My current desktop background

We've been having a lot of cold weather lately. And yes, I know the temperature has been much lower elsewhere in the country. But you have to keep in mind that in LA, we're not prepared for it--we don't have lots of wool sweaters or heavy coats or insulated buildings. When temperature drops to a certain low, farmers start to worry about losing their entire crop of oranges. Anyway, I thought it was time to change my desktop wallpaper/background. This is what I chose:

A lion and lioness with their cubs. Governor's Camp, Kenya
By Brandon Harris via National Geographic
See more of Brandon Harris's photographs from Africa here.

Don't you love it? I usually prefer landscapes for this sort of thing. But this one is so warm and cozy--snuggling, soft fur, warm tones/colors, family, heat (it is in Africa, after all). I wish I could safely and comfortably snuggle with a lion.

2011 in (not quite) 365 photos

A year ago I started a daily photo project. I was supposed to take at least one photo a day for 365 days. Unfortunately, I really fell off the wagon at the end. So I have 302 photos total. It's interesting looking at the year in photos. It wasn't what I expected. I graduated, yes. But other than that my life didn't change in the way I thought it might.

I liked having my camera with me all the time so I could whip it out anytime I wanted to. But toward the end I didn't want to take any more pictures! I got tired of the chore, sometimes I wanted to enjoy the moment rather than figure out what shot to take, sometimes I got busy and totally forgot, and frankly, I'm too chicken to get it out sometimes. I still feel self conscious sometimes--which I suppose proves that I am not real photographer. I almost always forgot to take pictures on Sundays.

It was painful sometimes to pick one photo (especially when you're in Europe or rural Washington). Other times I was stuck on what I wanted to communicate for the day--do I pick the photo that's prettier or the photo that's more unique to today? Also, it fades to black when there's a gap of 3 or more days.

My 2011 in Pictures from A on Vimeo.