One compliment I hear often is that I’m creative. I couldn’t disagree more, most of the time. I’ve always been one to copy or more truthfully, be inspired by other people and their art. Let’s go back to when I was young. I loved crafting of any kind. A neighbor whose name I forgot a long time ago taught me how to crochet. My mother to sew and do counted cross-stitch, embroidery, and countless other crafty things. All of those things came with patterns. Those patterns were someone else’s designs, not mine. Nevertheless, wanted to create what they offered.
Fast forward to being a mom and the scrapbook craze. Yes, I jumped on board and started documenting the lives of my family and then, individually, my boys so they’d have these wonderful records of everything they did, who their coaches were, the kids they played on sports teams with, that first good report card or the one that got them sidelined from soccer until their grades came back up. I fed off the creativity of my friends and of books that showed layouts and ideas for making these memories even more memorable. Again, not wholly my ideas. but pictures to get me started on the process.
My hobby of scrapbooking lead to pick up a camera. I want to say my “real camera” or the one that “takes those great images” but we’ll save that thought for another day. Scrapbooking had me wanting better pictures, so I took a class to learn how to take my DSLR out of auto mode and learn to use it for how it was meant to be used. The next few years are a bit of blur because that was about the same time that social networking was becoming popular. I found forums that allowed to share my work, and to see other’s beautifully created images. And this is where I began to get inspired again. To do what the next person is doing. I hate to say copy, because I don’t really want to copy their work, but I did want to learn to use light the same way they day. I wanted to learn to understand composition like they did.. Sometimes that meant tring to duplicate what they were doing, but It was a teaching moment for me. That one picture where I got it right was the stepping stone for the next one where I got it right without the help or vision of someone else.
As I grow as a photographer I still enjoy looking at other artists’ work. I try to disect what they did and how they did it. is their technique something that could work for me? Could their technique lead me to something new? Very possibly. Social media if full of artists who share a passion for their work. And who doesn’t like being around like-minded people? I am still learning from these talented artists. I participate in loops on Instagram were we all post at the same time every week. Sometimes with the theme, Sometimes not . Our reasons for doing so vary from person to person, but I believe in some small way we all feed off of each other.
My latest energy is being directed towards my Lensbaby products. I love the feeling of artistry I get from using them. I love that my creations are created in camera and don’t have to spend a lot of time in photoshop creating what I want. Yes, I still ask “how did you do that?” or “Which lens did you use?” I don’t ask so I can copy what they do, but instead to understand how that tool can help me create something that I love. I’m still growing as a photographer and my hope is that I’ll never settle for good enough. I hope I can keep learning and being inspired by others. After all, aren’t we a piece of every person and event that has happened in our lives?
I’ve been listening to a Podcast recently by David duChemin called the “ A Beautiful Anarchy.” It’s a podcast for creatives by a creative. I love listening to David talk as I take my walks in the morning. On one morning this week I was listening to episode 39 titled “Stolen Ideas about Originality.” David talks about how we “grow into individuality.” I have to agree with him and you can just look at my Instagram feed to see how my style have changed over the years. We are all working towards being our own unique selves. It’s a process and there are only so many tools out there for us to use, but that doesn’t mean that we have to use them in the same way. If you haven’t listened to David duChemin before I suggest you make some time. David is full of ideas and thoughts for helping the creative be who they were meant to be and he’s also full of metaphors as well. These almost always make me smile as I’m taking my walk in the morning!
I can’t let you go with sharing one of my most recent pieces. I created this image with the @lensbabyusa #Sweet35 optic and a crystal from the #Omni flare collection. #AnamorphicRaindrop.
