Take Wing and Soar

I want to say thank you to everyone who visited Connie and gave her big virtual hugs from my last post.  I know she appreciates it, she truly is one of the most dedicated animal owners and pet lovers I know.

I have been busy getting ready for an art show next month.  I wish I could devote myself to this full time but I have to fit it in between developing my fine art website, finishing up several stories that haven't gone as smoothly as I would like, and spending evenings at my parent's doing the last minute things left on the list before putting the house on the market...hopefully by the end of next week.

The event in May is a wildlife art show and will feature some of my fine art photography.  So I've been camped out waiting for herons, osprey, and egrets to grace me with their presence and provide me with those perfect photo ops.

This is easier said than done most days, and it seems like every time I leave my dock feeling defeated at having missed a shot, the birds mock me and dive for a fish or perch on a dead tree within feet of where I was just sitting! 

I was reading a blog and scrolling through the website of a wonderful wildlife photographer, whose pictures have graced the covers of National Geographic and hundreds of other wildlife magazines, and I just kept thinking that he must spend countless hours and literally freeze his butt off trying to get that "one" shot.

I want the pictures I will have available for sale at this show to be special, gallery quality, and worth every penny I'm charging.  Something that when someone sees it they think...wow, that's amazing.

I know I have a long way to go, and trust me I'm not fishing for compliments, I am keenly aware that National Geographic isn't beating the doors down to request one of my photos.  Plus I really do love taking a photograph and blurring the lines between it and a painting.  I love it as much as I love taking a crystal clear photo realistic shot or a beautiful room shot.

Photography is a funny business, and there are many talented people out there with cameras in hand.  I think that is because it allows us to share a part of ourselves with others.  To take a moment in time that was special for us, and then capture it forever, kind of like a grown up version of show and tell.

When I do get those shots, it makes my heart take wing and soar, and I know that's how I feel when I see the work of other photographers and artists I admire.  It is an art form, and one I feel so blessed to have found!