Drew and I went to a photography show last night for our good friend Jeremy.

He had the excitement of showing off some of his work at City Hall. We teased him because he was all dressed up and even had his hair combed. Drew told him he really had that artist look going on about him. It was neat to be able to share in some of his work and to celebrate a big accomplishment with him. We grabbed some refreshments (mini quiches… yummy) and walked around to view his work. There was some other photographer/graphic artist that also had his work posted alongside Jeremy’s, but I didn’t really get his work. It was like modern art. I thought if I stared at it a bit longer it might make sense. It didn’t.

Jeremy had some great work. The pictures weren’t of anything fancy… just normal everyday things, mostly in nature.

He posted some cool shots from Monticello and some other places close by. But then he also had some from Nova Scotia, and those were particularly cool. It was refreshing to see work that wasn’t overdone and “fancified.” It was just things as they were, as he found them. He said how he loved receiving postcards from traveling relatives when he was young, and now that he’s traveling himself, this is his way to share his experiences with others.

One of the highlights was seeing some of his captions. Some were what you might expect, simply describing what was in the picture (white tree red leaves), but some were creative and oh so Jeremy. My favorite was a shot of a tangled bunch of tree roots. It was entitled, “Relationships I Know.” So true.

As we walked around and looked at each shot, it made me realize how much I’ve come to love photography. I got a very nice camera for my birthday a couple years ago, and I love it. I love just walking around and taking pictures of things I see. Nothing fancy and I’m still learning about aperture and exposure time and such, but it’s a great creative release. I’ve had the chance to take some pretty cool pictures in all the traveling I’ve gotten to do. One of my favorites was taken at the beach in Destin. It’s a lightning picture and if you scroll up to the top of the page, there it is. Nope, it’s not some picture we found on the internet. I took that myself. I took lots, actually. Drew and I went to a friend’s beach house in Destin, and while we were there, a lightning storm was happening out in the distance over the water. Drew helped me set the camera up on the tripod, gave me a few tips, and then I sat out on the porch for about 45 minutes, clicking away. It was an awesome experience watching the lightning, and being able to take pictures of that experience allows me to share it with others. Pretty cool thing.

So maybe someday I’ll get to stand in city hall and watch people look at the pictures I’ve taken. It’s a thought.