Natalie, the Photographer

Kevin bought a low-end digital camera at a garage sale a bit over a week ago.  It has minimal settings, but it came with all software, cables, etc.  I still had the 16mb memory card that came with my camera, and rechargable batteries, so we got a great kids camera for a $10 investment.  I was just hoping that one of the girls would take an interest.

The first day, they were both interested, especially Natalie.  The second day, Natalie played with settings a bit, then went off to do something else.  A couple of days later, she asked some questions about it, and I helped her find certain settings, and suggested tips (leave the flash off if at ALL possible, go for a lower ISO, etc.  She wanted something to shoot, but didn't find much of interest.

Tonight, after a day of overcast, gloomy skies, I saw the sun trying to peek out as I drove toward the house, so I called home to tell Kevin that Natalie should get her camera ready for a great sunset.  When I got home, I grabbed my camera and joined her on the deck.  She took several pictures (that card won't hold many) and I brought her in to show her "what comes next."  I introduced her to Photoshop, and a few saturation and color settings to play with.  She went overboard on a couple, but she cropped out things that should be gone, and enjoyed herself.

Here are her pictures, and I'll let you guys decide if there is a little "photog in the making" in this house.  I think she shows promise, and she seems to have an eye for what she likes.  That's really all it takes.  You have to see what you like, and find a way to capture it.  After she gets a feel for Photoshop, I'll teach her to reign it in, and use it for small adjustments, not as a crutch for bad photography.

Sheesh, I've been working my job too long!