Bad weather makes for good photos.

Walking in the rain.

This April we had 21 days of rain in Boston. This record breaking stretch of “bad” weather kept the forecasters busy with their colorful charts showing one storm after another moving toward Boston. As a photographer, I love rainy days, but I learned to keep that opinion to my self.

Rain creates many special photo opportunities if you are open to them. Next time it rains, look for the reflections on the road surfaces, or water drops on flowers, or try photographing through a rain covered, steamy window.

I use manual focus for this shot in the San Francisco Bay Area (yes it rains there too). This way I could control the amount of blur and create an abstract image. Doing so amplifies the effect of the moisture on the window but allows the subject to be enough in focus that the viewer can imagine what it is.

The viewer may have to work at it but that is good. It means they are engaged longer with your image. And the longer they look, the more they will see. My favorite part of the image is where the water trickled down making a clear path through which we can see the stripes in the umbrella. Sometimes a small detail like that is what makes the image more enjoyable.

Looking forward to the next rainy day and hope now you are too.

Suzanne

Bringing into being.→

fresh out of the nest

Many of my students want to take "more creative" photos. At first this may seem like something you can do by applying a colorful filter or by shooting at a quirky angle. But eventually these “creative techniques” fall sort and when the novelty wears off you are back in your visual rut.  This is because you have remained one step removed from the true creative process. I can tell you how I step into the creative flow. It is simple  and you can do it if you take the time. Creative photos come from connecting to your subject. How do you do that?

First step is to be fully in the world. Being in the world takes time. Slow down and settle into your surroundings. Take three whole minutes to really see where you are without expectations. What do you actually see in the distance, mid range and close to you? What catches your eye? What touches your heart? What do you feel? Stay with that. Observe it, appreciate it, connect to it. Don’t photograph it.

From this point of connection you will notice something fresh and can bring into being an image that expresses your new experience of beauty. In his book The Courage to Create, Rolo May tells us that creativity enlarges human consciousness by bringing something new into being.  You can do this by simply bringing your being into your seeing before you click. You will see the creative difference in your photos and in your Self when you take time to create a connection by being with your subject. Give it a try!

Will You Take Time to Walk in Beauty?

Gestalt Composition Mount Auburn Cemetery

Greetings Photographers! I hope you are as excited as I am about the Fall Foliage Photo season. Boston reaches it peak color point this week so I want to encourage you to take time to enjoy a photo walk. Slow down, take a deep breath and just be in a state of appreciation for the beauty of this season.

One thing I have noticed with my students this time of year is how they struggle with composition when there are many subjects in the scene. What I suggest is trying to find a single element that pulls it all together. This will create a feeling of wholeness (gestalt) rather than chaos. In the image above I primarily depend on the color to unify the scene.

Then I used the lovely path of light to lead your eye deeply into the setting. As luck would have it, there is a subject at the end of the path that is even lighter. So it all comes together. There are many subjects in the frame, trees, leaves, statues, graves, a person, a path, but because of where I stood, I was able to create balance between all the parts. Balance comes from the placement of the parts, and a unifying element (color) pulls it all together.

I hope you will get out there this weekend and create something beautiful. If you are interested, there are 4 classes coming up this month including one at the location featured above.

Suzanne

Suzanne@curioussoul.com

http://www.curioussoulphotos.com

https://www.meetup.com/TakeBetterPictures

instagram.com/curioussoulphotoschool

https://www.facebook.com/curioussoulphotoschool

Welcome Beauty

This week a new member of our group sent me a link to a fascinating article. (Thank you Meg) I felt it did an excellent job of describing some aspects of mindful photography so I wanted to share it with you.  I really like the idea of welcoming beauty.  What could you do this week to open the door and welcome more beauty in your life? Love to hear from you.

“Stéphane Barbery, a French photographer living in Kyoto, whose photographs capture the mono no aware and hors-temp aspects of reality according to Japanenese philosophy, has emphasized photography as a process of "welcoming" soul, world, and beauty.

This is a poetic way of thinking about mindfulness in photography. It is a state of mind that is welcoming, receptive, and opening up to the beautiful visual possibilities within the world, as well as to the many dimensions of our mind and soul that enables us to see those possibilities.” From Photographic Psychology: Image and Psyche by John Suler. http://www.truecenterpublishing.com/photopsy/mindfulness.htm

Mindful Photography Class 3 Tips to Try

Fern in the sunlight. Arnold Arboretum

Here are three simple things you can do to bring mindfulness into your photography today. But what is mindfulness and how exactly could it improve your photography?
Mindfulness is defined by Jon Kabat - Zinn as “Paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, without judgment.”

When you apply this mindful practice to your photography you can create images that translate your experience of beauty into an image that is more deeply satisfying and surprising. It will simply delight you and those you share it with.

It is so easy to do, why not give it a try next time you pick up your camera. The only difficult thing about it is remembering to do it rather than just clicking away. Let me know how it goes.

1. Stop before you start. When you arrive in a location with the intention to DO some photography. Don't just start doing. First stop and just BE there. Take one minute to physically stand still and be in this place.
2. Next center your self by slowing your breath. Just focus on each inhale and exhale making each one a bit slower and deeper. This will result in helping you relax into a deeper state of awareness of your surroundings.
3. Notice what attracts your attention from this deeper state of awareness. Is it the color? The quality of the light? The textures? Begin to explore this slowly and in a playful, open way staying fully present to what is there.

Simply allow yourself flow into the moment. When you feel a deep connection with your subject and then and only then click. Connection can take form of a sense of wonder, love, appreciation, or sheer joy.  How you connect is up to you. But you feel something. You know something. You discover something new about your world and your self.

More mindful methods can be found in my book Flow-tography available for ipad on the itunes bookstore or in PDF form for pc users on my website. You are invited to take a look and see if this method could help you improve your photography and take your photos from like to LOVE.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/flow-tography-better-photos/id499049037?mt=11&uo=4