What does a baby see? driving through Idaho

We drove to Idaho for Thanksgiving this year. It was bitterly cold, highs of -10 degrees and had recently snowed. Despite snow packed roads and freezing cold winds, Idaho in the winter provides some beautiful, stark landscapes--eye candy. As we drove through Carey, a small town in south central Idaho, the sun was starting to set. I couldn't help but think that a quiet but very alert Jack was taking in all the colors and the surroundings of his parent's home state; a place that never ceases to amaze us even after all these years.

What does a baby see? first snow storm

The world went from brown and tan to white overnight. This years early snow fall meant Jack and I spent all day looking out the various windows of our house. I'm pretty sure it was more exciting for me.

backyard

mountain ash tree outside the dinning room window

view from the living room window

stepping out the back door

What does a baby see? Dec. 9th

This has been a big month in Jack's world. Three months old almost and he's so much more aware of his surroundings. While the distinct lines in our house's architecture and contrast between paint colors still entertain him, he's noticing more and more about the world around him. I think he loves car trips and walks outside because of his  fascination with trees. Here are a couple of his most recent discoveries:

trees outside the window

feet. perhaps the most exciting of discoveries to date.

our dog Camaro.

What does a baby see? Nov. 5th

A few of Jack's favorite scenes from home. These are the things that catch his eyes and his teeny tiny attention span. All images taken with a 50 mm lens focused at 18 inches away from the camera.

from the couch

from the baby buggy

over the shoulder view from the rocking chair

forward facing hold going to the rocking chair

propped up on the bed 1

propped up on the bed 2

laying on the bed 1

laying on the bed 2

one month old. Oct 16th

what does a baby see? Oct. 5th

I read somewhere that babies of Jack's age could focus on things 18 to 25 inches from their face. If that's all they can see clearly the rest of the world must seem like a dreamy wash of colors. When Jack was 19 days old I took my camera with me on my daily walk, set the focus to 18 inches away from the lens, used my 50mm and started capturing the world the way Jack would see it.

oct. 3rd

a walk and coffee stop at Le Petit Outre . oct. 3.

my new world.

Yes, my last post was in June or July. I simply lost steam again. After having a brief moment this spring where I felt creative and inspired, I fell flat again. My life seemed to be consumed by my pregnancy both physically and mentally. As much as I was thinking about the little human growing in my belly, I simply didn't want to bring it to my blog. I wanted this space to be creative and less about me and more about my art. Funny how I tried to separate me from my art, can that even be done? Not really. So here it is, my life and my art all wrapped up in one.

On September 16th, at 6:50 pm Jack Walker Pedde, the little man that was inside only moments before, lay on my chest looking at me with sleepy, calm eyes. We already knew each other. I knew his sleep schedule.  I knew that he liked to sit with his long legs straight out at a 90 degree angle. I even knew what music made him dance around. He knew things about me that I'll never know, the sound of my heart, what I'm like from the inside. Most importantly he knew my voice and as he lay on my chest, his pale body against my flushed skin, my voice was just about the only thing he recognized.   

Needless to say, my world has been completely different since that point. So far I still feel like I'm exploring a new, exciting country and haven't started to miss the things I've left behind--and maybe I never will. One thing I'm determined to carry forward is art, whether its photography, writing or any other type of creative process. It just too important for my sanity.

Before Jack, I promised to take one photograph a day for the next year. It seemed easy enough. Well I've probably done this but most of the images are of a sleeping baby or a flash startled baby...not super exciting to the outside world. I will do my best to share the ones that are more creative and less, "mom in awe" but I'll have to throw some of those in there every once in awhile.

Waiting. Jack was five long days late. It seems like nothing now but they were the longest five days I've ever experienced.

1 day old

5 days old

Morning. 1 week old

10 days old

napping. 10 days old

I miss my feet.

The slow good bye to my feet prompted me to do my very best to photograph them just to remember what they look like.

It was probably the most difficult shoot I've ever done, balancing cameras, standing in odd possitions, holding the camera above my head and shooting blind while trying to capture the perfect angle...hours of fun. There were a few I really liked but this one is one of my favorites. 

Knox

My sister had her baby, Knox Hudson June 4th and I was able to photograph some of his first moments.

amazing morning on petit lake.

This is for my Dad who taught me to photograph and passed on his passion when I was ten. And now he lives vicariously through me and I'm 100% okay with that.

On this morning, however, it was my who mom saw the light on the lake as she woke up, photographed for a bit, and then woke my Dad and me up to share the view. The two of us, armed with cameras and outfitted in pajamas ventured out into the rain as it danced with the light across the surface of the lake. The light was short lived but the experience was amazing. I have a pretty great family.

garage t's - printing stop motion v.2

Garage T's asked me to shoot a product specific group of shirts and expand my garage t's stop motion video. I am really loving the stop motion and my intervalometer.

Belly

My sister was 8 months pregnant when I was visiting awhile ago. We were able to get some fun belly photographs which I've never done before.

Catch up

This past month has been a whirl wind of blogging. Unfortunately, my own blog has suffered as I've been working on RMSP's blog, Paper Airplanes, which launched at the beginning of May. In all honesty, I was a little blogged out. So here I am trying to play catch up over the next few days.

I was the second shooter for a wedding in San Antonio, Texas for my friend Eileen Rafferty, which was very fun. I have to say, I love shooting weddings. As hectic and crazy as it gets its usually a good kind of crazy. Here are a few of my favorites.

Castle Frame Works

I was in Sun Valley, Idaho for a quick weekend trip and had a chance to photography my brother-in-law welding his newest bike frame. He owns a custom bike frame business, Castle Frame Works.

peeps show

In honor of Easter I sacrificed a package of peeps candy. The idea for this quick photo project was born this past Friday at an art opening, of all places. I was eating a peeps and discussing how they are much better slightly aged and crusty. I recalled how I rushed the aging process of marshmallows to get that desired crunch by using a microwave on the marshmallows. How does it work? Well besides changing the consistency, it grows the mallow mass about four times its original size. It's brilliant. After it shrinks back down and hardens you are left with a meringue-like delicacy. I decided to try it out on some peeps and document the changes. It of course started out with a peeps portrait session.