February 16, 2018 – Day 109 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Shutterbug Jayden – Today after I picked my 5-year-old nephew up from school he asked if we could go out and shoot some pictures and of course I said yes! I grabbed this shot of him shooting a picture of me in our old courthouse. He’s one of my “Shutterbugs.” I have 12 (currently) great-great nieces and nephews under the age of 7 and when they each turn 4 (and live in driving distance for the most part) we start going out on photo adventures together. Right now, we have 6 of the kids that are officially “Shutterbugs.” If you’d like to follow Jayden you’ll find him and the others at http://www.shutterbugkids.org . There’s links there to his and the others Facebook and Instagram accounts that are managed by me.

February 15, 2018 – Day 108 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Flower Children – When Journey and Elaina got here after school they came running into my office, excited to show me the flowers their Grandma got them! They were so excited and pleased with the flowers that I asked them if I could take a picture of them and of course they said yes and stuck them out for the camera! Then as fast as they did it they both noticed my two cats and then the moment disappeared! When photographing little ones, you have to be fast!!

February 10, 2018 – Day 103 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Birthday Girls – Today I caught this wonderful moment between my great-great niece Journey who’s 4th birthday is today and her aunt (my great niece) Ashley, who celebrates her birthday tomorrow! Sometimes pictures are right next to you! You just have to notice them!!

February 14, 2018 – Day 107 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Tracks – Seems like some days I have a one-track mind, or maybe two! LOL Good, strong leading lines can help make your photo strong!

February 13, 2018 – Day 106 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Peek-a-boo – My niece Journey plays a bit of peek-a-boo as I snap photos of her during lunch today. You don’t always have to include the whole face when photographing kids.

February 12, 2018 – Day 105 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Light and Patterns – I snagged this shot as I was waiting in line to pickup my nephew Damion at school today. I like the patterns of the bricks and the light and dark sides of the wall. Combining light and patterns can help make for a dynamic photograph. Keep your eyes open to what’s around you!

February 11, 2018 – Day 104 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Super Kid – Sometimes a picture doesn’t have to be the highest quality to be a great photograph! Today I caught this photo of my youngest nephew Jeremiah with his cape on and while the light was really low, and he was moving a mile a minute, I think it all adds to the photograph! Don’t not take a picture because you don’t think it’ll turn out! Sometimes you’ll be surprised!

February 9, 2018 – Day 102 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – A “Tired” Snowman – Mamaw was getting new tires put on today at one of our local tire shops and I stopped by to pick up Elaina and take her to lunch with me when we spotted this “Tired” snowman! She said, “Picture!” Of course, I said yes!!

February 8, 2018 – Day 101 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Waiting – Elaina and I ham it up for the camera while we wait for her brother Damion to get out of school! Always be willing to take fun pictures with the kids in your life! They only get to be young once!!!

February 7, 2018 – Day 100 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – The Barn – Today’s photo comes from Princeton, Indiana where I went to photograph trains. I’ve passed this spot on numerous occasions, but never stopped as there’s not really anyplace to pull over. When I saw the two horses in the sun I pretty much stopped in the middle of the road and shot the photo. Fortunately, I could see in either direction for a long way. Sometimes you must do “Whatever it takes” to get the shot you want. Still, always be safe!!

February 6, 2018 – Day 99 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Two Thumbs Up – My nephew Damion gives my new recliner two thumbs up as he tries it out for the first time! When he got here and saw the new chair I knew I was going to get a reaction, so I pulled out my iPhone even before he got into the chair to try it out. Being prepared for what you feel will be a good photo opportunity will go a long way in getting a good photo.

February 5, 2018 – Day 98 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Lamp post – I’ve always enjoyed the lamp posts here in my home town, especially this one with the brick wall as a background! Interesting pictures and compositions are all around us, you just have to pay attention!

February 4, 2018 – Day 97 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Group Hug and a Prayer! – My nieces Journey (in the middle of everyone), Elaina and nephews, Jayden and Damion get a group hug and prayer from their Worship and Wonder Leader, Jodi, at First Christian Church. I so love that these kids enjoy coming to church as much as they do! Photograph the lives of your little ones and big ones! It’s memories like this that make it worth it!

February 3, 2018 – Day 96 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – On the big screen – Tonight my sister and I went to see the latest Maze Runner sequel at our local theater. When we got to the auditorium early and it was empty except for us, so I made my way down to the very front in search of today’s photo. Thinking it was going to be a challenge for my iPhone because of how dark it was, until I found that right down front I could include myself on the commercials running on the screen. I shot several different photos but liked this hail Mary type pose the best! Sometimes, you have to be a picture taker and other times a picture maker!

February 2, 2018 – Day 95 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Patterns – I went to drop off some lab work for one of my nieces yesterday in Newburg, Indiana and found this scene in the lobby of the hospital! I just fell in love with all the shapes, lines, designs and all!

February 1, 2018 – Day 94 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Ice Cream – While spending some quality time with my nephew Jayden after picking him up from school today! Who doesn’t love a trip to Dairy Queen or a kid that loves to ham it up for his uncle Jimmy’s camera!

January 31, 2018 – Day 93 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Tree – This is another of my favorite trees to photograph. I’ve been shooting it pretty much ever since it was planted here many, many years ago behind the movie theaters here in town. A good ongoing project of photographing the same object over a long period of time will help improve your seeing as it can be a challenge to come up with different photographs of the same thing that you’ve shot before!

January 30, 2018 – Day 92 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Artist at Work – My nephew Damion has decided he wants to make his own comic books! Here he is creating his first! The title is, “The Battle” by Damion Rose. It’s about a Dragon, Ninja, Sloth and Robot doing battle! Photograph the things your subject is interested in doing! You’ll be much happier and get better photographs if you do. Also, encourage the young ones in your life to pursue their dreams!

January 29, 2018 – Day 91 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Headed south – I’ve photographed his sign before in Robards before, but till today I never really thought of including a train passing in the background, even though the they pass there all the time. Well, today it came to mind as I was waiting for a southbound CSX local and here’s the picture!! Always keep you eye out for different and unusual angles and things to include to help make your pictures stronger! One of my mentors in life told me that “If it doesn’t contribute to what you want to say in your picture then don’t include it!” Change your angle, get higher or lower, what ever it takes to shoot the picture the way you want!

January 28, 2018 – Day 90 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Manners – All my older 4-6 year-old nieces and nephews all like holding doors open for people, either out in public or even at their homes. Here my niece Elaina and nephew Jayden wait patiently for me and the rest of the family to exit the restaurant. When photographing the kids in your life, be sure to include the little things!!

January 27, 2018 – Day 89 – iPhone 7 Plus Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Light – Went to see the new movie, 12 Strong, (great by the way) and found this light just screaming to be my black and white photo for the day! I already had a couple other options on my camera roll, but this guy took the prize! Right shape for a square photo and the right amount of light for a good photograph, plus the added bonus of a frame within a frame! Always keep your eyes open as you never know where your next picture will come from!!!

January 26, 2018 – Day 88 – iPhone Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Family – This is a photo of my niece Tracy surrounded by her four kids I shot today, after I dropped of my nephew Jayden from school. Well, actually, Tracy is my great-niece and the kids are my great-greats! Isn’t that great?? LOL When photographing a young family group sometimes you just have to go with the flow and let the little kids be kids in your pictures!! I love the chaos that is in this here with the kids making faces and having fun, it makes for great memories!

January 24, 2018 – Day 87A & B – iPhone Daily B&W Photo Challenge – 100 Days – Today I can’t make up my mind which picture I like the best! My nephews Damion and Jayden dressed up as 100 year-old men to celebrate the 100th day of school! I couldn’t resist getting them together after school for a few pictures this afternoon and these are my two-favorite black and whites!! They both can be a bit of a ham sometimes, but then again, I’ve been photographing them since they were born! Also, they both are Shutterbugs themselves! So, which one gets your vote?? Shutterbug Damion is on the Left and Shutterbug Jayden on the right.! You can find them both on Facebook and Instagram!

January 24, 2018 – Day 86 – iPhone Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Phoropter – Anyone who’s had an eye checkup has seen this contraption! It’s commonly called a “Phoropter.” I had my annual eye checkup yesterday and grabbed this interesting shot of the front of the device they use! While I’ve heard of blind photographers before, it’s always best to take very good care of your eyesight if you are a photographer!

January 22, 2018 – Day 84 – iPhone Daily B&W Photo Challenge – Shapes – This afternoon I was waiting for two of my nephews and a niece to finish up choir practice at church and decided to wander around and see if I could find a picture for the day. I decided on the stairwell that connects the church to the educational/gym wing of the church and liked this view but felt something was missing until the 3-year-olds headed down from practicing in the sanctuary and I knew my picture was in the bag, so to speak! The human element in your photo can really make the picture more interesting and also give scale to your photo. Sometimes you must wait for it to happen however! When you find an interesting picture that just needs something else like a human element, just wait! Or revisit the scene! It will happen!