This year has been a full one. There has been a lot of great moments and some not so great ones. There has been a lot of change. I fell crazy deep in love with a wonderful person. I finished my freshman year of college and moved into my sophomore year. I had a ton of new experiences like going to Gary for the first time, riding a Ferris Wheel, getting fired from a job, getting in a car accident, getting pulled over for the first time, running into a Sheriff because I was trespassing (he was very nice), getting my first tattoo, smoking for the first time, changing my major and my first car died in the parking lot of a gas station. I did a lot of exploring, driving, thinking and saw a lot of new places. I made my first road trip and I saw the Atlantic Ocean for the first time. I got over some really rough thoughts and decided that living was better than dying. I got better at taking photos and also decided that photography was not what I wanted to do for a living. I met new people, including Austrian royalty, and made some new friends. I switched jobs a few times and learned a lot about work and how it plays into life. My mom moved and we said goodbye to a house that had been home for nearly seven years. I read a lot and wrote a lot. I wrote some good stuff and some not so good stuff. I got some good grades and some bad ones. I got into arguments and got a lot better at saying sorry and making up. I learned a lot about myself and how I work. I learned how to express myself, how to deal with some of my issues, how to apologize, how to stand up for myself, and how to listen. Like I said it has been a year of change, growth and new experiences. I sit here and look forward to another year of new experiences, new places, and new people. I see a year of challenges, new memories to be made and new things to discover not only about the world but about myself. This challenge has been a good one. It has definitely been a challenge. I have loved it and hated it. Now it’s finished and I’m glad I did it and finished it. So here’s to a great year filled with great times and great challenges.
While this picture is an old photo, it helps put me in the mood for Christmas. I absolutely love the lights this time of year. Everything is lit up so beautifully, especially when people use white lights. These lights were draped along our old fence line and they happened to be snow covered when I took the photo. They made for a perfect winter scene.
For Christmas I decided to make a painting for Hannah in the style that she does most of her drawings in. It’s not an easy style for me, but I attempted it anyway. I started with some drawings and then decided on this floral design. It was fun to try and draw in her style and add my own touch as it went along.
So the weather has not been the greatest this December. It hasn’t been that cold, but it has been very gloomy and rainy. It certainly isn’t the best Christmas weather. But I came across this photo that I took last summer. It was one of the first photos with my new camera. The snow that day was beautiful. Hopefully we will get some of this weather soon.
I have continued to look through old photos and found another old favorite from last year. This was from another exploring trip downtown. Last year I would hop in my car to escape school and drive to the center of Indy. I got a lot of great shots and became much more comfortable with the city. It was a great time and a lot of fun. And it got some great shots for me.
My photography professor recently asked the class if we had ever stopped and talked to homeless and other various people on the streets. Only a couple said yes, myself included, and he asked if we had gotten interesting stories from them. The answer to that is definitely. While I did not talk to the man above very much, I have heard some interesting stories from others. Everything from a man in a wheel chair trying to get to California and get revenge on the police that broke his legs there to a former NBA player that was trying to get money for a cab. How many of these are actually true, I will never know for sure. But they are certainly interesting and the people that tell them can be wonderful and are worth stopping and talking to.
As I was looking through old photos and reliving old memories and adventures, I found this photo. It is an old favorite taken last year. Me and Brandy went to shoot downtown and found a train track while we were walking around. Of course we followed it and I was able to get this shot of her. It was taken in the fall among some really great days of shooting. She has been one of my biggest inspirations when it come to photography and was the reason I decided to do this challenge in the first place. We have had some great times together and many of these days of shooting and being with each other helped me out of a lot of bad feelings. We have always been close and I have always looked up to her and it’s not just because she can make a great photo. It is because I have seen what she has been through, more than anyone should have to deal with, and it inspires me to keep going and trying. You mean more to me than you know Bran and I love you.
The Ecolab is a stunning place. I have probably said that a few times by now, but it really is beautiful. And it can make for wonderful photos. I’m sure I have said that too. But this place is a little gem. While the rest of campus continues to get increasingly boring, there is always something to look at in the Ecolab. It’s great to escape the campus and come down to this place.
Today I decided to take a walk in the Ecolab. Honestly it was more because I had to take some photos for class. It was a freezing cold walk, but I got some good shots. The Ecolab is a beautiful place and the snow only made it prettier. As I walked around I heard one of the coolest sounds that occurs in right now here in Indiana. That is the calls of the Sandhill Cranes that are migrating right now. They are beautiful birds and they are moving from Canada to the south. You often hear them before you see them. So if you’re in the area and hear a weird noise, look up and you might seem some.
It snowed today! It isn’t the first day of snow, but today the snow actually stuck and stayed around. It snowed lightly, but consistently almost all day. It was very pretty to watch it and I honestly don’t mind the snow. I love snow. I just don’t care for how cold it is. Oh well, that’s winter here in Indiana. I think Peanut even liked the snow.
What a year.
Bran & Chan 