12/8/11
12/7/11
12/6/11
12/5/11
12/4/11
12/3/11
Out of Focus
Weaving between the lines...
Rebel against perceived failure to create something new and different.
As a child we were told to color between the lines; as an adolescent learning to drive we were told to drive between the lines; as an adult if we paint-by-number we have to stay within the lines. The implication from childhood upwards is clear that staying within the boundaries is good and going out of them is bad. We are told to learn from our mistakes but are then also punished for them rather than turn a misdeed into a good deed.
In photography a blur is a mistake, an accident, something that shouldn't happen if you stay in focus. It is an aberration that supposedly makes a good photograph bad. What happens though if we decide to take that photo and play with it, as a small child does with finger painting before learning the rules, through editing and processing?
It is an occasion to let our creative minds wander and smear stuff around just as that little kindergartner does with paint and paper and no rules. What does it matter if it isn't a master photograph with all the qualities we are told make a good exposure? Sometimes experimenting with post processing a photo doesn't always work out but surprisingly more often than not, if we fool around some, we create a great picture. It is entirely different, inimitable and likely a more interesting one than originally intended, unique art of our own we probably would not have thought of. There's a lesson about life in there somewhere.
These photographs after being downloaded weren't what I had originally visualized within the lines I had drawn in my mind. My preconceptions of what the photograph was supposed to look like within the original lines in my head didn't work out. Rather than perceive photographs gone wrong as bad and let the opportunity to learn from a miscalculation go by I tried turning them into something good. Never waste the probability of getting a lucky break.
Rebel against perceived failure to create something new and different.
As a child we were told to color between the lines; as an adolescent learning to drive we were told to drive between the lines; as an adult if we paint-by-number we have to stay within the lines. The implication from childhood upwards is clear that staying within the boundaries is good and going out of them is bad. We are told to learn from our mistakes but are then also punished for them rather than turn a misdeed into a good deed.
It is an occasion to let our creative minds wander and smear stuff around just as that little kindergartner does with paint and paper and no rules. What does it matter if it isn't a master photograph with all the qualities we are told make a good exposure? Sometimes experimenting with post processing a photo doesn't always work out but surprisingly more often than not, if we fool around some, we create a great picture. It is entirely different, inimitable and likely a more interesting one than originally intended, unique art of our own we probably would not have thought of. There's a lesson about life in there somewhere.
These photographs after being downloaded weren't what I had originally visualized within the lines I had drawn in my mind. My preconceptions of what the photograph was supposed to look like within the original lines in my head didn't work out. Rather than perceive photographs gone wrong as bad and let the opportunity to learn from a miscalculation go by I tried turning them into something good. Never waste the probability of getting a lucky break.
12/2/11
12/1/11
The Texture of Trees
Dead or alive...
The bark and grain of wood is interesting because like fingerprints there are none alike. Each section or piece of every tree has its own lines, irregular and matchless, each original unto themselves. Like people they might share the same characteristics, same species, same height, same width and same age. Even then the wood of each tree will vary depending upon its own experience, what it has been exposed to and where it grew up.
Tree rings tell the story of a life lived just as lines on the face of a person does. They need not be bold and outlined with clarity but with age they multiply and exist as part of the history. Each ring, each line signals the timbre of the year it was created. Was it an abundant year, a year of drought, an ordinary year? Tree rings are the inner part of the tree and although the outer shell can be altered the inner one cannot.
The health and well being of a tree can be measured by its outer shell of bark and telltale inner tree rings. People are like that, if the exterior has been altered, that makes as much a statement as does the interior organs of the body. Some exterior changes are a natural part of life to be embraced as are alterations in the interior.
What lies inside a tree or a person may be terra incognita, unknown and yet to be mapped until it is opened and explored. A tree can be cored for its tree rings just as a human can be opened in small areas to diagram what is inside to reveal its experience, the exposure of its past, its origins and what may be ailing it. One thing is certain, to fell a tree completely in half for study or diagnosis, means death.
The bark and grain of wood is interesting because like fingerprints there are none alike. Each section or piece of every tree has its own lines, irregular and matchless, each original unto themselves. Like people they might share the same characteristics, same species, same height, same width and same age. Even then the wood of each tree will vary depending upon its own experience, what it has been exposed to and where it grew up.
Tree rings tell the story of a life lived just as lines on the face of a person does. They need not be bold and outlined with clarity but with age they multiply and exist as part of the history. Each ring, each line signals the timbre of the year it was created. Was it an abundant year, a year of drought, an ordinary year? Tree rings are the inner part of the tree and although the outer shell can be altered the inner one cannot.The health and well being of a tree can be measured by its outer shell of bark and telltale inner tree rings. People are like that, if the exterior has been altered, that makes as much a statement as does the interior organs of the body. Some exterior changes are a natural part of life to be embraced as are alterations in the interior.
What lies inside a tree or a person may be terra incognita, unknown and yet to be mapped until it is opened and explored. A tree can be cored for its tree rings just as a human can be opened in small areas to diagram what is inside to reveal its experience, the exposure of its past, its origins and what may be ailing it. One thing is certain, to fell a tree completely in half for study or diagnosis, means death.11/30/11
11/29/11
Crossing the Virtual Desert
Seek water journeying past a brief void of mind...
Above all else keep squinting to the horizon for the oasis.
There are times when forces in life collide and a fiery mixture that creates a burst of creativity and colorful experiences explode and the thrill of living can hardly be contained. Then they are often followed by quiet periods of contemplation and the soul soaks up what it has encountered and cultivates it for expressions in art and intellect. Then there are those cycles where the energy seems sapped out of life and the mood is flat and the color is gray. If you are a soul that travels through the hemisphere of vivid contrasting emotions it is important to recognize when those intervals occur. It is a certain bet that you are a creative type, a thinker, whether it is art, literary or science and it is critical you be aware of your own states of being.
When I was younger it was learning not to let moments of maniacal-like outbursts of creativity get too out of control and manage them to productively use the energy. Quietude has always been a manageable and enjoyable period since instinctively I know that I am recharging for the next thing. What I must be wary of is letting the natural periods of gray turn to black. Above all else the black hole is to be avoided since then you are unable to see the ropes that are being tossed to you so you may pull yourself out. The cipher must be encoded beforehand so when the signalling dots and dashes arrive you recognize them and steer your psyche back to solid ground.
Gray has been my tone for over a month now. It creeps up slowly and seems like something else such as the cold that is tenaciously hanging on I can't get rid of. Possibly the long hot summer full of unsought dramas that have cooled as has the weather and the mood is used to excuse this as post-crisis recovering. Another warning beacon is nine to ten hours of sleeping, unusual for me. Then recognition occurs, a skill that has taken me a lifetime to learn, that I must pause and enumerate the elements to draw a conclusion about my current awareness. Grey is the current shade and steps must be taken to keep black from obliterating the landscape of my thinking.
It is through a series of these episodes I have learned how to redirect back towards color. It is not always easy but steps must be taken and the first is to keep one foot in front of the other although the feet are heavy and the cactus I'm surrounded by has spines. Seek help, in my case it's a long time, trusted and valued friend and professional help. Tell the really important people with a need to know but limit who is aware. Letting too many people know only makes it worse due to the human dynamic of action and reaction, perpetuating the problem rather than solving it. Do something even if it is the minimum, in my case must be something creative. What I do is take pictures and edit photos to keep the scintilla flickering since I'm just not up to writing or video editing. So what if they're not great photos or edited so well? The hand and mind is still active and in control and when living in color returns it will not be difficult to pick up again.
It is a virtual desert of the mind that must be crossed and looking for water as sustenance along the way is critical to keep going. Redirecting negative thoughts to positive ones should never be underestimated but considered a critical component. Keep going, to stop is to chance disorientation, gamble with dehydration of soul, lose sight of the destination oasis ahead; it is there in the horizon simply not visible yet. Keep squinting and looking, it will come into view, it's not as far as the mirage in between makes it appear.
Above all else keep squinting to the horizon for the oasis.
There are times when forces in life collide and a fiery mixture that creates a burst of creativity and colorful experiences explode and the thrill of living can hardly be contained. Then they are often followed by quiet periods of contemplation and the soul soaks up what it has encountered and cultivates it for expressions in art and intellect. Then there are those cycles where the energy seems sapped out of life and the mood is flat and the color is gray. If you are a soul that travels through the hemisphere of vivid contrasting emotions it is important to recognize when those intervals occur. It is a certain bet that you are a creative type, a thinker, whether it is art, literary or science and it is critical you be aware of your own states of being.
When I was younger it was learning not to let moments of maniacal-like outbursts of creativity get too out of control and manage them to productively use the energy. Quietude has always been a manageable and enjoyable period since instinctively I know that I am recharging for the next thing. What I must be wary of is letting the natural periods of gray turn to black. Above all else the black hole is to be avoided since then you are unable to see the ropes that are being tossed to you so you may pull yourself out. The cipher must be encoded beforehand so when the signalling dots and dashes arrive you recognize them and steer your psyche back to solid ground.
It is through a series of these episodes I have learned how to redirect back towards color. It is not always easy but steps must be taken and the first is to keep one foot in front of the other although the feet are heavy and the cactus I'm surrounded by has spines. Seek help, in my case it's a long time, trusted and valued friend and professional help. Tell the really important people with a need to know but limit who is aware. Letting too many people know only makes it worse due to the human dynamic of action and reaction, perpetuating the problem rather than solving it. Do something even if it is the minimum, in my case must be something creative. What I do is take pictures and edit photos to keep the scintilla flickering since I'm just not up to writing or video editing. So what if they're not great photos or edited so well? The hand and mind is still active and in control and when living in color returns it will not be difficult to pick up again.
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