Apparently, I did not inherit my Grandma McGuire’s skill. That woman could take great pictures no matter what position the sun was in, or extreme heat/cold. There are so many photos of our family that I treasure now, and they are all because of her diligence.

No matter how much we protested.

When I was a kid, she was always blinding us with that flash-lamp or making us stand still and say cheese. Sometimes, she was more like the paparazzi than a doting grandmother.  I remember her getting fabulous footage of a parade because she squeezed her 4-foot 10-inch frame, through the crowd surrounding the street, until she popped out at the curb with her camera. Nobody even minded – probably because they could see over her.

Now I am the grandma.  Even with an incredible camera, and a wonderfully photogenic family, I was only able to capture a fraction of the fun we had – and it’s blurry. I am so bummed out…

For better or worse, I took these yesterday at the Calaveras County Fair & Jumping Frog Jubilee.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

You heard it here first – I promise to learn how to use my camera in extreme heat and sun conditions, with 3 people talking to me at the same time, and wanting to rip my camisole off because it’s full of popcorn, salt, sweat and dirt.

Grandma, I don’t know how you did it!