Fall mini sessions!!

There is more there

“The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.” –Dorothea Lange

How many of you just run through life without a second thought? Do you rush to get from point A to point B and so on until your day is done and you can get back home and crash on the couch just to do it all over again the next day? Do you ever stop and take a breath or stop and "smell the roses"? Or are you one of those that holds the thought process that you will do all of that "smelling of the roses" thing when you are able to retire?

I must admit that I use to be one of those people. I use to run through life as fast as I could and never bothered to stop and take a look at what was going on around me. I did not take the time to enjoy the scene or the people or anything that would even remotely associated with it because well, my family, and my job was my life and I felt that when the kids were grown and on their own and I was able to retire that was when I would take the time to slow down and enjoy the scene and the people that was around me. I have learned otherwise since I have picked up a camera.

I first picked up a camera because of my children. I wanted to record all the cute moments in their lives, (and to be honest I wanted to have pictures to embarrass them with later in front of boyfriends and girlfriends. Bad I know LOL)  and I wanted these pictures to remember the important moments in life for my kids. I know there are things that have happened in my life that I wish that I had a picture of, and well I don't, which is no one's fault really. But I wanted to make sure that my children had the photos that I wished that I had from my childhood. So this lead to taking action shots during sports and just fun moments at home. This was the first step in seeing what I was missing while I was rushing around.

After I realized how much I was missing and how much I may never see again I started to see things in a much different way. The sunset became an individual event, not something I would see again tomorrow. Places in general have become more interesting because I am looking at it from another point of view. I must admit that I tend to look at things as another beautiful backdrop for a photo shoot or another amazing background for my computer, but it is still something that I want a photo of, and I am taking the time to actually look. Things that I have never taken an interest in before I now have an interest in. 

From behind the camera I have learned alot from my children. I have seen how important that one pass in basketball, or that one hit in football, or that one goal in soccer means the world to them, be it good or be it bad. I have learned that there are alot of things that I have missed out on. The playfulness that happens between siblings (even when it appears that they are fighting) the beauty of building a sand castle, or the joy of just getting dirty because you can. My children have also taught me that it is ok to slow down a bit to "smell the roses" and even more importantly to take a picture of the rose so that I can remember it for years to come. 

It is ok to slow down and breath. It is ok not to rush around all the time, and by all means enjoy the moments that you are currently in. And above all take the moment to take that photo, or have someone take that photo for you, because it will last more than a lifetime.