Oh can’t you just imagine the smell and taste these of sweet summer berries! Freshly Picked. Some picked to savor in the moment and others will go forth to become blackberry jam, freshly baked blackberries pies and homemade blackberry ice cream. If only…this photo could capture the sweet and tart flavors of these freshly picked BLACKBERRIES. While I can’t exactly share THE specific tastes and smells of these particular BLACKBERRIES, (spoiler alert: We ate them) My PHOTO can share with you a specific moment in time AND an emotion: in this case JOY. It’s easy to artistically capture JOY when you’re out and about exploring the Santa Ynez valley. If you find yourself driving outside of the city, about 30 miles north of Santa Barbara you might run into the Santa Barbara Blueberry Farm: A spontaneous stop and a fantastic find! Upon our arrival at the farm, we were each given teal cartons and sent off to the fields to pick our own berries. Normally, the fields are completely full with the bluest of blueberries. However, in August blueberry season begins to dwindle, leaving crops of late summer berries in their absence. These are OUR picks…BLACKBERRIES: Perfectly ripe slightly and tart yet all the much sweeter with friends and family to share them with. Who knew that BLACKBERRIES could become such a work of art? In this composition an artful arrangement of BLACKBERRIES sit in their teal container on the weathered picnic bench where we later gathered to share them. What I learned: Surly, there is GREAT JOY in CAPTURING moments of PURE JOY: the summer sun, the fields & farm and the sweetness of these beautiful BLACKBERRIES all came together to create a moment full of PURE JOY. When life presents and opportunity to cultivate AND create joyful moments: Capture them! Revisit JOY often! Let moments of pure joy spark joy…both in your photography AND also in your heart! Cheers!