Hiking Lake Mineral Wells

It's finally beginning to feel like Fall around these parts, and I couldn't be happier.  The brutal heat of Summer in the South is slowly being replaced by cool breezes, falling leaves, and cooler temperatures.  We were still in the 90's during our hike this past Sunday at Lake Mineral Wells State Park, but you wouldn't have known had it not been for the steady breeze.

At The Park // From The Treetops

It's finally beginning to look and feel like Fall around here...and I'm loving it SO much! I don't know about you guys, but when I know I'm going to be heading out with my camera...I want to take practically every piece of equipment I own. I've got a backpack that I can pretty much fit everything into, and I usually tote it around with me every time I'm going to be doing something outdoors. I cringed at the idea of taking my camera, my 50mm lens, and nothing else...but decided to challenge myself to use just one lens. I'm always afraid that if I don't have everything with me...I'll spot something incredibly photo worthy and not have the right gear. Is it just me, or does everybody feel that way? Although my 50mm did just fine (and I LOVE my 50!), I definitely want to keep lugging everything along with me for now.

Backyard Adventures // Buzz Buzz Buzz

Our backyard is currently covered in weeds and yellow flowers....which means it's also full of butterflies, bees, and a variety of other insects :)  I had plans of going hiking yesterday, but they fell through and I had to make due with exploring the back yard instead.  Which was fine-because I love insects :) I've always wanted to get a nice shot of a giant bumblebee, but they tend to buzz away before I'm able to get close enough.  This one was nice enough to crawl around just long enough for me to get a few shots before it decided it had had enough.

At The Park // Black + White

Are you guys ready for Halloween?!  I know I am!  I hate that I've been absent here for almost the entirety of October, but I'm happy to say that my schedule should finally be going back to normal this week.  I'm looking forward to spending time with my camera again :)  I took these photos on my last trip to the park with the intention of trying to get spider web photos, and I'm happy that I was able to get a few different ones.  Editing them in black and white really helped them stand out against the background, which was a bit busy.

At The Park // Frogs + Critters

The past couple of weeks have been so rough at work.  I won't go into details, but I had zero time for life outside of work.  I actually ended up having a little bit of a meltdown when I got home one day because I was so upset that I wasn't getting any of my personal projects done.  Having the weekend off made me so excited to finally be able to get my camera out and head to the park.  I spent an hour and a half trekking through the woods, and it was really nice to just spend some time alone out there.  I feel better.