Corvallis

July 30, 2013 by Kat

Losing Time

Hey, have you seen the month of July? I seem to have misplaced it. I know it is somewhere around here, in between two weeks of vacation and a new job at work and a “To Do” list a mile long. I just wish I could find July before it’s August. I don’t like losing time like this, discovering the summer days are getting shorter all of a sudden. On my hikes, I’m now out before the sun hits the hillsides and I watch it slowly illuminate the trees. It won’t be too much longer before I’m leaving the house in the dark. I’m not ready for that.

Unfortunately, I recognize July is a lost month at this point, and it’s driving me nuts. I have this feeling of time rushing by without accomplishing anything for July. That’s not really true, of course. I’ve done a lot in July, I just haven’t had a lot of time to create new images of the type I want to create. And so I feel I haven’t accomplished anything. Silly, isn’t it, to measure myself against ONE aspect, when real life includes so many different aspects that come and go, ebb and flow.

So I’m trying to remember that as July slips away. And to figure out how to not lose August too!

A few bits and pieces to update you on…

Registration is open for Find Your Eye: Journey of Fascination. It will run this fall from September 8 through October 11. I asked which Find Your Eye journey you wanted, and the most recent course, Journey of Fascination, was the overwhelming response. If you want to take an Instructor Led Find Your Eye course, don’t miss this opportunity. With my shift to On Demand courses, it may be a while before this one is offered as Instructor Led again. Register here.

The Smartphone Art workshop here in Corvallis is coming up soon on August 10. I’m so excited about this workshop! The course materials are coming together wonderfully and we are going to have a good time. My only worry is that there is too much material for the one day course, and making sure I fit in the important bits to get everyone to where they can enjoy this fun process. The course is filling up, but there are still a few spaces available. Register here.

You can now get this blog via email! Look for the orange sign up box at the top of the blog sidebar. If you can’t get over to check every day, this will help you keep in touch. You don’t have to worry about being overwhelmed with emails — I’ll be creating new posts no more than 2 or 3 times a week going forward. You can also sign up for the Kat Eye News, which includes a “Best of the Blog” roundup via the monthly email.

The July Photo-Heart Connection link up is opening in just two days on August 1. Be sure to plan some time to participate this month. Knowing this is coming up is contributing to my feeling of lost time… I haven’t even had a chance to visit last month’s participants, so how can it be time again? But I’m hopeful a review of July’s photos will help me put my creative accomplishments in a different light. See you Thursday!

See, I tell myself, you have done a lot in July!

July 25, 2013 by Kat

Dear Winter Trees

It’s been a while since I’ve seen you, and I wanted to let you know that you are on my mind. I’ve been missing your interesting shapes against the sky. I find myself seeing glimpses of you in your summer cousins. You know, the ones with fewer leaves? I see you in their branches and shadows. And I miss you more.

Don’t get me wrong, I love summer and don’t want to hasten its end. I love the long days of light, the heat, the fresh fruits and vegetables, running around with bare feet, wearing sunglasses and crop pants, and no homework. There is too much good in summer to hurry it along.

But the summer trees? Not as interesting as you. All their best features are hidden by their summer finery of leaves.

So know that when the time comes for you to return, at least one person will be rejoicing. I’ll be excited to see you this fall, with my camera in hand. I already have big plans for us.

Yours,
Kat

My latest article, Smartphone Art 2: Improve your images with basic editing, is up on the Seek Your Course blog now. Stop on over to get an overview of basic photo editing, selective adjustments, and how to find and choose apps. Let me know what you think!

What else do you want to learn? I’m prepping for my Smartphone Art workshop here in Oregon in a couple of weeks and starting to think about an online class. Now is the perfect time to let me know what you want to learn. Where are you having trouble? What makes you say, How did she do that? Drop me a note.

June 28, 2013 by Kat

Creating the Sun

It’s summer again, and I’m so glad. For about a week there, it wasn’t summer around here. A lot of rain and grey skies; muddy trails and wet dog. I wanted to wear my summer clothes – not my rain jacket – but didn’t have much of a choice.

I did have a choice in what I created, though, so I created my own personal sunshine through my art. Summer-y flowers and leaves in bright colors filled the bill. I could change my mood with a choice of brilliant oranges and reds, like this one…

…or lemon yellow and lime green, like this image “Looking Up.” Ahhhh, hello sun.

My husband complained that some of the colors were too bright. They hurt his eyes.

That sounds just about perfect to me. If they are too bright for you, just put on your sunglasses. I’ve achieved my goal, and created some sun.

June 10, 2013 by Kat

Right Place, Right Time

Every so often, an amazing opportunity lands in your lap. Sunday morning was one of those times, as our family got to take both a helicopter ride and a plane ride, thanks to my son Brandon’s enthusiasm for all-things-aviation recently. Every time he hears something flying overhead, he’s trying to identify what type of aircraft it is. He has books on planes checked out from the library and is the proud owner of a brand new RC plane.

Since we love to support his ~~obsessions~~ interests, we hooked up with a friend to take a “Young Eagle” flight, where pilots take kids for airplane rides to introduce them to flying. While we were out at the airport, we got permission to go take a look at the helicopter that had been doing training flights over our town all week.

The flight crew was getting ready to go out on a training flight and let us take a look at the inside. Brandon had lots of questions and after a few minutes of looking around the crew offered us a ride.

Our answer? An enthusiastic YES!

It was awesome. My first time in a helicopter. (Because really, how many of us have ever had the opportunity to ride in a helicopter?) It was a bit odd to lift straight off the ground. I also didn’t realize how close we would be to the ground — much closer than in an airplane.

Brandon and I made a short video (less than 3 minutes) combining his videography and my iPhone photography, that I’m excited to share with you today. You get to see a little bit of the scenery of the Coast Range and Willamette Valley around Corvallis, from a unique point of view.

We were ALL grinning ear-to-ear as we exited the helicopter. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; a perfect example of being in the right place at the right time. That, and the power of a cute and interested kid. We all agreed afterward that it was Brandon’s interest and enthusiasm that got us the invitation!

If you have a child and live in the US, check out the Young Eagles website for opportunities to get him or her a plane ride.

May 17, 2013 by Kat

This Way

I believe each and every one of us know deep down in our hearts the direction we want to go. It might be a secret longing, but we know.

The problem is, we let other things get in the way of moving that direction… Be it our fears or doubts or other commitments and responsibilities. We often spend our energy coming up with reasons why we can’t follow the path our heart sets for us, instead of spending energy removing the roadblocks or starting out along the path.

It often takes something bigger, a crisis to nudge us over those barriers and along the path. Sometimes we need the obvious arrows pointing the direction we need to go.

I was reminded of this as I hiked in the woods this week. I’ve been longing to hike on a regular basis for months. My heart has been yearning for this quiet time in the forest; my body has been asking to be moved. There is a happiness and contentment I feel when I get out and hike which spreads out into the rest of my life.

I started to rearrange my schedule and responsibilities so I could get out regularly months ago, but then I let other things get in the way. I made excuses and distracted myself. And then my shoulder started hurting, which became the arrow pointing me along the path in the direction my heart was already telling me to go.

My heart knew all along what I wanted. My body and my head knew too. Why did I have to wait until there was something painful to make the change? I’m looking closely at this, to see what I can learn.

Do you know where you want to go next? What is your heart telling you to do? Maybe it’s as simple as mine, walking in the woods. Maybe it’s something bigger. What can you do to move in that direction now? Look at what you need to rearrange, what you need to change, and start down the path. If you don’t, you might find an arrow or two appearing, making sure you know the way.

May 13, 2013 by Kat

Inhale Spring

I inhale
Fresh scent of spring
Tickles and tingles my nose

I exhale
With the earth
Matching her breath through branches

I step
Along hard-packed earth
Winter’s mud only imprints in my path

I blink
Flashes of sun
Revealing forests of white petals

I see
Joy in sunshine
Leaves sprouting with wild abandon

I pause
One last tree
Waiting sheltered in earth’s shadow

Not long now.

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