art

a photo study: contemplative photography II

Beyond the clouds
My gaze goes on and on;
The endless sea:
What lies beyond is unknown
As my gloomy thoughts…

~Lord Suetsune (cited: http://www.wakapoetry.net)

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sparrow…    Apple iPad   f/1.8  1/12000s   20 ISO

This week’s photo study was inspired by Howard Zehr, (Contemplative Photography seeing with wonder, respect, and humility).  He invites us to consider,

“… how we might use the medium of photography to stimulate our imaginations, to develop our intuitive and aesthetic sensibilities, to gain new insights. …to stop and look and be refreshed. In order to do this, [he] asks us to ‘re-image’ how we envision and carry out photography.

“Rarely do we spend enough time with an image to ‘mine’ all of its visual, emotional, and spiritual potential. Rarely are we aware of its impact on the emotional as well as the intellectual level. Too often our tendencies to judge and evaluate get in the way of appreciating what we see.”

Photo Assignment:
Discipline yourself to make at least one photograph each day.
Once a week, spend at least 10 minutes with one of the photographs.
As you do, consider three topics in this order:
I see — describe each object, each detail, the light, etc., Then associate: what are you reminded of by the shapes, juxtapositions, etc.
I feel — What do you feel as you look at the image?
I think — Interpret and analyze.
Keep a journal about this and any insights you gain.

“The practice of contemplative photography does not end when you finish shooting… The first thing you should do after [photographing] is spend some time with each of your images.  Try to see which ones work and which do not. Don’t be in a hurry to delete the ones you don’t like, but try to learn from them. See if you can remember what was going on in your state of mind when you [pressed the shutter].”  ~ A Karr & M Wood (The Practice of Contemplative Photography)

I am looking forward to seeing your image that was inspired by Howard Zehr’s photo assignment.  Let’s tag with #aphotostudy.

Toy Store

“We must look deeply to identify the real suffering of our times and to understand how it has come to be. Our modern way of living brings tension, stress and pain to our body; we are exposed to anger, violence, and fear; we live with the threat of terrorism, the destruction of the ecosystem, war and famine, climate change, the economic crisis, recession, poverty, social injustice, broken families and divorce, and so much more.

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Toy Store…  Nikon D750   f/1.8  1/25s  35m   100 ISO

How are we living? How are we consuming? What violence, fear, and anger are we ingesting every day through the media around us? How is our lifestyle polluting the environment and creating a toxic level atmosphere for our bodies and our minds, for our families and for future generations?  If we can call the suffering, the real ill-being of our times, by its true names and if we an see how it has come to be, we will know exactly what kind of medicine, what kind of healing we need in order to deal with it. The truth of ill-being will reveal the end of ill-being.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh (The Other Shore)