Conversations with Frogs

A wonderful, early surprise presented itself this evening: The spring peepers began to truly sing for the first time this year just as I arrived home. In their excitement, the boys had convinced their mother to leave the front door open so they could hear the tinkling, amphibian music inside. Those apples didn't fall very far from the tree!

Although we still may be in for more winter weather later during the week, this briefest glimmer of spring has lifted my spirits greatly. When it is still cool at night, the first peepers start out very hesitantly but it doesn't take long for more and more to join in until the night sounds almost bowl you over with their intensity.

Occasionally I can get the whole group going myself during a quiet spell by whistling out a poor imitation of their tune. It is an awesome feeling to be the 'lead frog' in a choral swell! Although this has been a wonderful winter, I cannot help but anticipate the adventures that await me when the warmer weather returns. Now, if I can only get the Pickerel Frogs going I'll be in business!

Images from the Blizzard of '10

Actually, blizzard is not exactly accurate –We only received a couple of inches of snow and ice this weekend but it was beautiful anyway. I had so much fun sledding with the boys and was able to get out and shoot some winter photos, which I admittedly don't have many of in my files. Snow comes so infrequently here in South Carolina that I tend to revert (perhaps too strong of a word since it doesn't take much) to being a child again and would rather throw snowballs than make photos. But, the light was so great this morning that I couldn't pass up the opportunity. Besides, my children were inside thawing out after the old cycle of taking 2 hrs getting ready and 10 minutes to reach apparent pre-hypothermia and wanting to come back inside only to immediately want to go back out again...

On Charting My Course

I am driven by goals. Some people like goals and others find them detestable. I need goals because they give me a focal point in the sea of 'what ifs' and 'wouldn't it be cools' that cross my mind throughout the span of a year. I also appreciate the fact that at the end of another 365 days I can look back and actually feel like I've accomplished something worthwhile –if I actually have, of course. I have a tendency to forget about the good things that I've achieved and all too often will focus only on the things that need work if I am not careful. That isn't always a bad thing in terms of learning how to grow as a photographer but we all need little positive reinforcement from time-to-time.

One peculiar thing that I've noticed over the past few years is that the number of items on my list of goals has begun to shrink, while the ambition level of each seems to be rising. I have found this to be a very natural progression as my maturity as a photographer grows and my focus becomes more and more fine-tuned. In actuality, each one of my goals has a lot of moving parts and pieces – they just happen to share a common umbrella. For example, in 2010 I am focusing on four main projects. If things go as I hope, the outcome of some of these will include components such as books, exhibitions, and articles. In the past, I might have just listed these products individually. Now, I've begun to look at a body of work and consider all of the different ways that the imagery can be interlaced to support a common message; not exactly brain-surgery but it takes me a while to catch on sometimes!

I recently flipped through Andrew Zuckerman's book Wisdom. There is quote in the book from Ben Stein, in which he basically states (paraphrase) that one should "Focus on the best thing that you can do in a given year and your career will take care of itself." Right now, I am not quite at that level of trust but maybe one day I'll arrive. Although I'm not quite so young anymore, at 33 I am still dumb enough to be joyfully ambitious in the face of great odds. That is a piece of my youth that I hope I shall never lose!

For those seeking some instant inspiration and goal-setting advice for the approaching New Year, I came across this free downloadable e-Book from Seth Godin today. It is packed with thoughts from people way wiser than me.