“Keep it simple. Not just in your nature photography but also in your approach to hiking with a child. You don’t need a ton of equipment (for taking pictures or for the baby) and you should definitely leave it to the great outdoors to provide the awe. No need to overcomplicate anything. If you’re stressed out while hiking with your baby, you’re missing the point of the activity.”

It’s not always pretty but it can be done. More tips on how we’re doing it in my guest post on Megan’s blog, Made with True Love….

(Check out her awesome ideas for taking pictures & videos of your baby while there. She provides me with a lot of inspiration for making better videos!)

…starting a disagreement with a huge online personality…

…or going to the emergency room…

but instead, I’m talking about taking AMAZING pictures. This woman knows what she’s doing. Fortunately, we’re friends and her gift to me when Eli was born was a newborn photo session.

We got together in June (GAH – has it really been that long?) and I’m so very pleased with the results.

Our first official family portraits (besides those hold-your-arm-out-and-try-to-get-everyone-in-the-shot captures):

And our first official naked baby pictures, which I totally reserve the right to use in the future for the sole purpose of embarrassing my son as an adolescent…

Although Aimee already wrote about it on her blog, I just had to reiterate what a wonderful time we had taking pictures with her. The fact that she’s a good friend made the entire photo shoot that much easier. She also brought along her husband & her son, immediately putting them to work as photographer’s assistants, and making it a real family affair.

It’s obvious Greebs is talented. If you’re looking to become a better photographer, Aimee will be teaching an upcoming online course on improving your holiday photography. You’ll learn something. I promise.

Thanks again Aimee, Bryan & Dex. So glad we’re friends.

(P.S. These pictures were taken when Eli was a little more than 2 months old. He looks sooooo small. Sigh. I guess that whole growing up fast thing is true.)

“February is merely as long as is needed to pass the time until March.”
-   Dr. J. R. Stockton

During the blurry 28 days of February, I celebrated Chinese New Year, a dear friend’s wedding reception, a few snow days, my first Fasching party, my third baby shower, my return to the stage, my 35th birthday and many cups of tea.

Whew.

Somehow, through it all, I was able to maintain my photo-a-day challenge the entire month, resulting in February looking a little something like this…

It’s now March.

And so far, it’s been in like a lamb and promises to be out with the baby.

(I did mention that I’m due in less than two weeks, right?)

NOT. FREAKING. OUT.

Nope. Not one bit.

Simply biding the time with serious nesting, intense moments of anticipation and Girl Scout cookies.

If my unborn child is half-Samoan, you’ll know why.

Besides being an amazing challenge in mindfulness, Project 365 forces me to take more pictures while providing me a visual aid to better remember and appreciate each passing day.

But be warned. If the first sixteen days are any indication, it looks like there are many more snow and food shots in the upcoming months.

Just until the baby is born.

Then it will be all boobies babies, all the time.

(And yes, that is a bowl of melted chocolate.)

You can see my progress here in my Project 365 Flickr set…if you’re interested.

Then, while he cooks, I shoot some more.

Quite often, I let him shoot while I make yet another attempt at the unassisted, outdoor handstand.

pineapple, papayas, plantains, Placencia and pina coladas

scuba-diving with nurse sharks, moray eels and sea turtles

no work, no laptops, no email, no phone

traveling from island to jungle to mountaintop to peninsula

bug bites, chest acne, coral reef rash & sunburns

biking with a forest fire on the left

trekking on San Pedro with a golf cart and a dead battery

climbing to the top of Mayan ruins

boosting him up to grab a coconut out of a tree

more champagne than necessary

hiking, napping & never knowing how much to tip

renewing vows, setting goals, making plans

drinking Belikin beer and striking up conversations with locals

speaking in accents and making fun of Jimmy Buffett cover bands

outdoor showers, hammocks and the beauty of an island breeze

taking part in San Pedro’s famous chicken drop

swimming through a Mayan cave filled with sacrificial human remains

realizing that drum lines, cole slaw and Bob Marley all hold global appeal

learning, laughing, lounging, loving

soaking up places too schmancy for us

embracing the fact that our honeymoon is only just beginning

thanks to all our friends and family who made this trip possible

(we love you all)

belize honeymoon/one-year anniversary trip 2010

What can I say? I have 301 pictures out of the total 366 and a wide variety of excuses for those missed days–I was busy, I forgot, I was tired, I wasn’t inspired–you name it. Some days I just didn’t want to pick up my camera. However, my goals with this project were to take more pictures, to make the time to look around and to document a year in photos. I feel like I definitely accomplished all three.

Here’s my picture from the last day of my Project 366…

Not a bad way to end it

This project was made both easier and harder by Flickr. I loved having the ability to organize the pictures I was taking every day and to arrange them into sets. However, uploading a week’s worth of pictures was often time-consuming, what with all that tagging and describing. And quite honestly, I wouldn’t even upload photos every week which made for a lengthy catch-up session when I did.

I crunched some numbers and thought that it was interesting to see how my photographic trends over the course of a year could be calculated.

# of Adam pictures: 12 (3% total)

# of pictures taken while backpacking or hiking: 14 (4% total)

# of self-portraits: 18 (5% total)

# of pictures containing drinks, alcoholic or otherwise: 20 (5% total)

# of Lijit-related pictures: 31 (8% total)

# of tech event pictures: 32 (9% total)

# of pictures taken out-of-state: 41 (11% total)

# of pictures with food, either prepared or eating it: 44 (12% total)

# of pictures taken while walking around town: 46 (13% total)

And imagine, only two pictures of my shoes.

The most interesting, and most viewed, picture of Project 366, according to my Flickr stats:

Also a member of the Fashion my Legs Flickr group

And this picture, taken in mid-January after I had my bangs cut, had the most comments:

Most of the comments were offering support. Of course, I was one of the commenters.

Choosing the picture I considered the most interesting was a little harder, but I was able to narrow it down to two. It was difficult with 301 pictures to sort through but what does it say about me that both my favorites include some spooky elements of the underworld?

Hell's Half Acre, Wyoming

Halloween decoration around the neighborhood

Some of the take-aways from Project 366:

–Keep your eyes open. You never know when an amazing shot might be right around the corner.

–Inspiration surrounds you but it can be hard work finding it sometimes.

–Pictures of home-cooked meals make you appreciate the food even more.

–Taking a portrait of a stranger is easier if you ask.

–It’s easy to forget how much fun photography is if you feel obligated to do it.

–If you want to see what a person is passionate about, find out what they take pictures of.

In closing…

Just thought you should know

Argyle Spice

Slap happy Spice

Sporty Spice

Serious Spice

Talent Scout Spice

Just thought I’d share a bit of my own personal fantasy world. Still working on a name but many thanks to Aimee, Micah, Grace, and Jared for all your help in making the band!

I won a free veggie burger at Mustard’s Last Stand. Love the food and the nice guys that work there.

This is the downtown branch of the public library. The Boulder Creek path is right in front of it and every time I see those blue dots, I think of what it’ll be like when the 100-year flood comes through town.

Boulder is the one of the bike-friendliest towns I’ve ever lived.

A crisp Friday night, early in the evening.

The end of Brooke’s birthday potluck and proof that it was delicious.

Nic and some rocks

I didn’t have a shot of my new bangs and was bored at the office on Monday. After looking at this picture some more, I love that it looks like I have two giant monitors growing out of both sides of my head.

This photography project is shaping up to be much harder than I thought it would be. But I like that I’m sticking with it, even when it gets challenging. A great exercise in discipline and finishing something you’ve started, even when you may not want to.