Auntie Em, Auntie Em, It's a twister!

While sitting at home enjoying a quiet day on the couch, I looked out the window in time to see the craziest weather pattern I think that I have ever seen! First it started to pour rain (like in buckets), then the sun came out and shone so brightly that I nearly pulled out my sunglasses, then just as suddenly the wind picked up and started to blow like I had never seen it before. It was sheer madness!
So of course, I grabbed my camera and ran outside.
I just barely caught the end of the sun against the grey sky contrast, and by the time the leaves really started to blow, the sun had gone away. Because I ran out so quickly and was trying to catch a moment, I put my camera on auto white balance and just snapped away. The result was some pictures with interesting movement, but not great white balance or colour. So, although I usually try to create the right photo within the camera, rather than doing it afterwards in a photo editor... due to my lack of experience and general rushed-ness in this situation, the photos needed a little help. I think it was worth it.

All photos taken with my digital SLR Canon Rebel XS and edited with Photofiltre

WAW - "Significant" (Lest We Forget)

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
- John McCrae

On this day of remembrance, we pay tribute to the men and women who have served to keep us safe and to protect our rights and freedoms. Every year I tell my students about how both my grandfathers served in WWII, and how they went into Europe on D-day (one in France, the other in Holland) and put their lives in danger to stand up against hatred and tyranny. This year, after hearing my stories, the students got together and made a card for me to send to my grandpa from them; the front of the card reads "You're our Hero" and inside each of them wrote a message of Thanks for my grandpa - thanking him for fighting for their freedom, for making Canada and the world a better place, for standing up for their rights. I was moved to tears, and I can hardly wait to send it in the mail to my Pa so that he can know that their sacrifices are still appreciated and remembered today.
So for my weekly assignment "Significant" in which we were to photograph something that may be seemingly insignificant but actually held much significance, I chose to take a photo of my students all wearing their poppies in rememberance of our veterans.
Because a new generation of people choosing to remember, that's pretty significant.

Photo taken with my digital SLR Canon Rebel XS

WAW - Autumn

Please sit down before you read this... because it may shock you, and I don't want to be responsible for anyone getting hurt. Ready? Ok...
This weekly assignment was actually completed... on time! I know, astonishing right?
Well, since the assignment "Autumn" is time sensitive, and because it is also perfectly timed right now as the leaves are changing and the sun has been shining... I think it would have taken more effort NOT to complete it on time. In our "photo group" where we post our assignments, we are only supposed to post 3 examples, but I had more that I wanted to share... so you guys get them all! Lucky ducks.

 

That last picture also actually fulfills another weekly assignment - "By Request" where my friend and colleague Danielle requested a photo of something humerous. When a pumpkin makes me laugh out loud and still chuckle everytime I see the photo... that counts as humerous!

All photos taken with my digital SLR Canon Rebel XS

WAW - Cameras

Sometime back, I tried to post a photo of all of our cameras. But the quality and the set up wasn't great. When the Weekly Assignment of "Cameras" came up, I was super excited to take some shots of our "babies". Unfortunately, the assignment came out exactly 1 day after I had packed up all of our cameras (except the ones we use most frequently) for the move. So I had to wait until we were moved in, and unpacked before I could really complete this assignment. But it was worth the wait.
Here are our camera "babies" (we actually have a few more, but I didn't include and duplicate cameras, and of course I was using the digital, so that isn't in there either).

About four of these get regular usage. The others either don't have enough manual settings or we can't get film for them anymore. But we love them all the same.
My next project is going to be learning how to use the old Super 8 video camera my grandpa gave me. Some day.

WAW - A Day in the Life

This autumn, though beautiful, has been jam packed with stuff... you know, just life stuff that gets in the way of posting here, or taking photos, or visiting with friends, or reading, or painting, or cooking, or doing some of those things that I just love to do to keep my sanity. Most of the stuff is good stuff - like moving into a new apartment, and the rest of it is just fact-of-life stuff - like taking on more responsibility at work.
But I feel like this weekend is the first weekend where life is starting to feel back to normal.
So what better time to catch up on my blog posts, and my weekly assignments?
I am really behind on weekly assignments, but I am still powering through and doing as much as I can. Since I have been so focused on getting my life back to normal, I thought it would only be natural to post my photos from the weekly assignment "A Day in the Life".
Here is a day in my life...

All photos taken with my DSLR Canon Rebel XS. Mosaic created with Big Labs Mosaic Maker.