My Life......In Pictures....

It’s quiet right now. The seals are barking only occasionally. They were jabbering away a few hours ago but now, it must be nap time. The sea gulls are squawking but it’s not really bothersome. There are a couple of kids in the motel pool, making typical “kids-in-a-pool” noises.

Quiet, overcast, and quite cool, actually. I would guess that it is about 35 to 40 degrees cooler here than it is in Podunk right now. And that suits me fine! I can deal with the heat when I have to but, I am enjoying a respite from it for a few days.

I went for a walk this afternoon, along the Embarcadero. I looked in a few of my favorite shops. My most favorite shop here in Morro Bay is The Garden Gallery. It is nothing more than a gift shop but, the collection of goods for sale are a cut above the usual gift shop. And they have plants, too.

I spent more than an hour looking at everything there. Well, looking AND taking photos. I wanted to be able to describe it and I couldn’t. Not without photos, at least. So, I took lots and lots of photos.

And people are so nice: more than once someone stopped somebody else from walking into my photo. I was able to snap pictures to my heart’s content. With no one getting in the way. I made a note to myself to watch for other “photographers” so I can be as courteous as they were to me today.

Funny, when I want to take photos, I seem to look more carefully at things. In the process of finding a good subject for each photo, I see things that I might not otherwise even notice. And everything I see becomes a “photo op” of sorts.

I see shapes and colors, too. Just like last evening. I took a photo then of a bunch of kayaks, colorful orange and yellow kayaks, stacked in a row. They made a lovely photo that really is a work of art.

So much of life is a work of art. There are the obvious moments, the sunrises and sunsets of our everyday lives, and there are the less obvious moments. Moments that should be shared with others and usually aren’t. Unless you are taking photos.

I am learning a lot about taking photos. I never learned F-stops or lens choices, or use of shadows and/or proper lighting techniques. All I know is that, if you shoot straight into the sun, the picture isn’t supposed to turn out very good.

And don’t try to take a picture at night with the flash turned off on your camera. Especially if the only light in the room is a nightlight. It absolutely won’t turn out! Except my profile picture and several others similar to it…which were taken at night, without a flash, and by the light of a nightlight.

Taking pictures would seem to require a good eye for subject matter. And perhaps, a creative spirit for picture composure. And definitely, a stubborn streak about a mile wide: that should take care of lighting problems!

It would seem that the desire to take photographs today, to share my experiences with others, has caused me to see things more clearly and in more detail. And I noticed things I might not have noticed otherwise. So I am getting more out of my little mini-vacation than I thought I would…and the photos to prove it.

I am going to go out to find something to eat soon….

I’ll take more pictures for you!