Hey, it’s been a while!

I have been on an unplanned hiatus. It started with my trip in April to Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), where I attended a friend’s 70th birthday celebration. The trip was awesome and was a trip of a lifetime! I have so many things to share about Dubai and will do so in a series of posts. I want to share everything; sites (particularly the beautiful mosques), food, entertainment, shopping; my overall experience with the Emirati culture. I will be going back someday!

Although I haven’t posted lately, during the past seven weeks I have been very busy with photography. First, I invested in a new camera. I damaged my camera in Dubai, so I felt it was a good time to invest in a second camera. Oftentimes, during photo shoots I would find that having a second camera (or second shooter) would definitely come in handy, especially, when I wanted to change lenses; for example from a wide angle to a portrait lens. I’ve been practicing with my new camera; learning all of the newest digital camera technology. It is pretty cool and I will share more about the camera in a later post. For now though, I’d like to give you a preview of what I’ll be posting about in the coming weeks.

I came home from Dubai with over 1500 photos, which I have yet to finish reviewing and editing. So if you’ve never visited the UAE, you will experience two of the seven Emirates (I also went to Abu Dhabi, the capital of the Emirates) at A Shutter Life.

Sand Dunes in the Dubai Desert

When I returned home, we were right smack in the middle of the Washington, D.C. Cherry Blossom bloom season, which only lasts a couple of weeks and it was week two.

Cherry Blossoms in Full Bllom

My bestie and I had a horse riding lesson that was loads of fun!

Me, Horseback Riding!

I went on an organized trip to the Virginia Gold Cup, my first derby race!

At the Races!

This past weekend I had my first annual Girls Night and it was truly a blast! I prepared and served a gourmet dinner!

An Amuse Bouche – Red Pepper Soup

I also captured a wedding ceremony and enjoyed a few dining experiences that I’ll be posting about as well!. Lastly, I was the subject of a photo shoot. I will share that post first, mainly because those photos have already been edited! I hope you enjoy what I have in store for you! I’m ready to get started, so stay tuned.