Shutter Sisters

the gathering

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Whether I am arranging the shelves in my living room or the pictures on my wall, I find that the casual grouping of items together is what makes my little vignettes aesthetically pleasing to me. As I move things around, I let my instincts guide me.

Oh, this color looks lovely against this color and this shape is wonderful next to this one.

A little higher… a little lower…wait, higher—there! That’s it!

I can’t always explain why I am doing what I’m doing, but I know what I like when I see it. I know this about myself– that I enjoy pairing things up, gathering them just so and tenderly composing each arrangement. I guess it’s no wonder then that when it comes to my photographs I have these same kinds of tendencies. I’m not sure I’ve ever really thought about it until I really looked at this shot of our tulip tree buds and I was struck by how much it looks like a little family, affectionately gathered together.

It got me thinking about a number of other images I have captured that seem to have similar, almost human qualities; a loving gesture, a coupling, a birth, a family. As I race through one after the next, almost in disbelief, I see it again and again. I am delighted by my discovery.

I encourage you to look again at your photographs; really look. Set out to rediscover them. See them in a new light. Do you find any elements working together that speak to you of tenderness, nurturing, and love? Do they convey what is important to you in some abstract way that you may not have noticed before? Something tells me if you look close enough, they just might.

Comments

  4. I most often find myself drawn to randomness as my standard of cohesion. Its the thing that makes me most comforted in my surroundings and photos.

    I’ve always been fond of this pic of children getting out of school on AmberGris in Belize. The beach, the uniformed children, the hotel. Seeing them behave as any child does, set in such a wondrous place with tourism as the backdrop… Children are so pure in their actions regardless of the setting.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucindasummerville/2284083634/

  5. Kinda like metaphors… I love looking for these in my photos!! Yours are wonderful examples. 🙂 Here are some of mine…

    Being beautiful in your own way, even if it doesn’t necessarily fit in with the crowd
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/marycalissa/2139482989

    Standing brave… small but mighty
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/marycalissa/2139475853

    Lovers
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/marycalissa/2177518519

    I see these trees as two old rickety sisters
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/marycalissa/2207287647

    Parent and child… or big sibling/little sibling
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/marycalissa/2101382611

  7. "that I enjoy pairing this up, gathering them just so and tenderly composing each arrangement"
    Sounds exactly similar to how you composed this site. 🙂

  11. Inspired me to take a look back at some of what I’ve done with fresh eyes…
    A few in response:
    Coupling:
    http://marciescudder.blogspot.com/2008/02/floating-icebergs-winter-swan-series.html
    http://marciescudder.blogspot.com/2008/01/deadbeats.html
    Gesture:
    http://marciescudder.blogspot.com/2007/12/warm-embrace.html
    http://marciescudder.blogspot.com/2007/11/tangled.html
    Birth:
    http://marciescudder.blogspot.com/2007/10/cauldron-boil-cauldron-bubble.html
    http://marciescudder.blogspot.com/2007/08/sweet-adolescence.html
    Family:
    http://marciescudder.blogspot.com/2007/09/talking-in-signs.html
    http://marciescudder.blogspot.com/2007/09/morning-minyan.html

  12. I must agree, the bokeh in that shot is lovely!

    In looking back through some of my shots I found these two in the spirit you’re talking about, but they’re not nearly as uplifting as yours. The old-fashioned cup and the teapot remind me of fragile, little elderly ladies looking out as the world passes them by.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/lizgrandmaison/2284012999/in/set-72157603965872963/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/lizgrandmaison/2284801358/in/set-72157603965872963/

  15. i really love this concept and this way of seeing your photos. your choices were brilliant and totally highlighted the true magic in the photos. love this post.