The beginning of August I realized our family needed a little vacation, but I wasn’t about to drive very far, or see any people — let alone stay in a strange place. So we had an adventurous camping weekend in middlea-nowhere-Vermont, complete with a giant thunderstorm and lotsa s’mores. There was a stream where lil man played to his hearts content, while I swung in a hammock nearby. Yes, it was a lot of work – the packing, prepping, groceries, lists, etc. – (but that’s kinda my bag) and yes it was all worth it. Cooking over a campfire, disconnected from the outside world (more-specifically, the internet), and adventuring with my guys.
I’ve also used quite a bit of the macro this summer, and even tried a few new techniques. This is a friendly warning that there are some images below of spider(s), a snake, and the most epic creature I’ve ever photographed. The tobacco hornworm! So awesome and so ewwwww all at the same time!
I also kept my goal of visiting Bomoseen at least once a week. Funny story, Siri took a bit of a dip in Lake Bomoseen. Completely unrelated, (because my phone did miraculously survive the swim), I ended up getting a new iPhone. While I’m still getting used to its camera feature, I’ve been quite impressed with it, especially the night-mode. And while I vowed to photograph with my “pro camera” as much as possible, it’s been quite nice to take a step back from carrying around a clunky camera on some of our adventures. The new iPhone makes me regret not taking the pro camera with me a bit less.
I feel like I was just getting into the swing of summer, and I am writing this in the first week of my son being back in school. Autumn is ready to rear up, I can feel it in the colder mornings and see it in my dahlias in their prime. My theory is that summer flew by even faster this year because we didn’t have nearly as many “to do’s” that help our brain justify the passing of time. Granted, no big vacations, but we made the best of it. Summer is typically my busy season, but not so much this year. Still, I was busier this month than any other in 2020, I photographed families, business branding and headshots, senior sessions and a beautiful intimate wedding at Basin Harbor where I got to dust off my astrophotography skills. It was really nice to be working – albeit it very different than other years.
I’ve spent my past week stressing about my son’s schooling situation. I pray for the teachers and administrators who are putting their everything into a safe and fun school year. I see you and thank you. Teaching was a hard gig to begin with, and Covid has made it that much more difficult. Hugs from afar as you help to raise our future generations.
