Drumroll, Please!

Ta-da! I'm finally posting photos from my photography trip to the mountains. I had a fabulous time, and learned soooooo much in the three days I was there! My mind is now full of information about aperture, shutter speed, exposures, bracketing, highlights, depth of field, you name it! Estal taught us to shoot entirely using the manual settings, and I'm going to try to continue to do that so that I can stay in practice. It was exhausting, but oh so much fun! We stayed in Cades Cove for 13 hours taking photographs!!!!! And we got there at 6:15 a.m.!!!!!!

I really branched out of my comfort zone that week. I don't normally go out in public without my hair being fixed, all my makeup on, and "dressed" for town, but that week, it was minimal makeup and cool, comfortable clothes and shoes. I know I looked like an elderly lady/tourist with my ugly Reebok tennis shoes on, but sandals just wouldn't cut it on moss-covered rocks and going in the woods! You know what, for once in my life, it didn't bother me! I was there to learn about photography and get some great pictures, and that's what it took! I even got within 20 feet of a REAL, LIVE BEAR!!!!! The first time we saw bears, I was pretty tentative, but as we saw more and more, I got more comfortable. I still made sure there was somebody between the bear and me though! Ha!


There are some of these that aren't as good as others, at least to the technical eye, but I wanted to share them anyway. My little bear cub is an example of that, but I thought he was cute. I am going to have some of them framed to go in my office at school.

So here they are....enjoy!