Even before digital cameras were found in nearly every home (Egads, I’m dating myself at 22) I have been captivated by photography. Getting a point and shoot, disposable camera back in the day was a gateway for fun. Our gifted and talented class took several field trips to downtown St. Louis over the years. We’d be taught the basics of centering, aligning left. or right, and then set loose into the botanical gardens or given a guided tour of the architecture. We would have an entire role of film to take whatever pictures we desired. I relished those days and looked forward to the creative freedom. Those cameras were point and shoots as well but that never felt like a limitation.

Nowadays I’ve got a Canon Powershot camera of my own, and my little digital does a great job. But today is more about using my very first professional level camera. Mom has always shared my love of photography and has been curious about using a higher level camera. She found a Canon EOS 5d camera at an estate sale for a fraction of the cost. Playtime!

I’m no pro. I’m a happy little amateur who got to play with a serious toy. I had to fiddle around with the thing for about thirty minutes to learn how to focus and zoom. I still have no idea what most of the settings do. I’m too stubborn to read the manual and would rather learn by experimenting. So today I tramped out to my backyard and started snapping.

These pictures are my favorites. I didn’t do any rearranging. Everything I photographed naturally occurs in my backyard. But I did do some minor editing on the computer using Windows Live Photo Gallery. Just some cropping and a few color alterations.

In this weather, I was a feast for the mosquitoes. But I had fun running around the backyard with my dogs, Sadie and Oliver. Mom loves birdhouses and fairy elements, and those were my favorite to photograph.

I love how the old iron chair feels like a found moment. There were a lot of little treasures like this in the backyard. I had completely forgotten that my Uncle Rob made the birdhouse below for my mom.  Today was all about rediscovering what’s behind my house.

After my little photography adventure, I’m excited to play with this camera elsewhere. Perhaps I’ll tackle the front yard next?