Toni Maisano

Last Friday, I decided to buy flowers for some of my sisters and my mom.  We were just finishing up our first week of foster care, and everyone was working so hard, so it just seemed like something fun to do.  I walked into HEB, only to realize that I was trying to buy flowers the Friday before Valentine’s Day. 

That was a complete coincidence that I found rather amusing.  The store was filled with all of these guys buying discounted flowers and cardboard boxes filled with chocolate and teddy bears that said “I love you”.  And then there was Toni, searching for the right bouquet of flowers for her mom. 

Then yesterday, I was shopping for my mom at WalMart and saw all of the leftover flowers that were discounted even more since we all know that no one buys flowers unless it’s Valentine’s Day.  They looked so pretty and photogenic…and I really couldn’t help myself.  So I bought some more .

Last week, I got a box in the mail from a nice little company called B&H Photo Video that I had been waiting for.  Unfortunately, it came right in the middle of a nasty cold that left me feeling, well…nasty.  But I instantly felt a little better when I opened up the box.

I had been wanting this lens for a loooooooong time.  And it felt good to finally get it.  It’s a 50mm, fixed focal lenth (read: no zoom) lens with an aperture beginning at f/1.4.  Can you say cool?

It’s great for pictures where you want a very small depth of field.  Like this…

Or this…

These were my Valentines Day roses from my parents.  They made me smile .  And the 50mm made them look pretty nice, don’t you think?

Three of Toni’s favorite things:

1. Tazo tea

2. My blue coffee cup

3. Black and white photography