Spring tulip

This picture is one of many that I took one day last spring (2009). When I got home and went through all the pictures, I didn't really like any of them. So I put them aside and didn't really think of them again. That nasty little voice popped up in my head, as it usually does, and told me that I was fooling myself thinking I could take pictures. I am my worst critic. Something I'm sure many of you are familiar with. Why is it that we are so tough on ourselves??

Then a few weeks later, my husband came to me with an article in the local newspaper that was asking for locals to submit their images of spring. I thought he was nuts. Why would anyone want to see my pictures, never mind publish them. He said that my pictures were just as good if not better than others that he had seen. Now my husband is truly a wonderful man. He has always been supportive of anything and everything that I have wanted to do. He is everything to me and our son, but he is a man of few words. He doesn't verbalize his praise voluntarily very often. When I told him that I was never really pleased with my pictures and didn't think that anyone else could possibly like them, he was genuinely shocked. He said to me, "how can you possibly think that? You are a talented photographer and artist". These are some of the most wonderful words he has ever said to me.

So I did just what he said and sent in a couple of my pictures. That lead to them asking me for more. Then that lead to the Regional Government asking if they could use one of my photos for their stationary. Then the local University asked for a few of my photos to use for one of their departments literature. This lead to others seeking me out to ask permission to use my photos. I was thrilled. I couldn't believe that people were seeking me out.

There are still times when that nasty little voice rears its ugly head, but then my husband's word chime in loudly and push that nasty little voice back. I'm hoping that I can now take the next step and let even more people see some of what I'm doing. Hopefully there are others out there that will enjoy one or two of my photos.