Shutter Sisters

weekending

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A typical weekend for my family is spent attempting to tire out a toddler by getting fresh air and exploring new things. It might be as simple as going to a different neighborhood playground or as exciting as a hike to the river.

How are you spending your weekends during the month of December?

Today’s prompt: decorate

Tomorrow’s prompt: candles

If you are interested in sumbiting a photo to appear on a Saturday for our weekending series, please send your shot(s) via email to us at click [at] shuttersisters [dot] com with the subject: weekending.

Also, don’t forget to join our mailing list!

right behind

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That’s my boy. Racing down a steep hill toward the edge of an even steeper hill, giggling all the way.

I want to give him his space to explore, but it’s also my job to keep him safe and (mostly) injury-free. So there I am, following behind but always looking ahead for danger. I’m sure it’s a struggle that most parents face. How do we encourage exploration while setting some boundaries? But all we can do is try our best to find the right balance for our individual children.

On this particular day, I was hoping to get a few family photos. You know, the kind where we all stand still and smile at the camera? And while we did manage to get a couple of posed shots, it’s this image that makes me smile. I’m so glad my husband snapped this photo when he did because it perfectly symbolizes this stage of our lives. We are watching a baby become a boy and explore his independence, we are just along for the ride.

weekending

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Weekends seem to come and go in the blink of an eye. Often it’s the only time we have to take care of the responsibilities that we don’t have time for during the week. But it’s also important to spend some time relaxing and gathering with the ones we love. Last weekend I traveled home to visit my family and enjoyed the ability to relax and forget about anything else. It was nice to spend a little time wandering around in my dad’s yard with no agenda other than photographing the beautiful view. I was immediately struck by the bright green grass contrasting with the brown, bare trees in the background. I wish all my weekends could be spent wandering outside and shooting beautiful scenes like this.

We are putting out the call once more with An invitation to your weekends.

If you would like to submit your weekend images for consideration in our weekend series, please send your shot(s) via email to us at click [at] shuttersisters [dot] com with the subject: weekending. We love sharing your weekend stories and photos and can’t wait to see them!

weekending by Melissa Talbert

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Melissa Talbert shoots images like this with her Nikon D60 or D600 and spends her weekends savoring her family’s togetherness. Although in the images above, Melissa and her husband explored their city during a special “date weekend” to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary.

You can find her on her website melissatalbert.wordpress.com or on Flickr as melissatalbert.

How often do you make time for a date night (or weekend)? Share your rare date photos with us here.

Today’s prompt: rest

Sunday’s prompt: crimson

2013 photo calendar templates

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These mini calendars always get such a positive response, so I’m excited to share the Photoshop template with the Shutter Sisters community once again! They are perfect for personalized holiday gifts or just as a special gift to yourself. Many of us don’t take the time to print our photos, so this is a wonderful way to have physical evidence of our passion for photography all year long.

Download the files HERE.

The files include basic instructions for creating your custom calendar pages in Photoshop. Then just print them on photo paper or cardstock and cut them out.

These templates are sized to fit in a cd jewel case, but they can also be fastened together with a binder clip and hung on the wall. If you choose to use a cd jewel case, you’ll just need to carefully take apart the case and put it back together so that it stands up like the photo above.

Enjoy! And please let us know how you plan to use these cute little calendars!

weekending by Kendra

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Kendra L. shoots images like this with her iPhone 4S and Canon 5D MarkII, shares her weekends with friends and spends every moment she can outside hiking or playing in the garden.

You can find her on Flickr as Triana T.

What does your ideal weekend look like?

Today’s prompt: reflection

Sunday’s prompt: nature

october

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October

by Robert Frost

O hushed October morning mild,
Thy leaves have ripened to the fall;
To-morrow’s wind, if it be wild,
Should waste them all.
The crows above the forest call;
To-morrow they may form and go.
O hushed October morning mild,
Begin the hours of this day slow,
Make the day seem to us less brief.
Hearts not averse to being beguiled,
Beguile us in the way you know;
Release one leaf at break of day;
At noon release another leaf;
One from our trees, one far away;
Retard the sun with gentle mist;
Enchant the land with amethyst.
Slow, slow!
For the grapes’ sake, if they were all,
Whose leaves already are burnt with frost,
Whose clustered fruit must else be lost—
For the grapes’ sake along the wall.

October will be over befor we know it. Take some time to capture the colors and share them with us here!