Photography

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Photography: Beach Camping

A few weeks ago I threw my couch cushions into the back of my van and went camping with family. It was only two nights, but the ocean was incredibly healing. I read some books, sang songs, and ate roasted marshmallows. I hope these photos transport you for a moment. Let me know if you have a favorite.

“If nature has made you for a giver, your hands are born open, and so is your heart; and though there may be times when your hands are empty, your heart is always full, and you can give things out of that—warm things, kind things, sweet things—help and comfort and laughter—and sometimes gay, kind laughter is the best help of all.”—Frances Hodgson Burnett, “A Little Princess”

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  • These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

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Photography: Buck Moon

She walks into the artificial wilderness on unsteady feet and looks around. Nothing seems real. Perhaps she’s fallen. Perhaps she’s dreaming. Perhaps she’s lost her mind. It’s not until she looks up that she finds herself.

“There you are moon,” she says.

The moon says nothing back and she feels better.

“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn’t. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn’t be. And what it wouldn’t be, it would. You see?”
—Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

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The seventh full moon found me feeling lost. I’m surrounded by tough things; sudden death, cancer, money troubles, injury, hurt friendships, and mental health struggles. Those I love are hurting and I feel helpless. So, here we have some photos that aren’t exactly right. They are a bit nonsensical. I hope you like them. Let me know if you have a favorite.

These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

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Photography: 4th of July

You-ou-ou, you got the right
Stand up for yourself, we’ve just begun to fight
Ain’t no way we’re going back in time
Forward to the future baby, yours and mine
—RuPaul, American

It’s not easy to love America right now, yet I’m tired of those seeking to destroy freedom while disguising it as patriotism. If you haven’t heard the RuPaul song “American,” go listen. It’s the energy I brought into the holiday yesterday. It’s how I fight back.

I attended a local 4th of July parade in the morning with my daughter, her best friend, my sweet nephew, his dad, my goddaughter, and her family. It was terribly hot, but it felt nice to just smile and wave for a bit. Sometimes we fight and sometimes we rest. Let me know if you have a favorite image and have a great week.

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  • All photos were taken by me using an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

At the end of the night, we drove to watch the big fireworks show. We couldn’t find a place to park and drove around in circles for over an hour. I was about to give up when the show started and all the cars stopped. We happened to be stopped RIGHT where the fireworks were being set off. Life can be so hard, but it can also be unexpectedly wonderful.

Here’s a grainy screenshot from a video my daughter’s best friend took.
Look how close we are!
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Photography: The Sacramento Zoo

Last week I took my mom and 5-year-old nephew to the Sacramento Zoo. We saw plenty of lovely animals, but the flamingos on their nests stole the show. Let me know if you have a favorite image and I hope you are having a wonderful day.

“When I draw it, I’m going to make my skin see-through and what you’ll see is that all the animals in the zoo of me have broken out of their cages.”—Jandy Nelson

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All photos were taken by me using an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

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Photography: Strawberry Moon

Darkness swallows the city. I drive for hours looking for the moon until I find it beside the courthouse at the top of the hill. It’s lit for the Fourth of July, a beacon of patriotic light.

“I’m going to live there someday,” I used to say. An entire childhood spent dreaming of a place that wasn’t at all what I thought it was. 

I park near an antique shop and stare at the oddities inside. Cars streak by below. The moon blends into the city lights as a warm breeze dances around a patch of thorns.

“Does time ever feel like it’s not moving normally? Like it’s all out of whack?”—Maddy, I Saw the TV Glow

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The sixth full moon of the year arrived the day after the summer solstice. I set out fairly late and felt uninspired by the view until I drove to Auburn and found my favorite building. These aren’t very “strawberry moon,” but I like them anyway. Let me know if you have a favorite.

These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

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Photography: Foggy Morning

The sea spoke of you. Its voice, usually thundering and loud, lowered to a rhythmic whisper. I listened as the fog hugged the sand and the birds scurried in search of scuttling breakfast. I listened as my heart hurt for the world and my beautiful baby girl turned 17. I listened as your pain became mine and my pain became yours. I listened and listened as my body felt it all, as my heart broke and repaired itself again and again and again. I listened. The sea spoke of you.

“To the ocean I offered a seed 
and its body dissolved it
like time, composing
a life.” —Howard Altmann

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We are at Dillion Beach (yes, again) celebrating my daughter’s 17th birthday. I’m amazed I can still find things to delight my camera and I hope you are too. Please let me know if you have a favorite. As usual, these were taken with my Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

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Photography: Flower Moon

The bright morning moon gave way to an evening of wildflowers. I hear my wise poet friend whisper from across the fields, “feelings always seem the biggest from the inside of them.” The sun warms my skin and summer calls. It sounds like forgiveness.

“a flower knows, when its butterfly will return,
and if the moon walks out, the sky will understand;
but now it hurts, to watch you leave so soon,
when I don’t know, if you will ever come back.”
—Sanober Khan

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#11: A bonus photo of the fella eating all the petals in my yard.

The fifth full moon of the year arrived with a bright golden morning moon. I stood on the street and marveled at how impossibly big it looked. I couldn’t quite capture the beauty, and because May brings the flower moon, I went out at sunset yesterday to gather wildflower photos to share with you. Let me know if you have a favorite.

These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

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Photography: May Day

“As full of spirit as the month of May, and as gorgeous as the sun in Midsummer.”
—William Shakespeare

Today we celebrated May Day by watching a group of 8th grade students dance around in the pouring rain. It was a lovely morning and a wonderful reminder of beauty and connection. I hope you enjoy these photos and let me know if you have a favorite.

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  • These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.
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Photography: Spring

“It is at the edge of the
petal that love waits.”
—William Carlos Williams

I’ve been having a lot of big feelings lately and so today I present to you a distraction in the form of flowers, cute animals, and one shot from the prom photos I took last Friday. Let me know if you have a favorite and I hope you have a great day.

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  • These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.
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Photography: Dillon Beach

Here are some of my favorite photos from my birthday trip to Dillon Beach. This trip was about connection and reflection. Cloud cover allowed for only one sunset and it was an odd one. The sun flattened to a bowl shape and was swallowed by the sea. I found it inspiring and somehow fitting for the place I am right now. Bring on weird!

Let me know if you have a favorite photo.

“I cannot make you understand. I cannot make anyone understand what is happening inside me. I cannot even explain it to myself.”—Franz Kafka

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  • These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.