Goodbye to Naji

  We packed Naji up this morning.  His new Yankees hat, his piggy bank he painted, his old sneakers, his new games and DS from Game Stop,a bag of new school clothes and our love.   

All of our love.

I could blame the last picture on the terribly bright sun, the chaos of the street, or Naji’s lack of cooperation.

The truth is, I was crying so hard,

I could barely look thru the lens.

Gone - flitted away,
Taken the stars from the night and the sun
From the day!
Gone, and a cloud in my heart.
~Alfred Tennyson

What did we do today?

Well? Today we went to Dorney Park.

My sweet sister gave us free tickets.

We got there a half an hour before it opened.

And we left a half an hour after it closed.

Do you know what I didn’t do today?

My paperwork for my real job

My laundry for my real family

My bill paying for my real bills

My dishes for my real food

And guess what?

I don’t even care.

I can’t believe Summer is almost over.

This is our last week of freedom.

When did your babies go back?

               Thanks for loving this picture yesterday.

I took it in a little shop in Lancaster on our vacation.

I don’t know the people.

So, I could probably get arrested for posting the picture.

Please bail me out, OK?

Thanks.

Love, Becky

A Love Story {In the spirit of Photojournalism}

  Our definition of Photojournalism for the sake of this challenge:  Using an image (or images) to tell a story.

I am sure you have heard this story before.

It has always been one of my favorites.

Enjoy.

John Blanchard stood up from the bench, straightened his Army uniform, and studied the crowd of people making their way through Grand Central Station. He looked for the girl whose heart he knew, but whose face he didn't, the girl with the rose. His interest in her had begun thirteen months before in a Florida library. Taking a book off the shelf he found himself intrigued, not with the words of the book, but with the notes penciled in the margin. The soft handwriting reflected a thoughtful soul and insightful mind. In the front of the book, he discovered the previous owner's name, Miss Hollis Maynell. With time and effort he located her address. She lived in New York City. He wrote her a letter introducing himself and inviting her to correspond.

The next day he was shipped overseas for service in World War II. During the next year and one month the two grew to know each other through the mail. Each letter was a seed falling on a fertile heart. A romance was budding. Blanchard requested a photograph, but she refused. She felt that if he really cared, it wouldn't matter what she looked like. When the day finally came for him to return from Europe, they scheduled their first meeting - 7:00 PM at the Grand Central Station in New York. "You'll recognize me," she wrote, "by the red rose I'll be wearing on my lapel."

At 7:00 he was in the station looking for a girl whose heart he loved, but whose face he'd never seen. I'll let Mr. Blanchard tell you what happened: A young woman was coming toward me, her figure long and slim. Her blonde hair lay back in curls from her delicate ears; her eyes were blue as flowers. Her lips and chin had a gentle firmness, and in her pale green suit she was like springtime come alive. I started toward her, entirely forgetting to notice that she was not wearing a rose. As I moved, a small, provocative smile curved her lips. "Going my way, sailor?" she murmured. Almost uncontrollably I made one step closer to her, and then I saw Hollis Maynell. She was standing almost directly behind the girl. A woman well past 40, she had graying hair tucked under a worn hat.. She was more than plump, her thick-ankled feet thrust into low-heeled shoes. The girl in the green suit was walking quickly away. I felt as though I was split in two, so keen was my desire to follow her, and yet so deep was my longing for the woman whose spirit had truly companioned me and upheld my own.

And there she stood. Her pale, plump face was gentle and sensible, her gray eyes had a warm and kindly twinkle. I did not hesitate. My fingers gripped the small worn blue leather copy of the book that was to identify me to her. This would not be love, but it would be something precious, something perhaps even better than love, a friendship for which I had been and must ever be grateful.

I squared my shoulders and saluted and held out the book to the woman, even though while I spoke I felt choked by the bitterness of my disappointment. "I'm Lieutenant John Blanchard, and you must be Miss Maynell. I am so glad you could meet me; may I take you to dinner?" The woman's face broadened into a tolerant smile. "I don't know what this is about, son," she answered, "but the young lady in the green suit who just went by, she begged me to wear this rose on my coat. And she said if you were to ask me out to dinner, I should go and tell you that she is waiting for you in the big restaurant across the street. She said it was some kind of test!"

It's not difficult to understand and admire Miss Maynell's wisdom. The true nature of a heart is seen in its response to the unattractive. "Tell me whom you love," Houssaye wrote, "And I will tell you who you are."

Interview with a Photographer: Sarah Andrews of ThisMamaRAZZI

The first time I clicked on Sarah’s blog,

I knew she was something special.

I could feel her love for her baby,

her family,

and her pictures.

Any person with that much love inside

just had to be wonderful.

And she was.

If you have never met my friend Sarah from

ThisMamaRAZZI, well, today is your lucky day!

How old is your baby, Sarah? 

I'm the super proud Mommy of a 19 month old baby girl!

 

How did you pick her name?

I love names and I wanted to find something different but not too crazy out there.  We named her Brielle (Bree-elle) which isn't common around our area.  People are always asking me to repeat myself when I introduce her which is a PAIN but I wouldn't change a thing.  I love it and it suits her. 

But if you ask Brielle what her name is - she'll tell you "Baby" every single time!
What is her favorite toy right now?

      Toys? Not so much.  But cell phones, remote controls and potatoes are huge hits with her right now!

What do you do during her nap time?

Ah the sweetness of naptime. 

When my baby and I recharge out batteries.  9 times out of 10 you will find me on the computer editing and/or blogging. 
Tell me about the day you first picked up a DSLR.

Believe it or not, July 2009 was my first time.  A friend had just bought a Nikon D80 and I grabbed it and instantly fell in love.  It was totally over-whelming - I had no clue what I was doing but I wanted to learn in the worst way.  So I went out and bought a Canon XSi a week later.  I outgrew my Xsi in under 8 months and now I own a 5D Mark II.    
How much time a day do you spend editing pictures?

Right now - A lot of my free time is dedicated to photography and editing.  I edit about 4 hours a day if I've a shoot that needs editing.  If not then about 2. 

Where is your favorite place to shoot?
I LOVE the country.  I'm totally a country bumpkin stuck in the suburbs so whenever I can I head out to my families property and click click click.

What do you love about living in Canada?

I love the seasons - all 4 have such extreme weather. I love the trees, rolling hills and fresh water lakes of Ontario. But what I love the most about being Canadian is our Health Care System.

Tell me about your front porch view.

I live in a subdivision!  I have houses and friendly people all around me.
What is your favorite outfit to wear?

That changes all of the time.  My current is jean capri leggings, a dark pink blouson top with spaghetti straps and flip-flops.
What is your favorite outfit to put ‘Baby’ in?

There is no way I can narrow it down to just one -

I'm a bit of a shop-a-holic when it comes to her.

I love her in anything pink - it's her color.
Does your Mama go crazy over the pictures of

her grandbaby?

What grandparent doesn't go crazy over a picture of their grandbaby?!?!?!?!  So a BIG fat yes is my answer to this question!  My family is super proud of what I'm pulling off with my camera.

Do you have any specific goals regarding your photography?

I want to become better of course!  lol!  I'll always be a forever student when it comes to photography.  I never want to stay the same - always up for a challenge and to be open to new things.  Currently, I'm baby-steppin' my way into a small business for myself.  I'm currently doing 1-2 photo shoots a week through model calls and shoots for friends.  I'm loving every minute of it - having high highs when I'm nailing shots and low lows when I blow the shoot but I'm learning every step of the way.  My 3 year plan is to have a great group of clients who love my images and continue to hire me over and over again.

What has been your biggest challenge in learning photography?     Oh I've had/have a big one.  When I was 15 I had a near fatal cyst in my brain that irreparably damaged the optic nerve in my right eye with permanent uncorrectable damage to the left.  So I don't have good vision whatsoever and I live on a day to day basis with a visual disability.  (My blog followers might be a little stunned right now)  It constantly blows me away when I take good pictures and I'm extremely thankful for the vision that I still have.  It's hard all at the same time to find the confidence on some days regarding my work.  But I continue to shoot and see EVERYTHING the best I can and I encourage you to do the same. 

How long did it take you to master Photoshop?

LOL!  Becky's so funny!  So not a master - a novice really.  I've been using CS4 since August 2009.  It's an amazing program but I still have lots of frustrating moments.
What are your favorite actions?

I'm a huge Florabella fan and have a lot of her actions.  I use her sharpen/defog on a lot of my images as well as her center fill light action. 
Who is one of your Photography inspirations?

I think every photographer out will have produced a photo that I absolutely LOVE!  So I'm not going with the big guns on this one (cough cough Skye Hardwick).

Some of my blogging/IRL friends totally blow my mind with their crazy photog skills.

Baby Mama - aka Lisa Kelly from Salt and Light Studio over at BlogBaby has such artistic flair she's consistently blowing my mind with each photo she puts out. She is definitely one of my favorites!

Salt Light Studio

Blog Baby

Anything else to share?

It wouldn't be right to take over Becky's blog and not leave a couple of favorite and life inspiring quotes and a question at the end.

"Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside them was superior to circumstance."
~Bruce Barton~

"There is no chance,
no destiny,
no fate,

that can hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul."
~Ella Wheeler Wilcox~

    

My Q for you....

What's YOUR fave action???

I told you mine now you tell me yours!!!!!

OK, Sarah, well, you are going to be disappointed to know, I have never used an action. I have Elements 4 and I don’t understand where the actions are. I have downloaded Pioneer Woman Actions about 100 times…. so I am sure they are somewhere on my computer, but I can’t find them. : (

Blog: 
This Mamarazzi

Website:

Sarah Andrews Photography