Carousel Ride

I originally tried to publish this post several days ago, but wouldn't you know it just when I had some time to get another post together blogger was down and not working for over 24 hours.  So I feel like I already posted about this days ago, but actually it's just finally getting shared with the world.

When we were down in Oregon, one of the things my parents enjoyed doing was taking the kids on a carousel ride.  The one we rode on is a gigantic old fashioned wooden carousel in the Jantzen Beach Mall in Portland.  Of course the kids had a fantastic time, but an added bonus for me was the chance to practice a photography skill: panning.  I took several...*uhem*hundred...shots and got a couple that I was pleased with.  I definitely realized panning is a lot harder than it looks, but like they say "practice makes perfect".
These first two shots, the one above and the one below are before the carousel started.  The next ones show the movement in the background.

If the photo above was a little more in focus on our little man's face it would easily be my favorite.  So instead it's the next one, the one below.  A goofy face in focus is a pretty good replacement.

They only had to ask with a polite "please" and the smiles on their faces for grandpa to gladly give them a second time around.  So here's the second ride photos.  (I changed my position and I liked the results a bit better.)

The little man wanted to have the exact same horse as his first ride.  I guess the two of them really bonded or something. :)

I like this one...focused on my sister and her hair is just slightly flying in the wind.

The two youngest cousins enjoyed watching the whirling fun.  Well, I guess this one enjoyed watching the back of her eyelids!

Soon enough they'll get to be riders too.