Photographing Light

Light is one of my favorite subjects to photograph.  This is why:  

"In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary." - Aaron Rose

 “The artist vocation is to send light into the human heart.” – Robert Schumann

Temple of ECK, Contemplation Trails, Chanhassen, MN
"...the Light of God is symbolically represented in most religions. Stained glass, precious stones, and skylights are common in religious structures. Native American celebrations, as well as those of certain other religions, use fire and drums, as well as chanting, all examples of light and sound. Each ceremony represents the effort of people to speak to God in their own way..."http://www.eckankar.org/light.html

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

“Light gives of itself freely, filling all available space. It does not seek anything in return; it asks not whether you are friend or foe. It gives of itself and is not thereby diminished.” 
― Michael Strassfeld

Virginia

“A picture must possess a real power to generate light and for a long time now I’ve been conscious of expressing myself through light or rather in light.” – Henri Matisse

“There are two ways of spreading light… To be the candle, or the mirror that reflects it.” – Edith Wharton

Inspiration is Everywhere

...if you're looking.

I came across a quote today, "You may ask:  If God is more powerful than Satan, why doesn't God stop this foolishness?

Because the negative power is an agent for God.  His job is to act as the schoolmaster, following God's will.  God said, 'I've got a schoolroom of children here.  Make sure these Souls get enough of an education so that when they graduate, they can go into the spiritual worlds and stand on their own two feet.  Their destiny is to become Co-workers with God, helping me in the administration of my worlds.' "

--  Harold Klemp, "Touching the Face of God

It inspired me to sort through my photographs to make a new image, possibly a new series, "Earth is a Classroom."  After looking through a few dozen pictures, I settled on these two:

A photo of one of my nephews taken by his mom on his first day of kindergarten.

and....

Frontier Village, North Dakota

 I took the second photo myself a number of years ago and thought it had potential, although I was not sure how it would all come together.

After merging the two, making some refinements, and playing with the painting design, I finally arrived at this:

"Earth is a Classroom"  # 1 in my possible new series.  I chose to blur out my nephew's face in this image because I didn't want his personal identity attached to it, it wasn't about him.    

Never underestimate the power of creativity or in your ability to make old things new or even in bringing more light, love, and understanding into your life, the lives of others, and through your medium of choice.  Anything is possible!

The Sky is Not the Limit; Your Imagination Is

Think you need to travel the country to get great photos?  Not so.  Start in your own backyard...where you live.  There is plenty to see and do.  Places you may know about, but tourists can't seem to find. You know, those off the beaten path spaces that you visit when you want to be alone.

If there isn't any of those to your knowledge, any location will do.   This local venue could've been seen and photographed numerous times but no one is viewing it quite like you.   We all see life through our own filters, lenses, and experiences so no two people will be alike.  They will look at the same photograph and see it completely different.  We are wonderful, unique beings!

Ocean View Pier, Norfolk, VA

Another angle, another effect of Ocean View Pier

Ocean View Pier at Night

Even as we learn and grow, what we observe may transform so a photo you took in the past, may show much diversity and contrast today compared to then.

Another tip:  photograph what you love and that love will shine through.  For me, the beach is a sacred space.

Crabbing at Sunset on Chix Beach

Whatever your pleasure is, it's there waiting for you.  What's taking you so long?  Go out and claim it whatever it may be!

The sun will never set exactly the same way or with the same colors.

Painting With Photos

"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." - Vincent Van Gogh

Growing up I wanted to paint.  I drew (or more accurately traced).  I photographed life.  I even wrote poems and short stories.  I wasn't short on talent, except I couldn't paint the way I imagined I would if I could.  I think some of my photography was born of that desire because many say my photos look like paintings.  I like it that way!

Bluebird Gap Farm, Hampton, Virginia

                                                  This wasn't my starting point, though.  It didn't occur to me to think maybe I could make my photographs look like paintings; they evolved that way.

Most of my life I snapped photos as they caught my eye....literally, thousands of them after the digital age arrived. Before that was film and, although it didn't slow me down, digital definitely sped it up allowing me more freedom to take unlimited photos.

Next came photo editing programs like Photoshop integrating my love of picture taking with my love of color and then the Holy Grail of photography, for me, exploded! Not only did our camera phones transform quickly before our eyes with higher and higher pixels and amazing quality

but the photo apps like Snapseed and Enlight created an easy avenue to transform your photos at the tip of your fingers with filters to provide you a ridiculously effortless way to improve on them.

Virginia

Jackpot!   Imagination meet reality!  Now I can take an already beautiful photo and add whatever strikes my fancy.

In this case, "my fancy" was another of my loves as I am a Rescue Volunteer.  

Voila!  There you go or perhaps more accurately...there I go!

Another lesson in all of this for me was...if you love something, do it!  Spirit, life, the universe...whatever you wish to call it...will lead you to the next step then the next and then the next for as long as you wish to go.  It may even go in directions you never even imagined if you are willing to go with it; after all, life is not a straight path.  It might not happen in the amount of time you have alloted; it might not even happen at all, but if you love it, you really won't mind. You'll be too busy having fun so go for it!

An enhanced photo of a statue in a garden.

You may even be transformed!

Photo Composition and Perspective

Boring you with yet another definition of composition or perspective is not my agenda here.  If you don't know what it is then please educate yourself and look it up; there are plenty of wonderful resources available to you.

I would much rather show you.

Mt. Trashmore Park, VA, USA

Move closer, move further away, move up, or move down but move! If you have a zoom lens and not interested in the benefits of exercise, save yourself the trip and adjust your lens.

Keep shooting the same subject until you are satisfied you have gotten every possible angle and then use them to get a feel for what you like. By doing this, you will observe things differently and develop your own personal style.











Also, don't be afraid to go back and re-shoot your favorite spot or person (camera only, please) or whatever your chosen subject may be.

Franklin D. Roosevelt Park (FDR), South Philadelphia, PA

Visit at various times a day or night, lighting can be so dramatic.  What about a change of seasons or weather?  You may be surprised at your results!

Yup, still FDR Park...

Mt Pleasant Mansion, Philadelphia, PA

Wild Horse at Corolla Beach, NC

  

Photography, for me, is all about having a great time, enjoying the moment in a way most people don't slow down enough to appreciate.  With a few adjustments, you can learn how to capture that moment even better.  

Are We There Yet? The Art of Timing

A few fortunate beings on this planet have an innate ability to know when to act and when to wait. Many others are like the child in the back seat of the car with whisperings of "Are we there yet? Are we there yet?" as little Susie kicks the back of your seat to a beat only she can hear, only to ask more insistently five minutes later when a whisper becomes a shout and then a shout becomes a whining plea of "Are we there yet?"  

Most parents will start with a patient, "No, not yet" but as you up the ante may soon come back with a frazzled, "Does it look like we're there yet?!" Not to be outdone, the child now recruits her siblings in a chorus of "Are we there yet?" to which the only decent reply is, "Who wants to play the quiet game?" and suddenly the parent is not above bribing their dearest offsprings with a monetary reward for who can stay silent the longest.  

Not only is there unreasonable expectations about the destination itself, and God forbid it doesn't meet our ideas of where we are supposed to be, but there is a whole lot of disillusionment about how long or short it should take us to get there, wherever that may be, whether it be a physical destination or a goal.  

Now add timing into the mix.  If timing is everything then when do you act and when do you wait?  I, myself, have certainly had times when I have pushed, pulled, stood on my head, did back flips, and nothing has come of it, except the thumping of my own head from banging it against a wall (silly me), until one day it happened on its own accord with no assistance from me at all.  

On the other hand, there have been times when I felt as if I was procrastinating only to find that the timing couldn't have been better.  It was as if the stars had aligned perfectly for my very own benefit! What gives?  How do we know the difference?  How do we know when to take action and when to sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride?

In photography, especially with action photos or images dealing with people or animals, if you hesitate, you miss the shot.  A person may have walked in or out of the frame, the perfect expression was suddenly replaced with a frown, or any number of things varying from subtle to very obvious can happen. I expect this is much like life.  

If we get a nudge to act on something and we sit on it, we may lose it or it may change in some way. This is not to say the opportunity may not come again or that it may not come in another disguise, but why take the chance?

Is it always going to be appropriate to act immediately?  Maybe not so perhaps it comes down to intuition and discrimination.  Experience will teach us better.  If we missed it one time, we may gain it another and so on and on it goes.  Besides, who says you won't gain something better by taking that detour?

What does this all have to do with photography and your Etsy business or with any business? Many of us give up before we begin.  We have a few false starts or nothing seems to be working so we sit back and wait when we need to take another step.  Or we take many more steps when a little patience may have gone a long way.  

Sometimes we have to do all we can do and then let go of our ideas of how it's supposed to go.  We have to leave room for God or the Universe or whatever or whomever you believe in to do Its part and if you think it's going to come easy, well, you may want to reconsider.  It may but chances are it's another way for the universe to see how serious you are about attaining whatever goal you are striving for.  

In the end, everything is in its rightful place.  It just may be different from where you thought so if there is something you can do and it feels right then act.  If not wait but whatever you decide, don't give up!  

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day-in and day-out."  - Robert Collier

Be flexible!  Allow for transformation.  There may be a worthier plan than the one you have in mind but if you are too attached to what your own vision may be, there won't be any room for anything else and you might miss out on something better.

Lastly when in doubt, take it moment to moment, love what you do and do what you love because as Elizabeth Kubler-Ross says, “It is only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth – and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up – that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had.” 

Remember, there is always another mountain to climb, another level to go so listen.

Don't Rain on my Parade!

Rain and parades don't mix and neither do numerous photos of the backs of people's heads with some glimpses of color swishing by.  Good parade photos require a good location, street corners usually work out well, or if you can get a pass to be on the road amongst them, even better.
 

2012 Mummer's Parade, South Philadelphia, PA, USA

Maybe a little too close - This guy doesn't seem very happy to see me!

Close ups are great but sometimes you want to be able to show more of the action.  Don't be afraid to zoom back out.  

 

Some other tips:

-  Experiment with your lenses.

-  Walk with the parade.  Shoot from different angles.

-  Know when to blur your background and when to make it part of your photograph.  Ask yourself, does it add anything to the photo?  Where do I want the viewer's attention to be?  

-  Most of all, don't forget to have fun!