Salsa!

It's only January 6 and I'm already slacking! :) Luckily I have a good reason...salsa dancing!  I learned how to salsa dance last night at Spy Bar in Marion.  Seriously so much FUN!  If you live around Iowa City or Cedar Rapids you have to go.  Salsa dancing is every Wednesday night, and don't worry if you don't know how to salsa, because they give lessons before the dancing begins.  As a result of my very late night of dancing I'm going to be drinking a whole lot of this today.

Have a great Thursday!
Minda

The Flower Vendor

My favorite painting is Diego Rivera's The Flower Vendor.  This painting was given to me as a gift while I was a LVC volunteer at Southeast Asian Ministry in St. Paul, Minnesota.  This painting has moved with me to five different houses and two states, and is currently prominently displayed in my living room.  I could look at this painting for hours; the vibrant colors and the sea of calla lilies are breathtaking.  You can view more of Diego's work here.

Minda

My Second Home

For the past 2.5 years I've been a commuter.  Every week day I get in my little blue Saturn Ion and drive the nearly 30 miles from Iowa City to Mt. Vernon.  Most days I don't mind the drive along highway 1. Taking in rural Iowa in all it's glory, and enjoying the 40 minutes each morning and evening to be with my thoughts.  Lots of great ideas have come to be along that stretch of highway.  However, sometimes I feel like I live in my car and the rapidly increasing mileage and constant oil changes are a reminder of just how much time I spend in my little blue Ion.  As I was driving home tonight I took a moment to take some pictures from my second home.  I'm sure the person in the car next to me thought I was nuts, as I sat at a stoplight taking pictures in the dark.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Monday.

Minda

The Details

I have always been drawn to the details.  The texture of a door, the delicate petals of a flower, the intricate design of a piece of jewelry.  One of my favorite parts of photographing a wedding is taking pictures of all the details; the rings, shoes, flowers, the dress.  Here are a few pictures I took this afternoon around my house.  I encourage you to take a moment to look at the details, you never know what you might find.

Minda

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a wonderful NYE.  I spent today hanging out with my family in Marshalltown, eating, laughing and being entertained by Jace.  Pretty much the perfect start to the new year.  I don't usually make resolutions, but I have decided to make a resolution of sorts for 2011.  This past year has been an exciting whirlwind of photographing weddings, engagements, families and children.  I never in a million years imagined that this is where my love for photography would take me, and I look forward to what 2011 has in store.  With all of the portrait photography I have been doing I have not made time for taking pictures just for fun, which is how my photography journey began.  I would spend winter afternoons walking around taking pictures or evenings with all the lights turned off and playing with my camera trying to get that perfect candlelight shot.  So my new year's resolution or challenge to myself is to take at least one picture everyday.  Knowing me it will be hard to take just one.  I'll do my best to post at least one picture each day, and hopefully you all will have as much fun as I do seeing what I come up with.  So here we go!  I am obsessed with silhouette pictures, so I thought it was fitting to post this as my first picture.  I took this picture on Thursday at my friend Andrew's house.  I love how vibrant the stained glass is against the bright white.

Happy New Year!
Minda

Italia Part Two...Better late than never!

As some of you know I fulfilled a dream of mine and took a two week trip to Italy last May with three of my girlfriends.  I posted pictures from our trip back in June, but it wasn't until recently that I FINALLY finished going through all of my pictures.  I wish I had made the time sooner to finish going through them all, because I came across some of my favorite pictures from the whole trip.  Here they are.  Warning looking at these photographs may cause you to book seats on the next flight to Rome, Florence, or Venice. I know I'm itching to go back.

 Best espresso in Incisa!

This is one of my favorite photographs from the entire trip, and will soon be framed and in my house!

Play Date!

It has been way too long since my last post.  I've been busy getting ready for Christmas and trying to catch up on all the other parts of my life I had neglected this summer and fall.  While I was back in Marshalltown for Thanksgiving my sister-in-law Sarah and her girlfriends came over to my parent's house for a play date.  With a set of 2 year old twins and 3 little ones 1 years old and younger it was craziness, but so much fun!  Luckily it was a nice day out and I was able to take each of the kids outside in the backyard for some mini photo sessions.  Here are a few of my favorites.

 How adorable are Neve and Frankie?!  They are so sweet with each other.

 Noah already has his model face perfected

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week
Minda