“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not;
remember that what you now have
was once among the things you only hoped for.”~ Epicurus
digital photography
….on…. beauty of imperfection
Autumn is the season of imperfection. Yet it is also, strangely enough many people’s favorite season. I say “strangely enough” because most people are resistant to change, yet in Autumn, there are more changes crammed into a short time span than any other season. We may see summer temps, foliage color changes, rain, and even freezing snow. It is one of the most difficult times to forecast the weather because of these rapid changes. Even scents change; the autumn flowers carry a dryer less sweet scent and there is the scent of fruit and harvest. In the cooling air sounds themselves seem to have more clarity….
Perhaps it is these rapid changes that cause us to really sit up and take note of natures beauty. So maybe Autumn is truly an “awakening season” for many (even though many see Spring as a season of awakening).
If we look closer at what makes Autumn so beautiful we will see it is full of imperfections. In fact nature seems to celebrate these imperfections. A yellow leaf is never truly a solid yellow and a red leaf is never a solid shade of red. There are subtleties and flaws in all these changes that occur. Leaves are mottled or spotted and eventually fall from the trees as they lose their ability to cling to life. They clutter and clog our drains and gutters. Branches become brittle and break off from their life source. Fruit that is being harvested is rarely perfect; it is not uniformly colored and is filled with the scars or bruises caused by hard weather, insects, birds etc. The changing weather requires us to be more aware and dress accordingly. Yet this is often declared the most beautiful season of the year. Why are we more accepting of imperfections in the natural world outdoors than we are of the imperfections in each other? What would happen if we would accept the imperfections we perceive in others and accept those imperfections as part of what makes that person beautiful? Has the quest for perfection and comfort made us completely intolerant to the beauty of imperfection? Have we finally become at odds with nature and our own mortality?
The image above is titled “FALLEN ANGEL” and is simply a photograph of autumn leaves on a hiking trail. I loved how the large leaf seemed to be in the shape of an angel.
… on color or b&w….
Some people prefer color and others prefer b&w.
In an image saturated society which has more impact and why?
Of course there are several considerations to make before answering such a question.
“image saturated society” ~
What does that mean?
How does it shape our perceptions and tastes?
How does it determine our escalating sense of reality?
How does it change how we process/create the images we see?
Where is the “truth” in an image? – What is “true” in an image?
… on… looking into the iris of the world
Just when you think you know what a lily pad looks like I come along to shatter your preconceptions…. LOL
This was quite a massive pad whose center had become filled with water. For me I can imagine this being something viewed from outer space. A massive landscape seen from above with the center shrinking and expanding in a constant pulse letting pass only so much light and material from one world to another. I would love to wander thru a landscape like this. I almost feel I could get sucked into the center of this as though passing into some other realm. A realm unexplained, unexplored and unpredictable. Enjoy the journey. Let your imagination go…..
…on right left, left right…
Where do you stand? To the left of things or to the right?
I came across this sign while exiting a parking deck(car park). What the signs didn’t tell me is that if I turn right I would only lead to a dead-end and no real exit. I got to thinking about that: Isn’t that the way of the “far right” – always leads to a dead end? So, I think it’s best to be left of center. I have leftist leanings – truth. “You can find me, left of center…”
….on dirty ice….
So I decided to play up the notion of dirty ice. Four images that I envision presented in the following manner. Definitely work viewing in full screen (in my opinion).
It’s NUMINOUS
The continuing exploration of over exposure. This adventure began in my previous series “LUMINOUS IMPRESSIONS” [which can be seen here https://www.behance.net/gallery/24471909/Luminous-Impressions ] In some ways I think over exposure is a perfect metaphor for the internet era. When a photograph is over exposed it leads to “white out” situations where details become fuzzy and unrecognizeable. I wonder if that’s what will happen to us on the internet. Will too much exposure lead to a sort of personal and cultural blindness? And, is this a bad thing?
On the other hand – because of over exposure where things are not easily identified we are left to explore other realms of the over exposed image. It can give us new feelings and be an almost spiritual exploration into the non-pictorial and non-representational image. In other words, because we cannot readily identify something we are free to redefine it on our own mental, spiritual and emotional terms. Ten people can look at a photo of a kitten and all agree that it is a kitten they are viewing but when the image is over exposed each individual can come up with their own interpretation of what they are looking at.
Click “play on the video” then click on the first image and you will be able to see it large and then press arrow button to go to next image.
... on being and becoming ... 