Category Archives: Monday Photo Shoot

EMPS #10: Feet

Posted on by

Carly writes:

“In life, as in dance: Grace glides on blistered feet.”

-Alice Abrams

EMPS #10: Feet.
Feet. They take us here and there, and to and fro. Let’s share our hardworking feet this week. If you are a ballerina, you dance on the tippy-toes of your feet. If you are scared, you might say, “feet don’t fail me now!” If you are running away from a big bully, it is your feet that will whisk you to safety. You use your feet for pedaling your bike, and for driving your car. If your toes are webbed, you are probably a decent swimmer, or a duck, which means you are still probably a decent swimmer. It is your feet that encourages you to purchase high fashion shoes, and fuzzy wuzzy slippers. You can photograph your own feet or someone else’s feet, just be sure to get permission first! Just show me feet with shoes or without!

Extra Credit: Show me your favorite shoes, sitting next to your favorite FEET!

So what do you think of these purple suede Christian Louboutin’s? With a little black dress and a cute purple jacket, I thought that this would be perfect to wear when I see The Color Purple tomorrow with Bill.

My only concern is should I really be walking in shoes like these when I am under the influence of cold meds?

my cozy, comfy, clean, well-lighted spot

Posted on by

Carly over at Ellipsis writes:

EMPS #7: Furniture.
Ahhh… is there anything better after a long, difficult day then to come home and sink into a favorite couch or chair? It’s one of the best comforts ever! So, for this week, lets pay tribute to the comfy, well worn, furniture in our lives! Do you have a favorite chair, either indoor or out, that you love to escape to when you want to read a good book? Does your hubby have one of those old tacky… um… well lived in … recliners only a guy could love? I know, you have a nifty orange futon that was well loved. Or how about a bean bag chair left over from the 70′s, or a Barcalounger you may have won on Let’s Make A Deal? Well this is your chance to show it off! Show me your favorite piece of comfy, cozy FURNITURE!

Extra Credit: It would be just nifty, if the furniture in question, has a few dents, bruises, or misplaced stuffing! That would mean it was loved, and has served you well. :)

There is something about your favorite chair, your favorite spot. It’s like an old friend at the end of a long tiring day. The lighting is perfect. The view of the television or out the window is perfect. Your chair has your indelible impression a.k.a. your butt-print in it. It has your own unique scent, which I hope is pleasing to others. Or perhaps in order for it to be “your spot”, the scent might better serve if it is offensive to some. That way no one will take “your spot”.

My spot is an overstuffed, oversized chair. I can literally curl up in it and nap or stretch out with the matching oversized ottoman and read or work on my laptop or catch up on my dvr’d programming or netflix rentals. Within arms’ reach is one of my bookcases which is stuffed with books. It’s the perfect cozy, comfy, clean, well-lighted place for me.

Or is it?

By popular demand, we have scuba-duck demonstrating that my cozy, comfy, clean, well-lighted place is a perfect for place for others who might dwell here under the Big Top. I’m assuming that this means that my lingering scent is not offensive…at least not anymore.

Scuba-duck isn’t the only one who find “my chair” cozy and comfy, clean and well lit.

Zoë finds it a cozy place for herself. Unfortunately even here, she isn’t safe from the mamarrazi’s camera lens.

Jodie and Daniel both love my chair too. They enjoy it solo but find that it is even better when shared.

Even Hazel finds that it is, indeed, a cozy, comfy place to snooze…

Perhaps they “steal my chair” because they want to be as close to me as possible, because they love me so and because when I am not available, “my chair” is a reasonable mommy/grandmom-substitute.

I think that is a reasonable, acceptable, plausible explanation…in my opinion it is perfectly the only explanation.

Don’t laugh too loudly. You’ll wake the baby!

Be sure to tiptoe over to Carly’s place and check out the other EMPS entries for this week. Feel free to share your own favorite, cozy, comfy furniture shots.

on the watch

Posted on by

Carly over at Ellipsis writes:


EMPS #6: Fences And What’s Behind Them.
I love photographing fences. I have been intrigued by them since I was a little girl. There is a big variety of them out there, and each one tells a different story. Sometimes they are large iron ones with big heavy gates, sometimes they are the little white picket kind, with sunflowers growing next to them, sometimes they are a simple chain link, while other times the fence you see might be a beautiful weather beaten fence, holding in the daisies. Good fences keep things out, but they also keep things in. The idea here is for you to find a fence, hopefully a photogenic one, and share with your photography not just the fence, but what’s behind the fence as well.

Peeking through the cracks of the privacy fence that borders my house and my neighbor’s, one sees the scuba-duck keeping watch over the property and maintaining peace and quiet.

Be sure to stop over at Carly’s place to check out the other EMPS entries. There are quite a few amazing photographers who regularly play along there. Also be sure to leave Carly a kind word. It has been a tough week for her and her husband as they had to say goodbye to their 11 year old cat, Elvis.

Another cool place to check out amazing photography is 5 x 5 project (and not because I have photos there). Krista hosts and assigns interesting and challenging photographic assignments for any photographer of any level to participate in. There are quite a few fun projects lined up right now.

EMPS #5: still fruit

Posted on by

Over at Ellipsis, Carly writes:

EMPS #5: Still Life Photography: Fruit.
I think it will be fun to do some Still Life Photography from time to time as an EMPS, and now seems like a great time to get started! I love doing Still Life photography, because it opens all kinds of possibilities, and gives me much more creative control. I can play with lighting, and props, and get really excited about taking what I can imagine, and transforming it into art. So, let’s give it a try this week using Fruit.

Right now, this is sitting on my kitchen counter in plain sight with the hopes that my circus clowns will be enticed to choose a healthy snack.

autumn signals

Posted on by

Carly writes:

EMPS #4: Welcome To Autumn!
I love autumn, simply love it, so, lets have a little fun with the earliest moments and days of my favorite season. Grab your cameras, and treat me to what the first few days of autumn look like in your neighborhood. The leaves, the sky, the autumn light, folks wearing sweaters, or still enjoying picnics outside among the falling leaves. If you customarily have warm autumns… show me that! If you are beginning to feel the chill… then show me that! In other words… show me what signs of autumn you are seeing this week in particular!

There isn’t much in the way of signs of autumn in my neck of the woods. It has been around 90 freaking degrees everyday! It will be weeks before the leaves start turning, frost covers the ground and the tule fog rolls in. I can’t even imagine sweater weather right now. But with getting back into the school and extracurricular activities routine that all my children have, it is definitely the beginning of the high juggling season which is always a sure sign of Fall here under the Big Top.

The last couple of years I have slacked on my own rule that the family sits down together at least 5 out of 7 nights a week. IT was very easy to rationalize my slacking: I was working full-time nights and leaving for work right around dinner time. Two of my kids had very busy schedules with their competitive cheer and dance schedules. Hubs’ Monday through Friday commute was delaying the time we should be sitting down to dinner. The result is there was a lot of dinner-is-on-your-own-whatever-you-find-in-the-pantry/freezer is fine and take-out…definitely too much take-out.

And it has taken its toll, especially on my body.

So here we are settled into a new school/juggling year and it is a time for a fresh start. Changes have been made, resolutions have been sworn and here, under the Big Top, we are getting back to the family dinner table together.

It requires a lot of planning and help but it is do-able. It’s actually fun planning.

And it is worth it.