I Heart Faces Photo Challenge

So I guess by putting this out there, I am making it an "official" resolution...even though I really dislike that word. I prefer to say intention. My intention this year is to really make an effort to take my photography to the next level. And the new camera body Andy gave me for Christmas this year was the perfect thing to light my fire again. To make good on my intentions, I've set a lofty goal of doing a 365 project this year. It's going to be challenging and I know there will be days when I just have no inspiration, but I think that's what makes it a good goal to have. It's just one picture each day. While I'd love to think they will all be beautiful pieces of work, I know that's unrealistic. If they were all perfect, I wouldn't need this challenge. I'm going to do my best to follow through on this. Sticking with things...and I mean really sticking with them for the long haul, has always been hard for me in many areas of my life. Anyway, I'm getting off-topic. Back to photography.

Another way I'm working on my intention is to read everything I can get my hands on...which usually means online photography boards, blogs, groups. Which is how I came across I Heart Faces. Which leads me to another part of making good on my intention...putting myself out there. I love hiding and lurking and not taking risks. But that's not getting me anywhere I want to go so my other unspoken intention is to work on confidence in my abilities. My abilities as a mother, a wife, a friend, a writer, a photographer, a teacher, an athlete. I know in my head I am good at what I do in these life areas, but now I need to accept them in my heart. And for me I believe it starts with challenging myself and taking risks....putting myself out there for the world to see. So I'm starting with photography. I'm going to do my best to participate in online challenges and offer my work up for constructive critisism and critique. So here goes: my first online challenge. It may go unnoticed, and that's okay. Baby steps....

The theme for this week's I Heart Faces Challenge is "Winter Wonderland" which worked out perfectly as yesterday was the first day in a long time where we had all day snow. And it was that big fat snowflake snow that I love so much. The kids were home from school and were begging to go sledding, as we really hadn't had good enough snow for sledding before this. So Andy and I finished up our work and geared up and headed over to the closest decent sized hill. Here's my entry, which I captured after Hannah's first run down the hill. I love how the falling snow looks behind her. Love those big fat snowflakes. I'd love to know what you think.