Photo Cards

Click to enlarge image.

OK...Here Goes Nothing!

One of the reasons for starting this blog is to write...babble...carry on about things that come to mind or I feel compelled to share. However, the central motive for this forum is to promote my photocards. I have been testing the waters here and there. My focus groups consist mainly of friends and family, so this is my first tentative step into the unknown, unpredictable and totally petrifying court of public opinion.



I have available for purchase all of the cards in the image above. Also I can make any of the pictures featured on the blog into cards.

I would love any and all feedback--positive or otherwise (be gentle!).

I have my cards on http://www.winkelf.com/ for purchase as a set or to order directly from me in any combination or quantity, you can email me at fotosbypenny@gmail.com.



Thank you and God Bless!

Digital or Bust

The luggage was packed and stacked by the door. We remembered our clothes, our shoes, our toiletries and more. The kids were tossing and turning in their beds, visions of Mickey and Minnie dancing and singing in their heads. In just a few hours we would be on our way and arrive at the Happiest Place on Earth by the end of the day! I was making a mental list of all the pictures I'd take after travelling those miles. Minnie and Mickey, the rest of the gang, posed with my wee ones lit-up with BIG smiles.



I had plenty of film (20 rolls!) and three extra lithium batteries, just in case! My carry-on sized camera bag was ready and in its rightful place.



The truck was loaded with kids and with stuff. We were off on time, well close enough. I sat back to get settled for the long drive ahead. But what was that little yellow box...the one with KODAK in red? My husband beamed as he handed it to me. My heart sunk just a little as I sat the box on my knee. I read the box, then the manual for my new shiny Kodak EasyShare. I was hoping my smiles and my Thank Yous didn't give away my true despair. My poor Rebel, did it know? Could it feel? I was sure I could use both...I would make an appeal. The new one was more mobile and easier to pack, but the Rebel was better and took nicer pictures than the new Kodak.

I rode with my present between myself and the door. My old friend sat by my feet, in the bag on the floor.

The Other Camera

I graduated from a point and shoot 35mm (a wonderful Pentax IQ zoom WR) to a Cannon Rebel 2000. I was so intimidated by the options offered to me by this new camera. The training wheels were off! I read the owners manual again and again. I invested in rolls and rolls of film to ensure the capture of THE PERFECT SHOT. My new partner was always within an arms reach.

The Rebel was a bit awkward to carry and the added bulk of extra rolls of film, back-up batteries and additional lenses made a large camera case a must. Digital cameras were gaining in popularity, but it was still the consensus of the photography community that digital prints paled in comparison to prints made from film negatives. This belief would become my mantra, my shield. Everywhere we went, digital cameras abounded. The cost and quality of such cameras gave me justification to hold onto my old ways, my 'ol Rebel.

I looked forward to an impending family vacation, an opportunity for us to strut our stuff. True the bag and camera bulk would be a bit inconvenient, but what is a little inconvenience when preserving the memories of a lifetime?

And then IT arrived.

A Kodak EasyShare digital camera. Smaller than my Rebel. No film or lenses to tote. Convenient.

Photography and I had reached another defining moment in our relationship. What did this mean for my Rebel? Surely I wouldn't abandon it for a point and shoot DIGITAL camera?

A New Day

I am on an adventure to find my place, my passion, myself. I wander this way and that, trying things on. Does that fit? Does this? I stay on a path until I am pulled onto another. At times it feels aimless, passive. At others it is exhilarating as I sprint away with a new idea! Creativity and innovation are keys to my new journey. Limits that held me back, are now new challenges that inspire me to think outside the proverbial box.

I am experiencing old interests anew to see if they were just fleeting fancies or are worth a deeper look. My "keep" pile is minimal. I am learning as I age and live life, that clutter is clutter. Physical clutter, mental clutter, emotional clutter...all of it weighs us down and blocks our paths. I am clearing clutter, getting it out of my way. My life is becoming lighter, sleeker, freer.

Photography is a hobby I have enjoyed since I bought my first camera when I was 10. I loved the colors and trying to frame the picture just right. I took pictures of things that were important to me: my family, my pink ten-speed bike that I had saved every penny for, the creek by our house. Over the years, photography and I have had an off and on again relationship. My camera and I were, at times inseparable, grabbing every available opportunity to be together. We attended parties and ball games, we hung out at the park and enjoyed everyday moments. Then life crept in. Life moved on. Technology intruded. My 35 mm became a dinosaur, a conversation piece, a novelty. I refused to step into the digital age. I clung to my camera and my film. I was pushed, no shoved into the twenty-first century and digital photography. I managed, however, to keep one foot planted squarely in defiance and denial.