In Bloom | 2016 Photography Project

One of my personal goals this year is to grow as a photographer. Photography has been a passion of mine for the past 10+ years and I am proud of many of the photos I've taken, especially of my boys. When they are grown and gone, I will have a cache of photos to remember their childhoods. 

However, photography is not a hobby that can be mastered. You can continually grow and learn, practicing new techniques along the way. This year I am making a point of photographing foliage, tree, flowers, and nature. Steve and I have taken several walks/hikes this year, photographing nature during each trip. I also practiced my skills while the kids and I were in Washington in June/July. My Uncle's church has a lovely garden, tended by a master gardener. I could have spent hours photographing the flowers! 

I have some thoughts on what I'm going to do with these photos. I might print them as 4 x 6 photos and create a photo collage with white frames and hang it in my living room. I also think a miniBook of all flower/foliage photos would be cool. So many possibilities!  

These first five photos were taken at the FIT (Florida Institute of Technology) Botanical Gardens. 

My love of palm trees extends to cool palm fronds. The light bouncing off the palm fronds in this photo is awesome. 

I really wanted to photograph the butterflies flying around the botanical gardens but they were stubborn little buggers. I did get some nice shots of flowers and palm trees, though. 

Flamingo Gardens in Davie, FL has the most amazing Desert Rose bush. Gorgeous hot pink flowers with almost white branches. So pretty. 

During one of our walks through Turkey Creek, in Palm Bay, I captured this shot. 

My mom planted some beautiful potted flowers on her deck this summer. I especially like this one. 

Another flower from my mom's yard. The yellow is striking against the green leaves. 

My parents took us to Seattle for a few days in June and we stopped off at the Pacific Science Center. I took this photo while we were in the butterfly gardens. The boys were being entertained outside by Grandpa. 

The gardens at my uncle's church, in Vancouver, WA, are really spectacular. I plan on framing this photo. 

So many varieties of flowers, most of them I can't name, but so beautiful.  

Another shot from my mom's garden. Her lavender plant is huge, and absolutely gorgeous. I used my 85mm 1.8 for this shot and I am super impressed with the detail it captured on the flowers.

What about you? Are you working on any photography projects right now? 

The new edition of Click magazine landed in my mailbox yesterday and I must say, it is beautiful. I had forgotten how much I love getting magazines in the mail! I devoured this issue and can't wait for the next issue to arrive. I highly recommend subscribing if you're a photography buff! 

Click Magazine

Have a great week!