a very special day planned for him- most of which he already knows about because I'm no good at keeping surprises secrets. I will write about it tomorrow. Have a nice Monday-- as nice as you can.

Rainy day

What a nice Saturday. Mick and I slept in until 10:30, sharing cuddles for a good half hour and being silly. We had a late breakfast and did some cleaning around the house before the in-laws went out to lunch. We had warm lunches while the rain fell softly on the wooden deck out back and landed in speckles on grey windows. Hours on the couch, laptops and tvs, video games. I finally decided to take a shower while Mick sat on the bed with Harley and Truffles. Harley was just "fixed" so we have to keep them in separate levels of the hutch for a few days while he heals. They miss each other so much, though, so we let them out for some supervised sibling time. After my shower I walked into the bedroom to find a very sweet sight- Mick on the bed reading his book, while happy bunnies ran around him. There is nothing so sweet in this world as my lovely husband and bunnies playing in soft, weak milky sunshine.

Autunm in England

Hello everyone! Now that we're back home in Bognor and not running around planning wedding things or showing my parents around, things have calmed down. This means I have time to blog regularly again-- which I hope will please all of you.

This past weekend was incredibly warm. Mick said when he left the house to come to the wedding ceremony, the temperature was 26C (79F). Saturday was nearly as warm, but then it rained most of Sunday and all of Monday. We returned to Bognor Tuesday night, and yesterday we woke up to a chilly, windy day. It's always a bit cooler here in Bognor than it is in the area of Kent we frequent, but that's mostly because we're right on the beach. However, the weather changed so quickly.  I took the bus into Chichester yesterday because I needed some passport photos taken in order to get my new passport with my new last name. I waited under the bus shelter and huddled against the chilly wind. After I had the pictures done, I waited for my mother-in-law outside her office to catch a ride home when she finished work. The sky was pearly grey in most places, with some darker, more ominous patches scattered about. I can't help but think that autumn must be here early this year. Apparently it's unusual for it to be quite so cool this time of year, so it may get warm again before autumn settles in for good. But autumn has always been my very favorite season- I love the colors and decorations, the spicy smells, and the hearty food. Not to mention Thanksgiving. Now, they don't do Thanksgiving here, but because I will want to do Thanksgiving when Mick and I have children (they should know both sides of their heritage), I figure I'll start practicing this year.

Anyway- having lived in the desert for the last decade and a half, I haven't gotten to see much to do with autumn. Growing up in Southern California surrounded by sycamores, we had beautiful colors. The leaves would turn dark red, fade to bright yellow, and finally fall, defeated and brown. I spent one weekend in October in Boston a few years ago, and was completely in love with those colors. I've also never had any reason or opportunity to buy warm woolen sweaters. Yesterday I bought my first gorgeous, wooly brown sweater. Adore it with me, yes?

Gorgeous, yes?

I just love toggles!

So! Autumn- the one season I haven't yet experienced in England... what will that be like? I decided to google some images of England in autumn and see what I should expect. I was NOT disappointed!

Autumn colors in New Forest. I've been once, but it was summer and very green. Image from dailymail.co.uk

 

Leafy street in London. Image from brooklynnomad.com

The Cotswalds in Autumn. Image from tourblaze.com

Autumn colors in New England, huh? Puh! Who needs New England? I've got Old England!
And while I know, for my Arizona family and friends, there's still a long way to go before autumn reaches you.... all I can say is come visit me if you want some nice weather :)

In other news, I've rediscovered my love of reading, thanks to Mick giving me a Kindle for my birthday a couple weeks back! I just finished reading Pride & Prejudice last night and have started Northanger Abbey.  I'm on a bit of an Austen kick. I've missed reading and am happy to be doing so once again.

Time to go work out. I'm back on that wagon again, for good this time!

September 2, 2011- Our Wedding Day

I woke up at 6:45am in my parents hotel room at the Village Hotel in Maidstone on Friday morning. My hip was sore from sleeping on the roll-away mattress. I looked at my phone and saw that Mick had text me at midnight. In order to follow tradition, we spent the night apart. Apparently, he wanted to open his wedding day gift at midnight, since, technically, that was our wedding day.

I took a shower and dried my hair and went to breakfast with my parents. Then I straightened my hair so it would be ready for Laura to come and style it for the wedding. We checked on the hotel's preparations for the reception that night. It felt like an incredibly unremarkable day, just another one, and the girls at the front desk commented on how I was the calmest bride they'd ever seen.

Laura arrived and got to work on my hair. It was a long process, but she did a beautiful job. The flowers arrived. I was so pleased with them- gorgeous pink, white and green roses that smelled like heaven. When the florist was done with the table and pedestals in the reception room I went down to check it out and it was like walking through a wall of sweet roses. I went back to my hotel room to finish my makeup while Laura did her hair. Around this time the photographer arrived and took shots of my jewelry and dress and me getting ready. My mom arrived at about a quarter to 3 (the wedding was at 3:30) to help me get into my dress. It took a good ten minutes, five of which were spent with my arms over my head while my mom and Neely, the photographer, tried to get the dress and all its layers straightened and down over my head. I was starting to get pretty hot (it was a really warm day!) and freaking out a little bit about time. "Get it together, one lady did this alone in the dress shop!"

We got out of the room at ten after 3 and the white Taxi Cab was waiting for me. I flopped in and off me, my mom and dad and Laura went. I think we arrived at the Archbhisop's Palace a few minutes late and I met with the registrar and the music began and Laura walked in. Then my dad and I went in. Of course I first looked to Mick, but he seemed really twitchy and was blocked by his groomsmen. He was barely able to look at me. By the time I got to the front of the room to stand with him he seemed a bit better though, and the further we got into the ceremony the better he seemed. I really don't remember much of the ceremony, but I remember looking into his eyes and trying not to sound like a little kid when I said my vows. I didn't realize how nervous I was until he took my hand to put my ring on and could feel my hands shaking. And then suddenly it was over and we were married.

We went outside and took pictures with all the family then everyone left for the hotel and we had our shots together. It was really hot and we both just kept on sweating. The car took us back to the hotel about an hour later and everyone was waiting in the garden patio area for us and we had a drink then went into the reception room. We ate, we drank, we sweated some more (the air conditioning was broken....), we danced. Mick and I danced to "Songbird" by Fleetwood Mac and my dad and I danced to "My Wish" by Rascal Flats. Later in the evening some of Mick's friends from school came for drinks and so did Rach and Josh. We visited and kept going outside where it was cool. Finally, around midnight, I could stand my dress no longer and Mick and I retired to our room. It was a very long, hot day, but a very, very good one. I don't really have any pictures but as soon as people start sending them to me and the photographer gets the disc to me I promise to post them. For now I'll leave you with this one- I adore the way Mick looks in it; so chuffed with himself. Like he's saying, "Yeah, I just got married. What did you do today!?"


We took my parents to the airport today. I hate to see them go, we had such a good time with them here. Now I may not see them until Christmas 2012 when Mick and I plan to go back for our first visit. 15 months- feels like a looooooooong time. But my siblings and their families should be coming to visit over the course of the next year so I have that to look forward to. And finding a job and looking for a place of our own when we save up enough.


Haha, I'm married. It's still so funny to think!

We did it!

Hello everyone! Just wanted to reassure you once again that I have not forgotten this blog. The weeks leading up to a wedding are the most insane weeks of a woman's life (until she has children, I'm guessing!) and for me, it's no exception!

My parents have been here since Sunday and we've been doing our best to show them a good time and get in some sights. Yesterday was, of course, the wedding. It was a fantastically sunny September day and rather warm- especially in yards and yards of fabric! The ceremony is a blur, but what I do remember was great and nobody cried or passed out. The reception was beautiful and the flowers smelled like heaven. The only thing missing was the rest of my family and friends back home- especially my brother and sister and their families. There are so many people I wish could have been there to share in the beauty and joy of the day, but I promise to share lots of pictures as soon as I get them.

I will give a more thorough entry on the day once things have slowed down a bit-- we have more family things to do today and quite frankly, I'm going to need a few days to recover.


Signing off, for the first time as Mrs. Aindrea White! :)