48 in 48 photo contest by betsy cherry twin cities photographer

8/7/2016

48 hours...48 themes...48 photos...why not!?
But this project was not for the weary, nor the already-have-plans. I was lucky to have a "free" weekend.

Camera in hand and determination boiling, I was ready to shoot! The list of themes was disclosed Friday evening, but i couldn't find the time to start that night. I know better now, for next time: start Friday night! It was a lot of work but also fun and educational. Luckily for me, my husband and I decided to spend some time at a local summer fest with the kds. I fulfilled a large number of themes there but still had a lot left afterwards. So when we got home I was back at it, searching our home for things I could use. I'm not one that can travel around much so I had to be creative.

Not only was creativity important, I also wanted to be unique. I wanted to stand out if I could. I tried thinking outside the box. I didn't want to take a photo of a rock for the "rock" theme...I wanted an electric guitar! Good thing we have one at home. Some things i took literally, but i tried to make the photo interesting. Not always easy, but it was a great test of my ability and taught me a lot about my limits and what i need to work on.

I managed my time fairly well, mainly because my daughter decided to nap the entire time I raced through my post processing steps. I entered my photos RIGHT at the end and was frankly lucky they accepted them. I thought I was too late. It wasn't required of me to submit all 48, but I felt the point was lost if I didn't finish and submit them all. But I nearly didn't have time and felt this sense of disappointment, so I did what I needed to do and got them all submitted! Despite the ending craziness, it was a very fun experience and i'll likely do it again next year!

I posted all my entries below with the theme stated underneath each image. Not sure if I won anything yet, but honestly I did it for the experience and to recharge my creativity. Whether or not the judges like my interpretations or my style, I'm proud of what I accomplished in such a short time while managing a typical busy weekend and two awesomely nutty children. Well worth it!!

UPDATE 8/11/2016
I received 2nd place!!!!!!!!!!! Oh I need a few more of those....!!!!!!!!!! I'm so excited! I didn't expect to win anything. Its great recognition of my hard work and everything I've put into becoming a professional photographer. Maybe I'm doing a few things right. Winners were determined blindly by judges choosing a winning photograph from each theme. Those with the most winning photos placed on top. These were my winning photos: Medicine, Snap, Taco, Beast, Sharp and Bank. Below is the email response I received from the contest organizer regarding my collection. I was given an incredible compliment, one that I will forever cherish and hold on to as I move forward with my career. I'm inspired and thankful and encouraged and HAPPY! Here's to hard work, determination, persistence, and self-belief. Simply awesome.

"Your images were amazing and the judges wouldn't know this since they blind judged it but I noticed that they were almost all mostly taken around the house! That is even more impressive! Your white balance and creativity and composition is spot-on!" [Hutchinson Photo]

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