My Father's Garden from Mirko Faienza on Vimeo.
Mar 3, 2010
My Father's Garden
A friend shared this with me. Beautiful images, editing, timing, and sound. By Mirko Faienza.
Mar 2, 2010
Making Space for Inspiration
As I prepare to create and exhibit some new photographs in May for Madison's Gallery Night, I'm wanting some inspiration, and I'm finding it here and there but not with any predictability.
Inspiration is one of those elusive things that can be so hard to describe or understand. We know when it's absent, but not how to guarantee its presence.
As a writer, photographer, and visual artist, I'm intrigued and sometimes miffed by the randomness of inspiration. It seems to appear and disappear on its own whims and terms.
While inspiration has no on/off switch or valve to open or close at will, there are ways to facilitate inspiration, to make some inviting space for it, and foster conditions which are favorable.
In my experience, two of the primary things that produce inspiration are Story, and Light.
Story, as I'm using the word here, can be anything which presents words, actions, journey, context, relationships, value, adversity, surprise, risk, reward, cost, cause and effect, and implications for the human experience. Anything that happens and about which we care is Story.
Light, as I'm using the word here, can be anything which enlightens, explains, reveals, informs, expands on, shows the detailed shape and shadow of Story. The why and what-for and how-come. The counterpoint or question which takes us deeper into the Story and gives it more meaning.
To increase our encounters with inspiration, if we could do such a thing, the least we can do is create conditions that are favorable for us to hear some Story, and see some Light.
I rarely create in a void or vacuum. Most of the time when I create (with words, or images) I'm discovering something, reacting to something, or both.
If I live so that my chances of discovery are low, I'm far less likely to be inspired to create. If I live so that there's little new input, I won't have much to respond to, and I'm far less likely to be inspired to create.
But if I choose to converse with people who are different from me (and the best conversation involves more asking and listening than speaking) I am in a much better position to hear intriguing Story, see some interestingLight, then discover and react as I can create something new.
If I make choices that bring a stream of new ideas and perspectives into my path, I'll significantly increase the likelihood that inspiration will show up and be my friend.
The internet can be a friend or foe in all of this. Of course, there's a wealth of Story and Light to be encountered on the internet, in ways which might inspire me to discover, react, and create. There are billions of pages, stories, news articles, blogs, photos, videos, songs, and more, representing thousands of cultural perspectives. More importantly there are diverse people and communities on the internet, and ways to actually interact with them.
The danger with the internet is that there's so much, there's TOO much; and by necessity we now have tools to fine-tune the scope and focus according to our own preferences and biases. We friend, unfriend, follow, unfollow, subscribe, and unsubscribe. If we don't do this with care, we end up filtering out much of the Story and Light that would otherwise enter our journey and lead to inspired creativity.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. How do you make space for inspiration, inviting not too much and not too little story and light, so that you can be prompted to make something new?
Inspiration is one of those elusive things that can be so hard to describe or understand. We know when it's absent, but not how to guarantee its presence.
As a writer, photographer, and visual artist, I'm intrigued and sometimes miffed by the randomness of inspiration. It seems to appear and disappear on its own whims and terms.
While inspiration has no on/off switch or valve to open or close at will, there are ways to facilitate inspiration, to make some inviting space for it, and foster conditions which are favorable.
In my experience, two of the primary things that produce inspiration are Story, and Light.
Story, as I'm using the word here, can be anything which presents words, actions, journey, context, relationships, value, adversity, surprise, risk, reward, cost, cause and effect, and implications for the human experience. Anything that happens and about which we care is Story.
Light, as I'm using the word here, can be anything which enlightens, explains, reveals, informs, expands on, shows the detailed shape and shadow of Story. The why and what-for and how-come. The counterpoint or question which takes us deeper into the Story and gives it more meaning.
To increase our encounters with inspiration, if we could do such a thing, the least we can do is create conditions that are favorable for us to hear some Story, and see some Light.
I rarely create in a void or vacuum. Most of the time when I create (with words, or images) I'm discovering something, reacting to something, or both.
If I live so that my chances of discovery are low, I'm far less likely to be inspired to create. If I live so that there's little new input, I won't have much to respond to, and I'm far less likely to be inspired to create.
But if I choose to converse with people who are different from me (and the best conversation involves more asking and listening than speaking) I am in a much better position to hear intriguing Story, see some interestingLight, then discover and react as I can create something new.
If I make choices that bring a stream of new ideas and perspectives into my path, I'll significantly increase the likelihood that inspiration will show up and be my friend.
The internet can be a friend or foe in all of this. Of course, there's a wealth of Story and Light to be encountered on the internet, in ways which might inspire me to discover, react, and create. There are billions of pages, stories, news articles, blogs, photos, videos, songs, and more, representing thousands of cultural perspectives. More importantly there are diverse people and communities on the internet, and ways to actually interact with them.
The danger with the internet is that there's so much, there's TOO much; and by necessity we now have tools to fine-tune the scope and focus according to our own preferences and biases. We friend, unfriend, follow, unfollow, subscribe, and unsubscribe. If we don't do this with care, we end up filtering out much of the Story and Light that would otherwise enter our journey and lead to inspired creativity.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. How do you make space for inspiration, inviting not too much and not too little story and light, so that you can be prompted to make something new?
Feb 26, 2010
Flashes of Hope
Here's one from yesterday's Flashes of Hope shoot at Madison's UW Children's Hospital. I'll post a few more when I process them.
I'm always amazed by these kids. And Trudy the Director is great to work with.
This experience always humbles me - to photograph children and families who are struggling with serious illness. When things in life are relatively smooth, it can be easy to sail along without an acute awareness of priorities, gifts, and grace.
Sometimes it takes life's bigger interventions to help us sort the "things that matter" from the "things that don't," to do so some of life's weeding and sifting, and then to also live accordingly.
Feb 23, 2010
Schmech-nology
"Photography has not changed since its origin except in its technical aspects, which for me are not important." - Henri Cartier-Bresson
Margin. How Much Is Enough?
Margin is a word I think about almost daily, these days.
Too much margin and a person can drift, waste time, get lost, not rise anywhere near their potential.
Too little margin and a person can suffocate, get crushed by an overload, have nothing left over.
As a photographer, I appreciate just the right amount of margin.
Too much margin? I'm not sure what to shoot. I'm not conforming my photographs into my vision. I'm wandering. My photographs will eventually show it.
Too little margin? There's no room for energy or creativity. I shoot before I think. Just like that last president.
Just enough margin? I'm pushed a little, with optimal constraints, I've got to optimize, must FOCUS... to make my best creation under the circumstances.
Too much margin and a person can drift, waste time, get lost, not rise anywhere near their potential.
Too little margin and a person can suffocate, get crushed by an overload, have nothing left over.
As a photographer, I appreciate just the right amount of margin.
Too much margin? I'm not sure what to shoot. I'm not conforming my photographs into my vision. I'm wandering. My photographs will eventually show it.
Too little margin? There's no room for energy or creativity. I shoot before I think. Just like that last president.
Just enough margin? I'm pushed a little, with optimal constraints, I've got to optimize, must FOCUS... to make my best creation under the circumstances.
Feb 19, 2010
The Audacity of Self Promotion
The best promotion, in my humble opinion, is to do what you do, do it very very well, and let others speak well of you if they are so inclined.
Self-promotion, in the 21st century, is a whole 'nother deal. It's a somewhat foreign deal.
I see some people who are good or great at modern self-promotion. Extroverts, likable, well-spoken, confident, connected (genuine relationships or not) and it helps to be talented (though not all self-promoters are).
Sometimes there's plain old arrogance and self-absorption, I think we've all seen some of this too. Where it's found, it's not entirely ineffective.
When I observe self-promoters I have a slice of envy and a slice of discomfort (or in extreme cases, worse).
In this age of blogging, tweeting, and feverish friending there's a certain crude benefit to audacious self-promotion.
But long before the internet or modern media, there was also a certain value ascribed to graceful humility, a basic commitment to excellence, the advantage of signal over noise. Quality over quantity.
You know... a recognition that cream naturally rises to the top, rather than feverishly proclaiming, "Hey everybody, I'm cream! Please RT!"
In 2010, I find much of (post?) modern self-promotion to be crass and unsightly; such as when people RT (retweet) their own posts, and a majority of their social network activities amount to "look at me."
On the other hand, there is some sort of strange temporal sweet spot in modern so-called "social networks" for those who are well suited to tooting their horn as they chase after some measure of accomplishment. There is a sweet spot of quick results, followers, friends, respect, notoriety, attention, or other things that might be deemed good.
Is it worth it? What personality types are ideally suited for such ventures? What are the lasting fruits of these exploits? What life deficiencies lend themselves to audacious self-promotion? Where's humility in the mix, does it matter any longer? When will the internet advance far enough to offer an "ego filter?" Where does self-promotion crossfade into spam?
(I would say that perhaps 1/3 of everything I see on twitter is essentially spam or noisy chatter with little signal. 1/3!!! Would you watch TV or listen to radio if 1/3 or more was noisy static?)
These are questions I have, more than any answers, or even my own conclusions. I'm trying to navigate these very waters. I transgress my own boundaries from time to time.
I have a degree of skepticism, maybe that's all I'm saying.
My instincts tell me: do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly.
Meanwhile, there are few things as rich as promoting the talents of OTHERS -- using twitter, facebook, blogs, and actual face-to-face REAL social networks... to point to the creative excellence and genuine exploits of other people, and encourage their endeavors.
Just some thoughts for the mix.
Self-promotion, in the 21st century, is a whole 'nother deal. It's a somewhat foreign deal.
I see some people who are good or great at modern self-promotion. Extroverts, likable, well-spoken, confident, connected (genuine relationships or not) and it helps to be talented (though not all self-promoters are).
Sometimes there's plain old arrogance and self-absorption, I think we've all seen some of this too. Where it's found, it's not entirely ineffective.
When I observe self-promoters I have a slice of envy and a slice of discomfort (or in extreme cases, worse).
In this age of blogging, tweeting, and feverish friending there's a certain crude benefit to audacious self-promotion.
But long before the internet or modern media, there was also a certain value ascribed to graceful humility, a basic commitment to excellence, the advantage of signal over noise. Quality over quantity.
You know... a recognition that cream naturally rises to the top, rather than feverishly proclaiming, "Hey everybody, I'm cream! Please RT!"
In 2010, I find much of (post?) modern self-promotion to be crass and unsightly; such as when people RT (retweet) their own posts, and a majority of their social network activities amount to "look at me."
On the other hand, there is some sort of strange temporal sweet spot in modern so-called "social networks" for those who are well suited to tooting their horn as they chase after some measure of accomplishment. There is a sweet spot of quick results, followers, friends, respect, notoriety, attention, or other things that might be deemed good.
Is it worth it? What personality types are ideally suited for such ventures? What are the lasting fruits of these exploits? What life deficiencies lend themselves to audacious self-promotion? Where's humility in the mix, does it matter any longer? When will the internet advance far enough to offer an "ego filter?" Where does self-promotion crossfade into spam?
(I would say that perhaps 1/3 of everything I see on twitter is essentially spam or noisy chatter with little signal. 1/3!!! Would you watch TV or listen to radio if 1/3 or more was noisy static?)
These are questions I have, more than any answers, or even my own conclusions. I'm trying to navigate these very waters. I transgress my own boundaries from time to time.
I have a degree of skepticism, maybe that's all I'm saying.
My instincts tell me: do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly.
Meanwhile, there are few things as rich as promoting the talents of OTHERS -- using twitter, facebook, blogs, and actual face-to-face REAL social networks... to point to the creative excellence and genuine exploits of other people, and encourage their endeavors.
Just some thoughts for the mix.
Jan 27, 2010
Horses are Beautiful Creatures!
Yesterday I photographed some horses near Oregon, Wisconsin.
It was early afternoon, a cloudy winter day, which gave me a nice big softbox in the sky.
The only problem? It was c-c-c-cold! 20 degrees F. is not so bad but with the wind it probably felt like 0 degrees F. or lower.
These are such majestic animals, the way they move and hold themselves. It's wonderful to study these creatures with a camera.
It was early afternoon, a cloudy winter day, which gave me a nice big softbox in the sky.
The only problem? It was c-c-c-cold! 20 degrees F. is not so bad but with the wind it probably felt like 0 degrees F. or lower.
These are such majestic animals, the way they move and hold themselves. It's wonderful to study these creatures with a camera.
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