Wood Houses of Istanbul

I'll be honest, I can't remember what neighborhood in Istanbul these photos came from, I found them in my batch of photos from a May weekend with friends. We were wandering and found this area full of old wooden houses. Thew were so colorful and charming I couldn't stop snapping.

The colors reminded me of the painted lady houses in San Francisco, even though the styles are different. I also loved the diversity of the neighborhood.

Not all of them were colorful - this one looked like it was on it's last legs and was crying out for someone to come along and give it some love. A google search tells me these wooden houses are somewhat famous and rare - many were destroyed by fire.

Aaron Embry's Raven Song has kept me singing along today. Pin It

Ferry Hopping

We did a little ferry hopping to Kanlica, a neighborhood on the Asian side of Istanbul. We had two goals, get out on the water and try the yogurt that has made this neighborhood famous. It was a very successful trip.

The yogurt alone was worth the trip - it was delicious, and worth the reputation. Bonus was the people watching. We weren't in a touristy area, so it felt like we were getting a more authentic experience, with friends and families just hanging out in their own neighborhood.

Fingers crossed that we get back out here again very soon.

I've had Snow Patrol on repeat for several days now, an old favorite that just keeps getting better. I'm in love with their Lifening.

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You Will Become

Glen Hansard - You Will Become Pin It

Bridging Continents

This is one of the bridges in Istanbul that links the European and Asian continents, I still find it amazing that I get to experience life in a city that literally spans two continents. To me this bridging of two continents is what makes Istanbul so special - it is a perfect mix of: Europe and Asia, old world and new world, familiar and exotic. I feel at once comfortable there and at the same time I'm intrigued daily by it's uniqueness.

My only regret is that I don't have enough time to explore!

These guys (with Utah roots) are starting to hit the big time: Imagine Dragons - It's Time. Pin It

On the Waterfront

I grew up in a landlocked state, so I didn't discover the joys of living near the water until I found myself living in Seattle a decade ago. Once I got used to life near the mountains and the water, I didn't every want to live another way.

Istanbul is surrounded by water, from the Bosphorus and all its bridges to the Golden Horn, it is hard to  not see water. Every time I've crossed the bridge in the background of the photo above it has been full of people fishing off the side.

I'm not sure I'm ready to take to the water on one of these boats - given that the Bosphorus is also full of oil and other tankers, I'm thinking I'd feel safer on something a bit larger.

This song has been a big hit in the US, it's a great celebration of a lazy day spent out on the water: Little Big Town - Pontoon.

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Day That I Die

Zac Brown Band with Amos Lee - Day that I Die Pin It

Playing Photographer: Couples

After successfully navigating family photos for my sister, I agreed to give couples photos to go for my brother and sister-in-law. Without kids to corral, I was surprised at how much quicker and easier these photos were to get. Of course, one thing that made it much easier was that my SIL had done a lot of research and had collected a bunch of inspiration images that we used to get us started.

These were all taken near my hometown, where they now live. I arrived a day before we took these and, after looking at my SIL inspiration photos I did some location scouting. We ended up shooting in about 5 or 6 different places, but it was worth it to get a good variety.

The sky was dark and dreary all day, so we were worried we wouldn't get any of that golden light, but we lucked out and the sky cleared for us just in time.

It is safe to say I won't be giving up my day job to become a photographer anytime soon, but it is fun to be able to take a few photos for family now and again.

I think these photos deserve a love song, so here is one of my all time favorites, an oldie, but still beautiful.  Ray LaMontagne's Let it Be Me.

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Playing Photographer: Family Photos

I played real photographer for my sister and her family this summer. Mostly it reminded my of all the reason I'd never make it as a pro. Getting everyone to look the same way, smile and open their eyes - not an easy task. Still I had a lot of fun trying.

Instead of posting the "good" ones - i.e. the ones my sister will have printed and hang on walls, I thought I'd post some of my favorites, mostly outtakes - photos that made me smile and brought out personalities.

M and T weren't particularly in the mood to play model, so we moved fast and used frozen white chocolate chips as bribes - it was the only food I could think of that wouldn't result in messy faces and clothes.

We were attempting to copy a pose we'd seen on pinterest in this photo - let's just say it didn't quite go as planned....

My favorite of T - he looks sweetly mischievous, which is correct.

 

We never did get a good one of Miss M that evening, so the next morning I convinced her to give me another try. This ended up being one of my very favorite shots of the entire experience.

I recently downloaded the newest Josh Radin, the entire album is amazing, but his The Greenest Grass seems to be a great match with this photos.



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Little Miss

Sugarland - Little Miss Pin It

Away from the Light

I shared some photos Monday from a recent hike just before sunset. Those photos were taken toward the sun and I was trying to capture the beautiful warm light. This set of photos were taken the same day and from close to the same location, and same time, but were taken away from the sun.

Instead of warm golden light, these photos are full of coolness - and yet you can still see rays of lights shining through the clouds. Both versions of light are equally amazing.

This last shot was taken with my iPhone from a moving car (so forgive the blur.) It was taken near sunset - with the sun setting behind me, the photo is facing east. I was mesmerized by the rays of light crossing the entire sky. My goal is to someday develop my technical skills to the point that I can reliably capture the light as I actually see it, in all it's glory.

I found myself wishing I could head out a bit closer to nature today - since I can't here's the Pavement Ends from Little Big Town, a song is as close as I can get. Pin It