P52: Week 4/52- Winter Macro

My oldest finally lost his second front tooth.  I have to admit I was a horrible mother about it.  The tooth had been sitting there, barely hanging on, all cockeyed and uneven- looking like those fake bad teeth that people wear during Halloween.  I have to admit, when my darling boy smiled at me... I *shuddered* inwardly.  I think it was a relief to him as well that it had come out, he had been having trouble eating with the loose tooth.  Though now he has difficulty saying words that start with a "th". When he expressing his gratitude, it comes out adorably as "fank you".

This week's theme was macro, which is the idea of shooting things close-up.  There are special lenses that do shoot macro, but for lack of one, I used my 50mm f/1.4 lens.  I do love the sharpness and the lovely depth of field it offers. Nothing better for shooting a little boy's front tooth

Fank you and have a great week :)

*Next up is Megan Lee of Amber Decadence Photography. Megan is a natural light, modern lifestyle and portrait photographer specializing in children and families. Amber Decadence Photography is based in Singapore.  Please CLICK HERE to see her beautiful take on this week's theme.

P52: Week 3/52- Winter Blues

The theme this week was Winter Blues.  It was a challenge to capture that for me.  I played with the idea of blue, what things are blue?  Does it get cold enough outdoors for anything to turn blue? Do I feel blue because of the season?

... and then I thought about my favorite blue, the blue of my husband's eyes.  He's in a moment of rest after chasing our boys that afternoon, indulging me as I try to capture this moment.

Thank you for joining me as I am learn and grow through this project.

Next up is Sarah Maxey Photography from the Kansas City area (honestly one of my favorite places filled with the nicest people in the world!). Sarah is an on-location, natural light photographer specializing in birth photography, lifestyle newborn photography and modern maternity, baby/child and family portraiture.  Please CLICK HERE

P52: Week 2/52 - Winter Backlight

One of the things I love about photography is the ability to play with the light. The wintertime has such gorgeous lighting with the sun so low in the sky. When photographing with the light behind your subject- the sun creates a beautiful outline.  Many believe that flare from the sun should be avoided, in this case I happened to like the symmetry of the circles and rays of light as part of the composition.  I thought that this was an interesting assignment and am looking forward to playing with the idea of backlight even more.

Thank you for indulging my musings about photography and light play.

Next up is Tricia Burrough of Lilac Blossom Photography.  Tricia is a portrait photographer and freelance photojournalist based in Collingswood, NJ.  Please CLICK HERE to see her take on this week's theme.

P52: Week 1/52 - New Year Inspiration

Chicago, October 2012

One of the privilages of photography has been that it has led me to see the world through different eyes.  There's a magic in the unintentional patterns and texture in nature.... in capturing an unscripted moment of children at play or rest.... the wonder in all that feels so fresh and new, like you are discovering the world for the first time... everytime.

I have the privilage of joining 7 other photographers in a special project for 2013 as we examine and explore different themes each week.  This first week, the theme is "Inspiration" and I chose an image from my trip back to my adopted hometown of Chicago in October.  A city that I had lived in for 10 years, after this long absence felt so new and so exciting.  These balloons around the city with inspirational phrases perfectly captured the feeling.  Photography does this for me every day, the familiar becomes magical at times, with just the change of the light. 

Hoping that this year brings inspiration to you in all things...

Marina

**Next up in the circle of photographers is Lanie Coulter. Lanie is a natural light photographer that specializes in newborn, family, senior and wedding photography in the Chattanooga and North Georgia area. 

A Moment

sharing a milkshake with my Bean

Dipping my toes back in the waters of blogging.  The water is always warm here, the people lovely, the thoughts that flow so much more fluidly than other places where we find ourselves interacting with others... "friends".

So much noise in my head, space filling with minutiae of peoples lives, that while interesting (or honestly, more often not)  take the space and energy of other things, like the silence I find myself craving.

I'm tired of crying as the flow of information of sadness and tragedy seem to pop up with every update I see.  I'm weary from the arguments people want to share of what we should or should not be doing.... I think I am just tired.  In need of a place that has always been so warm and familiar, like the threadbare quilt that covers me as I write.

So I'm back... I hope that you've all been well.  Look forward to catching up...

Love, Marina

Sweeten

Trying on his coat and tails for the Nobel Prize ceremony

A few weeks ago my lovely husband, Ivan, got a phone call from the Nobel Laureate, Saul Perlmutter. Except when Ivan knew him 15 years ago, Dr. Perlmutter was not a Nobel Laureate, he was just Saul... a professor that Ivan worked with at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (aka, the Berkeley Labs).  As an undergraduate with some wicked Fortran programming skills, Ivan worked with Saul, writing software that would eventually be built upon to assist in discovering the speed in which our universe is expanding. Ivan worked on this project for many years, as a lone engineer amongst academics until the private sector called with more room for advancement and financial rewards.

A wonderful thing happened this past October. The project that Ivan worked on, The Supernovae Cosmology Project, won the Nobel Prize in Physics for Dr. Perlmutter... and thus the phone call to Ivan, with an invitation to attend the ceremony in Stockholm to recognize and thank him for his contribution.

This incredible, loving husband, father, brother, son and friend will be crossing the ocean today to be recognized for his work in discovering the expansiveness of the universe. We will miss him as he will be away from us for a week, but there are not enough words to describe our pride in him.

We love you, Ivan. You are amazing, you are cherished and we are proud to be yours.

Congratulations, My Love.

A Tale of Wildwood and Anansi...

Once upon a time there were two little boys, Matteo and Nico. Oh, how they loved to pretend to be warriors, vikings and knights! Using sticks, they'd duel each other...swinging and poking, slashing and screaming, their poor mother was at her wits end! What power these little boys had! What energy! Then something magical and wondrous happened... she met Master Alejandro.

Master Alejandro is part wizard and part craftsman. Quite learned about the ways of knights and warriors, he created special swords for the two boys. The little boy Nico, chose the sword which carried the image of a spider, bearing the gift of cleverness and cunning to the one who holds it. He christianed his sword, Anansi. The other sword held an image of a tree, bestowing the one who wields it a mastery of the Forest and Trees. The older brother Matteo, chose the name Wildwood.

The boys were in awe of such wondrous blades! Made of leather, the swords had the ability to strike down evil while still protecting the boys from harm. The boys mother taught them the responsibility of having such swords...

Respect Anansi and Wildwood and the power that they hold
Never let the blades fly in anger
Use them to protect that which you love and honor
and lastly...

Do not use them on your brothers!

The boys were so very happy, swinging and jousting these beautiful swords. They wanted to know more about Master Alejandro. Their mother told them of how Master Alejandro was from a land of many lakes and that he had travelled to a far, far country to learn the art of making leather swords, shields and masks. She told them of the care and love that went into creating these magical swords... and of the great responsiblity that came with bearing such great power.

The boys gave heed to their mothers petition for care with their new blades. They roamed the countryside, looking for dragons, monsters and furies... protecting the world around them and those that they loved... as all wonderful little boys do.

Sending much gratitude and love to Alejandro Ortega, aka "Master Alejandro"! An artisan skilled in creating the punchinello masks from the Italian art form of Commedia d’el Arte, he has taken this talent of working with leather and applied it to the making of swords, daggers, shields and even the occasional adorable elephant :). These beautiful, heirloom quality items can be found in his Etsy shop, Made By Alejandro