SOAR! Photography Exercise #2: Defining Details

The SOAR Photography Exercise #2 is all about Defining Details.  

So I drove a couple miles down the road to visit my grandma, Shirley Hallstrom. 

See these hands...  They have been through over 80 years of life.  These hands have cared for and have blessed the lives of many many people.  This woman married young and had 6 kids of her own by the age of 31.  She has 26 grandchildren and over a dozen great grandchildren.  She is one of those super friendly ladies that you just can't help but love.  She loves people and serves others as much as possible.  Can you believe she is still out working at the age of 80?  She is a substitute teacher all over the valley.

Grandma wanted me to take a picture of the palms of her hands because they don't look as old as the other side.

Here is a picture collage that I made for her.  His collage is filled with pictures of her posterity.  My little family of five is lucky to live near Grandma.  Everyone else lives several miles, and states away.  So this collage is pretty special to her because when she looks at it, it makes her feel like she is surrounded by her entire family.

Grandma is a widow.  Her sweetheart died 7 1/2 years ago.  She misses him.  

Here is an oil painting she created back in 1978.  It was a gift to her husband, Don Hallstrom.

Grandma is a fabulous artist.  She loves all forms of art, especially watercolor and oil painting.  I have been told that my artistic side came from this amazing lady.  One of her dreams is to write and illustrate children's literature.  She would love to be a published author and illustrator.  Writing poetry is one of Grandma's favorite things to do.  She enjoys writing poems and collecting quotations.  As a gift to family and friends, she likes to type up her poetry and favorite quotations, printing them off on colorful card stock paper, and writing a personalized love note on the back.

Tyler is my three year old.  Those eyes of his, how his works his smirk, along with that with his adorable little voice, and you have the makings of a true trouble maker.  This boy gets away with more than any other kid I know.  And you don't have to tell me twice, as his mother, I am the biggest one to blame.

 

 See that peanut butter trail?  I wonder who could have done that?

Not me!  I'm innocent!

Daddy get home soon!

SOAR! Photography Exercise #1: Doing the Deeper Work

The SOAR Photography Exercise #1 is about doing the deeper work.  Here's what Me Ra Koh instructed us to do: "The first SOAR! Photography Exercise is a Self Portrait Photography Exercise. You will take TWO Self Portraits. One image will have you in the photo. The second one will be an object that symbolizes you. Both Self Portraits are meant to document where you are in your journey of life. When you think about this present season of life–this monumental moment in your journey of being committed to SOAR!, being on your way to become a successful photographer…How do you feel? Are you excited, afraid, alone? What colors are you wearing? If we saw your true insides, what would they look like right now? What object would symbolize this time in life? What angle would you shoot it from and why?"
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Here I am.  I applied for the SOAR! Scholarship for the past two years.  I was not chosen as a SOAR Scholarship recipient.  Last year, I followed the SOAR! Blog and was totally jealous of the three women that won.  I wished I was in their shoes, working hard, going to workshops, doing photo shoots, getting business coaching, building their photography business.  I did a couple of the SOAR! exercises but then my excitement for completing the SOAR assignments fizzled out once my baby girl was born in May.  Taking care of my family of five is so much work.  I knew that taking care of my family was the most important thing to do at that time.  But 2011 is a new year.  A year for SOARing.  My baby is more independent now, my oldest child is in all day kindergarten, and my 3 year old is so photogenic.  Good things come to those who wait, right?!  I am completely on board to challenge myself, to study, to retain the information I learn about the technicalities of my camera, and to come to know myself and how I want to run my photography business.    

So, this year I am studying as hard as I can.  I am facing challenges head on and that is why I chose to shoot this image head on.  I feel excited.  I feel energized.  I tend to wear brighter colors now.  I feel my personality creeping in to the way that I photograph and how I interact with others.  I am proud of myself and all of the leaps I have made already.  I feel more patient, more fun to be around, and more confident.  On top of all of that, I have big plans for this year.  Do you want to know what my plans are?  Well sheesh!  Do you thing I'm going to tell you everything right now?  No way.  You'll have to follow along.  I'll be sure to post my progress on this very blog.  Join me.  Encourage me.  I love comments!  

Here is the object that symbolizes me at this time in my life:

A sponge.  It's not just any sponge, but a sponge so full of soap and water that there is a continuous stream of water coming out.  I think of the sponge as my brain and the water as the information I have learned over the course of my life.  I have soaked up so much information, especially on the subject of photography, that the information is now spilling out in forms of success.  I have placed photography as a high priority in my life.  I have studied different aspects of photography and now feel all the studying is paying off.  I am starting to feel more confident behind the camera and that I can work on getting more creative shots instead of worrying about the technical side of photography.   The soap represents an eraser, to erase the unnecessary things cluttering up my thoughts, my energy, and my enthusiasm.  I am working on creating a daily routine that will allow me to be more productive.  I want to have a daily two hour block that I dedicate to photography.  When that two hour block is clearly defined, it will allow me to see that two hour block as sacred and to not allow other aspects of my life to interrupt that time.  I'm also filling my life with my favorite things.  I'm taking note of how I feel after certain activities, television shows, even how my surroundings affect my thoughts and attitude.  And I am taking mental notes of how the relationships I have with others can be improved.  The soap reminds me to prioritize my life.      

Please let me know what you think of my first assignment.  Comments are greatly appreciated.  Thanks! 

The SOAR! Scholarship

The SOAR! Scholarship is awarded to three women that are each aspiring to start up their own photography business.  The recipients receive tons of prizes including: a new DSLR camera, lenses, instructional DVDs, business coaching, Confidence workshop attendance, website and logo design, and MORE!  The recipients also BLOG once a week to journal about the assignments they are given and the progress they have made.  I applied last year and got turned down, so I applied for the SOAR! Scholarship again this year.  I spent a long time coming up with what to say in my video portion of the application.  I wrote down ideas and ran them by Sam and my little sister, Laura.  Laura helped me to come up with what details I should include in the video:

Click here to see my SOAR! Scholarship application video.

In addition to the video, I also had to fill out an online application.  I was proud of myself once I submitted my application and for recording my video all by myself too.  I applied the week before Christmas and have had a heck of a time waiting to see who the three lucky ladies were going to be.  I had my fingers and toes crossed that I'd be one of the lucky ones.  So yeah, last Friday, I found out that I did NOT win the scholarship.  Was I disappointed?  For sure.  Did I cry?  Just for a couple minutes.  What did I do to help myself get over it?  I dubbed that day "Pajama Day" and allowed myself to relax.  I worked on some crafts, played with my kids, oh and went out (in my jammies, boots, and baseball cap) to rent the movie, "Despicable Me."  We had leftovers for dinner and I vegged on my couch.  I even made a few new friends on Facebook from the Soar Sisters page.  So, I gave myself that day to sulk and feel sorry for myself.  Now, I'm over it.

I've decided that even though I didn't win the SOAR! Scholarship, I'm not going to let it bring me down.  I am still going to get the most out of the resources that I already have.  I plan on following the SOAR! Blog.  I will  challenge myself by doing the same assignments the recipients receive.  I will blog my results on my photography blog.  I will ask questions.  I will learn to be more confident in myself, my camera skills, and my ability to start up my own photography business.  

I want to grow as much as possible this year.  Now I'm not talkin' about me growing up (a.k.a. getting taller) because we all know that ain't happenin'.  I'm talking about growing into a better person.  A more healthy and happy person.  A person who has tested her limits and is able to get out of her comfort zone.  A person who is curious and will not let criticism from others bring her down.  A person who sets goals and reaches them.  A person who loves her husband, family, and friends, a most importantly, loves herself.

I keep getting the song, "Just The Way You Are" stuck in my head.  There's a few things that I'd like to change about myself, but for the most part, I love myself just.the.way.i.am. 

A wise man once said, "BLOOM where you are planted."  That is exactly what I want to do this year: BLOOM.  I've decided that is the word I want to focus on.  I even made these crafty wooden "BLOOM blocks" with some friends last weekend.  Each set of blocks turned out differently, but they were all beautiful.  Here's how my blocks turned out.  I have them proudly displayed on the window sill above the sink in my kitchen.

Here's to the start of a year of BLOOMING and SOARING!

SOAR! Photography Exercise #1 - Self Portrait

(This first paragraph was taken directly from the SOAR! Blog)

Directions for Photography Exercise #1

The first SOAR! Photography Exercise is all about “Doing the Deeper Work”. This is a Self Portrait Photography Exercise. You will take TWO Self Portraits. One image will have you in the photo. The second one will be an object that symbolizes you. Both Self Portraits are meant to document where you are in your journey of life. When you think about this present season of life–this monumental moment in your journey of being committed to SOAR!, being on your way to become a successful photographer…How do you feel? Are you excited, afraid, alone? What colors are you wearing? If we saw your true insides, what would they look like right now? What object would symbolize this time in life? What angle would you shoot it from and why?

So, where am I in my journey in life?!  Life has treated me well.  I'm a 27 year old wife and mother of two boys.  I'm expecting a baby girl in June.  I'm a stay-at-home mom and love spending my days with my boys.  My husband is awesome and surprised me with my first DSLR this past Christmas.  I wasn't expecting a big gift for Christmas, and just burst into tears (tears of joy) when I unwrapped my camera.  

Photography was my major back in college.  I've had some encouraging professors and one professor that made me feel like I would never "get it."  I tried hard not to let that keep me from learning more, but it's hard to let go of negative feedback and move on.  My own self doubt in my capabilities makes it hard to progress too. 

Over the past 8 years I've continued to study photography.  I took a Photoshop Elements class last year to refresh my editing skills.  My favorite photo editing program is Picasa 3.  It's very user friendly and I feel that I have mastered it.  I should reteach myself Photoshop Elements though because I know that there is way more I can do with that program.  Over the years, I've done numerous photo shoots for family and friends. 

 Here's my self portrait:

I'm full of mixed emotions.  I'm excited to see how far I can push myself this year.  I'm afraid that I will spend too much time studying photography, photographing, editing, etc. and not have as much time with my family as I'd like.  I feel alone when it comes to funding my business and learning how to run a successful business.  But despite all these feelings, I still have my thumbs up and a smile on my face.  Why?  Well I've got to keep a good attitude.  A good attitude will keep my spirits up, especially as I stumble, dust myself off, and move on.  I will keep moving forward.     

Here's the portrait of an object that best describes me at this time in my life:

Yup, that's right my friends... I feel like a remote control.  I feel like I have the POWER to succeed but that someone else (like my evil twin) is pushing my buttons.  Up until now, I've let others' comments and opinions rule my journey in photography.  I can't decide what I want/need out of photography to make me happy.  I need to push my own buttons instead of having others push them for me.  I need a mentoring and a big boost of confidence to jump start my journey this year.  Wish me luck!

I Can SOAR!

A few weeks ago, I applied for a photography scholarship for women called the SOAR Scholarship. I had to fill out an online application and submit a two minute video of me explaining why I feel I deserve the scholarship. It's too bad I found out about the scholarship less than 72 hours before it was due. I still thought the opportunity was too awesome to pass up and I'm so glad that I gave it my best shot. Last Friday night, they announced the three women that won. I'm so happy for these women and can't wait to follow along on their journey in becoming a professional photographer this year. The winners have received new camera gear and will receive business coaching, mentoring, and will attend a few workshops throughout the year. In addition to all of that, they will be writing weekly blog posts on their progress. There were over 260 applicants and over half of us have formed an online community on Facebook called Soar Sisters. I will learn from these women and soar along with them with my photography! If you want to read more about this, check out these websites: Me Ra Koh Photography blog and SOAR! Scholarship