For me taking pictures is about capturing the soul.  

Recently, I posted this image.  And in so many ways this defines me.  
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/econ/4819570188/" title="high in the sky. by econ, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4819570188_02eb6d9052.jpg" width="500" height="500" alt="high in the sky." /></a>

I've always had a thing for balloons.  It's a tradition in my family to release balloons on special holidays in honor of the loved ones that have gone on before us.  I like that balloons keep me looking up.  As does this blue sky and those white puffy clouds.  And it's good to be reminded that I'm a very small piece of a much bigger world.  

But this is what you don't know about this image.  I had to lie down in the grass on a very windy Oklahoma day with my Polaroid camera and hope that with one click (since I'm trying to ration my film as best I can) that I would be able to capture what my soul was seeing.

This is what I originally saw and what originally made me stop.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/econ/4821208087/" title="it's all about the angle: balloons by econ, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4119/4821208087_9fbd1e0ca3_b.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="it's all about the angle: balloons" /></a>

But this is about as boring as it gets.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/econ/4821208445/" title="it's all about the angle: balloons by econ, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4100/4821208445_bd616b575d_b.jpg" width="332" height="500" alt="it's all about the angle: balloons" /></a>

And there's nothing in an image like this that defines who I am as a person, as a photographer.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/econ/4821826548/" title="it's all about the angle: balloons by econ, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4143/4821826548_403e230b7c_b.jpg" width="332" height="500" alt="it's all about the angle: balloons" /></a>

But I knew there was something here.  Something that would be timeless.  Something that would be a part of telling my story. 
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/econ/4821826506/" title="it's all about the angle: balloons by econ, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4075/4821826506_40759a0d6c_b.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="it's all about the angle: balloons" /></a>

I just had to find the right angle.  And in my effort to capture the unique, beautiful souls of this world, it's all about the angle.

So there I was, lying in the grass in a skirt, waiting for the moment the wind blew those balloons right between some white puffy clouds in a bright blue sky.

And to me an image like this is far more interesting and dreamy than any of the others.  
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/econ/4821826358/" title="it's all about the angle: balloons by econ, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4118/4821826358_e17f8efa3d_b.jpg" width="465" height="700" alt="it's all about the angle: balloons" /></a>

Plus it leaves more to the imagination.  And that's way more fun than a construction zone that just happens to have some balloons tied to a sign.

Capturing it on Polaroid?  Well, that makes it timeless.  And timeless makes me happy.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/econ/4818956585/" title="my new favorite. by econ, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4136/4818956585_791e3779b8_o.jpg" width="598" height="598" alt="my new favorite." /></a>

But let me qualify - by no means am I an expert on photography.  I just know that finding the right angle is important to me.  Often times that means not even looking through the viewfinder but just pointing the camera in one direction and snapping.  

My hope with this post is that it will inspire you to see your world differently - to look for those things that make you happy and to find the right angle to tell your story.

And with that, I'm ready for the weekend!