Last Saturday I attended my Reception for the Artists at the Highland Art Center in the Big Town.  We had fun mingling and being able to really look at all the photos that were accepted in to the show.  There were some that were awarded and I was kind of surprised, they were certainly not something I would have picked but I know the Juror has his own tastes and reasoning — which, for the most part, made sense.

Here’s the photo titled, “Serenity,” thanks to my mom.

And the one titled, “The Next Adventure,” thanks to Hubby.

And a blurry picture of me next to my photos, thanks to my mom.  So, the biggest thing I learned is to frame with a black frame and mat with a white mat, that way the focus is on the photos — makes perfect sense, hanging in the gallery.  I was trying to make the pictures pop better so they’d look good in a home but that shouldn’t be my objective.

Anyway, we then walked around to the other galleries on main street to see what else was on display during our monthly “Art Cruise.”  Here is some favorite pottery I saw at one gallery.

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The two photos above are of some pieces done by the same lady who lives locally.  I instantly fell in love with her work though my favorite, the pot above, was a bit high in price.  I’m sure the price reflects a large percentage that the gallery has commissioned from the artist.  I noticed her work in the gallery my photos were in and the prices were more reasonable — I’m thinking I may have to consider a couple as Christmas presents.

These three were also done by a local artist whom has his own pottery shop there on main street as well.  I have quite a few pieces of his and it is a shop we often take people to so they can take home a small piece of our county.  I love his pottery and have it in different forms throughout the house: vases, salt & pepper shakers, soup bowls, creamer & sugar, serving bowl, pie plates and the like.  I think most people around here has something of his, it just wouldn’t be right if you didn’t.

Speaking of Christmas, I’ve just had these Christmas cards printed up at moo.com.  They are really nice!  I’ve done the barn in the snow scene taken up in Lakeview, Oregon about a month ago now.  They come with a nice brown or natural envelope and feature a quote inside.

It is a quote by Helen Steiner Rice, “Bless us Lord, this Christmas, with quietness of mind; Teach us to be patient and always to be kind.”

In case you’re looking for a few Christmas cards, I’ll be listing these for sale in my Etsy shop.

I haven’t had the chance to really put Big Girl to the test yet, I’m looking forward to that day though it may be toward the end of the week.  So far, since the days are ending quickly, I’ve not been able to actually go out and shoot in what would be considered good light.  But, I have been extremely impressed with how the D300 can perform in low light situations.

As most of you know, I’ve been part of a challenge over at the Equine Photographer’s Network, and so far I’m still in.  I have had to go out and shoot after the sun has gone over the nearest mountain many times though. Despite the ‘noise’ that the high ISO’s have at times, I have to admit I wouldn’t have been even able to take those photos with my D50.  The D50’s ISO level stops at 1600 where the D300 goes up to 3200 — much more photographic opportunities!

I cannot tell you how dark it was when I took this photo, and look at the detail in the foreground.

I’ve also been very surprised on how much faster the Big Girl D300 is compared to Little Girl D50.  If you let your finger barely rest on the shutter release button a little bit long, you will take multiple photos.  This will come in very handy for action shots of horses.

So, we’ve been enjoying each other.  I’ll let you in on some of my favorite features in the next couple of posts.

Until then – Joan at Mud Ranch

Yesterday I wrote about receiving my Big Girl via FedEx and the wonderings and wanderings of my mind.  About 10 minutes later I received an e-mail in my inbox stating that I had made it to the front page of WordPress.com!

Pretty soon, the comments started trickling in and I’ve enjoyed meeting so many of you who are interested in Photography and cameras.  So a big hearty thank you to WordPress.com for putting my story on the front page and for all of you who’ve stopped by to say hi and give me encouragement.  I will definitely be updating about Big Girl and our walk together.

Until then, I will post some of my recent photos I’ve uploaded for the November photo a day challenge over at EPNet:

Challenge word – Blur

Challenge word – Legs

Challenge word – Texture

Today’s word is “Behavior” and I’m hoping that I’ll be back before dark with my new card in hand to see if I can’t get Big Girl to perform on that one.

I believe my looking smart will not be happening for a while… well, at least until I’ve really bonded with my new best friend.

I can hear you, you’re asking, “Why, why on earth is her new best friend a user’s manual for the Nikon D300?  Hasn’t she been shooting a D50 for about four years?”  Yes, yes my friends, I have been shooting with a D50 for about that long.  But things are starting to change around here since the arrival of my new toy — one I hope will grow to like me with time.

That’s right, I’ve just got myself a Big Girl Camera.  I’m super excited… I’ve been wanting to upgrade for quite some time but I’ve been patient, waiting for the right opportunity to come along.  I’ve done my research on it (I always do a ton of research on things that I am interested in… it runs in my blood.  Hi mom!)

The only problem is, she’s got buttons where my Little Girl Camera does not and I’m finding Miss D300 and I do not speak the same language.  I thought a Nikon would be a Nikon would be a Nikon… apparently I wasn’t as “Big Girl” as I thought I was.  I’ve even been shooting in manual lately!

Along with the camera came this absolutely gi-gungo lens.  It is completely made of metal, is fairly old, but I hear it takes great photos and they’re tack sharp.  I’m excited to try it out.

So where did I find my new beauty?  She was a back-up camera for a professional equine photographer out of San Diego.  I’ve been checking on the forums at the Equine Photographer’s Network for a used D300 but no one wants to sell them and they’re selling the D200’s and the D2’s.  Finally I found the D300, hardly ever used and been sitting on the shelf.  Her previous owner has a D700 and shoots FX or “Full Frame” compared to this one which is DX.  DX is what I have for lenses and since I wouldn’t be able to talk Hubby into replacing all my lenses to FX, I decided the D300 was the camera for me. 

Do you think that per-chance some of Melanie Snowhite’s talent will rub off of her camera and on to me?  I mean, we are like family now right?  To check out her amazing photography, visit her website at www.melaniesnowhite.com.  Meanwhile, I’ll be getting to know my new best friend.

So far so good on my Equine Photographer’s Network challenge – a new photo each day of something horse related and has to do with the daily word. 

Today’s pick was the above – though I did get a few more that I liked just as well. 

These are all “Smoke’s Environment” in the pasture located directly across the street from ours.  We have been on a free lease on that particular property for a few years now and have dedicated the pasture to Smoke this summer and fall.  He lives there by himself, over looking town.  He has some neat trails up the mountain sides that are in his pasture, and it’s interesting to see where he goes and what his patterns are.  I do know that he likes the peacefulness, he always looks so content.