Still Life Photos...

I posted these as my theme photos on Mamarazzi, but I was so excited about how they turned out that I thought I'd post them here too...

I had put off doing this last theme, Old/New, because I just couldn't get inspired. But this morning, the early morning sun was so beautiful coming through the windows, and last night I had dug out my really old 50mm 1.4 fixed lens, so I decided to give the theme a try.

For all the other themes, I had posted pictures of the kids, but I really wanted to try something I'd never done before, so I went for it with a couple of still lifes... It was really fun and challenging!

The biggest challenge is that my lens is so old that it won't even read the exposure through the lens, so I had to guess at a starting point and then work from there...it wasn't as hard as I thought.

So here's what I shot...

The first is a really old leather bottle that I found at an antique show... I was immediately drawn to it because it has Nick's initials on it. The old is the green bottle, the new is actually the background...it's a new brown leather bottle!



The second photo is the really special one... Our 19th wedding anniversary is coming up in a few days. Before we married, my mom and stepfather (John) lived in California. I loved visiting them in Huntington Beach and I loved eating at the club in their neighborhood, the food was outstanding.

Well John, who knew his wines, introduced me to this wine that I loved and he always ordered a bottle for us when we ate there. So the last time I was out there, before Scott and I married, John surprised me with a bottle to take home and save for a special occasion.

Just before our first wedding anniversary, when we had planned to drink the wine, John died tragically of a heart attack. I just couldn't bring myself to open it for another 2 1/2 years... We finally opened it when our first child was born! But I could never bring myself to throw the bottle away and I have kept it all these years (Yes, I'm hopelessly sentimental!)

So, with the beautiful light streaming through the window, it occurred to me that I should photograph the bottle...as a tribute to him but also to our anniversary!

John was an amazing man... He loved my mother so well, and he loved me well too. I couldn't have asked for a better stepfather... I miss his laugh, his generous spirit, his honesty and his spontaneity... John knew how to live life! I will never forget going to dinner with mom and John one night and a song came on the radio that he and my mom loved...he pulled the car over, and in the middle of the road, they danced! It still brings a smile!

But I will also never forget how one night, while I was in college, I heard a knock on our back door late at night and it was my mom and John bringing me a heater because he didn't want me to be cold in the old house and he didn't want my mom worrying... That was John...he played well and he loved even better!

So, in honor of John, here is the wine bottle... However, it represents the new in the photo because the old is his 100 year old dictionary that it is sitting on! That represents him also because he was brilliant! John... 18 years later, I still miss you...