Reflections

What's better than an image of a lovely thing? Seeing that lovely thing twice, of course. I've been shooting on patterned glass and the more I'm experimenting, the more I'm appreciating the reflection, sometimes even more than the subject itself.

I've long been drawn to water as a subject, but technically, it's never the water that makes the image. It's the light that hits it, the objects and colors it reflects, and the breezes and waves that make interesting patterns with all those elements.

Using glass in the studio gives me more control of the reflection, but there's still a magic to it that isn't manageable. And I think that's what makes it great.

Abstractions

I had a challenge from my photography club here in Seattle to shoot subjects so close up that they might cease to be recognizable. Challenge accepted!

This is my favorite of the images I made because it stopped being recognizable and became for me about balance, darkness and hope shining through. (No wrong answers in interpretation, right?)

I'm grateful I can use photography to create abstract images I don't otherwise have the painting skills to create. And it's an excellent reminder that beauty is everywhere, even in my dog's Kong chew toy. 

Breath

Continuing the theme of being connected and working with the flow... I asked my fine hubby of 20 years today what he thought I should blog about this week and he said, "Breath."

So OK. Breath. From the beginning of making art (again) since we moved to Mexico and stopped being so damn busy all the time, my work reflected a certain peace. Yes, it was born of slowing down and really seeing what was around me. But after shooting for a while and sharing the images that really captivated me, I articulated a statement about those pieces.

It was this:  My work invites people to stop for a moment and take a deep breath.

That is the effect that art I love has on me, no matter who created it. It stops me in my tracks, and makes me breathe. I hope it does that for you, too.