Maybe I take too many photos of kids, but I am drawn to how expressive they are and how they see the world through their curious eyes.
When I look for features, I try to see the world through a child's eyes. Things that might be overlooked by an adult can be intriguing to a child. Children are observant. Children are curious. Children are fearless. Children are enthusiastic. I've been known to over-think and over-analyze. Most children don't do that because they lack adult worries. They just live in the moment, exploring the world around them. I think my photos can benefit from a child's mindset. It's something I'm still working on, but I'm improving. I'm trying each day to see the world through a child's eyes, being observant, creative, enthusiastic and fearless.
Wednesday: Jason McIntyre writes a note of thanks in the unfinished attic of the future home of Corporal Nathan Jakubisin in Fuquay-Varina, N.C., Wednesday, July 9, 2014. Nearly a hundred people wrote messages of gratitude, pride or encouragement on the wooden frames in the unfinished attic. The construction is a collaboration of the Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake and Operation: Coming Home, an organization that provides new, mortgage-free homes for wounded veterans. Jakubisin suffered severe leg and hand injuries from an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan in 2012.
Thursday: I went feature hunting and found this family playing on the playground just before it started to storm.
I love the graphics of the playground against the stormy sky.
After feature hunting I was sent to a gym in Cary to watch futsal, a type of indoor soccer. I can't express how much I hate bad gym lighting.
Coach Andreu Plaza coaches campers at the Futsal Academy at SportHQ in Cary, N.C., Thursday July 10, 2014. Plaza travelled from Barcelona, where he is coach of the Barcelona "B" Team and heads the FC Barcelona Youth Academy, one of the best youth futsal programs in the world. Futsal is like indoor soccer but allows players to play on gym floors rather than only on specially designed fields.
Friday: More feature hunting! This time I went to a local pool. I may have gotten soaked but I also had a lot of fun.
Sam Askew, 4, sprays his older brother Charlie Askew, 8, with a Hydro Blaster water toy at Ridge Road Pool in Raleigh Friday, July 11, 2014. The brothers regularly come to the pool to cool off and play with their friends.
Eloise Sayre, 5, dives into Ridge Road Pool in Raleigh Friday, July 11, 2014. Sayre loves coming to the pool to cool off and play with her friends.