Gorgeous River Day

Last week, my children and I headed out early for a drive down by the river to scout for great photo moments. I ended up pulling off the road at a river put-in when they got restless sitting in the car. They had fun playing in the river, collecting shells and throwing rocks while I set about snapping away. At the start of the day, I had grandiose visions of herons, butterflies and hummingbirds being captured perfectly on my digital “film” for submission to stock photo websites.

The weather was beautiful and I had only planned on a two hour excursion at most so when opportunity after opportunity presented itself, it was really hard to call it a day and go home. I always bring water wherever we go and we had a few snacks but our trip lasted most of the day, a consideration I had not adequately prepared for. Next time, I plan to bring along a day travel bag with suncreen, more than enough snacks and a change of clothes for everyone.

I still have no clue what I am doing half the time as a majority of photos come out with my intended subject blurry, blown out highlights or plainly composed totally wrong. Since I am a beginner, I try to keep in mind, I have a lot of skill to acquire especially in regards to judgment of available light. At the same time, though, I get really discouraged and think I am just not cut out for this if I can’t produce a stellar shot at least some of the time. I am still learning about how all my equipment works and at times I think I may be pushing the limits of my camera and lenses and even using them in situations for which they were not designed. Practice makes perfect so try again and again, I will. The time I invest is really pleasurable, however, my current aspirations are to turn-out some better results sooner than later because I am turning out to be my own worst critic.

Filed under family, photography, summer |