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The digital camera has opened up a whole new world for photography.  In the past you would just have to shoot click and hope for the best. We used to call them money shots, because people would pay you money to destroy them.

I was never much of a photographer I didn’t really start taking pictures or even have my own personal photo album until after my kids were born. Of course that was BDC (before digital cameras).

My father was an avid photographer we would get the family together and have slid shows. For those of you who are too young to remember slides they are little square pieces of card board and there is a small cellophane picture in the middle.  You would pop those into a projector and wala!  There you were bigger than life on the wall. The good, the bad and the ugly.

It has only been in the last several years or so that I truly began to appreciate photography and what it means to people. After my Aunt passed away I was lucky enough to be given a box of her pictures. She loved taking pictures too. She had a rare disease and I think maybe that played a part in her wanting to document and remember every second of life. 

I decide to set up a memorial web page for her and make up a scrapbook for her son. I took the very large box and started digging. There were tons of photos still in there little processing sleeves. She loved camping and outdoors and animals. She frequented the zoo A LOT. And that is what was in her picture box. Lots of pictures of things and animals. Lions and tigers and bears oh my! There were very few pictures of her. So I had to expand my search.  I contact her brothers and sisters in other states and begged for photos. Let me tell you it is very hard to explain to someone who doesn’t own a computer the concept of scanning. I sent them to Wal-Mart or what ever store was convenient and I got my pictures.

Lots of pictures. And not just pictures of my Aunt but old pictures of my Grandparents when they were kids as well their family pictures. It was wonderful. I uploaded them all.  What had started out to be a memorial of my Aunt turned out to be a memorial of her LIFE and every person who she touched was included.

Now most of these pictures were BDC. With the help of my handy dandy photo enhancer I was able to crop in, enhance and emphasize the original photographer’s vision.

I noticed that even with all of these photos some family members may only have one or two shots. Those are family members who “didn’t want there picture taken”.  Relax people! Your family and friends love you the way you are. If Einstein hid from every picture because he was having a bad hair day he probably would not be as memorable.

My photo

I confess I was one of those people. But not anymore. On a recent trip to Vegas with my friends.(Names blocked to protect their identity) Not only did we all take pictures of each other but we accosted strangers to take pictures of us as a group, even going as far as to waiving people over to the side of the road to take our picture in front of a gorge. Now I take my camera to work I carry it in my car I take pictures of clouds.

I turned into a paparazzi. I stalked my teenage son for months trying to get a picture of him smiling with his new black hair do. It took me about a hundred shots and hiding behind walls but I got it! And now if I’m at the zoo and I want to take a picture of an antelope I throw one of my kids in front of it.

Link to my photos:

http://www.picable.com/photographers/lorilynn.13118