Ambivalence and the Impulsive Planner

So I’ll admit I probably should have thought about this alot more before launching Photo Goog.

For someone who is a real planner, I have the tendency towards being impulsive every now and again, particularly when I’m excited about something. And lately I’ve been feeling very ambivalent about having separated Good Goog and Photo Goog into two blogs. I’ve had the vague feeling that it was annoying more than anything else, rather than just having everything in one place.

So I did what any self-respecting planner would have done before the launch, I started a survey to see what everyone else thought. You can take it here. Seriously go. I need your input!

I’m torn, which usually means I know the answer, I just don’t like it.

What I Like About It

I like having a separate place for all of my photos. Where they can stand on their own (to an extent, you’ll notice that I still clutter them with text).

I like having another blog to tinker with. Because my tendency to change things is epic and it’s a miracle I haven’t attempted some entirely impractical redesign of Good Goog. Speaking of which any designers want to trade their services for a lifetime of indebtedness? I’m listening.

I do plan to eventually branch into photography posts once I’m more confident with the camera and talk about tips, tutorials, editing etc and in the long run it seemed like a separate photo blog made sense for that. Or does it?

What I Don’t Like

Spreading myself between two blogs when it seems that the audience is essentially the same seems counter-productive.

Also I think it might be slightly irritating for people to follow two blogs.

Over to You

Enough about what I think. What do you think?

Cross posted on Good Goog.

Barefoot Week

The theme this week at i heart faces is Barefoot Week – in support of Soles 4 Souls.

Unfortunately, this week hasn’t been much for going outside, thanks to torrential rain and bone chilling wind. But inside or out, toddler feet are pretty fantastic.

About Soles 4 Souls: Soles4Souls is a Nashville-based charity that collects shoes from the warehouses of footwear companies and the closets of people like you. The charity distributes these shoes free of charge to people in need, regardless of race, religion, class, or any other criteria. Since 2005, Soles4Souls has given away over 7 million pairs of new and gently worn shoes (currently donating one pair every 9 seconds.) The shoes have been distributed to people in over 125 countries, including Kenya, Thailand, Nepal and the United States. Soles4Souls has been featured in Runner’s World, Ladies’ Home Journal, National Geographic’s Green Guide, and The New York Times. It has appeared on CBS, ABC, NBC, FOX, BBC, CNN and thousands of regional news outlets across North America. Soles4Souls is a 501(c)(3) recognized by the IRS and donating parties are eligible for tax advantages. Anyone can join our cause, and we need your help.

Yellow

The theme this week at i heart faces is Yellow.

Faces & Flowers

The theme this week at i heart faces is Faces & Flowers. This photo was taken on mothers’ day and gives the illusion that she respects flowers. When in fact she spent most of the time stomping around, destroying as many flowers as possible. I allowed her one per bush. And even this did nothing to quench her appetite for destruction.

This Is What Devastation Looks Like

Thanks teething. You’re awesome.

Wordless Wednesday

The enthusiastic cuddler.

Sentimentality, the Camera and Defection

Originally published on Good Goog

From birthday presents and scraped savings I finally bought my camera and it arrived this week. I haven’t had time to play around with all the functions as yet – I’ve just been using it on automatic so far. The best thing about it is how fast it is. With our other cameras I would have missed this photo because of the delay time.

I had planned on buying a Nikon. Because my last SLR (film) camera was a Nikon FE10. I loved that camera. I sold it to fund wedding stuff years ago, which now I regret. Although my rationale was that it was a good thing to sell because it was just a piece of equipment and easy to replace once I had the money. But the thing it wasn’t just a piece of equipment, and now I do feel sentimental about it. I remember walking for hours in Sydney, taking black and white photos of all the old buildings with my first roll of film in that camera and being really flattered when the person who developed the film asked me if the photos had been taken in New York. Back then, I abhorred the idea of taking photos of people. Not that you would know that from my blog. I just took photos of buildings and landscapes.

So when it came to getting a Digital SLR, I was sure I would get another Nikon. And then somebody pointed out that there were things I should consider like:

1) Would I be buying a portrait lense?

2) I should consider the comparative prices of different lenses.

3) Would the software be free or cost extra?

And I began to think that maybe I should look into that. And when I did, all signs pointed to Canon. The clincher was when I realised that most of the photographers who I really admire all use a Canon including Dooce, Tiff @ Three Ring Circus and MckMama. So I bit the bullet and defected.

On my first day of shooting I had the benefit of that perfect overcast/cloudy lighting that makes for beautiful photos.

cheeky grin

I couldn’t be happier. Now just to figure out what all of those buttons do . . .