We attended a party in honor of the 2nd birthday of my grand niece Evie DeGeest a few days ago. I wasn't going to take photos because most of these events are very well photographed. But I couldn't resist. Alicia, Evie's mom, is a designer by bent and trade and DeGeest birthday parties are always brilliantly planned and certainly photogenic.
Maybe it's because of the birth of our grand daughter, Glenyce Jane, but these days I seem to look at the children in our family differently. "Wonder" and "awe" are two words that come to mind to describe how I feel when I study the face and eyes of a child like Evie.
I wonder about the gathering of all the forces that shape the person that Evie is becoming. And I wonder what she is thinking and what the world looks like through her eyes. And isn't it awesome that what begins as a microscopic fusion of DNA ends up becoming a wonderfully complex bundle of cells, thoughts and inclinations like beautiful Evie?
Canon 5DIII 1/80s f/2.8 ISO500 168mm
[maxbutton id="14"]
The phrase "changing of the guard" can be metaphorical but at the Prague Castle in the Czech Republic it is literal. But the event is also a tourist attraction. Deb and I just happened to be arriving at the Castle when the three men seen here were marching to their post. Their baby blue uniforms are traditional but not particularly "normal" when it comes to military garb. Maybe the intent is to make the opponent feel happy and non-violent.
I can't help it. Here's a photo of Glenyce Jane Shephard striking a pose with her grandma Deb. Great faces. And wonderful catchlights in Glenyce's eyes.
I went looking for something that made me smile and this photo of father Brian holding daughter Glenyce upside down is the first thing I found. I used to hang him upside down when he was two feet tall and so Brian is obligated to continue the tradition. No children were harmed in the making of this photo. :-)
So it's been several days since I've posted a photo of our grand daughter, Glenyce Jane. So here you go. . . .
My friend, Scott, may dispute my choice of the word "hope" in the title of this post. I have no idea if he was hopeful when he took his rod and reel out into the gentle surf at sunset on a perfect October evening along the Florida Gulf Coast.
Is it creepy that I lurked briefly behind a tree in Centennial Park in Nashville, TN, to get a candid photo of a photographer at work? Maybe.
I suggested the other day that I might post a new photo (or two) of our our grand daughter Glenyce Jane. So here you go.
It has been a while since I've posted a photo of Glenyce Jane, primarily because it's been a while since Deb and I have spent quality time with her. But next weekend . . .
There are many good things that I could say about 
This portrait of Nicole was taken in the Black Hills at my July "Black Hills Photo Adventure." I took quite a few photos of her and she was a great subject. I teach that the eyes are one of the most important parts of a portrait and yet I have her looking away from the camera. Why? Well, we were working on a pose that showed her relaxed and seemingly unaware of the camera's presence. In the next frame, Nicole is looking at me but I ended up liking this one best.
A concern I have about retirement is that as I transition from my "normal" public self to my retired life, some people will start to think about me in the past tense. An even bigger fear is that I might show up somewhere and someone without proper social filters might say, "I thought you were dead!"