lloydslensphotographyllc

A Few Thoughts On New Year’s Resolutions

Hello friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “The Wishing Pool” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

I have stopped by the little pool at Glen Ferris as I often do. I only have a few minutes to catch a moment of peace. As I watched the water cascade down the rocks and collect in the little pool my mind begins to focus on the New Year and the tradition of making a resolution. You could almost draw a resolution out of a hat and it would mean as much. You see, most of the New Year’s resolutions are really just wishes.

I want be healthier.

I want to be more organized.

I want to learn something.

I want… fill in the blank. There’s plenty to choose from.

We do this as if New Year’s Day is some magical time that empowers you to achieve a goal guaranteed or you get a refund. But when you buy something with wishes then your refund is getting your wish back. I have come to the conclusion that a lot of these resolutions wishes are given to us by the expectations of others. Or more accurately, what we think other people expect from us. And if it’s not really something that we want for ourselves then we don’t really do the legwork. Or if we do then it’s only half hearted and it is never a priority.

After giving some of these things a little more thought I’ve decided that my New Year’s resolution this year be not waiting for the New Year to start working on the things that I want to change and to decide for myself what things I want to change in the first place.

Regardless of what the goals eventually turn out to be it should be something that is truly our goals so that we’ll be naturally motivated to make them happen. Anything else is just wishful thinking.

Hello Friends and thank you for your support of my page. If you have enjoyed the photos or the writings please let me know by commenting and sharing my work on your social media. I also want to invite you to Follow Lloyds Lens Photography on Facebook

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Lloyds Lens Photography web link — Click here to visithttps://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Did you know that I also do portraits by appointment? If you’re interested in a portrait session either message me on Facebook or Use the Contact form. The YouTube link below takes you one of my slideshows.

https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer.

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

Holiday Gatherings

Christmas, Color Photography

Hello friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Charleston West Virginia In Twilight 122319” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

As the evening light lingers all of the ribbons are cast aside and the brightly colored paper is scattered across the floor. The gifts well received and the children are either asleep or fighting to hold their heavy eyes open and enjoy the New toys for “just five more minutes.” In most homes the feasting will continue for several days ending on January 1st.

Extended families will begin the egress back to the individual houses with those familiar connections renewed. The bonding of of their hearts made stronger with the time spent together under the twinkling lights and around the tables of home.

The love they have shared under the glow of the New Light will warm their souls in the cold months to come.

I do often think about what it must have meant to part ways again in the days before long distance communication. In a time when one cold only share their thoughts with pen and paper in hopes that an express rider would be able to deliver the message intact. In those days a person may not see a loved one’s face for decades. Those were the days when expressions of love was delivered on the back of a horse and a visit from a friend or relative was a journey through the wilderness.

But that was also an age when a person’s time was their own. Unless they were tied down with livestock ( and many were ) there was no artificial deadline to be home by. That trip over the river and through the woods to grandmother’s house was one that could be experienced and not just taken. and once the destination had been reached staying for an extra day or two was part of the gift.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

Christmas 2019, the New Light

Christmas, Color Photography

Hello friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Christmas In A Small Town 121117MR” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article. Unlike most of the photos on my blog it is a mixed reality image because it has been augmented beyond what my eyes actually saw.

I’ve been making reference to the “New Light” over the past several days. As I mentioned a few posts ago my world view encompasses multiple interpretations of what I observe.

The natural view which is a straightforward understanding of the physical world and it’s occurrences.
The philosophical view which is little “life lessons” not of a spiritual nature.
The spiritual view which are things that I think God is trying to teach me.

Sometimes all 3 come to me at once and sometimes they come at odd times. Sometimes there’s only one or two views that present themselves but generally speaking there’s always something to be contemplated. Such is the case with the holidays and the solstice.

I believe that the Gospel of Christ was first written on nature. All of the natural events in our world ( which in my view includes the whole of the physical universe) are foreshadowing the story of Jesus. The world was born in darkness as told in the first 3 verses of the book of Genesis. I equate this with the ages before Jesus and the winter solstice with the night before Christ was born and the creator of the universe inhabited an earthly body to bring us life.

St John 1:4 — St John chapter 1 verse 4 teaches us that Jesus Christ is our light and source of life

We don’t really know for certain what day or season Jesus Christ was born in. There’ good evidence for December based on the details of when the shepherds would have been in the field. But the symbolism of a world in darkness receiving light was the important thing.

When we think about the symbolism of light we generally think about ” enlightenment” relating to a deeper understanding of the deep things concerning God’s nature and ultimate truth. But if you search it out the light of the sun symbolizes God’s grace. Or in other words, the unmerited favor of God. A gift that mankind did not and could not earn but which we desperately needed.

So, to tie it all together. We are celebrating the gift of grace through the coming of Jesus Christ at a time when the symbol of grace is rising higher in the sky. The actual date of His birthday is not as important as recognizing the gift that was given.

Merry Christmas to you and yours from Lloyd’s Lens Photography.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

Tears Of The Rose

Color Photography

The gray sky continued to drizzle rain into the mountains throughout most of the Fall. As I softly tread the wet ground the rose hips catch my eye. The raindrops hang like tiny crystals catching the light of sun.

The longer I looked the more they resembled Christmas decorations. Rose hips were popular winter decor in Victorian times. Especially in rural areas where fine blown glass was not as easy to come by and in a time when plastic decorations were less prevalent if they even existed. ( officially, plastic was invented in 1907 but wasn’t widely used until the 1960s).

Trimming the tree and brightening up the home was a family activity. Instead of a wreath made of plastic pine needles real evergreens were hand crafted fresh every year with the process being a bonding experience. Embellishments often included the bright red berries of roses, harvested nuts and various other fruits. The shared life experience with friends and family was part of the gift and not just the acquisition of stuff.

It comes to mind now that perhaps the droplets that hand so delicately from the red berries are tears. Perhaps the rose misses taking it’s place in the celebration and the families that brought it into their homes for the holidays.

We live in a world where the wonders of technology enables us to do things that our ancestors couldn’t even comprehend. Don’t let it take away from the experience of life. Do things together.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

The New Light 2019

Color Photography

Hello friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “First Light” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

The darkness lingers in the “hollers” of my Appalachian Mountains as the shadows claw at the landscape and struggle to maintain their grip on the world. But with the first ray of the new light they lose their grip and start to shrink away back into the ether.

The morning sun has awoken at long last and with renewed vigor begins it’s work clearing the darkness from all it surveils. The light doesn’t simply wash over the earth as the darkness does. It pierces through the land breathing life into all of creation.

This wrestling match between the light and the darkness will continue for the next several weeks but nighttime’s fate is sealed. The light has returned.

When I noticed the seedhead of the wild Clematis (AKA Old Man’s Beard) being illuminated by the rising sun I knew that I wanted to save it for tonight’s feature image because the light just seems to fill it. Not shine through it but actually fill it to the point that it almost disappears.

The light really does fill everything it touches. The range of the light that we see is reflected but light is more than just what we see. Those invisible rays are penetrating deep into the seeds making them to be fertile. Just because we don’t really see the light doesn’t mean that it’s not there.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤