Shutter Sisters

The Courage to Tell it Like it is

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Lucy like she is: eyes obscured for an entire season by her favorite blue hat

Whether we’re writing or shooting, we are always telling our stories. There is so much we are trying to capture–how it is, but also the feeling or the experience of the moment. With all of our digital tricks and tools, I can’t help but wonder if our idealism isn’t sneaking in to tinker a bit, much like a writer using her words to defend herself, her point-of-view or position rather than lay herself bare.

And who among us does not at times crave a life that is sharper, a little more in focus? Or a love that sports a little color boost, an adventure with some ambient light or a moment with a soft blur around the edge? We’re surrounded by media that whets the appetite of our ideals, and sometimes through our lenses and our software it seems the key is finally in hand–that our ideal life can come into being in our albums or on our websites, which conveniently leave out our bad moods and arguments and all the living that unfolds inside less-than-perfect lighting.

It takes courage to tell the story as it is, not as it could be. Many photo spreads in mainstream magazines look so exquisite because they don’t have human beings in them to mar the scene. They portray a world above the fray of our messy humanity, something to which we can aspire because it seems divine. By following their lead, even with our small “improvements” like editing out blemishes and strategically cropping, which have become endemic in the photo world, are we chiseling away at our humanity? At the truth of our experience? Are we solidifying idealistic expectations for the next generation that bear little resemblance to the reality they will find?

I understand that there is the thing, and then there is the interpretation of the thing–and that much of our work lives in the realm of interpretation. But in honor of today’s giveaway for a copy of Don’t Write: A Reluctant Journal, I’d like to encourage you to shoot or write a piece of your story in a way that takes courage and a willingness to lay yourself bare. Just maybe you could tell it once, the way it really is, without your seductive little moves. You don’t have to show anyone, you don’t have to tell–but between you and the page, the journal, the photo archive, you would know the story.

Just the way it is.

Words, photograph and giveaway by Honorary Sister / Guest Blogger Jen Lee. Jen is a writer and spoken word artist in Brooklyn, NY. She is the author of Don’t Write: A Reluctant Journal and Solstice: Stories of Light in the Dark.

 

 

Leave your comment here today for your chance to win a copy of Jen’s Book Don’t Write: A Reluctant Journal.

Photo Love

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I left the bookstore with my arms full. I wanted her to ask why I was buying four of the exact same magazine. But she didn’t. So I offered up my reasoning because I could no longer keep it to myself. “A photo of mine was published in this magazine.” She glanced at me in her ho-hum way of tedium that comes with full time work and the Christmas rush on a Sunday afternoon in December. “That’s great.” She said and asked me if I wanted a bag.

 

“No thanks!” Oh boy did I sound chipper! I wanted to hold these pages close to me. I wanted to gather my babies to my breast. I couldn’t hide my pleasure. It sprung from my heels as I headed for the door. 

 

Lighter. I feel lighter.

 

And somehow more complete.

 

I am who I am regardless of accessories. But the more I dive into photography, the more I feel whole. More human. More real. It’s no longer a camera. It’s a second heart, a third eye that I wear on a neck strap. When I go without photography ~ when I’m too tired, too bummed, too self absorbed ~ I realize just how much I need. It’s become who I am, no longer just an accessory.

 

Today I was walking down a sidewalk with both arms full of photo love and the biggest grin spreading across my face. A smile so big I almost didn’t recognize the feeling. Those muscles have been hibernating, too scared to come out and see the light of day. Those muscles finally pulled around my mouth and I let myself be happy. I let it out in a big ol’ grin cause I’m doing it, whatever it is, I’m doing it right now. And it feels really good. And that is some sort of satisfying that I never expected to feel just by holding a magazine.

 

If you haven’t explored JPG magazine yet, you should do so immediately! Photo challenges and photography themes for each magazine issue keeps the creative juices flowing for me. It’s a phenomenal online community of inspirational photographers, and the magazine is made by people just like you!

 

Words and image courtesy of Guest Blogger / Honorary Sister Meredith Winn (aka camerashymomma).

 

 

 

 

 

Today the fine folks at JPG magazine are offering a subscription to one of you. Subscriptions like this are the kind of gifts that keep on giving. Love that. All you have to do is share the photo love and comment here today to be in the drawing. Good luck.

 

Congratulations to Kacey, the winner of the lens rental at Ziplens. Woot!

Pssst!

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Pssst! Maybe I was inspired by the game of telephone as a child. The game I could never get right and probably the source of confusion in a message being passed. The person that would never, ever be able to recite what she first heard. I blame it on my ears. I still do. For me, I need to see things in writing. Visible. In front of me. With links and information. Hence why I took to the blogging world so well.

 

I was first introduced to this world by a friend in November 2006. I thought it was funny…that word, blogging. But little did I know the impact words could make, how many friends I have in this world, now, due to blogging. It’s a pretty powerful thing and backs up the “hand is mightier than the sword” statement effortlessly.

 

So starting my newest venture, pass it on, was not so hard. I was moved by so many stories on other people’s blogs, especially this one, that I thought maybe it would be easier to put all these things on one screen. Maybe. So I am trying and if you go there and click on one of the many links, you too will feel fortunate, inspired, loved. And maybe moved to donate or contribute, in some special way. After all this is the season of giving. Even though the holidays are nearing to a close, what better way to start the New Year with a vow to help others. To give all year long.

 

 

So here it is, in two parts. The first is the giveaway here. A sweet gift certificate from the wonderful people at ziplens.com. A $75 gift certificate to be used to rent any little item your heart desires. I first learned about Ziplens through another blog and thought it would be wonderful to pass on the goodness to you along with Janice, the co-owner and “crazy momma.” I can’t say enough about the service and quality of items Ziplens has to offer. Leave your comment here today to be entered in the drawing. And even if you don’t win the big prize, you can still get in on the 15% discount they are offering for the next year to all sisters. Just type in the code: SISTERS and you’re good to go.

 

The second part is a “pay it forward.” Many of you may of heard of this in the blogging world. Someone sends you a goodie and you have to vow you will do the same for others. So it’s my turn to send out some goodies. But you will need to hike over to pass it on to enter. And you have to “sister promise” you will pass on the love to someone else. Because it’s always better to give than receive.

 

Words, image and giveaway all courtesy of today’s gracious Guest Blogger / Honorary Sister Jen Way (aka Bee Bee Mod).

 

And last but not least, let us celebrate the winners of the past few giveaways-

Christine is the winner of the Click Necklace from Her Southern Charm

Megan is the winner of the $100 Blurb gift certificate

Sheri is the winner of the Blue Poppy Sisterhood necklace

Telling Their Story

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On November 13th I became a mom for the second time. It was one of the most excruciatingly painful experiences of my life and one of the most beautiful all into one. The first tender moment when I held my baby girl was captured on camera. My son’s birth five years prior was also photographed for posterity. Every major event of his life since has been recorded by the shutter’s eye. And as many of the in between moments as possible too.

More than anything, it is the in between everyday moments that I am most interested in photographing. Because it is my child’s daily day to day life that really tells his story. It is an ongoing visual documentation of whom he was and who he is becoming. I especially love to take pictures of him when he isn’t even looking into the camera, like in the picture above. When he isn’t forced to look at the camera is when he is his most authentic self. A professionally trained photographer would probably see many things technically wrong with that image, but to me it is perfection. He was playing in his room on an ordinary day andI was able to capture his gentle kind spirit.

Now I can’t wait to also take pictures, to document the big events and the small magical kid moments of my daughter’s story, the moments that will shape who she will grow up to be.

Words and picture courtesy of Honorary Sister/Guest Blogger Sandra (aka Pink Orchid Too) at artful life.

Sandra is also kindly offering a print from her Sweet Blue Photography Etsy shop for today’s giveaway. Be sure to pop over and see. Her work is gorgeous. But you probably already know that. Leave your comment here today for a chance to win.

Congratulations to Emily of Five Flowers for winning one of Alex’s lovely images.

Take a Seat

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The holidays are such a hectic time! There is so much planning, buying, cooking, calling, mailing, traveling and visiting going on. We rush through our days trying to be efficient and looking to please everyone… We tend to focus on the energy we need to put forth, and we forget what is there to also be received.

So I wanted to share the photo above with you, as an invitation for you to slow down a bit. Please snuggle in that while little chair for a moment, and fully experience all the joy and generosity of the season!

When you’re feeling pressure… Take a seat and lighten up. Don’t be so hard on yourself. You’ve done enough. Too much seriousness about everything, only contributes for a killjoy attitude!

When you’re feeling frustrated… Take a seat and breathe. You can give in to anger and resentment or you can hold your seat and be merry!

When you’re feeling disconnected… Take a seat, close your eyes and put your hands over your heart. Let that beat humble you and make you feel grateful for all that you are and all that you have!

But of course you can take a seat any other time you’d like too. Just allow this little chair to be a friendly reminder, that you can always find your way back to your center and true intention.

Image and words courtesy of Honorary Sister / Guest Blogger Alex of Gypsy Girls Guide.



For today’s giveaway Alex is offering an image of choice; an especially matted and packaged 8×10 photograph from her Etsy shop! You’ll have a tough time choosing as each is as enchanting as the next but you only have to leave a comment for a chance to win! Good luck!

A happy congrats to camerashymomma for winning a copy of Kelly Rae Robert’s book Taking Flight.

quiet celebration

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Typically when I think of the holiday season I think of festive, boisterous, falalalaing. This year I have changed my tune a bit. I have learned to find the beauty in the quiet of the holidays. The peacefulness, the unspoken love between families, the loveliness of nature this time of year. Perhaps the key is to learn to appreciate both. Take the time to celebrate with loved ones, but also take time to enjoy the quiet- take it in.

This photo reminds me of my newfound appreciation for quiet. Walking through my neighborhood alone I happened upon this cluster of pink sticks, perfectly framed by an evening sunset. Escaping the joyous noises of December is just as important as partaking in them. Capturing them can be equally festive.

Today’s giveaway consists of 2 8x10s from my etsy shop, you choose. Pink sticks is a recent addition. Comment to be entered to win and good luck!

Words, Photo and giveaway graciously offered by the blissful and beautfiul Traci French. Click over to be enraptured by her blog Bliss.

Yin and Yang

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 Sometimes I feel like I have bipolar disorder when it comes to photography. I have two great loves, nature macros and people portraits. In many ways they seem so different, but when you really start to dissect it, maybe not so much.

Partially because, when I shoot people, I end up all up in their faces, in their eyes, trying to catch the intimacy of the moment. I don’t go telephoto like many photogs do when they are shooting people, because they don’t want to crowd their subject and make them feel uncomfortable. For better or worse, I use a shorter lens and crawl around, up, down, and on top of the people I am shooting. Luckily most of the time they are children, who seem to tolerate my antics better than adults. I make faces at them, or in desperate times, even pull out the silly noises from behind the camera.

All of which I don’t have to do when shooting nature. When I am rolling around in the dirt, I enjoy the silence. The calm. The fact that I have to control my breathing to be absolutely still since I don’t use a tripod when shooting very close macros. It almost becomes meditative. Zen like. Peaceful.

Such different experiences, but both essential to making photography such a rich part of my life. The laughter and the peace. The yin and the yang.

Thanks to Aimee aka Greeblemonkeyfor being our gracious guest blogger/honorary sister today and for sharing her perfect photograph and words with us. Aimee has also offered one of her stunning 2009 calendars from her etsy shop today for our giveaway. Leave your comment for a chance to get your hands on it! It’s one beautiful way to keep track of your New Year. And be sure to visit her blog for yet another super sweet greeblepix contest this month.

Exploring the Details

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I do not travel to follow itineraries. I travel to see whatever I happen to see. All it takes is a willingness to wander, to make mistakes, to ask for help, to observe, to follow my instincts, to face fears and step outside my comfort zone. –Ordinary Sparkling Moments

 

Whenever anyone asks me what I do for a living, I always smile and say, “I am an artist”. Questions then follow about the kind of work I do and what inspires me, and while all of these exchanges are among the most pleasant for me (I mean really, I get to say I’m an artist…an artist!) I have lately been wondering if I should toss all formalities aside and try to express the more fundamental truth of what I do. More than being an artist, a writer or anything else, I am a wanderer, a dreamer, and an explorer. Whether I am on a journey across the Pacific or sitting in my studio pondering my place in the world, my fierce passion for explorations of any kind is what feeds my creative work more than anything else, and it is the tiniest of details in these wanderings that give me the deepest sense of delight.

 

I have been incredibly blessed to have traveled to many beautiful parts of the world, and on every excursion, there are two items that are always with me: my journal and my camera. I have been known to write journal entries as I’m walking down cracked sidewalks in Havana and as a woman obsessed with graffiti art in Buenos Aires. I am constantly writing, sketching, photographing and observing, trying to capture all the minutiae of new cities, unfamiliar neighborhoods and foreign cultures. Then when I arrive back home, notes, images and doodles in hand, I let all these bits and pieces spill forth so that I can re-assemble them in an entirely new way. I use my photography to express all the subtleties I saw, sensed and experienced in places where I could not understand the language yet still perhaps felt strangely at home.

 

To allow yourself to dive deep into the tiniest of details in any environment is to open yourself up to colors, images and textures that might go unnoticed if you’re always looking up at the skyscrapers, so to speak. There is so much to see and admire on the ground, in a drugstore window, in the layers of paint on an old building. I find that the more I let my eyes stay focused on one small area, the more I comprehend the real flavor of a city and a culture. In Tokyo, the artful details of their manhole covers helped me understand their appreciation for beauty. In Havana, the peeled paint, broken windows and piles of rubble let any visitor know this was a city lost in time. In Buenos Aires, the political nature of their graffiti gave me a glimpse of the tension still deeply felt by a city with a dark, complicated past. The personality, history and passions of any city, town or neighborhood can be found in its details, by looking in the most minuscule of spaces and letting that take up your entire field of vision.

 

You don’t need to travel across the globe to explore life’s details. This is a technique you can use anywhere, anytime, even in your own home. What if you took an afternoon to explore the details of your home with your camera? What would those images say about you, your family, your routines, your likes and dislikes? Giving time and attention to the smaller corners of your own living space with your camera can help hone the muscle that notices tiny sparkles in unexpected places. Then you can use those skills to capture all the peculiar, radiant, mysterious charms of any location, near or far, at any time of the year in any part of the world.

 

Take your time. Observe. Look closer. Let yourself get lost in the details.

 

Photo and guest post courtesy of artist extraordinaire Christine Mason Miller (aka Swirly Girl). Christine has graciously offered a copy of her book Ordinary Sparkling Moments to one lucky reader. If you want in on the action leave a comment here to be included in the drawing. 

Congratulations to Bridge of Ride the Waves of Life the winner of the wonderful offerings from Jen Lemen.

the beauty of food

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Food. We all interact with it every day. It fills and nourishes our bodies and (usually!) tastes good.

 

But beyond fuel and taste, food has a powerful aesthetic that, over the past few years, I’ve come to appreciate. Food is beautiful. I’ll admit, before I had a food blog I didn’t think much about how food looked. Sure, once in a while I noticed that something I was eating was beautiful. But that usually happened at a fancy restaurant, when the edibles were dressed to the nines.

 

Taking photos of food day in and day out has helped me develop an appreciation for the inherent, natural beauty of food. Chopping brown onions makes me happy, despite the tears. A bowl of blueberries stops me in my tracks. And pastries lining the windows of Paris? Ooo la la!

 

As I’ve contemplated my experience photographing food, I’ve realized it’s had an impact on all of my photography. I now look at life through a macro lens. To capture the essence of the food I photograph, I have to really focus on the details. This focus has expanded to other photos I take, no matter the subject. Portraits of my kids tend to be close-ups. I naturally gravitate to details, a candle rather than the whole cathedral. I see the world in a different way, with a smaller yet somehow larger perspective. Yes, I need to remind myself occasionally to step back and take in the whole picture, but I like this new view of the world that my daily photographic study of food has inspired.

 

Does the aesthetic of food inspire you? Do you like to capture the smallest of details with your lens?

 

 Pictures and words courtesy of Honorary Sister/Guest Blogger Jane Maynard of  This Week for Dinner.

Self-Portrait Challenge from Kelly Rae Roberts

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Mixed media artist extraordinaire Kelly Rae Roberts crosses over to photography today with this delightful self-portrait challenge. Let’s give her a warm Shutter Sisters welcome…

I love the idea of capturing images of ourselves in the company of the earth. Today’s challenge is simple: go outside. Hold your camera down a bit and capture a shot of yourself with the sky as your backdrop. Then point your camera down and capture your feet on the ground. Put the images together to create a lovely diptych that reveals a small, telling moment in your day.

I love what these kinds of images say about where we are. about our physical surroundings, the season, and even about what we’re wearing. And it’s so fun to capture our shoes, the earth, and the motion of a day lived well. I so hope you will join me…cloudy skies and all.