Let's Talk Pinterest, Pinning and Images from our Blogs

The other day, I was checking out some of the statistics for my blog, including "top traffic sources." I noted that "pinterest" had climbed to the number one referring site for the last week and month. It is still second to google for all time, but it is clearly on the rise as a referral for me. I joined pinterest to be able to see who or what was being pinned on pinterest from my blog. I have one post which was been pinned, A LOT.  It is this one:

It features a travel journal tutorial.  I can understand why it's popular, and I am happy to share it with others.  The idea for the tutorial actually came from Vicki Chrisman, and I made sure to ask her if I could share it and then credit her and her blog.

That was all well and good, but then I was a little taken aback when I saw that this photograph has been pinned and repinned a fair amount:

It's a beautiful photo of Henry and his girl friend before last year's prom. It's been pinned to boards about posing couples and ideas for prom pictures (you can read the full post here). I'm proud of the photo and a little pleased that people think it's pin-worthy, but yet . . . I don't know. It somehow feels a little intrusive to know that Henry and Vanessa are floating around in the pinterest world. While I don't mind having my art out there, it feels different to have pictures of my kids out there (even though this has been pinned more as art/ photography than as a picture of Henry, if you know what I mean).
Then, I started noticing a button that says "This is a no pin blog," like this one on some of the blogs I follow. I did a little more research and found that there is a bit of a controversy about people pinning images to pinterest without crediting them properly and the possibility of images being sold by others.  Bloggers have responded with ways to make sure that pins are done responsibly, ways to block all pinning, and ways to allow only selective pinning. 
I'm not sure where I come out on all this. I like the idea of pinterest bringing people to my blog, and I have always realized that anything I put on my blog is open to the public.  This doesn't worry me; I'm a public person with a public job, so I don't find putting things in the blogosphere too concerning. That's why I've never minded using our real names, real locations, etc. 
But somehow it bothers me. And I'm not sure why. 
I don't think people are taking my photography and using it without acknowledgment, which would be an issue for me.  I know that my blog friend Amy has had this problem recently and so has started using a watermark on her photographs (read her wonderful tutorial here). By the way, I found this really interesting post about how to see if your images are appearing elsewhere on the internet. I looked for a few of my photographs and found nothing, so I think I'm good there.  
I am really interested to read what others think about this issue.  Do you use pinterest? Have you had things of yours pinned?  Did you like it and want to encourage it? Or do you want to discourage it?  Have you ever had an image stolen? How did you find out and what did you do about it? As usual with a "Let's Talk" post, I'll leave this one up for a few days so people have a chance to weigh in on the issue. All opinions welcomed.  Let's talk about it!
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"Let's Talk" is a semi-regular series designed to inspire frank discussion and sharing of information on issues relating to photography, art and blogging. 

Our first CSA Box

This year we signed up to participate in the Community Supported Agriculture program run by a local organic farm called Blue House Farm. Once a week through fall we will pick up a box of produce from a near-by drop off point. We got our first box yesterday, and here are the contents: lettuce, spinach, chard, snow peas, strawberries, zucchini, red spring onions and broccoli. Each box is about $20U.S. . . . not necessary a great "deal," but a fair price we think. Their website is beautiful, and they have a weekly newsletter with great recipes. I think we're having spring onion polenta for lunch!  The strawberries are long gone.
I'm wondering whether any of you have any similar programs and what your experience has been. 

Messy Little Details: Seaside Sculpture

Every now and then I take a photo of something that catches my eye, even if I'm not sure what I plan to do with the photo.  Carolyn of Mess, Muddle and Fun has started a photo meme called "messy little details" to give photographers a chance to share these types of photos. You can find this week's entries or join in by clicking here.
I've taken the challenge in a slightly different direction and am using the meme as an opportunity to practice my photo editing skills, especially pairing these types of photos with quotes. I'm using picmonkey because it is so darn easy.  And free.  For today's photo, I started with an instagram shot, added a quote, then a polaroid frame and then some more text. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, and I can see myself doing something similar with other photos.  Anyone else every played much with picmonkey? Any other recent finds you want to share?

Look Up//Look Down #20: Hanging Out Around the House

Just an average day, hanging out in the living room.  Looking up at my work table; looking down at the animals laying in the sunshine. This latter photo makes it apparent that our pets seem a bit of a matched set.  Golds and browns dominate our color story. What about yours?
Look up//look down is a weekly photo meme started by Helena.

Glue it Tuesday with Happy Mail

Just a little art journal collage for Glue It Tuesday!  The quote reads "Photography is the art of observation . . . it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them."  I started the collage with bits from Happy Mail which I have received lately and added a few things from my stash.  Speaking of happy mail, a big thank you to Lizzie of Lizzie Made.  I received the pastel notebook seen in this post as a give-away prize.
I love collecting quotes to use in my art journal and in my collages.  My friend Deb of Paper Turtle runs a blog feature called "Just a Quote for Friday." She's running an interesting challenge in conjunction with that feature - providing a photo and asking readers to alter it and then link up at the end of the month.  If you want to play along, check it out here.
To check out other people playing in the Glue it Tuesday lounge, head on over to Artsyville.

A Peek Inside My Life

Outside My Window...  I hear birds twittering peacefully and smell the damp soil of the just-watered garden next door.  The sun is shining brightly. With blue skies and a gentle breeze, it feels like early summer.
Around the house and garden... a few yellow crook neck squash are beginning to form, and there are lots of yellow flowers on the tomato plants. Clara wants to help me finish cleaning up the garage this summer so that we can get a ping pong table or pool table in there and turn it into a hang-out for her and her friends.  She also has big plans for redecorating Henry's room once he leaves for college and she moves into it.
I am thinking... about the trip Clara and I will be taking next week. We leave a week from Tuesday for Southern California. We'll visit relatives, go to Disneyland and check into our San Diego Hotel a couple of days before our race for some "girl time." I am looking forward to spending this special time with my girl.
I am thankful for... the "taper" portion of my training.  More stretching and fewer miles. Time to let my body absorb all the conditioning I've been doing,  avoid injury and get mentally ready for the big day (June 2).  Thursday is our last track work out and "send-off" where we will get our tickets and other documents.
From the kitchen... lots of salads these days; cherries and white peaches from the farmer's market this morning; hamburgers for dinner tonight.  Maybe I'll have a vodka negroni for cocktail time.
I am wearing ... jeans, my new San Francisco Giants t-shirt, a purple team-in-training wrist band and my "one little word" necklace.
I am hoping ...  Clara's last week of school goes smoothly. She gets out really early - three weeks before Henry. It's been such a long hard year for her. I hope it ends on a high note.
I am reading... the last of the exams which need grading. Then it's on to getting ready for the summer class I'm teaching. It starts right after we get back from our trip.
I am busy creating... the post to launch the 2013 Summertime Photography Scavenger Hunt! 

It's coming June 1.  Will you be ready?
I am hearing...  The wind chimes on the back deck.  Henry snoring softly on the couch. It's a lazy Sunday afternoon, perfect for napping.
What's going on in your life right now?

My Photographer's Eye

Vignette #17: Change is Inevitable 
I am heading out back to complete some errand - water the plants or relieve the dogs, probably. But I stop when I see this furry yellow fella.  It's the first caterpillar of the season. My photographer's eye tells me to stop. Capture the texture.  And the color, so vibrant against the African daisies in our front yard. Think about the metamorphosis which caterpillars signify. Change will come. It is inevitable. And so often . . . it is good.
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My Photographer's Eye is a semi-regular series designed to feature my instagram photography and a brief accompanying narrative. You can see the other vignettes in this series by clicking on this link.