Life Lessons Through Photography

Today I was outside taking pictures for only five minutes.  However, in that short amount of time I realized two important things about photography that can also be applied to life in general.

1.  You can't always plan on moments of greatness happening but you can prepare for them so that you are ready to seize the opportunity when they present themselves.

This afternoon, I was driving home from an incredible acapella concert, featuring the Yale Whiffenpoofs who will soon appear on NBC's The Sing Off.  The corner of my eye caught a tree whose leaves were illuminated by the late afternoon sun.  (Apparently the tree must not have gotten the same message as the other trees lining the street-- time for your leaves to fall!)  Luckily, I had my camera with me so I pulled my car over to the side of the street and was able to capture this afternoon sunlight on film.  Had I not had my camera, this moment would have passed, sans pictures.

 

2.  Changing perspectives can make the picture look entirely different, just as looking at a situation from a different vantage point can entirely change one's view of a situation.

Taking the same tree, I simply snapped several pictures but from different directions.  This completely changed the way that the light illuminated the leaves, affecting the composition and mood of the pictures.  Some of the vantage points created a neat effect.  In this picture, the silhouette of the house, nicely frames the tree.

In this picture, the angle of the sunlight indicates that the sun is going to be setting soon.  For me, the picture triggers what I feel when the sun sets early on a late fall afternoon.

The perspectives of all three of the above pictures are effective.  Although the pictures are of the same tree, the compositions and moods of the picture change depending on the vantage point.  Not all of the perspectives that I attempted this afternoon were effective. 

For example, in the following photograph, there was too much light and the picture looked overexposed.

This last picture was taken at a perspective where the sunlight created a glare on the windows of the houses lining the street.  The effect that this had on the photographs was that the light reflected from the windows detracts the viewer's attention from the subject of the picture, the tree. 

Questions to Ponder

1.  How can you make sure that you are prepared to seize the opportunity when moments of greatness occur?
2.  When has changing your perspective affected the way that you've viewed a situation?

The Healing Powers of Photography

 With the exception of a few highlights, this past week has been uninspiring and discouraging due to dreary weather, allergic/asthmatic flare-ups, and situations at work.  I had a feeling that taking my camera outside, on the first bright sunny day in over a week, would help to change my outlook.  And indeed it did!

My day started off with decreased breathing capacities and feelings of frustration that my asthma has been impacting recent activities.  Feeling annoyed and somewhat stubborn, rather than hide from Mother Nature, I decided to confront her head on, walking right outside in the midst of trees, grass, and leaves.  I hoped that taking pictures and appreciating the beauty of Fall would act as a peace offering.

For the first ten minutes or so, my shots were pretty uninspired.  Taking pictures head on, the angles were not particularly interesting, I wasn't satisfied with how I was capturing light on film, and the compositions were pretty boring.  And then suddenly, my eyes noticed light hitting the bright yellow leaves on the top of a tree in front of me.  Craning my neck upward, I realized that from this vantage point, the light hit the leaves in a completely different way, creating a very interesting effect.

Looking upward, I also became intrigued by the way that branches of different trees appeared to make patterns in the sky-- connecting with each other in interesting ways.  I thought back to several pictures that I have taken from this perspective.  This photograph came to mind first.

My friend Grace commented that she loved the connectedness of this shot.  I realized that what is interesting about photographs with connected compositions is that your eye keeps moving around the picture.  You brain is engaged in thinking about ways that the parts of the picture interact, inspiring multiple thoughts about the photograph.

Thinking back to this past week, I realized that in multiple ways, I had been feeling very disconnected from activities I love (photography due to the drab weather), from my body (due to my erratic breathing), and at times from my job (due to some discouraging situations).  When feeling disconnected, it is very difficult to feel inspired, to find things interesting, to be engaged.  Same holds true when there is no feeling of connectedness in a photograph-- it can be uninteresting, uninspiring, not engaging. 

Realizing that I had begun taking more connected shots (not by going to a different place) but by changing my vantage point, I decided to try to flip my perspective on my past week.  In my head, I zoomed in on some highlights (student successes, great stories at parent teacher conferences, listening to new acappella songs, and taking great photographs in the present).  I started thinking about all of the highlights in a more connected way, thinking about what they had in common-- how they had made me feel, and why I enjoyed them.  This helped me to start feeling better about the past week.

The problems had not disappeared but my feelings of connectedness were returning.  Feeling connected with Mother Nature and the moment, I started feeling more engaged with the pictures I was taking and as a result became more creative with my photography (the angles, how to best capture the light, how to frame subjects in interesting ways).  The quality of my photographs improved.

In this picture, I zoomed in on the rocky shore along the river...

I took many pictures of what appeared to be a cornfield in the middle of New England until I found an interesting angle...

Just like looking at a "connected" photograph, when I am feeling connected with the moment, fully engaged with what I am doing, I can almost feel the neurons firing rapidly in my brain-- creating new ideas, being creative, approaching situations in new ways.  It is exciting, invigorating, and stimulating.

When I uploaded my pictures on my computer, I releashed my energy once again into cropping my photos to highlight the most interesting and engaging parts of the photographs.  In this picture, I cropped out the dock that I was standing on in order to make the blue of the water and the sky really pop!

In this picture, I thought it was really cool how the tree was reflected in the puddle of water, even though it was more than several feet away from the tree.  In order to highlight this part of the scene, I cropped out many leaves that were scattered in front of the water.

Today, for me, healing meant replenishing my creative energy, bringing back my inspiration, and engaging in a stimulating activity to help me feel more connected.


Questions to Ponder:

1.  What activities are healing for you?
2.  How do those activities help you to heal?
3.  What does healing mean to you?

Spreading the Message of Mindfulness

I relearned a simple lesson this morning:  There is no need to intentionally spread the message of mindfulness.  Just by being mindful in my everyday life, people might decide to join in with me...as was the case on this crisp autumn morning in November.

Pulling into my regular spot in front of my school building, I parked my car next to a tree with magnificent leaves of bright yellows and oranges.  Instead of dragging all of my things into the school building to start my day, I grabbed my camera, almost jumping out of my car and across the street.  Walking first to my right and then to my left, I tried to determine where the sun's morning light was hitting the tree at just the right angle to highlight the vibrant colors. 

After taking several snapshots, I walked back to my car just as a colleague opened the door to hers and asked me, "Were you taking a picture of that tree?"  When she discovered that indeed I had, she remarked on what a good idea it was and thanked me for reminding her to take the time to appreciate the beautiful tree.  She then even pulled out her iphone, walked across the street and began taking her own pictures.

This experience made me stop and realize the times that I am suddenly captivated by the moment-- not because someone told me to-- but because an incredible sight or burst of expression (such as the singers I come across when walking in Harvard Square or Faneuil Hall) sweep me up in the moment.


Questions to Ponder:

1.  When have you been captivated or suddenly drawn into a moment through a sight, sound, or experience?

2.  When has your captivation of a moment drawn someone else in to be mindful of the present?