Trains

48/365

There are a few things I love about this photo.  

The first is the fact that Michael and Sophie have been playing with their trains again.  Thomas and his buddies are a staple in the playroom, but the kids have shown less interest in them for the last year or so than they did when they were two and three years old.  Trains are such a wholesome toy--imaginative, industrious, classic.  I'm glad they're getting attention again.

The second thing that appeals to me is Sophie's gaze out the window.  I believe she was just pushing her overgrown bangs from her eyes, but it looks like she's getting bored with all of this indoor play and longing for spring.  Perhaps I'm projecting a bit?

Finally, I'm pleased with how much better I'm getting at achieving the shot I want in camera.  As I tend to do, I took a few pictures before even thinking of settings.  For yesterday's photo, I had the ISO higher and the shutter speed slower than necessary for this one.  Since there was better light here, I turned down the ISO to reduce the noise and turned up the shutter speed to get sharper focus.   I still have a long way to go until I feel like I'm getting it right more often than not (and I'm certainly not calling this one perfect), but already this project has me adjusting my camera settings consciously and with more confidence than I did in the past.