The Andersons

Sharp as a Tack

I've been lax in blogging. I haven't had great pictures to post or any stories to tell that I've even felt like talking about. February has certainly been a month that I'm not sure I want to see come again next year. Next February will be sure to remind us of some extremely difficult times. It's been hard to be optimistic about life on this earth.

But thankfully, this month has done more than just come and go. It has left it's mark. God wants us to remember and that is the blessing in it. Satan would be happy if February 2009 left us bitter and hateful. But God has assured me that this is not His plan. I have seen more grown men gripped in sorrows this month than I care to remember, but God has proven that He is here to be our strength. It's funny how most of the struggles I have experienced I remember more fondly than I can believe. I know that God used those struggles to change my life and I pray, and am certain, that God will not disappoint this time, either.

I've been wanting to get a new lens for my camera for a long time. I've just been using the lens that came on my camera because I wanted to be sure of what I wanted before I dropped that first chunk of change on a new one. I decided on a prime lens which means it only has one focal length. You can't zoom in or out--you just have to let your feet do the work. I'd read that this particular lens will create fabulously sharp images and allow you to control your depth of field and get some very nice bokeh....... am I losing anybody? Because it sounds a little Greek to me, too. This shot is pretty clear all over. You can still make out all the junk in my backyard ;)

I have learned a little bit about depth of field and have learned that by changing your aperature, you can create some clear shots where everything is in focus or a shot where just one area of the picture is in focus and the rest is blurred or distorted. The blurry area in the background is called bokeh. That dead grass behind my daffodil is not clear. Although, it is still there, it is less sharp and all we see are the beautiful details in the focused part of the flower.

Please don't get bogged down in my impromptu photography lesson because, for goodness sake, I do not claim to be anywhere near knowledgable. But thinking about lenses made me realize that February 2009 is still a little too "sharp" all over for me. But, I know that thanks only to Him, next year our depth of field will change and we'll see February as that well focused picture with those sharp images fading into a creamy bokeh that only a good lens can give.