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Category Archives: blogging
Inspiration
“What inspires you to create art?”
I hear that a lot. Especially when I have created a piece that is odd and strange and ….well, a bit out there. Inspiration, for me, comes from many places. Dreams especially. I have bizarre dreams and sometimes I think it’s just the artist brain gathering ideas and presenting them like “What should we do next?”
Sometimes I see a painting and really like the colors and think it will be the perfect combination to create a texture. We had frost on our windows once and I took a photo of it to use as an overlay on some winter photos. Sometimes the simple things work really well too.
I also love looking at Pinterest. Pinterest is my go-to place when I want to relax. I can still keep my brain occupied and yet, let the creative part of my brain wander around.
I love looking at other photographer’s work, but I don’t try to duplicate what has already been done. Sometimes I will notice that an idea or concept is the same, but that they were executed very differently. It’s a very cool thing to notice that there is another person out there who thinks along the same artistic lines that you do and that you aren’t alone in your somewhat bizarre thinking!
And I think that is what inspires me most…..the realization that my brain is free to explore whatever it chooses to. No matter how weird, bizarre, or even freaky people might think it is, it’s mine. I created it. These ideas have to come out and I have to create them to put them aside and move on.
If you are a photographer or an artist and you want to create, DO IT. Explore those sides. Does it mean you have to put them in your portfolio? No. But it does mean that you had the guts to create something from your vision, your perspective, and created a piece that is uniquely your own. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes and don’t be afraid to ruffle feathers. Art isn’t about playing it safe. Art is about expressing who you are and what you see. The good, the bad, and even the ugly.
If you want to create…..look within you. Listen to those little voices and what they are saying. Don’t be afraid to go outside of your comfort zone. If you play it safe, you will never know what you could have achieved!
One must work and dare if one really wants to live.
~Vincent Van Gogh
Brayden {One Year}
Sometimes I get so caught up in shooting and editing and then doing creative shoots that I forget to showcase what I am working on!
I recently had the pleasure of photographing this Lil’ Guy….I shot his newborn images and here we are now a whole year later. And we have some beautiful Fall colors for these images too! ♥
My how the time has just gone by. He has definitely mastered that walking…and running. He gives his Mama and Daddy a workout all day, every day.
(His Mama made the chalkboard from an idea she saw on Pinterest.
Love me some Pinterest! ♥)
Kachinas
Sometimes I get so excited about the oddest things. I love quirky stuff. I love things that are out of the “traditional” realm of what people like. I like odd, plain and simple. I find beauty in things that some people find creepy or weird. I find beauty in things that others even consider ugly. I like to think that everything has beauty to it if you only open your eyes to it.
Recently, I came upon these Hopi Kachina dolls.I couldn’t stop looking at them and studying them. The detail and the art that went into making them fascinated me. Kachina dolls are the masked spirits of the Hopi Indian tribe.The dolls are meant to be treasured and studied, not children’s toys or idols of worship. They are essentially visual representations of the spiritual realm and are associated with rain, crops, and the healing of the sick.
I did have a hard time picking a favorite, but I am pretty sure that the first one was my ultimate favorite. Even though I was told he looks “creepy” by other people. I love the different colors and the look of it. The wolf one is my second favorite!
Do you find them creepy or are you just as fascinated with them as I am?
Authentic
According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary the word authentic is defined as:
“true to one’s own personality, spirit, or character”
and that really has me thinking about my blog and my business. I don’t feel like I have been being authentic here. I don’t feel that I have been true to me and my character or my spirit. You see, I have decided to keep most personal things to myself. I had a personal blog and because of a few stalker-type people I had to get rid of it. (It’s not gone, but you need a password to access it.)
My personal life has been off limits because I don’t want to go through that again and I feel like making that decision made me sacrifice a piece of me in order to keep my privacy. I am normally an open book and I talk about everything. I brought this up to my photography group and they were all so supportive and so wonderful about it all. They encouraged me to do what I felt was right and what I thought was best for me, my business, and my family.
I might post a personal blog here and there, but I am making a decision to not post photos of my family on my blog. They have a right to their privacy and I am going to respect that. This is a huge leap for me, so we shall see how this goes!
My business is thriving and I don’t know what the future holds for it, but I know that I want to see it continue to grow. I have ideas and plans and dreams, and I have a wonderful support system in place to help me achieve everything I want. I am grateful for them each and every day!
Blogging….
I originally started this blog to share sessions and now it has transformed a bit, I also post some photography related stuff and tutorials and even a few little freebies I have made. I hope that as it continues to evolve and grow that I can continue to work at integrating my love of photography along with the sessions and places I photograph.
I love photography. I love to photograph people and places and anything that grabs my attention. As I continue this journey I hope you will still come along with me and share my passion and love for all things photography related!
Summer Time
Well, based on the temperatures we have had lately (over 90 degrees) and the fact that I had watermelon last night and that my children are out of school, I believe it is safe to assume that summer has officially arrived here.
I love getting out in the summer and taking photos just as much as I do any time of year. There is so much around here to photograph (not to mention summer trips too!). I usually try to take a point and shoot camera with me when I am out. You never know what you might capture. Even on ridiculously hot days it is not unusual for me to get my camera out and go out shooting!
This was just a nice day at the pool. Even in the winter time when I look at this I can feel the warm summer sun and feel the cool water. Look at how clear and inviting that water looks. Who is ready for a swim now?
And there is always ice cream to help cool you off. (Or sno-cones!). We also like getting frozen custard too. And gelato. Basically, anything ice cream like! ☺
Downtown there is a cool little area and they turn on their fountains and you can play in them. On hot days that I have been downtown I have been known to walk through them. (The upside of being an artist..people expect quirky behavior from you!). I wish I could go down to that area more because it is very unique and very cool.
Another way to beat the heat…Six Flags. Most people would disagree and say that it is a lot of walking…which it is. But the rides are so strategically placed that you can ride a water ride and then a fast ride and you forget all about the heat. The Sky Screamer is 236 feet up in the air and goes about 43 miles per hour, it is a great way to dry off and cool off after riding the Tidal Wave that is just across from it. The Tidal Wave drops you over a 5 story waterfall into 300,000 gallons of water. It’s hard to notice the heat when you are soaked from head to toe!
Six Flags has locations in 9 states (And in Canada and Mexico too!). If you have a current Season Pass and are visiting an area with a Six Flags, your Season Pass will get you a FREE entrance to any of their theme parks! Pretty cool, huh?
Another favorite of ours to do in the summer is hit the carnivals. (In a previous life I think I might have worked on the old school carni circuit! ☺). We love the rides and it reminds me of when I was a kid and how much I loved them too! Tilt-a-Whirl and the Scramblers are my favorites though!
But one of the favorite things about summer whether I am at Six Flags or at a carnival is a funnel cake. I don’t even need the mega one with the ice cream and strawberries, just the regular ol’ funnel cake. Summer just isn’t summer without one. The things I have to have during the summer time are watermelon, sun tea, a cherry sno-cone and a funnel cake.
What is your favorite thing to do in the summer? And what are your summer must-haves?
