Shutter Sisters

the silver lining of emptiness

By

Here’s something I need more of in life.

Space.

Just space.

Look what leaps out of space. Stretching, possibility, deep breath. Unbidden shape.

I don’t mean space as das spielzimmer space. Or even the metaphorical space granted by Friday night toddlers-only pizza parties at grammy and grampa’s house. I’m talking about the kind of contentedness of spirit that causes the head to empty so that new things—ideas, muses, inspirations—simply go SPROING! as they should: like a projection. A thing that gives you a poke. Or that drips languorously, catching the light, catching attention.

Space is what allows a SPROING! to turn from drop to glistening pool. Sometimes it’s simply time. Sometimes it’s a fleeting moment of true self-love. Self-confidence. Faith in oneself. Or perhaps a newfound moxie, one that finally has you shake off those harrumphing, cynical voices that hiss that’s silly or that’s not worth your time or that’ll never go anywhere, so why bother?

Is negative space a positive for you, too? Does yours crop up like a surprise, or is it intentional? How does emptiness amplify the sliver of what you frame in portraiture, nature, landscape, still? How’s it make you feel to tilt your camera—and your notion of what’s possible—that much further than convention prescribes? Show us.

Comments

  1. I love this photograph, the dof is stop on, love it. I don’t know about you but I when I’m taking photographs even surround by people I feel like I am lone and there is no one within a million miles of me.

    Si

  4. Both Kate and Marcie’s photos are so evocative of the notion of space — there’s an instant sort of inspirational lightness that happens when you view them. Thank you!

    I find myself taking lots of photos of doors. Besides making me curious about what’s on the inside and what’s on the outside (and I could toss in all the other door metaphors), when I grab my camera and head out the door, I’m making space for creativity and vision to join me.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucyloomis/3801946915/

  6. LOVE the gorgeous pic. Beautifully composed, gorgeous DOF. I really love the subtle bokeh dancing in the background. Well done.

  8. oh, i am in serious need of that space you mention… as an artist fighting off constant cobwebs soooo interferes with creative flow! love the pic too… k

  12. It’s like mental yoga! For me, I need a reminder and practice to get there. The more frequently I get that space, the easier it is for my mind to go there. And it’s been way too long sine I’ve found that kind of space, where I can stretch my creativity, where the light floods in and you can clear out those cobwebs, as Karin said.

    Love, love, love the post and the image!

  16. I LOVE negative space and capture it in photos – whether consciously or not. I think negative space helps to accentuate what is already there.