But in the first year we’ve had a garden since grandkids, it turns out that the lady bugs love the garden, and they’re easy to find. I was out early this morning checking on things and this one caught my eye, so I made some clicks. What’s kind of fun is that she still had some dew on her back.

I hope the new ease of finding them doesn’t spoil the game we’ve been playing. Searching for lady bugs wasn’t just for the thrill of the chase. It’s been a perfect strategy for those times when we’ve needed to redirect their attention. I’m sure Nana will come up with something, though. She’s good that way.

Photo Note: Nikon V1, Nikon 10-30 zoom lens. It’s a fun lens to shoot stuff like this with because it allows you to get in close.

Camera marketing has led us all to jump to the initial conclusion that all we have to do is buy the latest and greatest camera and we’ll become better photographers taking better photos. As amazing as the new crop of digital cameras are, it just doesn’t work that way. (But it does sell lots of cameras.)

Why? Because PEOPLE take photos. And the camera is just a small but necessary part of the process.

Good photos are a combination of good composition, knowing how to use light, good technique in using the capabilities of the camera, and often skilled post processing of the digital image data to produce the image that communicates what you wanted it to.

• No camera can do composition for you. Good composition is the result of learning rules of what’s pleasing and attractive to the eyes, studying the art of great painters and photographers, and lots of experience in trying to make good compositions.
• Likewise, no camera knows how to handle lighting. Taking a photograph is at its essence capturing the light, whether it’s available light or augmented by flash or other means. Understanding light, and knowing how to use it to make a good image is a skill that has to be developed by the photographer.
• Most modern digital cameras can do a pretty good job of setting the camera parameters automatically for you, either using the auto, program, or one of the mode functions. And generally, the more you pay for the camera, the better the computer in the camera is at doing this. But, none of them come close to doing it as well as a knowledgeable photographer.
• In a similar vein, the computers in most modern digital cameras do a pretty good job of processing the data to produce an image, usually a jpeg file. They even allow you to make some selections as to how that image is developed in camera. And generally, the more you pay for the camera, the better the computer in the camera is at doing this. But none of them can “develop” the image as well as a knowledgable person who takes the RAW file and makes decisions on how the image is developed or processed based on the characteristics of and goal for the individual image.

So you want better photos? You’d be well served by investing some time learning the fundamentals of composition and using light, and shoot a lot of photos with whatever camera you have concentrating on applying what you’ve learned. You’ll be amazed at the improvement you (and others) see.

Then to kick it up a notch, learn how to use the capabilities of your camera to their maximum, and learn how to manipulate the shutter speed, aperture, and ISO on your camera to achieve the effects you want to achieve in your compositions yourself. You may be surprised at how much capability your existing camera actually has. And yes, it may push you toward buying a better camera, but if so, it will be because you know you need it to be able to photograph the way you want to be able to.

And finally, move into post processing the images you capture. You can actually learn about and do a lot of this inexpensively on an iPhone, iPad or computer before investing in more serious software such as Lightroom or Aperture or Photoshop.

So where would you go to learn this kind of stuff? There’s an amazing amount of instruction both as articles and videos available on the web. And much of it is free. Plus there are more books on photography than any of us will ever be able to read, and many of them are very easy to understand and give big bang for the buck (such as Scott Kelby’s books).

I know, I know. You still just want to know what camera to buy. Not much I’d rather do than talk about than the gear, so I’d be happy to talk cameras with you. But just to keep my conscience clear, I may have to remind you that the only way you can buy good photographs is from a good photographer. Or learn to be a good photographer yourself.

I don’t know what Missy dog is thinking.

I know that I assume this pose or one like it from time to time. Staring. Off into the distance. My mind locked in deep thought.

Sometimes Eloise will glance over and ask, “Where did you go?”

Not that it’s a bad thing. Sometimes, when our brain is processing what we’ve experienced or what we’re facing, everything else slows to a stop. While it appears that we’re looking off into the distance, in fact we’re looking deeply inside, often visualizing as a way of processing.

Since I was out in the yard with the camera, I’m suspicious that Missy was visualizing a house without devices, without iPhones and iPads and laptops that make weird sounds and distract me from paying full attention to her. Devices that she is, in fact, afraid of.

Of course, she doesn’t know that such a time existed. And that it wasn’t very long ago. And that there was no way to write a blog post like this with a digital photo. Or post it to Facebook and Twitter. I’m about to assume the Missy dog pose just thinking about how much things have changed…

Yes, the sledge is much more than is required for the job. And it’s a little more than Ben is ready to handle at the moment, though he’s not hesitant to try.

It’s easy to overestimate what it’s going to take to get a job done. It’s equally easy to underestimate what it’s going to require. I’m pretty good at both.

Why misestimating what’s required to get something done is on my mind is because I’m doing a lot of one-off things these days — stuff I don’t have experience with, like probating a will. And it seems like everything with probate is either a lot harder than it should be or a lot easier than expected.

I can’t help thinking what a blessing it would be to be better at guessing what it was going to take to get a chore done when you don’t have experience.

But I guess that’s why experience is so highly valued.

This is my favorite of the images I captured because it captures the drama and feeling of the moon playing peek-a-boo through the clouds. Some post-processing in Lightroom 4 was used to open up the shadows to reveal more of the cloud structure.

Sometimes when we pursue our vision of what we want to achieve, we find that what we wanted is not possible, but in the pursuit, we find another outcome that is equally satisfying. Maybe the purpose of vision is simply to get us to act, and whether or not that vision is achieved is less important than the fact that we are in the game.

Nikon V1 with Nikon 70-200 VRII at 200 mm (540 mm in 35 mm equivalent)

Part of the beauty of this individual black eyed susan is the character that has been given it by what it has experienced and endured in it’s life. Actually, that’s what makes it unique in a sea of thousands of black eyed susans growing in the same field.

When we are able to concentrate on this one flower, this individual, we can see its uniqueness, and the things that make it so. We can see what bugs have done to it — the discoloration, the chinks. We can see that it’s beyond its prime, as some of the petal edges are beginning to die. Those characteristics accentuate its beauty, a radiance amplified by the late afternoon sunlight.

It occurs to me that life is like that. The beauty of people is not seen in the masses. The beauty is seen in the individuals. My friends, the people I go to church with, and the people I visit in the hospital are in fact just like this flower. As I get the chance to see them as individuals, to see what they’ve experienced, endured and survived, I begin to see their uniqueness and appreciate their beauty.

Note to Jim: whether it’s flowers or people, focus on the individual. That’s where you’ll see the beauty.

I’m convinced that Satan is the author and enforcer of the rule, for obvious reasons. Do a good deed, be punished. If it happens often enough, maybe you’ll stop doing the good deeds.

Today was simply my turn to be punished for a good deed. I only did something simple — visited a friend in the hospital. So how was the punishment meted out?

First, I thought a small iced coffee would be good. But the clerk told me that iced drinks only came in Grande, despite the sign saying it came in small. I pointed out the sign, only to be told again, that iced drinks only came in Grande. So defeated, I moved on to the parking garage, inserted my token, paid for my parking, retrieved my token, and went to the car.

When I got to the exit and inserted the token, instead of the gate opening, it told me I owed $3. I assumed the phone call I made before trying to leave the garage put me over the grace period to exit, and fed the machine my credit card to pay the other $3. The machine wouldn’t take it. Or my other card. And people started honking at me because I was keeping them from leaving. So I reparked and went to the payment station (unmanned) to pay. Except it wouldn’t accept either card. It was mad at me because I’d tried it before, I guess. Fortunately, there was an ATM adjacent, and it didn’t know that it was supposed to be mad at me and gave me cash which I then fed to the mad machine, which at last was happy.

And, after waiting in line for someone else being punished by the parking garage minion of Satan, I managed to successfully exit. And yes, by the time all was said and done, Valet would have been cheaper.

I’m not really complaining, just documenting the facts. And reminding myself, and hopefully you as well, who the guy is behind being punished.

And I also bet you have much better stories than this that you could share!

There are moments, sometimes days, when like this squirrel, I want to hide. I want to be safe, unbothered, hidden from sight and attention.

And, like this squirrel, I suspect that my hiding places are about as transparent as this spot is for our backyard friend. I may not be reachable, but I’m not really hidden either.

And like this furry fellow, that’s probably good enough.

 And I’m aware that they’re pointing to Sunday and to the resurrection.