day 331
Even though I like this photo, I wish I could create some photos with an actual concept. I have tons of ideas sketched out in my sketchbook, but for some reason (one that I do not know), I never actually do them. I feel like I've reached that stage in photography where I've learned a lot of the editing and shooting process and mostly have that down (I say this lightly because there's always room for improvement), and the 365 is good for figuring those things out. But now I need to learn how to go through the process of coming up with a concept, preparing for it, and then shooting it successfully. It seems to me that the 365 (at least, if you actually take one photo each day) isn't quite the best for something like that. I could be wrong though. I could just be extremely lazy or scared to actually go out and do the more crazy ideas in my head. I don't know, I'm just sort of rambling on. Regardless, tomorrow is my busy day so I may not get a killer concept out the door just quite yet. But I hope you guys have a great day!
day 329
After doing homework (aka procrastinating by looking through old old facebook photos ... like year 2008 photos. Let me just say, there are some treasures in there, haha!), I chased down the sunset. My friend Bekah brought me back a dress from her home that her Aunt didn't want, and of course I had to take it out for a run. I love that my friends cater to my crazy photoshoot props and wardrobe. Currently my room is filled with a stolen traffic cone, a wig, a giant crayon, fancy goblets, random butterflies and other crazy stuff. What's another dress to add to the collection?
a 365 photo // making snowflakes // puddles and rainy days // burnt popcorn and the fire department in our dorm // holding Matt's hand for the first time in three months // playing bingo // Matt and I // Matt in his hypothetical home office // finishing up my plate in ceramics
Hey everyone! I hope you had a good Thanksgiving. It was a nice break for me not having to worry about homework or shooting anything conceptual or working on blog posts, but I'm excited to get back into the schedule of things. The time with Matt was definitely way too short and I'm already counting down the days until Christmastime.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you guys have a wonderful holiday filled with family and friends. As for me, I have been reunited with my handsome man and am surrounded by lots of wonderful family and I am very very happy.
To my family back home: I love you guys so much and I miss you a ton, but I hope you still have a great Thanksgiving. And be sure to save some macaroni and cheese for me!
Since this holiday is all about giving thanks, I want to share just a few things I am thankful for. I am especially thankful for my college. It has given me so many opportunities and friendships that I would have never dreamed of. I'm also thankful for a family that calls me on Thanksgiving, and for kind strangers now friends for housing me for a couple of nights. And I am especially thankful for Matt. I'm so glad we get to spend the next few days together. It's as if we've never been apart and this only solidifies how much we love and care for each other (and how much it grows each day). He makes me very happy. I am also really thankful for you guys. Seriously, you are the best. I wish I could express how happy I am for us to be able to come to this blog together and create friendships and share our stories and insights. I love you so much. So what are you thankful for? Let me know so that we all can celebrate this awesome holiday together.
Have a safe and wonderful holiday everyone!
day 324
Well I just got back from standing outside watching firefighters run into our dorm with flames stretching across the sky.
Okay just kidding, the firefighters didn't even run and we were all standing out in the rain because of burnt popcorn, but having the fire alarms go off at 11:40 at night is not good for my productivity. But it was an exciting moment in my college career and therefore deemed worthy of blogging about.
But on to other matters! I am super proud of this photo. A before and after is up on my photography page, and this photo definitely looks a LOT differently than the original photo, and I am really proud of it. Tabatha is always such a willing (and gorgeous) model and I'm so glad to have her as my friend!
day 323
Here's something a bit different for today's 365 photo! I was planning on doing just a simple portrait of my face, but it ended up being slightly different and I really like it.
Today was the first day I thought, "Why the heck did I move to Oregon?" I now realize why some people don't like Oregon. It was so rainy and windy I thought I was going to be blown away. Okay, I'm definitely exaggerating, but I am certainly pining for at least no rain in the clouds. I talked to my dad on the phone last night and he said that I have to have my Christmas list together by Thanksgiving, and after today, I am definitely going to be putting some boots on that list. I previously had no shoes that were waterproof, but thankfully the shoes that I bought a few weeks ago did the trick on this dreary day. So many puddles!
Other than that, I did really well on my two tests today. I already got the grade back for one (it was a 97% on my Bible test yay!) and am waiting for the other one, and I'm glad I can cross those things off my list of things I need to do before Thanksgiving!
I guess you could say that this is an introduction to a new installation on the blog, called "film friday"! Get excited people! This is an introduction because I couldn't wait until Friday to post this particular video. In light of this post I figured it would be apt to show this video first. I discovered this video a long time ago and it rings so true with me. All too often people quit before they get past that frustrating stage, and it's all a matter of sheer determination and relentlessness. And the fact of the matter is, that stage could last years. But that just makes getting to the other side that much sweeter.
day 322
This is my first (successful) RAW photo and let me just say, why the heck did I not shoot RAW earlier? Seriously, if you were like me and totally oblivious to all things fantastical, then read this article that Seth sent me. It will blow your mind.
Shot this in the rain, in the dark. I got all wet and my camera battery died and I was frustrated that I hadn't shot a compelling concept and didn't even have a very good pose, but after working on it for a long time, I actually really enjoy this photo. And I'm still not done with this location yet! I made a new set for this location, and as said in the description: this isn't a series, just a collection of photos taken at the abandoned house at the end of the street. I want to show the versatility of one location that would have gone otherwise unnoticed had I not roamed around aimlessly. It was that one chance encounter with the old country road that lead to all of these photos. You can check out the set here, as I will constantly be adding to it because I'm going to milk this location for all it's worth.
p.s. Thank you all for your kind comments yesterday. I will hold them in my heart forever. :)
Hope you all have a fantastic day!
my beautiful friends all in one room // dyed my hair purple! // visited multnomah falls for the first time // a successful 365 photo // reached 300 likes on my photography page! // found a brand new photoshoot location // bright red fall trees // a precious kitty that I visit often // swinging on a rope at work
Well I hope you all had a fantastic week! I think it would be really fun if, on top of my week in instagram posts, we did a fun post about what you guys did! That way Introvert's Introduction can be even more of a community. So let me know what you did this past week! And if you have a blog post about it, feel free to post a link in the comments so I can link to your blog! Also by doing this you give me permission to post a picture from your blog onto here, so that other people know who you are. And don't worry, the photo will link back to your blog. :) Ooh this is going to be exciting! So what did you do? I want to know!
day 321
This photo is for everyone who has encouraged me, left a comment, liked, favorited, whatever, on my photos. I really am my own worst critic. I know what I'm capable of and I beat myself up whenever anything is less than perfect. Sylvia Plath (aka my spirit animal) said that "the worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt" and I seem to have it in excess. It seems like every other day I think about quitting the 365 or I think about how incompetent I am, but the things that keeps me going are your encouraging words. Even a couple minutes before this photo was taken, I was so distraught in my own self doubt that I considered quitting. And literally (I kid you not), the moment I thought that, my friend Sarah posted on my facebook wall that my work keeps getting better and better. I started crying. And then I took this photo. It is for Sarah and everyone else who encourages me that keeps me going, and it's me with that stubborn urge to become good at something that keeps me going. So thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. I don't think you'll ever know just how deeply your kind words affect me and how extremely grateful I am for them. Seriously, I could never ever thank you enough.
day 320
If I didn't have to take a photo every day, this would be one of those photos that would never get put on the internet. I tried a brand new way of shooting, but I obviously did not succeed since this photo is less than perfect (aka really bad. I'm so embarrassed to post this but I have nothing else). I'm about ready for this project to be over because I'm tired of unsuccessful photos. But oh well. Such is life. Today's photo will be posted after I take it. ;)
day 319
This photo was major experimentation as I accidentally slept past sunset and had no light outside. But tomorrow is another day.
day 318
view it here
What is beauty? Beauty is that which we see in nature. An old tree that has gazed upon generations. The forest around him was cut down and they were reduced to boards and shingles, but still they held beauty for they gazed upon generations. The people around them grew up and tall and touched the skies and flew past them. They saw the highest mountains and the deepest, darkest ocean trenches and still those desolate places held beauty for they gazed upon generations. The earth is beauty and beauty is the earth. We are all connected because of the universal handprint we bear and the beauty we possess and we stretch across generations.
I'm going to try to incorporate more writing into my photos, and in light of this post, my skills in writing and photography will both grow at the same time, even if I'm just writing a little bit each day.
When I was walking to the location for today's photo, I had a couple ideas, but today none of them seemed right. I ended up walking around, quickly running out of time before class, but then I looked up and saw an old tree with a crevice that looked just like an eye, so of course I had to take a picture of it.
day 317
model is my obviously gorgeous friend Tabatha.
I wanted to shoot with the lovely rose bush before winter came, and I knew Tabatha would be perfect for it. She is a great model and always knows exactly what to do. Seriously, this girl is the bomb.
Also you can check out my photography page for alternate versions of this photo. I would love it if you 'liked' the page and stick around for updates!
day 316
Today I explored around my town again, not really knowing what I was going to do for a photo but being glad I was finally feeling happy about photography again, and found this awesome abandoned building at the end of a string of cute old houses. It's so cool that all these locations are just a couple blocks away, and all it takes is walking around and looking for them.
day 315
What makes you uniquely you?
As I go through life, I've discovered how un-unique I am. There are thousands of people who wear the same clothes as me, participate in the same activities as me, believe the same doctrines as me, and ever ignorantly thinks that they are the only one to experience the same things as me. I don't really find that saddening though, for humans are relational figures and thus our un-uniqueness binds us to one another. I think uniqueness is a highly relative term (at least in this case), but what makes me (and any other human) unique is my relationship with others and their relationship with me. I place great worth on certain people, and that ability to give and receive worth is unique to every individual, with an infinite amount of combinations brought about through every person everyone comes in contact with. I can make a person seem to me more or less unique, and others can do the same in their view of me and the view of their relationship with me. We are all connected by this ability as well as our un-uniqueness, which in a sense makes us incredibly unique in that we are all the connecting element of the red string of destiny and without each one of us, the string would be broken.
-- my answer to a psychology question that we never turned in.
"An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet regardless of time, place or circumstance. The thread may tangle but it will never break." -- Chinese Proverb
and the fog rolls in // squirrel earrings // I love the rain // my handmade mug filled with warm hot chocolate // leaves on the window // year 3000 dance // a foggy and rainy morning // looking up and looking down on my walk // a paint set from my man
My week in instagram is back! I've put it on the back burner for a couple of weeks, but I really enjoy sharing these photos, especially for those of you who don't have instagram. But if you do, you should follow me @impulsings ... it's a party over there!
day 314
Got to visit Multnomah Falls for the first time ever today. I am so blessed to live in such a beautiful place.
Jenna, Amy, Ivy, Tabatha, Rebekah, and Me