Finding Nemo...oops, I mean me!

Although I am not unlike Nemo. A little fish, lost in the expanse of the ocean, and when thrown into a difficult situation he makes the best of it!

So in this big, wide world of photography, where do I fit in?

Easy!

Right there. No, left a bit...a little further...back it up slightly...Ah yes, right there!!

I'm giving everything a try. I've shot landscape and portrait, by-the-book and forget-the-rules.

I have even  tried 'arty'. I think that is appropriate. Or creative? Creative photography? That's not a tautology, I am sure, because photography isn't always creative is it? Of course, I mean that I have taken regular photos from various shoots, and applied a range of different effects to them. Obvious in previous posts, I am sure, but this blog is dedicated to that fact.

Meh, what-ev, as someone says these days (in my day, we would say 'no worries!).

Creative arty-farty off-the-cuff photos by Me.

 

Open

Open your eyes

Your ears

Your mind,

Open your thoughts

Your door

Your purse,

Open your faith

Embrace

Envelope

Open your heart

WhatEVER shall I do with myself?

I have one more month of being a non-student, since accepting the offer I received for the Masters degree.

Yesterday I took over 400 photos, almost like I am subconsciously compensating for the photos I won't be taking once I start studying again.
The outing wasn't entirely planned, but I am glad we went out yesterday instead of today - it is far too hot to be caught outside. Just hanging out the washing has been taxing enough.

My friend Katrina and I took my girls out and showed them where Katrina will be getting married in a little under 9 weeks time. We then realised it was a good opportunity to have a look at where she would like her photos taken!
Thankfully she has a professional photographer to iron out the wrinkles of our planning...as I am to be bridesmaid, I would find it difficult to do the photography!

So out on location in the heat yesterday and today hiding away in the cool house trying to get some part of the housework done. Do you know what I have realised? These slight stresses are NOTHING compared to what is to come!!

What have I done?!?!?!

Colours!

I have discovered that I simply LOVE colour.

Bright colours, pastel colours, moody broody colours!

I find that whenever I edit a photo, I end up enhancing it to the best use of colour I can...I rarely keep them like that, but it is always worth a try.

Here are a few that have made the grade in my eyes!

A Farewell

On Sunday night, my girls and I headed off to the Jindera pool to say goodbye to one of the girls in Georgia's class.
We've known little A for two years, through preschool and kindergarten, and I recently began to get to know the whole family, and to call them friends.
I haven't got permission to post their photos, because I didn't ask, but I want to talk about them anyway.

When we arrived at the pool it was to find at least 50 people, of all ages, who were there to say their goodbyes.
This family had touched the hearts of many in the community through their constant volunteering and involvement in the school.

Talking to other parents, I heard my friend described as the 'Earth Mother' as well as a 'hippy woman' with so much affection and adoration I almost cried.

She is sweet and friendly, and will always greet people with a smile and kind words. I believe she always saw the inner beauty in people and in her way, helped them to see it too.

Her husband spoke a little about their past during his speech.They discovered, after dating for a short time, that both of their families were from Jindera. It was only natural for them to return and raise there three children here too. Many people at the farewell had known them through all the pregnancies, the home renovations and now their big move.

I watched and listened with a kind of detachment that only comes when you are witnessing something special.
The husband, a quiet and friendly man who would do anything for anyone, spoke about being welcomed into the community when they moved back. He said there was a wonderful spirit amongst the Jindera people that he had missed whilst living in the city. However many at the farewell believed that it was this family who brought the spirit with them, showed the community what it was like to be a family and brought everyone together. 
One can only hope to have such genuine people cross our paths. They are a family who will be truly missed.

Which way is up?

There are many different directions available to us in life.

Some people are lucky and know exactly what they want to do, and how they will achieve it, often at a very young age.

Others have a plan, yet constantly find themselves confronted with challenges and obstacles in achieving their goals.

There are also people like me, for I know I am not alone, who have no idea which direction is the right one. Not because the choice may be the wrong one, but because the options are vast and all offer many good things.

My mind is in constant conflict with itself. I know that I am not stupid nor unintelligent, and I could do pretty much anything I set my mind to, the problem is, my mind won't set to anything for long.

I won't go into my history of indecision. That's boring and tedious work, and for me to try and concentrate on telling it right would take far too long.

Instead, I'll focus on what lies ahead of me now.

The undeniable is that I am a mother. My children have always come first.

Second...I now have a degree in Educational Studies (and how I got that is a part of the boring history of Kelly).

Two of my options for the future were taken out of my hands. I was not accepted into a Bachelor of Teaching, nor have I heard anything about the Masters degree I applied for. Which is lucky, because I have already changed my mind about doing it.

So where does that leave me?

Obviously, I am 'into' photography. I have the option of pursuing it as a career, getting paid to take photos and becoming a Photographer. However I am afraid of it becoming work, and I hate work. I want to enjoy my photography so am reluctant to make it less about who am I and more about what I do for a living. I think of photography as an extension of myself, alongside writing. They are my art, for I cannot paint nor draw, except in a way that has been described as 'naive'. I cannot risk losing the passion I have for photography by making it my work.

I also consider myself a writer, and when the feeling takes me, I let it take me. I write when I feel like writing and this is a freedom I have not had for many months. I set this part of me aside while I concentrated on my uni assignments, leaving projects half finished. They're waiting for me now. I can hear them all calling, adding to the voices in my head. No...there aren't really voices in my head. Just me.

(This blogging thing is really just a way for me to combine writing and photography, so I don't lose either of them in the mundane day to day life thing I've got going)

In reality, I am a job seeker. I have a file and job seeker number and everything. My degree sits like a title under the Education details in my resume, yet no one knows what it means. It's great having a degree, sure, but my degree is new and as yet unrecognised in the work force. I have to rely on employers examining my transcript to see what experience I have.

So when my case worker person asks what it is I want to do, what jobs I want to look for, I can't say 'I don't know'. Right now, I want to work with the Department of Community Services. I have put my name down as an expression of interest for mid-year intake into a Community Welfare course at Tafe to increase my qualifications and therefore my chances of gaining employment with DoCS. It's cliche, but I really do want to help children and their families. I want to be able to give advice to parents specifically, as I found a lot of the things I learnt at uni would have been great to know when my children were babies.

I put my name down for work at the supermarket as well. I'm not above that, I know the importance of teaching my children that working for a living is preferrable to a lifetime on welfare. I'd consider it settling, and just a job, but also somewhere that I will gain experience in dealing with people, working with & through people, and learning hands-on some of the management & supervision stuff I covered at uni.

I still don't know which way is up, not yet. I am at least realising that I can't expect opportunities to just fall in my lap. I'll leave that to dripping ice cream and jumping children.

Back in style

Like, oh my god, that is soooo retro!

Way back when fashion wasn't a dirty word, I was glad the '80s were over. Not that I remember much of my 8 years living in the decade, but I've seen the photos - atrocious!

As a teenager, I saw fashion revivals of the 1950s, '60s and 70s and thanked Hollywood that no one was silly enough to think the 1980s were worth reviving.

I was wrong.

As a mother, I am conscious of what I dress my girls in, and what I let them dress themselves in. No skulls, preferrably pretty colours, mini skirts MUST have tights underneath and if possible, always sunsafe. I hoped they never had to be subjected to the style that I was as a child. Ha.

If anyone has been shopping in the last few months, they'd have noticed a lot of fluro colours. Uh oh.

Leg warmers. Ew.

High-top sneakers. In fluro colours (though I must admit I did buy a pair for my youngest, in pastel pink!)

And my favourite, good old Dunlops.

Yes, it seems the '80s are back.

Today, for me, was proof.

My 6 year old asked me to crimp her hair because...the bumps in her hair suit her, she said.

Luckily we were going to the pool. Ooops, the crimps are gone :(