Shutter Sisters

My Medicine

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Last weekend, my son had and allergic reaction and went into anaphlyaxis.  I rushed him to the hospital where I was quickly pushed aside while an ER team immediately began working on him and ultimately, putting him on a ventilator. Once it was done and I could see even the doctor give a sigh of relief, my husband and I then awaited the arrival of the critical care team from our local children’s hospital to transport him.  It was then that I began to document what was happening in photos.  I needed to.  I’ve said many times that my camera has been my saving grace. I couldn’t do anything else at that time and it was the only thing I felt I had any control over. 

Fortunately, my son made a quick and complete recovery and once we were home, I uploaded my photos into a set on Flickr.  I wanted to share them and I was hesitant at first because I wasn’t sure how people would respond to the rawness of the photos, but I wanted, needed, for others to see, to understand.   I then shared them on a Facebook allergy page that I follow regularly.  The owner of the page contacted me and asked if she could share them with others because she thought it was important to do so.  I said yes and didn’t give it another thought. 

Immediately my inbox began filling up with messages from people all over the country that I did not know.  Some shared their similar stories with me, others just wanted to tell me that they were glad everything had turned out okay, but all of them thanked me for sharing my photos with them.  It was at that moment that I knew I did the right thing.  As of this writing, those 10 photos have been viewed over 4500 times. 

How many times have you taken a photo that really didn’t mean much to you but to someone else it meant so much more?  How many times have you heard, Oh my gosh, I love that photo!  Can I have it?!  I’ve said many times that I believe everyone brings their own medicine to this world.  Next time one of your photos touches someone, take a moment and realize that perhaps your photography is your medicine, too. 

Today, share those photos that have may have been your medicine…to you or to someone else.

spring’s spark

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Coming fresh off of Easter weekend, I am feeling ignited by a surge of spring’s spark. From blossoms to blooms, sweet treats to Easter eggs, family to festivities, it seems that everyone was savoring a little piece of this season.

Although I captured a number of pictures this past week, for my Best Shot Monday, I have chosen to share something that spoke of tenderness, courage and hope. Capturing the intimate intricacies of something like this tiny peach blossom with my new Olloclip (which has a macro option for my iPhone) makes me swoon. I do believe I have found yet another creative muse!

Now it’s your turn to share your Best Shot today. We can’t wait to see what captured your spirit (and your lens) this week.

weekending by ai

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 Ai shoots images like this with her Nikon D40 and spends her weekends “brunching” with friends and enjoying time outdoors.

Ai can be found online at Ai Loves…

Now, share with us your weekending table. Let’s see what you’re serving up. And don’t forget to submit your weekending images to us via email. We love being inspired by your weekending shots!

space to shine

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Clockwise from top left – Empire State Building in NYC, Nelson’s Column in London, Water towers on the Highline NYC, Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.

Sometimes the way to make a subject sparkle is to give the space to shine.

Using negative space to draw attention your subject can be really fun. When I approach a well known landmark, I like to mix it up a little, by using the negative space around it and have the subject peeking into the frame. The subject is still recognisable it’s just composed in a different way.

How about you? Maybe you’d like to create some space for your subject to shine? Do you ever play with negative space?… please share with us today.

warmth

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As my camera and I come out of a winter hibernation and make our way outdoors, the warmth of the sun is like a magnet for my lens. I find my self ooohing and aaahing over the sparkly light of the golden hour right before sunset. It’s so refreshing to get out with my camera these days and explore the new life and growth that spring has to offer. I get such a burst of creative energy each spring and I’m excited to see where it might take me this time around.

What’s got you feeling energized these days?

Prompted

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You don’t see it right away, but it’s there. The straw in its mouth, the one it must gather for home; for the nest. It symbolizes a continues gathering until woven pieces can finally hold things together. It is an amazing labor of love. It is much like our work in everything we care for. We labor with love and gather what is needed for the home, for our nest. The home where we live in, with its kitchen and rooms, and the home in our hearts; the place where we gather strength and courage; the place where we gather our dreams and make them real.

What is curious about this moment is its pause. I was witness to it; it was a pretty long one. This maya bird took a moment to perhaps gather its breath; as if to take whatever was in sight all in. A little bird marveling at the world.

I watch these birds every morning now. They teach me how to pause, to breathe, and take in a bit of the world outside my window. I feel like a little bird marveling at the world. There is work to be done, but I shall marvel at the world.

The beautiful, beautiful gift that photography has given me is a voice. A voice for the words in my heart. I think I kept on looking for a way to find a place for all that. I knew I could write, but I wasn’t sure what I could give to the world. I knew I needed to give back something and I thought, why would the world be interested in my love letters? And then it stretches further to, why would the world be interested in my confusion and heart ache? How would the world benefit from all that? I couldn’t figure it out until there were these ‘prompts’ – you take a photo based on a concept, a word, and you could write about it if you want, or leave it to speak for itself. I am drawn to writing about it because when I capture something, I am certainly capturing a moment. And most of the time I like to paint that moment with words, too. What I have realized is that every moment contains a gift. Yes, every moment. Can you imagine how many gifts there are? Certainly enough to give back to the world.

‘Prompts’ are like inspiration, except I think when we just rely on inspiration, we tend to wait for it to come. That’s fine, but we shouldn’t just wait. And wait. And wait. Because maybe we don’t even know what exactly we’re waiting for; a magic feeling? Pixie dust? Nah. It doesn’t really work that way. I think we have to commit to something. It doesn’t even have to be big. So, if you’re prompted, let’s say with a word, you’re given a direction; a kind of path to follow, a way for your eyes to see or find something that’s already there. Somehow inspiration is everywhere; all you have to do is capture it. *insert magic feeling and pixie dust here*

What have you been prompted to notice, see, or capture lately?

Words and image courtesy of Guest Blogger Jennifer Hagendorn Dizon. She can found at Instragram as @beautifulnothing, on flickr as Creative Jen or on her blog The Divine in Everything.

how we see ourselves

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Shutter brother, Artfarmer, in the studio with his self portrait.

Artists use self-portraits to explore the basic question that plagues all of us: who am I? As early as the mid 1400’s artists began painting themselves onto canvas. Later, with the invention of the camera (and mirrors) photographers began turning the image (and their artwork) inward as well. Yes, a mirror or a photograph can tell a person what he or she looks like, but we all know that the physical image doesn’t reflect the whole self. We all know that photography can be 99% optical illusion. Self-portraiture insists that an artist embark on the journey of self-exploration. This journey of self brings about choices, the main one being how to represent him/herself authentically. You always get to choose how you see yourself, that is the beauty of self portraits. There’s a growing group of like-minded friends ready to begin the journey of self… just as artists have done for hundreds of years. Does self portraiture call to you as well? 

There are lots of conversations I’ve seen online lately discussing the concept of “everyday beauty” and people are torn as to what that exactly means. Some folks feel this phrase has been overused, misused, or misconstrued. Everyday beauty is sometimes not beautiful at all, right? It’s messy… we all know this. And so going with the literal definition of “beauty” can be confusing when approaching a topic as broad as art and self. And yet so often we try our best to clean it up. We shine it and polish it and try to make it presentable. Are we caught up in comparing our insides to other people’s outsides? We photoshop and airbrush and texturize and soften. I have been known to do these things too, because I want to see what is aesthetically pleasing with my life… and so I organize the composition of my frame to put chaos into order. But can’t everyday beauty include chaos? What is real is what is true: it’s dishes in the sink, migraines, new love, and decay. Sometimes it screams in your face, sometimes it laughs. 

So, what is beautiful? Everyone has their own opinion. Self is beautiful, as is optical illusion. I believe life and reality… and the thought that we are here at all with our paints and film, exploring these thoughts… that is beautiful. All of it, no matter what, is worth documenting. You are allowed to view your life and your self with whatever filters you want to use. It’s your life and your everyday! Your masculinity, your femininity, your weakness, your strength… it’s all truth and worthy of being seen.

Today I’d love to hear your thoughts and words on the subject. What do you find yourself portraying most in your images? Why do we do the things we do? Share any images today of what you find to be beautiful, and help us redefine everyday beauty.

 

sparkle and shine

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Happy April everyone! Is it me or does the energy of the season seem palpable? I love this time of year and from what I can tell from the spring buzz, everyone else does too. Because we, along with Mother Nature are bursting at the seams with excitement, beauty, hope, color, growth ( I could go on and on) we’ve chosen to celebrate with two words for our One Word Project this month; sparkle and shine.

Whether you find your inspiration from the light of the sun, spring showers, morning dew, bursts of bokeh or fantastic flair, for all of April we encourage you to join us as we seek out everything that sparkles and all that shines.

I for one, will be singing this little ditty from Steve Earle all month long.

Help us celebrate spring and all the sparkle and shine you can find today for our OWP (and Best Shot Monday if you’re so inclined) here in the comments…and all month long in what will be a very shimmering OWP Flickr pool. Your sparkle and shine just might be featured here! Fun!

one happy word

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congregate: to bring or come together into a group, crowd, or assembly; to gather

I love words. Some for how they sound when rolling off my tongue. Some because they pull out my inner 9 year old and never fail to me giggle. Others for how they feel…. ‘Gather’ is one of those words for me, so I was delighted when it was chosen for this month’s One Word Project. I love to gather, or to be invited to a gathering. The word just feels warm, and good, and happy. Usually a gathering in my circle involves food, maybe some wine, music, kids, laughter and love. I am blessed to have beautiful friends in my life, many of them a road trip away, but when we gather it is always good. We come together, we share the load, the meal, the preparation. We laugh and linger (another very good word) I always leave full. Full belly, full spirit, full heart. When I find myself missing them I have my images of our times spent together and they never fail to take my heart right back to that day, that meal, those laughs. To gather is to love.

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All month long you have gathered here.

You gathered the light, treasures, and with ones you love. You captured nature’s gatherers in spring.

We announced Oasis, and will gather together in Palm Springs this October.

Thank you for gathering here.

Thank you for sharing your words in our comments and your images in our photo pools.

As the saying goes, ‘friends gather here.’  Thank you friends.

Today share one more image here celebrating all the beauty of gathering, and on Monday we will return with a new one word for April.