I’m very excited to announce that I’ve joined a blog circle with a group of incredibly talented photographers! Our project, Life From This Lens, will consist of monthly themes that will enable us to grow as artists. We invite you to follow along on our collective journey!

Our blog circle theme for this month was “wide open aperture.” In my early years as a photographer I would shoot with my shutter wide open for technical reasons- it allows the maximum amount of light to hit the camera sensor, so it’s perfect for shooting indoors on a rainy day (when my little one was first born we spent a lot of time indoors, so I was constantly shooting at f/1.8, which is as wide open as my 50mm will go). Over time, as I began to cultivate my style, I started shooting at f/1.8 because I loved the dreamy bokeh (in other words, really pretty background blur). Once I started learning compositional elements I consciously used a wide aperture to isolate my subject and create a strong focal point. My camera settings became a storytelling device, and high aperture allowed me to focus on a specific detail of the scene and emphasize the importance of my subject.

Over time, I bought a 24-70mm zoom lens and it was true love! I almost always keep it set between 24-35mm since wide angle views are definitely my thing. Lately my poor 50mm has been used for freelensing practice only, and I’m sure it was feeling pretty left out. When I saw the prompt for this month I knew it was time to dust off the 50mm. While zoom lenses are fantastic, they can’t open as wide as prime lenses (for example, the widest my zoom can open is f/2.8). So I can thank the fabulous women of Life From This Lens for making me appreciate my 50mm again. Rediscovering the lens took some getting used to, since I forgot how much harder it is to nail focus when shooting very wide! I had a lot of outtakes in the beginning (plus I kept trying to change focal length and I confused myself, which happens often). But all’s well that ends well!

This month my shots were pretty candid, just photos of my every day, with more emphasis on the details and nuances of the people and things I love. My daughter's expressions, my dog’s nose, and the way light falls on flowers. The little things are everything :). For more inspiration, check out the beauty that fellow photographer Tracy Lynn created this month.