I know I haven't been updating much on here about what we're learning in my Digital 101 class, though I have posted some pictures I've taken while being in the class. I'll get more into all of that later, but this week's assignment (as in, due today) was to get some of our photographs printed off (I liked the results I got from MyPhotoPipe.com so I'll give them a shout-out!). It was to help us get acquainted with that part of the whole photography process, as well as help us determine what pictures turn out best on what types of paper (glossy vs matte, etc). We also took a few pictures that were supposed to follow any one of the "rules" of composition... rule of thirds, patterns, leading lines, etc, for fellow photographers out there.
Well, both my assignments this week got a really good reception! I was very pleased/proud! Ryan said that I made good paper choices for the prints I ordered, and both he and my fellow classmates had good things to say about a lot of my photographs. To top it all off, at the end of class I was asking Ryan something about what methods he uses to select between several photos of the same subject (read: so I don't have to repeat my last post for every photo shoot I ever do!!) And the part of the evening that really made my day (which I'm probably waaaaay over-analyzing and reading into because, come on, I'm a girl and we just do that about everything, but still made me happy) is that he prefaced his answer with "Well, you seem more serious about this, so......" and proceeded to give me what, I guess, was a more thorough answer, or perhaps suggested tools (such as portfolio review/tutorial sessions) that he wouldn't bother giving someone that was less "serious".
It was just a compliment that he probably didn't even realize he was paying me by recognizing that I AM, or at least am trying to be, more serious about this. I'm not sure if it was my manner in class, the attention I seemed to pay to the lessons, my level of familiarity with some of the concepts already, or any amount of success that is already coming through in my shots (some combination of all of these things would I guess be ideal). But something tipped him off to the fact that I really am interested in this stuff for more than just weekend outings' sake. And whatever that may be, it made my day that it IS coming across!
So yay!!! :D
In other notes (and in an attempt to go ahead and get some other items out of the way on my to-blog list) the rest of my evening turned out pretty good too. My day started out kind of crappy. I showed up to work only to find that the power and phones were both out, my boss was elsewhere, and the only instruction or direction she would give us was that we weren't to leave and she would call after her meeting (which was supposed to go until sometime between 10am and noon.) I tried calling her after she had spoken with a coworker to see if she could give us any sort of timeline. Any idea of "If the power's not on by ___ o'clock, you can go work from home." But no- she cut me off before I could get the thought out, responded "I know the power's out. I want you to stay there. I'll call after my meeting." And that was that. So I started off my day very upset (I called John after that almost in tears out of anger) that my manager was showing very poor leadership skills by appearing to be "too busy" to acknowledge or deal with the fact that her employees did not have the resources they needed to do their job. The power did end up coming back on mid-day, just a little before she got back. I really wished it had stayed off. Not simply because the idea of being able to go home was enticing, but because the situation allowed her to show up and say "Oh, good. The power's back on. Looks like my plan worked. I was right to just have yall stay here." When in fact, NO, that is NOT good managing, and despite the fact that this situation turned out for the best, that kind of leadership should really NOT be encouraged. UGGG!
Anyways, like I said... my evening DID turn out fine. I promise! First, class went well. Then I came home and, it not being too late, decided to get in some exercise, so I hopped on my gazelle (the exercise machine, not the African animal, for anyone new to my blog), and finished Little Black Book. (I started it earlier this week while also on my gazelle.) I ended up doing 35 minutes, working up a little bit of a sweat- enough to feel like I was doing myself some good- and enjoy a good movie! Because, yes, this is a VERY good movie. Not if you're a guy probably, but it's a great girl-power movie. Not in the sense of shoot-em-up, killer (literal) heels, poison lipstick, etc, like you'd find in Sucker Punch or any Angelina Jolie flick. But more along the lines of *possible spoiler alert* I can have my happy ending with or without a guy *end of spoiler* kind of way. And, while there is technically no random breakout musical number like most of my other favorite movies include, music does play a large role, and the last scene leaves a smile big enough and tears bright enough on your face to make you think it ended with the musical number of the decade! So if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. :)
So that was what made my day so good. :) Now I'm all showered, and done with my post, so I'm going to head to bed and read a little of my latest Anne of... book. :)
Sweet dreams!
PS- Ryan DID say that asking other people for their opinion when you just can't decide between youe last few good photos is actually a good method, so I can't promise that I won't have ANY repeats of my last post, but I'll try to keep them to a minimum! :P
