ROBINS NESTING PLACE

Mosaic Monday- Frosted

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:44:00 +0000

I woke up yesterday morning to a heavy frost on the ground. As much as I dreaded seeing it, it was actually quite beautiful. While still in my fleece pajamas and before coffee, I put on my coat and grabbed my camera and headed out to take a few pictures and enjoy the beauty of the delicate frost on my garden.

There is a late blooming sunflower that has just opened up and a few small roses on the Knock Out rose bushes. This frost pretty much finished up what was left of the cosmos.

I know a lot of people don't like the 'Purple Wave' petunias, but I love them and have them every year. They are so easy to grow from seed in my indoor growing system, I usually have a 100% success rate. There aren't too many flowers that I can say that about! When they start looking tacky in late summer, I cut them way back and they come to life again rewarding me with beautiful blooms well into autumn. They can withstand a significant frost and still look pretty. They can also withstand the heat and don't have to be pampered. Definitely a must have for me!

I'm linking today to Mosaic Monday, hosted by Mary, from the Little Red House. Hop on over and see her gorgeous fall collage!

Autumn at Potter's Bridge

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:13:00 +0000

Yesterday was another gorgeous day! My son and I went to Potter's Bridge and walked around the trails and took a few pictures. I am trying to teach him what little I know about photography and Potter's Bridge is the perfect place for picture taking.

My son will be a senior next year so we also took some practice shots for senior pictures. I've done Sr. pictures for several girls and I have to say it is easier for me to pose girls than guys, they also seem to be more natural in front of the camera. At least my guy hates having his picture made so getting a pleasant face is kind of difficult. I think we both need lots of practice before next year!

Indian Summer

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 03:56:00 +0000

Yesterday was one of those gorgeous "Indian Summer" days. My seventeen year old son and I spent the entire afternoon outside cleaning up and working in the yard. Since we homeschool we can pick our own fall break days and yesterday was a perfect day for no school!

My son enjoys physical labor and he was such a huge help to me! He mowed the grass, did the edging and weed eating. He removed everything from the front porch and we cleaned it well. We moved a huge grass that had grown too close to the air conditioner unit. (That was a chore for sure!). We removed three trees. We had several small crabapple trees that just were not performing well at all. I'm not sure why but most of the crabapple trees around here looked diseased this year. I did a lot of weeding and removing annuals that the freeze had killed. I moved three 'Knockout' roses and a few perennials that needed a little more space to spread.

I was able to get all of the new flowers planted. The sedum 'Autumn Joy', immediately attracted the attention of a cloudless sulphur butterfly and some honey bees.

The Asian lady beetles are very annoying right now. The farmers are harvesting the soybeans and corn and have stirred them up. They try to get into the house and they land on us whenever we go outside. I've heard that they stink, but I've never noticed.

I removed most of the cosmos yesterday, the few remaining flowers were attracting the hover flies today. The hover fly looks like a bee and is a very beneficial insect to have in the garden.

There is nothing quite like the feeling of a good day in the garden on a gorgeous autumn day. To top it off with a hardworking son with a good attitude and helpful spirit is absolute bliss.

Mosiac Monday- Colors of Autumn

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 04:04:00 +0000

The colorful leaves in autumn thrill me just about as much as any spring flower, well... that might be a little bit of an exaggeration, but it's close. The colors are magnificent and often stop me in my tracks, especially during the "golden hour".

Photographers refer to the last hour before the sun sets, as the "golden hour". During this time the lighting is almost perfect and casts a beautiful golden glow. It is a wonderful time to photograph the rich, vibrant autumn colors.

Oh, did you notice the sweet little heart shaped leaf on the Kousa dogwood? I didn't even notice it until I was editing the pictures on the computer.

I'm linking today to the Little Red House for Mosaic Monday.

Fall Color

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:50:00 +0000

The cosmos are still going strong and they are about the only flowers in my garden that are providing pollen for the bees.

It has been quite chilly so I don't expect to see bees in the garden much longer, in fact I was pleasantly surprised to find this one sleeping. It had been drizzling earlier and he still looks a bit wet. He was so cute that I almost took Gail's challenge and reached out to pet him. I've been stung several times and the pain is still too fresh in my memory to chance it, but it was very tempting.

The leaves are such brilliant colors right now.

The maple trees are the most glorious shades of red, orange and yellow.

I spotted a cluster of trees on my way home from running errands yesterday and just had to stop and get a few pictures of the gorgeous leaves.

Such amazing colors!

I try to enjoy it and soak in the beauty as often as I can because it won't be long before the leaves are all on the ground and the trees are bare.

Plant Sale

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 00:01:00 +0000

I stopped by Lowe's today to look at the paint and just happened to see the 75% off trees, shrubs and perennials sign in front of the garden center. It was cold and drizzly but I braved the weather to see what they had remaining. I didn't think there would be too much left and I figured it wouldn't be healthy, but I was pleasantly surprised. They still had a pretty good selection of perennials and they actually looked like they hadn't been in stock very long. The sale even included mums! I have been on a really tight budget, and have bought very few plants this year, but I just couldn't pass up these beauties.

I only spent $16.00 and here is what I purchased: Five 'Palace Purple' Coral Bells, (Heuchera), one 'Melting Fire' Heuchera, one 'Summer Sun Sundrops', Heliopsis, yellow twig dogwood, two mums, one spiderwort, and one sedum. I was so excited about the great deals! One shrub and eleven perennials for only $16.00!

We are supposed to have a freeze tonight, but it should get a little warmer next week. Hopefully I can get these in the ground and move a few other things around before winter sets in.

I hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

Autum at Potter's Bridge

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 03:10:00 +0000

I had an opportunity to stop by Potter's Bridge yesterday. The leaves are not yet at their peak. With the cool rainy weather we've had recently it won't be long until all of the leaves will have fallen and winter will be here. I'm not ready for that! We've already, very reluctantly I might add, had to turn on the heater. I am ready for Indian summer to arrive, I sure hope we have one this year.

Of Mums and Mantids

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 21:21:00 +0000

I was outside taking a walk around the yard and snapping a few pictures earlier today. I had planned on working in the yard some but it was a cold and blustery 55° and too cold for me to stay out for very long.

While outside, I stopped to look at the mums and noticed a praying mantis.

As I was standing there, a fly landed nearby and I watched to see if the mantis was going to attempt to catch it.

It did, but missed. I wonder if insects have the capability to think. I could just imagine this one whining and having a little temper tantrum because it missed an opportunity for lunch.

It certainly gave me a look...

and it's probably a very good thing I don't know what it's thinking!!!

The Turtle

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 05:02:00 +0000

Sunday after church, I was in the kitchen preparing lunch when I glanced out the window and saw three children bent over looking at something beside the road. A car pulled over and a man got out, picked something up and moved whatever it was away from the street. Naturally my curiosity was piqued. When they left I walked over to the neighborhood park area where they had been and saw a large turtle.

I walked back home and we proceeded to eat lunch. Apparently the turtle must have followed me home because it traveled a pretty good distance and came right up to the patio door that I had entered.

It crawled around on the patio by the door the whole time we were eating. After we finished, I grabbed the camera and took a few pictures.

I was trying to figure out what to do with it when I noticed that there was a small galvanized bucket on the patio. I turned it over and the turtle went directly to it and crawled right in.

I couldn't believe how easy that was! I picked up the bucket and walked down the street to one of the neighborhood ponds. After I released the turtle, it made its way to the water and seemed very glad to be at the pond.

I just want to briefly thank everyone who voted for Robin's Nesting Place in the Blotanical awards, I'm very honored. I wasn't planning on participating this year and didn't enter my blog for any of the categories, (I did place my votes for others though), so I was quite surprised to win an award. I appreciate so much those of you who read my blog and faithfully comment. You are the best!

Mosiac Monday

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:59:00 +0000

It is a windy and cool 58 degrees at 1:00 PM. Definitely feels like autumn here in Indiana today. I'm joining Mary @ the Little Red House today for Mosaic Monday.

Thrifty Finds

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 01:38:00 +0000

Females by nature love to nest and continue fluffing our nest. We like to decorate our homes and surround ourselves with things that make us feel good and add beauty to our lives. During the last few years, due to my husbands career in the declining RV industry, resulting in three job losses in four years, the finances have been very tight and I haven't been able to buy many things for my home. It's really sad to say but at some point I even stopped loving and caring for my home and garden. Most of it was due to the fear that we might lose it, The thought of that was so painful and I needed to detach myself from it...just in case. (Thankfully that fear has subsided, and we are not in danger of losing our home .)

This summer a good friend and I started going to garage sales together again, (I hadn't been to any in about two years), and we also frequented the Goodwill stores in our area. She rents a small space in an antique shop and is always looking for things to sell.

I have been thrilled with the wonderful things I've found that have been perfect for my home allowing me to spruce it up and freshen things up a bit without spending much money at all. I wanted to show you some of the things I've found recently, especially last weekend at Goodwill. They had their half-off sale on Saturday and I found some fun things.

The green leaf plates were found at Goodwill Saturday, the plate in the middle I found a few weeks ago at a garage sale. I thought they went well together. The pretty lamp shade was bought at a garage sale for $1.00, actually there were two of them for $1.00 each and the other one was put on a floor lamp in the living room.

I made the autumn centerpiece; the base was bought at Goodwill, ($1.00), the pumpkin on top was bought at a garage sale, ($1.00), I had purchased the fall picks several years ago at the end of the season for 75% off.

I found the plate holder a few weeks ago at a garage sale for $1.00 and the two Waverly plates at Goodwill for 50 cents each. The white platter is a Johnson Brothers ironstone that I got for
50 cents at Goodwill! (It was about 5:00 PM after an all day half-price sale, I can't believe these three items were still there!)

I couldn't pass up this desk with the glass top, well I did pass it up, but couldn't stop thinking about it, so I went back and got it. I couldn't believe that it was still there! I think it would be beautiful painted, but for now I like it just the way it is.

Are you ready for this? It was only $25.00! It is the perfect spot in my kitchen to pay bills and plan menus and hide junk mail. Oh, and the lamp I found at a garage sale last Saturday along with the pretty candle holder.

I have a large home, (about 4000 s.f.) with quite a bit of wall space to fill. I'm still holding out for a picture for the other side of the china cabinet. I know it's only a matter of time before I find exactly what I want at a garage sale or moving sale, so I will patiently wait.

See this drop-leaf table? I found it at Goodwill several weeks ago for $25.00! I loved it! It matched my Duncan Phyfe dining room table perfectly! Look at the picture of my dining room table feet again, perfect match I tell you! The Victorian sofa also has the same legs. Both the living room and dining room are open to each other and it helps to tie the two rooms together.

It has been so amazing to me how God has provided for even our most basic needs during this time while finances have been tight. Several months ago a corbel on the dining room drapes broke. I looked everywhere I could think of and couldn't find a replacement. I have a matching set in the living room and I couldn't afford to replace them all. The drapes hung across the dining room chair for over two months. How discouraging to see that day after day! One Saturday while coming home from the nursing home, I passed a garage sale; on impulse I stopped. I could not believe it! They had corbels that were almost an exact match! I was one very happy gal!

A lot of people think that there is only junk at garage sales, but that just isn't the case, at least it isn't the case where I live. I like nice things and I don't like clutter and junkie stuff. It amazes me what people sale. This weekend I went to a few garage sales with my friend and I couldn't believe the things I found. The above picture shows the Longaberger Pottery that I got for $6.50.

At the same sale I got three Fiestaware pitchers for $2.00 each. Can you believe it?

This is only part of the loot, there was also a Singer sewing machine that was free at the end of a church sale, (I haven't checked to see if it works), a picture, two pairs of dress boots, ($2.00 ea.) that looked like new, books and some other things that I can't remember right now.

I've had so much fun fluffing my nest with these great finds. Just getting a few new, (to me), things and making these few inexpensive changes in my home has been an enormous encouragement to me. I'm starting to love my home again, and I actually enjoy keeping it clean, well ... enjoy is a bit strong, but there is definitely more enthusiasm than before. I'm overflowing with gratitude and thankfulness to God that we have been blessed to still have our home when so many people have lost theirs during these tough economic times.

I wanted to join in and link with Rhoda @ Southern Hospitality and share my thrifty treasures.

Mosiac Monday- The Farmer's Market

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 13:30:00 +0000

On Saturday, I finally made it to the Noblesville Farmer's Market again. I love taking pictures at the market, but I feel awkward doing so. People look at you funny when you take pictures of their peppers and puppies! I usually ask if it's OK to do so, but even asking makes me feel silly. I guess one day I'll get over the feeling of awkwardness when taking pictures in public places.

I bought Indiana sweet corn, green beans, onions, new potatoes, tomatoes, squash and zucchini. I cooked most of it over the weekend, and it was delicious! I hope to make some zucchini bread either today or tomorrow.

I'm participating in Mosaic Monday, hosted by Mary at the Little Red house.

A Little Change That Makes a Big Difference

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 03:15:00 +0000

A couple of months ago I made the confession that I had never shot out of the auto mode with any of my cameras. I didn't even know how! After I made that confession, so many of you commented and said that you also shoot in the auto mode.

I took a fundamentals of photography course recently and I learned something very valuable during the first class that I want to share with you that will make a huge difference in your photography! This alone was worth the price of the class to me!

On almost every camera, (even the most basic point and shoot digital cameras), there is a "P" on the dial. This is called the Program AE Mode on my Canon, but I have the same "P" on all of my Sony cameras as well as my Panasonic. The Program mode is very similar to the Auto except that you control the "White Balance" and the "ISO" speed. The camera still automatically sets the shutter speed and the aperture.

Here are a series of photos, straight from the camera, that I've taken to show the difference in the Program and Auto modes.

Before, when I would shoot in Auto, I had to do a lot of editing to my pictures before I could post them. Usually the color was flat and washed out so I pretty much always had to increase the saturation. A lot of times in Picasa I had to use "warmify" to give my pictures the warmth they lacked.

White Balance is a very easy concept to understand and most cameras have the same standard symbols. If you are taking pictures on a cloudy day, turn it to the cloud. If you are in the shade, most cameras have a house indicating shade. There is a sun for sunny days, a light bulb for indoors and usually a long battery looking thing which is standard for florescent lighting. I don't know why but the term "white balance" intimidated me. There really is nothing complicated about it, once you locate it on the camera menu and learn to change it.

ISO sounds intimidating too, but just remember back to the days when we had to buy film. I usually bought 200 speed film which was great for shooting outdoors. For indoor situations you needed a higher speed film. For digital cameras the ISO works the same way, you have to increase the speed for lower light situations. What a huge difference it makes just going from auto to program! I can't believe that I didn't already know about this!

Remember me telling you about the first night in class when I told my instructor that Auto was my friend and he quipped, "it's a stupid friend"? Well this is exactly why he said that. He knew something very important that I didn't know. Auto white balance is the stupid factor.

Wordless Wednesday

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:41:00 +0000

Crazy Summer

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 03:14:00 +0000

This has been an unusually cool summer here in Indiana. We had the second coolest July since 1947. In fact, the Indianapolis July average temperature was 70.9 degrees.

One of my summer favorites, lantana, definitely didn't like the cooler temperatures and has hardly bloomed this summer. A few of the plants don't even have a single bloom! How sad is that? Nothing but the stinky leaves!

The salvia seeds that were sown in early summer are still tiny plants, (you can see a few of them by the lantana in the top picture), and only a few have bloomed.

The Knockout roses haven't bloomed much either.

I've wondered if the cooler weather is why the butterflies have been so scarce this year. I saw my first tiger swallowtail today. It wasn't a pretty sight at all. This poor butterfly was so battered that it could barely fly. I also finally spotted my first painted lady today! Usually they are all over the verbena and zinnias in August, but they have been absent from my garden this summer. By the time I grabbed the camera it was gone.

The rabbits are a different story altogether; they have indeed been prolific this year. This little guy seems to like it in my yard. It is rather tame and I can get within a few feet of it before it scampers away. I worked off and on all day in the yard and it stayed close by the whole time.

While the cooler summer temperatures haven't been great for some of the plants, it has been very nice for me! Today was another cool one. It was delightful to have the windows up and and a cool breeze blowing in the house in August. I spent most of the day out working in the yard. I actually got dressed up and ready to run a few errands but decided that I didn't want to leave the house today after all. I decided to stay outside and enjoy every minute of this wonderful weather and try to make up for the lost time in the garden! And that is exactly what I did!

Yesterday's Walk in the Garden

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 12:30:00 +0000

I went outside Friday morning to fill the bird feeders and take a walk around the yard. Of course I had my camera with me! A couple of the Japanese anemone buds had opened! This is my first year to have this flower in the garden.

The hummingbirds are still here. I'm seeing quite a bit of activity at the feeders. They must be fattening up in preparation for their flight south.

I saw the neighbor's cat prowling around in the yard heading toward the bird feeders. I stepped into the garden to get closer to the sunflowers and just as I was taking a step I noticed the preying mantis peeking up over the lamb's ear.

While the butterflies have been scarce, I've had bees in abundance this year. For that I'm grateful!

I love to see the pollen covered bees!

We had a lot of rain yesterday, so the ground should be nice and soft, (hopefully not too wet). I hope to be able to do some much needed edging and weeding in the garden today. I did quite a bit last weekend but I have so much more to do.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Where Did It Go?

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 02:30:00 +0000

This for me is the season of life that some call the "sandwich generation". Sandwiched between children and aging parents. I still have two children living at home and this year has been a year of sickness and poor health for our three remaining parents. Thankfully everyone is on the mend and I am finally able to spend more time at home. I've spent the majority of both spring and summer sitting in doctor offices, hospitals and the nursing home, and I'm wondering just where did the gardening season go.

The weather has been lovely the last few days and I've spent some much needed time in my very neglected yard. It has been a strange summer here in more ways than one. The butterfly sightings are few and far between. Usually by this time of year I have American Painted Ladies all over the place. They are completely absent. So are the black swallowtails. I have seen a buckeye, a few monarchs, a couple of pearl crescents and several cabbage whites; that's about it.

Another strange thing this year is that poison ivy has been growing all over the place. We've never had it here before. I am highly allergic to it and had to proceed with great caution to remove it. With skin completely covered, I shoveled this into a bag that my husband held open for me. As soon as we finished we trashed the gloves and changed clothes. I'm beginning to itch just looking at it again!

I am hoping that I will be able to make up for lost time in the garden now that the weather is cooling. I have so much to do!

Cutting it Close

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 03:06:00 +0000

Here is my entry for the Gardening Gone Wild photo contest. The deadline is tonight and I am cutting it close.

She Love Me, She Loves Me Not

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 23:42:00 +0000

She loves me...

she loves me not...

she loves me...

she loves me not...

she loves me...

That is what I thought of when I saw this goldfinch picking the petals off of the zinnia this afternoon. I carefully pulled the curtains back and took these pictures through the window.

Goldfinches on Sunflowers

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 03:01:00 +0000

I planted a lot of sunflower seeds this spring hoping to harvest them and use them this winter in bird feeder wreaths. The goldfinches are feasting on them now and if they continue eating at this pace, there won't be any left for winter! The sunflower in this picture was huge, I was shocked when I saw that it had been stripped clean.

Hummingbird Moths

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 22:40:00 +0000

These pictures of the hummingbird moth were takes several days ago. I had to resort to the Auto mode because I'm still not that great at capturing action and motion. Better to get the shot than miss it while playing around with the camera!

Photography and F/Stops

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 04:13:00 +0000

Tuesday night we had our last photography class and I hated to see them come to an end. There are other classes that I definitely want to take, but for now I'm going to practice what I've learned. The class was very informative and I enjoyed the mix of people. After the class last night, we decided that we would continue to meet together and practice what we have covered. Hopefully we can all take the next class together.

Many of you have commented that you want to take a photography class some day, I encourage you to do it! I have learned so much about my camera and photography. I'm so glad I did it! It was well worth the cost of the class.

These photos are straight from the camera. I don't recall ever posting photos straight from the camera before because when shooting in Auto I always had to edit and correct them in some way. As much as I hate to admit it, there really is a difference when shooting out of the Auto mode.

The class last week was on learning to shoot in the Aperture Priority mode... the dreaded f/stops. A simple way for me to remember it is that Aperture Priority controls the depth of field or what is in focus in the picture. The lower the number the more blur you have in the background, the higher the number the more you have in focus. This has always confused me because when I look at illustrations explaining f/stops, the aperture openings look as though it it ought to be the exact opposite of this. I still can't wrap my mind completely around that part of it.

I've been making good use of my time at the nursing home while sitting with my mother-in-law, I've actually read my camera manual and it was easier to comprehend after taking these classes. I've also been reading through several of the photography books I have.

I look forward to spending more time behind the camera and less time in the books!

Summer Flowers and an Update

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 03:18:00 +0000

There hasn't been much time these past few weeks for me to blog or for reading your blogs. My mother-in-law had her shoulder surgery and I've been sitting with her pretty much day and night since then. She was so frail at 86 pounds, we were not even sure she would make it through the surgery, but she did. We were also concerned that she might starve to death before she could recover, but that hasn't been a problem either. She is eating and drinking and doing very well. She is tiny, but she is one feisty lady. Three years ago she was put on hospice for failure to thrive and I was told that she was dying and would never come off hospice care. I didn't believe them. We started feeding her at meal time as often as we could and she started gaining weight. She gained to 101 pounds and was removed from hospice. It was a huge victory for us! We are once again feeding her for every meal and she is doing great. It is time consuming and for right now it is my life. Seeing her happy and laughing tonight makes it all worthwhile.

I've still been able to make it to my photography class but I've not had much time for taking pictures. Last week I didn't have time to do my assignment and so far I haven't had time this week either. I love the class and have learned so much about my camera. I've been using the time in the nursing home to read photography books and even read my camera manual!

The yard is a mess and I need to do some serious gardening, but there is no time or energy for that right now. I sometimes make it home right before it gets dark and I have just enough time to grab my camera and get a few pictures. Some of my favorite summer flowers are in bloom right now and every once in a while I catch the hummingbirds at the feeders.

I'll be very glad when things return to normal, I miss being home, and I miss visiting you all!

Confession is Good for the Soul

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 01:25:00 +0000

I love taking pictures, especially nature pictures and I have a thing for cameras... I have several of them.

I have two DSLRs and several point and shoot digital cameras , (four of them to be exact). My confession is that I had never shot any of them out of the Auto mode before last night. I didn't know how.

Auto has worked very well for me, but I always had to do some tweaking and editing on my pictures before printing or posting on my blog.

All of that is changing, because I am currently taking a photography class. The first class was last night. I enjoyed it a lot and learned so much about my camera. Hands on training is definitely the best way for me to learn.

These shots are the first pictures I've ever taken that was not in the auto mode!

I went to Forrest Park this morning and took most of these pictures there. I'm usually not too crazy about the flowers on hosta, but I love this deep purple flower. It was just buzzing with bee activity.

I've become so accustomed to taking my pictures in the auto mode and for the most part I was happy with them, so I was a just a little uncomfortable when I told the instructor that, "Auto is my friend", and his response was, "It's a stupid friend".

I guess no serious photographer takes pictures in Auto. I don't want to just take pictures, I want to be a serious photographer. So I leave my comfortable friend, "Auto", behind and strive to know how to operate my camera and take better pictures.

If anyone lives in the Indy area and is interested in taking photography classes, might I recommend Indy Photo Coach. The instructor I have is excellent, (even if he did insult my very good friend, "Auto"). Just what I learned about my Canon 50D last night is worth the investment in the class and we have really just scratched the surface.

On a sad note- I'll be away for a few days. My mother-in-law will be having surgery tomorrow on her shoulder that was injured in a fall a couple of months ago. It has been re-injured and the bone is no longer in the socket. She is in the end stages of Alzheimer's and weighs about 90 pounds. There is a chance she might not even make it through the surgery, and if she does make it, the next couple of weeks will be very difficult for her. We are concerned that she will stop eating again and lose even more weight. It is very sad to have to put her through this surgery but we have consulted with the surgeon and those responsible for her care and we feel like it is necessary.

Please keep her in your prayers.

White River Gardens Reflecting Pond

rfleming2@sbcglobal.net (Robin's Nesting Place) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 18:34:00 +0000