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

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!