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365 Project Day 348: Christmas Bokeh
Posted on 17. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
It's Magic
Canon 5D Mark ll, 50 1.2L, 1.6 aperture, 1/40 shutter, 500 ISO, intentionally out of focus
I am a bokeh girl. Beautiful bokeh speaks calm and sweetness to my soul. It is why I love my 50 1.2 L and my 70-200 2.8 L lenses. Both create a creamy dreamy background when they are used in their widest aperture or f stop. Still seeking simplicity, I shot a couple of these intentionally out of focus as Chris and I were driving around looking at Christmas lights tonight. Such a simple joy.
If you would like to know more about Bokeh and how to achieve it in your own photographs, there is nice tutorial here. Some of the images there are amazing and I want to try them!
Blessings and may you dream in beautiful bokeh tonight.
Psalm 34:7 ~”Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Merry Tree
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365 Project Day 347: Sunrise
Posted on 16. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Cradled in Tree Hands
Canon 5D Mark ll, 70-200 2.8L, 200mm focal length, 6.3 aperture, 1/320th shutter, 100 ISO
From the other side of the world, where she dances while we sleep, He beckons her to shine on us again. She obeys His bidding, morning after morning. She will not be held back. She will come, and she will rise. The trees endeavor to hold her with spindly fingers aching for her essence. She shines right through them, outlining elegant lines that reach toward heaven. How they long for the beginning, before they felt the ache. Before the pain. She comes and brings her morning. Joy. Hope. New mercies.
Glimmering through my sleepy house, I smile at her reflection, grateful. I cannot begin to understand the beauty that must radiate out of the One who makes her. He has given her a glint of His own glory and we marvel. We turn our faces to this sun, feel her warmth, soak in her light, and we wonder at the One who not only threw her into space with a word from His creator-lips, but who now choreographs her every movement. Every day.
I see you, Father. I see you in your sunrise. Thank you.
Hosea 6:3 ~”Let us acknowledge the LORD; let us press on to acknowledge him As surely as the sun rises, he will appear;”
Psalm 65:8 ~”The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.”
As Surely as the Sun Rises
Framed Warmth
Sleepy House Awaken
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365 Project Day 346: Peace
Posted on 14. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Rest
Canon 5D Mark ll, 50 1.2L, 2.0 aperture, 1/60 shutter, 400 ISO
I was struck by this image I took of my friend Kelly’s house the other night. In fact, I have not been able to get it out of my head. In my mind, I have run to this over and over again, as I have struggled to keep up with my life. This image reminds me of the peace and safety I inwardly crave. I am exhausted, inside and out.
I could blame this project, or the season, or any number of the things. The truth is, I am the problem. I forget. I forget to abide by the lines that protect me, that hold me together. I string together the doing and striving until I am undone, frayed at the edges and beyond. I do not understand my own behavior. I am driven from within. For what? I don’t even really know. In Ann Voskamp’s blog today she wrote right out loud some things that have been milling around in my head for weeks now. It is this question that I hear everywhere I go right now. You probably know it well. “Are you ready for Christmas?”
No. No I am not. I am not talking about decorations or gifts, or parties or plans. I am not ready in my own heart. Not in this harried, frazzled state. How can I make room for the One whom was given no room at his birth, if I don’t have the space, the margin? I have not allowed myself to breath in the very life I need, the life that is in the name that sounds like breathing. Yahweh. Yahweh.
Slowing down now. This moment. With this simple image. So that the King of Glory may come in.
Zechariah 9:12~ “Come back to the place of safety, all you prisoners who still have hope!”
Psalm 24:9 ~”Lift up your heads, you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.”
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365 Project Day 345: The Joy of Family
Posted on 14. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Family Time
Canon 5D Mark ll,100 2.8 macro, 4.0 aperture, 1/50th shutter speed, 800 ISO, 500EX ll flash off camera bouncing off ceiling at 1/2 power
It was pure joy spending time with Brandon and Kimmie McCormick’s family tonight. You may remember sweet Ever’s post that I did in October. She was born 8 weeks early, carried here by the prayers of friends and family. She is precious and doing so well. A miracle baby. Her sister Storie is just as lovely and so very sweet. I got lots of Storie hugs and butterfly kisses tonight as she brought out the menagerie of stuffed animals she has in her room, each with a name and a history. They are a beautiful and fun family. She even stopped to pray for one of them who has a boo-boo on his leg. So much love in this little family. I am grateful for my time with them.
Here are a few more images of the wonderful McCormick family. Blessings on this day 345 of my 365 project. (20 days to go!)
Psalm 126:2,3 ~”Then we laughed with our mouths, and we sang with our tongues. Then it was said among the nations, ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’ The Lord has done great things for us and we are glad.” New Living Translation
Giggles
Mommy Love
Daddy Hugs
Sweet Sisters
Storie, Full of Life
Looking up at the Light
See Storie Fly
Silly Daddy
Sweet Expressions
Pile of Joy
Precious
Cherished
Happy Family
Classic Christmas
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365 Project Day 344: Sterling
Posted on 13. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Just Sterling
Canon 5D Mark ll, 70-200 2.8 L, 8.0 aperture, 1/160th shutter speed, 100 ISO, Alien B to camera left in large soft box at 1/8 power and one to camera right in a 60″ umbrella at 1/16 power
It is not often that I meet a young man like Sterling. He is a man of character, conviction and great talent, and he is still a senior in high school. He is the owner and operator of Andrew Sterling Photography and has probably shot more weddings than I have during his first year in business. Sterling wrote me on Facebook when I was still in the early stages of my 365 Project and asked if he could call to interview me for a school project. We set up a time to chat and I answered his questions the best I could about my photography business, my favorite things about it and the reasons why I chose it for my career. It was a brief conversation that he now says impacted the way he would run his own business.
” I take it as my place of worship, behind the lens. I love creating memories for other people and share Christ through my work,” he told me today after our session. I was so blessed to be a part of that. I am so deeply honored to be part of the life of someone like Sterling. He loves the Lord Jesus, and is not afraid to tell anyone. In fact, it is his desire that everyone he meets comes to know Christ as well. This is a rarity among most adults, but even more so among young men Sterling’s age. I am so proud to be his friend.
Here are a few more of Sterling. I think he is so aptly named. He shines.
Matthew 5:16~”If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” (The Message Version)
Sophistication
Red Skippies
Just Act Natural
Playing It Cool
Bokeh
Getting His Sinatra On
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365 Project Day 343: Trust
Posted on 12. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Beautiful Belief
Canon 5D Mark ll, 100 2.8 macro, 3.5 aperture, 1/160 shutter, 400 ISO
I hope to be like this last rose of the season, open and trusting that spring will come again. She does not falter or flinch, although the winds of change encircle her fragility. She knows the One who holds the warmth of the sun in His hands, and she is undone in her worship.
It is so tempting to close myself down tight when I am afraid of being hurt. This fallen earth holds pain in the rocky paths we walk, and our faith is often chafed and scratched by it’s thorns. Even the rose boasts these jagged places on her very stem, just beneath her thin velvety petals. Surely she is aware of them, and yet she blooms, stretching wide as she gazes up and away from the barbs, and into the face of her Creator. When she worships, she is open and trusting, exquisitely beautiful in her vulnerability.
I want to be like the rose. Lord, help me to open even in the face of uncertainty, and worship You alone. For there I find my purpose and beauty.
Psalm 28:7~”The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.”
In Worship
Open
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365 Project Day 342: Siblings
Posted on 11. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Sweet Siblings
Canon 5D Mark ll, 50 1.2L, 3.5 aperture, 1/80 shutter speed, 400 ISO
I love these kids. I have been photographing my friend Kelly’s boys since her youngest son Ethan was a baby. Every year we have endeavored to gather this group of boys and pray I could get at least one shot before they tumbled off wrestling or climbed the nearest tree. We laugh that it has always been an adventure getting their annual Christmas photo done. I love them dearly. They are brilliant and funny, and so very sweet.
This year, baby Emily came into the group. You may remember her from her blog that she helped out with over the summer when she came over to swim in our pool. She has so much personality, this little baby girl. If the boys were a rock band before, now they have their lead singer. She was born for this starring role in the life of the Anderson family. Everyone is all about Emily. It is easy to see why.
If you haven’t seen Emily’s blog from the summer, you simply must take a peek at it here.
Happy Sunday. Get some rest.
Raspberry Beret
Sweet Brother
Loved
Star
Silly
Everyone Make Your Funny Face
Beautiful
Miss Personality
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365 Project Day 341: Still Dreaming of Oxford
Posted on 10. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Magical City
Canon 5D Mark ll, 16-35 2.8 L, 20mm focal length, 2.8 aperture, 1/100 shutter speed, 800 ISO
I am still unearthing treasures from my time in Oxford with Annie. It was pure magic. A blessing the reaches all the way to my toes. I do not think I will ever forget my time there, or cease to be grateful to my God who gave me that gift. My heart is still overflowing from the beauty, the adventure, the people, the delicious delight of all that is Oxford. Hope you don’t mind that I pulled a few more trinkets out to share tonight.
I am just so grateful.
Dreaming Spire at Sunset
City Shining at Dusk
Color and Life
Soon my Annie Bird will fly home. I will be so glad to have her home again, but I pray she delights in every exquisite moment she has while she is there. When she comes home we will gather around her and just stare at her for a bit. Then we will hug all our missing away.
Fly Home Annie Bird
Beauty in Oxford
Colossians 3: 15-17 ~”And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.”
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This week’s contest winners are
Posted on 10. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Using a random number generator I have chosen my three print winners from my December Pears Blog. They are…
Jeanne Taylor
Deb Ronne and
Denise Myers
Please email me at maryannemorgan.com to let me know which 5×7 print you would like and your address. Thanks to everyone who commented!
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365 Project Day 340: Heart Seeds
Posted on 09. Dec, 2011 by maryanne.
Heart Seeds
Canon 5D Mark ll, 100 macro 2.8, 2.8 aperture, 1/60th shutter speed, 400 ISO
My mom and I share a love for Zinnias. We both agree they are one of the most cheerful flowers of summer. This year she had a lovely patch of them by her back porch. She promised me she would save the seeds for me to plant this coming spring. On my birthday this year she gave me a bag full of them. What a wonderful gift! They were so lovely, their colorful petals swirling into elegant patterns. Even in death, they hold beauty and promises of new life.
Hope for the Next Season
Every year, when Chris plants his vegetable garden in the spring, he leaves a row for the Zinnias. He knows how I love my Zinnias. The first year we planted them together, we planted them at night, with the moon and a flashlight our only light. It was so much fun. I held the flashlight, my toes sinking into the freshly-tilled earth, while he carefully sowed each seed. Each seed felt like it was taking root inside me, as I watched my farmer-husband cherish the desires of my heart. Now, we always plant this row by moonlight. I feel like a little girl barefoot, holding my flashlight, while he gently carries the seeds to the side yard. It is our tradition. Another strand to weave us together.
How I love Zinnias. They remind me of how much I am loved. Thank you mom for the sweet gift, and thank you my husband, for your willingness to sow love into my heart.
Thank you God for Zinnias.
Luke 12:27-28 ~ “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you~”
Spring
Swirling Petals
Treasures Yet to Be
Hope Tumbling Out
