nature photography | At Home with Tech

May 12, 2024

Chasing the Bloom to Capture the Magic of Spring

I always enjoy the experience of capturing blossom bliss with my camera. Here are a few of my photos.

When the flowers begin to bloom, and the spring cherry blossoms pop, it’s absolute magic. But it’s always too fleeting. Days. Maybe a few weeks. And then suddenly, summer is just around the corner.

That’s not so bad, but I think no other season can beat spring in New England.

Each year, I grab my Lumix camera (or simply use my iPhone) to capture the arc of this annual display throughout my neighborhood. It’s all so beautiful, from the early buds to the fallen blossoms near the end.

Here’s what nature graciously presented to me this year…

April 7, 2024

What Do an Earthquake, the Solar Eclipse and a Spring Flower have in Common?

These tree blossoms represent something much larger, which we can barely understand… if at all. Happily, you can still take a picture.

The big news this week was supposed to be the solar eclipse. But the New Jersey earthquake that affected much of the northeast stole the headlines three days before the big celestial event.

Having always lived on the East Coast, I didn’t really know how to process this sudden experience of our entire house vibrating. (I first thought our washing machine in the basement had badly malfunctioned during the peak of its spin cycle.)

Fortunately, it was not a big earthquake… just a taste of nature’s raw power.

Puny Humans
We are certainly not the center of our universe. A little earthquake or a total solar eclipse will quickly remind anyone of that often-terrifying truth.

We are tiny.

Mother Earth and its moon. The sun and its solar system. Our galaxy and its place in the universe. It’s barely possible for us to even comprehend.

It’s not Just a Flower
When spring shows up in the Northern Hemisphere, and the cycle of life is on full display, it’s just another example of forces much larger than us.

Sure, clipping a pretty daffodil from your backyard and popping it into a small vase on your dining room table is enjoyable. But perhaps it’s also good to remember what powered that flower’s creation. (I know one can take this in more than one direction. But that won’t change my point.)

Clarity
So this year, while I walked about my neighborhood with camera in hand to greet spring, I did it with something of a more evolved perspective. (My early-April photo exercises have become an annual tradition: 2022 and 2023)

Sometimes it just takes a little earthquake or a massive solar eclipse to put it all in perspective.

December 31, 2023

My Biggest Discoveries I Blogged About over the Past Year

Here’s my At Home with Tech year in review. Below are the links to my key learnings and tech discoveries.

So yes, these next few weeks can all be about looking forward. The fresh start. The resolutions. The turning over a new leaf. But I like to think of this time of year as the next chapter that builds on the past. It’s not so much ‘the new’… as ‘the next.’

I try to carry it forward. That way, I can greet these annual cycles with the perspective of my past years’ experiences. Said another way, it’s important to look back as you look forward. Otherwise, a lot can get lost across the years.

That’s why I think it’s critical to package up the story of your past year in an organized photo collection (digital or book) or perhaps an edited video-clips overview.

You might also want to perform a mental review and acknowledgement of your other notable actions and learnings.

Take it in. Then lock it in, or let it go if need be.

At Home with Tech Year in Review

As you know, I document my thoughts on technology and family life each week. So, I’ll follow my own advice and offer this summary of my blog posts that reflect my big learnings across the past year. Please check out the links below that most interest you!

My Growth as a Parent