stepping out of your comfort zone // a guest post

(alternately titled: how the terrified-of-people-photographer learns to overcome her fear)

I'm an introvert. My photos aren't of people, because I'm not a people person. Birds, flowers, cats, trees, sunsets, and pinecones are my subjects.

I'm a detail oriented person. Most of my photos are close up, because that is what I see.

This introverted and detailistic photographer is stepping out of her comfort zone and photographing people.

Not just their hands but the whole person.

But especially the light in their eyes.

This photographer is learning to write with the light in people...and it is beautiful.

(moral of the story: step out of your comfort zone and try to capture something you've always dreamed of capturing. learn from and laugh at your mistakes. be inspired by other photographers, but don't compare. enjoy every minute behind your lens. keep on photographing what you love.)

Emily Grace is a sinner saved by the grace of God. She captures His grace with her shutter. She sees His goodness through her lens. She records His mercy and forgiveness with her pen. She shares His love with her life.
"I don't have many words with which to write--so I write with light."

flowers, showers & and an April update

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curves and colour balance adjustment

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And this? This is the new roller coaster at Canada's Wonderland. The Leviathan - 306 feet tall, 80% drop, 148 km/h fast, and 5486 feet long. Basically, it's something I wouldn't want to find myself on.

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black & white // my mom <3

These are from last week, before April decided to turn into March. It snowed this afternoon... but at least it didn't stick. Crazy weather! :P
I've only posted five times this month, six with this post. *sigh* I'm desperately trying to get myself organized to finish school by the end of May. So that's one reason I haven't posted as often as I normally would, and what's more, I've taken up babysitting (saving up for a camera upgrade!). I think I'll make myself a posting schedule for May - something I should've thought of earlier. But anyways, I'm so sorry for not stopping by your blogs and commenting, guys!
Also, I'm going to be changing the content of my posts a bit. I want my blog to become a clearer reflection of me. I'm not the kind of person who likes to share personal thoughts, moments, and life experiences much; I like to keep them to myself. But I've come to realize just how much I've been encouraged by those kinds of posts on other blogs, and I want my blog to be a source of encouragement too. These past couple of months, I've mostly been posting just for the sake of posting, but with not that much content. I want my blog to be a diary, MY diary. And currently, it's only about 1/4 of what I'm striving for. I'm taking blogging to the next level & I hope you'll bear with me. :)

A Rather Unusual Saturday

My Saturday started out pretty normal. I decided to bike to the library in the afternoon, but when I got back, I found everyone in the backyard. Apparently, my dad had gone to get something from the shed earlier, and guess what?! He found a squirrel nest with three babies! The mother had made it inside one of those disposable hanging baskets we happened to have lying around.

this is as much as could be seen of the babies in the nest

So my dad took them out of the shed, but the mommy squirrel had other plans...

this is actually outside our backyard, 'cause we left them on the other side of the fence.

She picked her babies up, one by one, and carried them right back in again. It was really cute to watch! This is the only not-so-blurry shot I was able to get though (squirrels. are. fast.).

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This is the hole she got in through. Our shed is kinda old (we're planning on renovating/replacing it, but so far, we haven't gotten around to it yet), and this happened a couple of months before we moved into the house (which was about three years ago). The other half of that poplar tree you see there, damaged the shed when it broke off during a storm (we'll be cutting it down later this year. it's old and dry), and the person who was supposed to fix it didn't *ahem* do that good of a job.
So now, we got a cage and we're going to try to get the mother inside, and then possibly drive out to the woods somewhere and drop her off with the babies. A protective mother squirrel is not someone you want occupying your shed... especially not in spring, when you need the use of your gardening tools.
As for this guy...

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...I found him just sitting in the grass. His belly was a bright yellow, but sadly, I didn't manage to capture that part of him.
If you've been following me for a while (or maybe for longer ;), you may have noticed that I'm really not into shooting animals. Last Saturday was truly unusual!

The Extraordinary Beauty of Ordinary Days

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curves adjustment

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curves & hue adjustments

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colour balance adjustment

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black and white

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hue adjustment

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"I believe the nicest and sweetest days are not those on which anything very splendid or wonderful or exciting happens, but just those that bring simple little pleasures, following one another softly, like pearls slipping off a string."

~Anne of Green Gables~ 

There are can't-wait-for days, there are summer days & holidays, and then there are ordinary days. Beauty can be found in all of them, but with ordinary days, it's the hardest. We tend to rush through them, maybe because we're so excited about one of those hurry-up-and-arrive-I-know-you'll-be-amazing days, or maybe because we can't wait for summer. It takes looking, really looking, to see the extraordinary beauty of ordinary days. It's there, but sometimes it takes a walk to the park or a peek through a shutter button to unlock it. And when you do unlock it, realize just what you've been missing, & if you're also a photographer, like me, the only thing you can think to do is run outside with a camera. Because the beauty of the ordinary things in God's creation is swoon-worthy; more so than any actor, movie, or book character you've met/seen/read about.