Snow-pocalypse, Rockies edition

Yeah, I know. We're supposed to be getting lots of snow anyway here in Colorado. The state name is practically synonymous with snow (even though Denver has on the average 300 days of sunshine a year). But this system proved to be our Big One, an average of 2-3 feet in most areas of the Front Range. And here's just some of the proof:






This is from our backyard, where it always looks like this when we get major snowstorms. And here's another view:



A lame revelation on my part - now that I have this awesome camera phone, I can take really good pictures for this blog in a pinch. I guess I've take the snobbish attitude that photography really isn't if it's not taken on my DSLR and I haven't processed the pictures to look stunning. But this little Android phone will do, especially when I'm writing here and want to do more illustrations.

R and I both home today - he because it's his flex day, mine because it's that rarest of rarities in my line of work - the snow day. The kids of course are also enjoying this day, but at their dad's house. I'm not sure whether it's a good or bad thing. A little of both, I suppose.

Bummer

I just got a rejection from one of the microstock agencies, because of poor lighting with one of my pictures. Here it is:



It's a little frustrating, because I'm having trouble understanding what constitutes "poor lighting". I'm trying to understand what makes a good stock photo, and I'm not sure where to get the answers. I'm doing on online stock photo program, so maybe that will help. Perhaps too, I can study the Lightroom book more closely. But I've done it, and now I just have to keep trying.

Analysis paralysis

So, have you ever tried to think about something so much, the job doesn't get done? That's kind of what's happening with me. With writing and photography, I'm thinking too much about what could happen, rather than making it happen.

Just like with a lot of things in life, I need a good swift kick in the rear. Forget if things don't look or sound right. I need to take that next step, whether it's submitting those three pictures to iStockphoto, or finding that just-right publication to submit my family travel articles to (who cares if they don't pay??)

Speaking of which, I will need to plan things out a little here. We have decided to go to northern California for spring break and to Seattle/Vancouver for summer vacation. Surely between all of this, I can secure some press passes or discounts, and come up with some query ideas for both of them. And now that I have my studio lights, I can get this photography thing set up, and I will by this weekend.

Kick in the rear, indeed. It's time to get moving...again.

And it's over

Oh, what a painful loss! The Niners are not going to the Super Bowl, and they came so close. Losing it 20-17 in overtime. And now we have to wait until next year. The Super Bowl now becomes a "who cares?" proposition for me. Even though one of my kids claims she is a Patriots fan, so in a way, it would be good to see them win. After the Giants beat the Niners, it's hard to root for them now.

Enough about football. Now it's time to get down to business. Submit photos to stock agencies and query a publication for article submission. Then apply to Examiner.com. I think that's the scariest thing of all, since I haven't applied to them yet. But we will see what happens.

A nervous wreck

I'm watching the Niners, and I don't know what to think. A ticket to the Super Bowl is on the line, a place the Niners haven't been in 17 years. So needless to say, I' m hoping they can make it. It's hard to believe that they'be made it this far. And even if they do win, there's the Patriots to contend with. Everyone thinks they will win it, not San Francisco. I'd love to see everyone be proven wrong!

Call me a marathoner!

I did it...even though I was one of the last to finish. But now I can say I've run a marathon. Woo-hoo!

Surprisingly, even though I felt like I had practically no sleep the night before, I felt the strongest I've ever felt for a race. I didn't have too many butterflies flitting about in the tummy either. The only problem was that they started the race 30 minutes late, because some runners hadn't gotten to downtown Phoenix in time.

I wonder if I could've done any better than I did. The balls of my feet began to hurt and cramp at mile 9 and kept hurting for the rest of the time. I had to stop about 5-6 times along the side of the road to rub my feet, which translated into at least 20 minutes of lost time. It's a little frustrating knowing that this could be a persistent problem.

R didn't greet me at the finish line, but here's a picture of me leaving the Scottsdale part of the race:



You'd think the last thing I'd want to do is run another one of these torture-fests. But I'm already thinking about the next one. How about this summmer??

A space of my own...

So, I call this a knitting/cooking/traveling/photography/writing blog, but one thing that hasn't been evident in a while is my picture portfolio. I haven't been processing a lot of pictures of late, because I haven't devoted the proper time to getting them presentable online or elsewhere. Perhaps once this marathon is done by this Sunday, I can do just that and actually seem like a photographer again.

But one step that I have taken is cleared a space in the basement by getting rid of the girls' toys that they haven't even so much as glanced at in the past year. It's a great little 6 foot wide space with about 9 feet of length, and some natural light coming through on the opposite side. Right now, I'm going to set up my lightbox to take some stock shots, but in time, I'm hoping to get a full studio setup with lighting and a muslin backdrop.

Getting there....