A Bit Behind but Catching Up!

Hi guys,
I haven't kept up with my 365 Challenge because I've been buried under work. I'm catching up and just about to restart It's A Beautiful Life.

In the meantime, let's take a peek at what I've been working on.

This was going to be my Day 2 post...the basket that my mom put together as a front porch decoration for Thanksgiving. Unbelievably, she still had a pretty pink rose in her garden. She put in some rose hips, greenery, and twigs to make it beautiful.

Zig Ziglar passed away this week after suffering a stroke last year. He spent his life encouraging others to be better, kinder, more thoughtful people.

My favorite Zig quote is, "You can get everything you want by helping other people get what they want."

He was a salesman who excelled in his field and taught others how to do well at it too, not by deception and high pressure tactics, but by being a good listener, NOT selling if the product wasn't right for the client, and being an honest man. He considered relationships to be more important than the sale.

When you are going about your day, are you putting others first? Is the sale more important than the person in front of you? Something to think about, isn't it?

Check out Zig's website if you'd like to know more.
Zig Ziglar's website.

Another SK Stone Photograph published. This time, in The Dalles Chronicle

The Fort Dalles Floozies presented a gift basket to  lucky raffle winner Rosemary Ross, at the first annual Return to the River festival held in October, in The Dalles, Oregon. Proceeds from the raffle ticket sales were donated to the local food bank.

I, of course, was there to capture some fun shots. I'll upload the Fort Dalles Floozies image that was in the paper below.

I plan to upload more images soon. Stay tuned.

Pictured, from left: Linda Beiter, Sandy Bisset, Mary Davis, Rosemary Ross, Sharon Hull and Pam Martin.

My Very First 365 Project; It's a Beautiful Life, Day 1

Hello again, everyone. It's been a few months since I posted anything, and I'm not very happy about that. I want this blog to be a place where we can stay in touch, view images and discuss them, keep up with photography news, and of course, talk about all things related to SK Stone Photography.

I want to let you guys know about a couple of things before I start in with my 365 project.

1st: My move to The Dalles is complete. I loved Portland, but it was time to move on, so I'm back home in TD and loving it!

2nd: I just joined The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce, Here's my info on their website: SK Stone Photography on The Dalles Area Chamber Website.

I've already attended several Chamber events and taken photographs, so if you're looking for copies of the images, check here on my Proofing Website. Simply look up your event by the event name and date.

Portrait clients can also see their images on the proofing website. However, a password is required. Passwords are distributed by email to clients when their images are uploaded and ready to view.

One of these days I'd love to have my actual website, proofing, and blog all under one domain, but for now, this is how it works. :-)

Now, let's talk about It's a Beautiful Life. This is my very first 365 project. I've been kicking some ideas around in my head of what I'd like to do for my first year-long project, and I kept coming back to gratefulness. I decided that I wanted to share my life with you guys in a way that shows you just how grateful I am for each blessing in my life, and hopefully, to help you recognize the things that you are grateful for as well.

Times are tough right now for so many people, and I've heard a lot of negative things, especially around our recent Presidential election. I think it's time we focus on the good things, celebrate the victories big and small, and most importantly, let our loved ones know that we appreciate the things they do to enrich our lives, and express our gratitude for things we might otherwise take for granted.

I'd love it if you would comment on my images as we move forward with this project together. Tell me your stories, and share your images too!

So here we go: Day 1 of It's a Beautiful Life

It's the night before Thanksgiving 2012, and my mom is getting ready to bake some delicious pies. Pumpkin, and Cherry. Not from store-bought ingredients, but from fresh  pumpkin and cherries that she picked and canned herself.

I have so many memories stemming back to my early childhood that involve my mom gardening and growing, picking, washing, pitting, peeling, blanching, slicing, seasoning, and canning her own fruits and vegetables. (Her home made cinnamon applesauce is out of this world!) Whatever she didn't grow herself was often supplied by other family members' gardens and ranches.

My Grandpa H. (my mom's dad) kept a small farm on his property where he raised chickens, rabbits, pigs, and corn, and a few other veggies as well. I loved going there to play with the baby chicks and bunnies. The pigs were kinda scary to me as a little kid because they would shove me with their noses and there were quite a few times I nearly fell in the pig pen. Luckily mom was always close by to rescue me.

My Uncle Richard raised cattle on his farm, and other relatives had fruit orchards and vegetable gardens.

It was no secret to me, or my brother and sister where our food came from. We're not the kind of kids who grew up with the illusion that "meat" was just another food. We knew that it came from a living being and we learned to be grateful for what we had and the work it took to get it from farm to table, especially since we often "helped" pick veggies and sort good fruit from bad, and we also worked on butchering day with the chickens. That's another story in itself. I'll have to save it for another time.

Anyway, looking back at my Day 1 photograph now, I'm sure you can see why I am grateful for my mom and all of the work she has done over the years to help us stay healthy and eating well.

I love you Mom, thank you!

Twilight Silhouettes, just for fun

I went out for a walk a few evenings ago, and took my little Canon PowerShot A590 with me. It was a gift from my family about a year ago and I have really enjoyed having it! It's perfect for those times when I might want to take snapshots and don't want to lug around my big pro camera.

Some might say that it's the subject that makes a good photograph. While I can agree with that statement on a certain level, I also have to say that it's the light that makes the photo. Think about how certain subjects appear in different lighting.

That's what this set of images is about...seeing common things; a gate, a fence, leaves, branches, in the twilight. I hope you enjoy...