About Andrea

In the first 24 yrs of my life I bore the tags of daughter, sister, niece, student, Christian. The second 24 yrs I added wife, mother, home educator, friend. As I began the first year of what may be the final 24, I added widow, then a few years later, mother-in-law, and now looking forward to one additional one, grandmother. I see myself as a creative person. I love to play with color, paper, fabrics. I love to read and learn, to travel and photograph (just about anything)...sewing, scrapbooking and cardmaking are activities I have done longer than you'd care to know. In all I do I hope I will honor God. He has blessed me with so much and has never ceased to provide for me. Welcome to a little part of my world.

http://fivepinesdesigns.blogspot.com

 

What inspires you to take pictures?  People are important, holidays, birthdays, special events, but I have to say, things that have caught my eye for many years have been architectural features, stonework, metal work, etc.  I have really enjoyed the close-up feature on my camera allowing me to get in close and study the details of the flowers, we so often overlook close examination.  
However, above all, trying to capture beautiful scenery tops the list. I love to travel and getting those vistas and views recorded to look back at are amongst my favorite things. Moments in time and history is the way I look at what I shoot.

 

What kind of camera do you use?   I use a Cannon Power Shot A630  8 mega pixels. While in my younger years I dreamed of owning a "real" camera, and having been the owner of several different cameras over the years, I have found this one to be extremely versatile, wonderful zoom, excellent close-ups on flowers, even fireworks at night have all been  wonderful. Simple to operate, affordable, and great results! 

 

If you can remember,tell us about your first experiences behind a camera. This would be with my father's Argus 35mm camera and I would have been quite young, six or seven.  The first photo I took I recall vividly it is one I took of my parents on a trip to Kentucky in the spring on our vacation. It was our first venture into camping and Dad let me use his camera to take the shot. I was extremely nearsighted and found lining up the sides to focus the image to be a bit of a challenge, but I was hooked! I think it may have been that Christmas that I received my first camera...film...that was another story!  Oh yes, Dad took slides, so all our memories were in full color unlike many of our friends who were taking the less expensive B&W prints...guess that dates me! But oh, what memories they were!

Do you have a favorite Mosaic Moments™ Technique? I really like the paper blocking technique. Whether using  Paper Tiles or cutting my own using the Mosaic Moments Quick Grid Guide. This also allows me to make use of scraps from my card making, or patterned paper that may add another element that carries a theme.

 

Tell us about A place you visited that has changed you. Just about everywhere we have traveled to has changed me. Dad made a point of vacations being learning events, and the tradition has continued with my bunch. I think when my folks took me and my two brothers to Scotland to visit their families is probably one trip that made the biggest impact as a child. Meeting family, going places and spending two months living there began to put into perspective my family and their personal history, like a key that had been missing. I fell in love with the mountains and the sea. I longed to make a return trip one day and photograph everything...which just happened to be last year and I shot well over 3000 photos. Historic places, family homes tracked down on Census records through the 1800's, scenery, flowers, places I remembered from my trip at age 11 and family that are still living, oh yes and sheep, lots of sheep!  

 

What is your guilty pleasure: a pint of Haagen-Daz Ice Cream-usually Chocolate Chocolate Chip

 

Favorite quote or motto: I have a file full of favorite quotes, so picking one is a bit difficult. However, I've chosen one that kept pushing me forward six years ago when my husband passed away after a fight with lung cancers.

It is attributed to Mark Twain: "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do then by the ones you did.  So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor.  Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore. Dream. Discover." 

However when it comes to all things art, I quite like what Sir Winston Churchill , an artist himself, said: "  I prefer landscapes. A tree doesn’t complain that I haven’t done it justice."

 

What one item do you ALWAYS have in your handbag/purse? I have a small retractable 6' tape measure on a carabiner clipped to loop in my purse. You never know when you need to measure wood, fabric, furniture or a multitude of other items before you buy. Far more reliable than measuring with a hands span.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

andrea