I am BLOWN away by what my Santa gifted me.

A little background.... I joined this exchange since I have always been interested in photography but don’t really have that much confidence in it. Half the time I don’t know what I am doing and my pictures turn out fine but I know that they could be better.

First of all..... I am obsessed with the wrapping paper my secret Santa wrapped my presents in! It is amazing! Please tell me where you got it! I also LOVED the twine wrapped around it! It made me feel like I had gone back in time to unwrap these gifts! And....each gift came with a personalized note explaining a little bit about the gift!

I got an amazing photographer journal that my secret Santa said would help me with taking better photographs. Apparently her father gave her some excellent advice that one of the most important tools that a photographer could have is a little notebook to record the camera settings as well as the time of day, date and weather. I honestly never considered this and it makes sense. This is the best way to learn from your mistakes and to make improvements. You telling me about the advice that your dad gave you made me tear up since it reminds me of the tips and tricks my dad always gives me for life. Thank you for sharing that with me Santa.

I also got an amazing frame that my Santa said should hold the first photograph I can be proud of!

They also sent me an amazing book from Joel Sartore called Photo Basics. I LOVE National Geographic books! I have a few from the national parks (since I am also a HUGE national park geek) and love the way that National Geographic lays out their books. When I saw that Joel Sartore was the author I got super excited since I have seen his Photo Ark photo exhibit when it was in Los Angeles. If you don’t know who Joel Sartore is he has a photo project in collaboration with National Geographic to photograph every species of animal on earth. Seeing the exhibit made me a bit emotional since some of his photos showed the last living creature of a species. There was one with an elephant and you could tell from her haunted eyes that she knew she was the last of her kind. Truly moving. I also have his book called Photo Ark and love looking at the photos.

Finally I got a beautiful shirt with a camera that says “Never Lose Focus”. A perfect shirt to wear while taking photos.

Thank you so much Santa for these amazing gifts! I truly appreciate it!