the magic wand

You don't have to look far to find the joy of simple pleasures during the summer. This is the season where everything feels a little easier and breezier somehow. Whether it's the sprinklers, jump rope or bubbles, the simplicity of summer elements can make for the most delicious photography. Just take a look in the One Word Project Flickr group for summer. Awesome.

Today, get out your wands and show us some bubble magic. It's not as easy as it looks to catch these little round wonders as my daughter can attest. It took lots of bubble blowing for me to even get something in focus! This was my favorite shot of the day because it caught a perfect reflection of my house. No, I don't live in an Italian Villa although the reflection kind of looks like one.

Can't wait to see what fun you capture...up, up and away.

splashy

Happy Summer everyone! I know it's been summer for a while now but around here it never really feels like summer until July. Even though southern California has good weather almost always, here on the coast we get faked out in June. They call it June gloom and it doesn't lift until, well, July. So, here we are...enjoying sun and summer and all that goes with it. The beach, the pool, bike riding, dog walking, you name it.

So with this month also comes a new word for our One Word Project. What better word to mark all things warm and wonderful than the word summer? We've got so much to look forward to in the coming months, why not celebrate it? We're featuring a ton of your pictures and posts in the Your Local Picks feature, The Shutter Suite at BlogHer and soon after Picture Hope officially kicks off with trip #1.

So many good things coming it's true but for now, let's bask in the glow of the summer sun and appreciate today. Share with us all the things that speak of summer. Leave links in the comments and submit them into our One Word Project Flickr pool. Let's enjoy the season with a splash.

sweet stuff

It's the end of yet another month and we bid farewell to our OWP word for June. Thank you to everyone who participated this month. It's been such fun to see your sweet interpretations.

It began with the most delicious photo of chocolate chip cookies and ends today with another beautiful offering from T Does Wool. Her images do more than translate the word sweet, they remind us that home is indeed where the heart is. 

Today, share with us what is on your table. Show us the fresh fruit, the vase of wild flowers, the crayons and construction paper...whatever it may be, share with us your heart, right there at home.

Even though we will kick off July with a brand new word (come back tomorrow for that) we will still be serving up some sweet stuff...the Shutter Suiteis happening in July too which is sweeeeet! Have you RSVPed yet? We will be rolling out the details on a very special event that we'll be hosting on Saturday night. Let's just say you're going to need some pretty cute pajamas!!

sweet

First of all thanks so much for joining us in our impromptu Share Fest yesterday. We are so appreciative for all your kind words and encouragement. The more sisters the merrier so we are thrilled to welcome any new photographers to our blog!

And now onto what’s next. Our new word for our One Word Project. It’s a sweet one. And I really mean it. Our word is SWEET. And the featured photo above was inspired by T Wool’s image of these scrumptious cookies. She shared with us last month but, the shot fit the word sweet so well that it’s what we used to kick off the new month over on the OWP page. Thanks T Wool for the delicious inspiration!

So, why sweet? Because this summer during the BlogHer conference we will be hosting The Shutter Suite at the Sheraton Chicago (July 24, 25, 26) . It'll be the perfect mix of fun, function and most of all sisterhood! The Shutter Suite will be the first official organized Shutter Sisters gathering place so we are pretty darn giddy about it. Our official invite with some more details (like some of our fab sponsors) will be posted right here this week so watch for it! We’ve got a lot of things in store for that weekend and will roll out the plans as we get closer to the date. Until then, you can check out the BlogHer conference info at the BlogHer website to get info, etc.

We’d love to hear if you’re planning on attending BlogHer so shout out in the comments today. We know, we know, BlogHer tickets are all sold out. But, if you would like to stop by The Shutter Suite that weekend, we will welcome you with open doors. So, let’s hear it. You coming to the Suite or what?

In the meantime, start shooting your sweet shots and add them to our OWP Flickr pool. We can’t wait to see what you’ll be dishing up!

Still So Much to Share

When I saw this image in our OWP Pool for this months word Share, it melted my heart. Being a mama to a little girl who also held a stuffed bunny near and dear to her heart for years (she still sleeps with it at 11), I immediately associated Bebe's Bunny by KrispyCrunch6 with security, warmth, unconditional love, and sharing. And those are words I often use to describe what we've got happening over here at Shutter Sisters. Thanks to all of us working together in a collective group of creativity, support and acceptance, we have created a unique safe haven for sharing ourselves and our work. I honestly can't think of anything better.

Today is the last day of the month where we say good-bye to our last word and usher in a new one with the blank slate primed for our next challenge. Thanks to HP for being such terrific sponsors! But, I'll tell you, I really hate to see the word share go anywhere. So...let's make a pact. Let's always hold onto sharing around here. As a matter of fact, let's celebrate today, our last official day of the word share with a big huge sisterly Share Fest! Crowd goes wild.

Since we've launched this blog over 18 months ago we have gathered a stellar group of women photographers! And I am talking about all of you! Let's keep growing this community. Today, I ask each and every one of you to SHARE SHUTTER SISTERS! Blog about what's happening here, email your own personal Shutter Sisters, twitter, facebook, invite fellow Flickr friends and images you think are Shutter Sisters material into our pool, call people, talk about us...just share this community in any way that feels good to you!

We've got some great things brewing that we are eager to share with you all and the new friends you invite too so check back tomorrow when we announce the new word for next month's One Word Project and our super-sweet plans for BlogHer this summer in Chicago. It's going to be great, I promise.

And in appreciation of all of you jumping in with our Share Fest we will be giving one of you TWO Shutter Sisters Flash Bulb Necklaces. One for you and one for a friend. It just seems right. So, leave a comment here and tell us how you are sharing Shutter Sisters and you'll be entered in the random drawing. You have until midnight Tuesday night to comment. YAY!

If you haven't already, pop over to yesterday's post and comment there too. You'll be entered to win the National Geographic prize pack! You have until midnight tonight for that one. See?? It's just a big Share Fest around here!