In these “After Hours” posts, members of the group tell the stories behind the pictures they have posted, and explain what motivates and inspires them. This week we have Angela Hendrix-Petry who chose this image in November for 5pm:

•Which camera did you use and why?

I used my Canon SLR digital camera with the lens that lives on it: my
50mm. This camera has been with me for a few years, and it’s the one I
carry around with the most. It used to belong to a dear friend, and so
I like to think he helped to infuse it with a special sort of magic.

•Was this a typical day for you?

Not so much. This was the very first Saturday since soccer season
began in early September that I was just home, all day long.What was
typical though was the amount of chaos going on around me! My daughter
Chloe had two friends over, and my son, Jasper, was popping in and out
of the house, back and forth from neighbor friend’s houses with his
buddies. The day was so dark, grey and cold. Not my favorite kind to
photograph. I tried getting shots of the kids all doing their thing,
but the lamp light in my home was not photographing well. So I decided
to embrace the low natural light the early evening was offering.

•Why did you choose to post this photo?

I chose this image because I like the way the flowers and my striped
sweater are brightening up the scene. I was also drawn to the contrast
of shapes, the sharp angle from the window and the softness of the
curving mirror. When I am at a loss photographically for what to shoot
(as I often am when trying to capture an image for an assignment at a
challenging hour, or without the sweet warm natural light I prefer) I
turn to my familiars: self-portraiture and trying to express the
emotions I’m feeling in the moment. This image to me is very telling
of what I was living, feeling boxed in by the impending grey, but held
apart from it also. It was a good day despite the feeling of winter
looming right around the corner.

•Do you usually shoot at this hour or was this new for you?

I am a light-seeker and so I tend to shoot when the light calls to me,
preferring mornings and the “sweet” hour when the sun is setting and
casting that delicious warm glow all around. So the five o’clock hour
right after daylight savings time began on a grey November day is not
my typical time to take photographs! A huge part of the wonder and fun
in this project for me is the need to photograph at a particular time
of day each month, I love the challenge of trying to capture an image
that feels like “me” and expresses my photography style but fits
within the time frame dictated.

•And a final shot from you? Or several?