Do you have a "happy place." If the answer is no then I strongly encourage you to find one. The Gospel according to Cathy says that your happy place is all your own. It is where you can escape the world and find that elusive gift of inner peace. I can't pick a happy place for you and I promise that it doesn't work when you try to feed off of someone else's. It needs to belong to you.
A happy place is where you lose all track of time and pain. Some of you might find this by meditating or spending time on a yoga mat. Some of you may say it is when you lose yourself in a good book. For some it is those moments in nature that I define as "God moments." All of the above contribute to my happy place, but nothing quite compares to the time that I spend behind my camera; or it is one of the above spent in conjunction with my camera.
About six or seven years ago I got serious about bettering the relationship that I had with this black box. I had a hole in my heart that needed filling after Maggie had to give up therapy work. I wish that I could go back and recreate the moment in time that has brought me to today, but like most things it didn't seem quite as large at the time as it was to become. I began spending more and more time with a camera in my hands. Then I added learning more about the post processing side of things. I worked my way up to getting my feet wet by talking to other that enjoyed photography and that very caring community has taught me a lot.
So once again I urge you to find your own particular "happy place." Last night a field of sunflowers in bloom did the trick for me. I often say that my camera has become my Percocet and Prozac all rolled up into a magic black box. Find what feeds your soul and then go for it!
A beautiful image with great DOF Fav. I am always happy when I have my camera in my hands and I think photography enables you to see and appreciate the beauty that surrounds us
