Easter 2011

When I’m deployed, it’s always the hardest around the Holidays.  The times that most families are gearing up to visit members they haven’t seen in awhile are those times that I miss my family the most.  I’ve missed several Holidays since my daughter was born, but it makes the Holidays that I’m home all the better, and me all the more thankful that God allowed me to be there to share in it.  That’s what this last Easter was like for me.  We had a wonderful time with my family and Chloe really enjoyed spending the time with her cousin, Abby.  They had a blast hunting Easter “eggs”, and we all enjoyed the dinner and quality time we spent together.  Each time we get the family together, aside from the normal snapshots, I try to get some good location portraits of the little ones and this occasion was no exception.  I think these turned out great.  They just seemed to pop as soon as I pulled the up in Lightroom. Here are a few of my favorite shots from the day and you can see all of them in the gallery under “Easter 2011”.

Easter Day was a beautiful.  The sun was out but the temperature was agreeably warm.  We had dinner out under the trees and I had the opportunity to shoot some “extraction” shots of an old wooden trailer my father has out behind the house.  Extraction is a technique I learned from landscape photographer, Bill Fortney.  It’s the idea of getting in tight to pull out textures and interesting lines.  This old trailer had ivy growing up the side and the texture of the old wood just stood out against the leaves.  I took a few minutes and shot up close at the point the wood came together at the corner.  These shots were the result of that few minutes.  Again, all of these can be found in my gallery under “Easter 2011”.

As always, I enjoyed making these photos immensely.  It is my hope that you enjoy them as much as I do.  Please feel free to leave any comments, I read them all.  Also, please take a moment to reflect on the holidays you get to spend with your loved-ones.  It’s so easy to let the stress and hustle, that’s become the mainstay of many of our Holidays, take the joy out of these times.  Sometimes just being there and engaged with your family is worth more than any gifts.  Worth far more than anything we can accomplish running around franticly working to make sure the Holidays are “perfect”.  Remember who the Holidays are for, “He Is The Reason For The Season”.  Keep your families close and most of all….Enjoy.

Ben