It’s that time of year again! Twice a year, these amazing ladies and I head out on a trip together for a few days of talking, laughing, sipping, eating, shooting, exploring, and just hanging out together. This trip started in 2010 as a way to network with other photographers we kind of knew… it has evolved into a reunion of true friends who just really like to hang out together. This time around, our trip will take us to Joshua Tree for some desert adventures.

You can follow all the fun on our Tumblr site here as we update it constantly: http://www.atravelingheart.com

We have so many great memories of our past trips together and I can’t wait for more of that in the next few days!

There are so many social networking kind of apps out there these days- so many ways to share thoughts, activities, photos, etc. But, one in particular has me pretty distracted lately and that’s Instagram, which is described by the creators as an app for “fast, beautiful photo sharing for your iPhone.” I have to be honest, I’ve had an Instagram account for a while, but never really understood it’s full potential… I pretty much used it just to update my Facebook and Twitter accounts simultaneously when I wanted to post an image to both. I never “followed” anyone else, read comments on my images (I didn’t even know there were comments) or commented on other people’s uploads. It wasn’t until the last few weeks of 2011 that I started to investigate more of what was happening on Instagram and now I love it for so many reasons.

Being a photographer, I have lots of really talented photographer friends who are taking amazing, inspirational, interesting and sometimes just fun images on their phones. Instagram allows them to post them and for me to enjoy them pretty much instantaneously… it’s a fun way to stay in touch with friends who share a passion for imagery like I do, but to also see what people are seeing and sharing from their daily lives.

The biggest reason why I love the app is that it allows, and even encourages, me to continuously be looking for interesting photos in my daily life. It’s a way I can stay inspired even when I don’t have my big camera in tow. It gets me to use the camera on my iPhone more often and in more interesting ways than ever before. I strongly feel that one has to continually practice being creative to keep that part of your mind sharp, and Instagram has encouraged me to do that in such a convenient way. Plus, I get to document my life in a really interesting way by snapping away at random things I see throughout the day.

Now, when I go out, even with just the camera on my phone, I feel confident that I can continue to practice my craft while documenting my life one square photo at a time.

I’m just beginning to tap into the power of the iPhone camera by checking out photo apps that are out there. I’ve already been having some fun with iDarkroom and Diptic along with a few others. If you have a favorite photo app for the iPhone I’d love to hear about it in the comments!

Here are some shots from my recent Instagram feed. You can follow me on Instagram if you have an account- my username is heatherkincaid.

I can’t wait to see how my collection of images looks by the end of the year!

If you’re a photographer, or just like taking photos, I really encourage you to check out the app and get shooting more! It’s so fun and it’s a great way to keep shooting often.