Waking up after Election Day

Wow. Today is an amazing day.

Although this is not a political blog, I feel compelled to post the day after our nation's most historic presidential campaign. Today we are all part of a changed American landscape. We have all just seen our country vote for its first African-American president. I'm not sure how anyone, no matter what party you support or what you believe in, would be able to sit back and not feel how huge this is.

I watched the coverage until late last night. I am not afraid to admit that when Katie Couric looked at me through the television screen to say that it was official - - Barack Obama would be our next president -- I felt a huge wave of emotion. I was not really prepared for that. But the reality of how huge this moment was sunk in and sunk in fast. A tear may have been shed.

Ok, so there was more than one tear. But photographers don't cry.

Well, this one does. This one knew she was watching a huge moment for her country and even for the world unfold in front of her eyes. So, ya, big deal. This photographer shed a few tears.

Almost twenty years ago my father was able to show me where he was when he heard that Kennedy had been shot. We were on the campus of West Virginia University, getting a tour and thinking about where my future might lead me (we now know it didn't lead me to the fine state of West Virginia). He pointed to a red car parked on a hill, and filled with patriotic pride and sadness as he was able to tell me that's where he was standing when another student told him the news. "No one ever forgets where they were when they heard about Kennedy ," he told me. At the time I didn't really get it, politics weren't exactly my thing. But now, after sitting on the red couch that was once his and watching history happen, I wish he had lived long enough to share this moment with so many of us. I wonder what he would have to say and how he would want to remember it. I will remember that I sat in a house once occupied by him, and felt the world shift, shedding tears and sharing smiles with people in all corners of the globe.

And now, it's the day after and I have decided I am tired of hearing 3 certain words : Joe the Plumber. I could come up with some new people for us to look up to/watch. How about Judy the Photographer? Or maybe Doug the Teacher, Amy the Doctor, Andy the Lawyer/Musician... And this guy - Scott the Weekend Warrior/artist/accountant/husband/son/brother/uncle/friend/neighbor. We could talk about him for awhile, even though he might not like the attention. Or we could just look at this photo of him polishing his El Camino.

I think I just gave myself my next project! Portraits of these Average Joes in my life that are really anything but average. I have had this in the back of my mind for a while, but now it's moving quickly to the front. Better get to work!

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Golden Morning

I'm a huge fan of coffee. Most Sunday mornings you can find me curled up with a large ceramic mug full of the stuff, as I welcome in another day. Today was a little different.

This morning I had coffee out of a gold-rimmed cup. This particular gold-rimmed cup, to be exact. I'm not sure why, but I was compelled to photograph it. Maybe it's because I felt slightly awkward in my weekend comfy clothes, pulled back hair, and unimportant appearance sipping coffee out of a tiny and fancy cup with a god rim. Maybe it's because I had a lot of time on my hands, sitting down to a breakfast where I could eat nothing that was being served (gluten and I are not friends, but that could be another post on another day with another photo). Maybe I simply wanted to photograph something that I could later play around with in Lightroom. I have been looking at work by other people and realizing I still have so much to learn about my software. So, I happily took an uninteresting image and played around for a while. Just another day in the land of riding learning curves and figuring out cool stuff.

An exercise with a slightly boring image, or an image taken by someone who was slightly bored? I welcome thoughts and opinions...


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Growing Appreciation

As this family grows, so does my appreciation for the opportunity to be welcomed into someone's home and life to capture moments like this. Important moments, handed over to someone like me. A photographer. What we do is pretty cool!

She's got a little fire in her eyes! I love the sneaky look on her face... not to mention the look on her mother's face. Something tells me by the time I get them their images this family will be one bigger.

If Walls Could Talk...

..they would promote hugs, smiles, and people who love cameras. At least that's my theory.

My first post and the photo of Ben in Brooklyn reminded me of other photos I took on that same trip. I walked around Williamsburg and found the remainder of a street fair. This led me down a side street and to some very photo-worthy walls. I have had nowhere to share these photos until now! Blogs are awesome.

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SO, here it is - the official blog of Judy Beedle Photography! First, thanks for visiting. Second, I appreciate your patience as the blog gets built and takes on the shape and look I am hoping to achieve.

My goal is to post once a week, and my posts will always include a photo. The photo might be something I took in the past week, it might be an image I have loved for years. But they will be images created by me and my pal, the camera. We've been getting along great lately.

During the past year I started a Photo-a-week project, which I posted on my Picasa page. It was a great exercise in accountability towards my craft as well as a helpful tool in learning the new digital camera I purchased just over a year ago. The first year of palling around with my digital camera has proven to be as rewarding as it has been challenging. This new blog will help me take the challenge one step further.

As part of my first post, I am including a photo from this year's PAW (Photo-A-Week) project. This one is of my friend Ben during a Brooklyn visit this past summer. I guess I'll also point out that he is talking on his new iphone, which makes him very cool and hip.

Get used to seeing Ben, as he makes many appearances in my work!