Focus On You

I love the perspective that Larraine Zungolo used when photographing these shadows. Aren't they fascinating? Larraine has captured some beautiful lines and shapes. We can't see much of the tables and chairs, but we know the tables are round and the chairs have arched backs. In addition, we can see ornate ironwork and possibly a fence. Personally I would like to be sitting in one of those chairs soaking up the sun! You can see more of Larraine's work on her flickr photostream.

To See with Fresh Eyes

In still moments by the sea, life seems large-drawn and simple. It is there we can see into ourselves. ~ Rolf Edberg

“What would you think about taking a long weekend trip to Costa Rica for our anniversary?”  This was my husband’s question to me several weeks ago.  At the time, I was knee deep in taking down the decorations and getting the house back together after the holidays so I didn’t give it too much thought…I responded with, “Sure, dear, that sounds wonderful!”

As our trip got closer though, I got more and more excited. And as I expected, it was a perfect weekend in every way. Time alone with my husband. A beautiful resort located by the beach. Warm and sunny weather. A relaxed atmosphere. But what I didn’t expect was how much I would appreciate this time away…how much I needed this time away.

I have always maintained that there is beauty and magic and joy to found in my ordinary life. It’s the driving force behind all of my creative pursuits.  And I still stand behind that statement wholeheartedly. But to be honest, lately it has been a struggle. I have been struggling. It feels like real life has been chipping away at my soul and clouded my vision.

This is why I think it was so refreshing to get away for a few days. To allow for some time and space from the routines and responsibilities of everyday life. To allow for some perspective.  To see things differently.

To see with fresh eyes.

This is what photographers do.  And in my own experience, everything good in my life has been a result of seeing things differently.  It was the answer to my identity/mid-life crisis.  It was the new-found abundance in my empty nest.  For me, this ability to see life differently has been the greatest gift of my journey in photography.

Thanks to our time away, I was able to see my present circumstances with fresh eyes.  But whereas in the past, the hope and encouragement came with seeing how things could be, this time, the comfort and peace came with seeing things as they truly are.

I don’t want to leave you with the impression that this is a negative thing, because the truth of the matter is that I feel quite liberated.  It has allowed me to identify some specific actions which have already helped bring some quieting to my emotions.  The other areas of my life which are causing me some anxiety…well, it’s not as simple.  But because I am now able to see more clearly, I am resolved.  I am at peace.  And I am grateful. 

Until next time,

Kelly

FOY

With our theme this month being shadows I was mesmerized by this image by "hiddendoorfour" in our flickr group. The shadows and reflections of the trees on the lake, the misty fog, the moon peeking through the trees, all very captivating.  Thank you for participating in our monthly theme and please visit https://www.flickr.com/photos/hiddendoorfour/ for more of this artist's beautiful photo stream. 

Shadow Dancing

by Linda

Everyone knows photography is all about the light. Finding the light, knowing what color the light is and how to use it in your photograph. If you have light it follows that you will have shadows. This months Focus had me kinda stumped. What's so great about shadows, I thought. Then I read this.

Oh, I see! Sometimes shadows can really add something to your photograph. They can help fill out the story. But I still have trouble coming to terms with having shadows in my photographs. I don't like them and will do my best to avoid them at all costs and if I see one I will reframe my subject otherwise the photograph ends up on the cutting room floor. Shadows just don't belong in photographs, I thought. Then I read this.

Oh, I see! By allowing shadows in my photographs I can get a little creative. Make my photograph a little abstract. Abstract is something I struggle with. Sometimes I need abstract photos explained to me. But I'm learning. But still, how do I do that exactly? I asked myself. Then I read this.

Oh, I see! Now I'm getting some where! Maybe I can be on the lookout for shadows to photograph! This could be fun! I enjoy being a little creative from time to time! It's time for me to step into the light and look at the shadows! Of course sometimes a little inspiration helps. So I looked at this.

It's still all about the light but there's beauty in the shadows too! Have you tried it yet?

...

Focus on You

There were so many delightful shadow photos in the FOL gallery this week that it was truly hard to choose just one to feature. Finally I settled on this one by Life, Unscripted Photography. I was particularly touched by the caption that was written under the photo:

A Special Shadow

I took this photo back in 2013 shortly after my grandmother had passed. I was missing her when I stumbled on this crocheted table runner she had made for me many years ago. Its shadow reminds me that she is always near.

Thank you so much for sharing this lovely photo and memory with us, it is truly special.

Focus On You

by Judy

As we begin our February theme of Shadows, this photo of Natalie DeLuca's (known as hiddendoorfour on flickr) caught my eye. 

This is what winter looks like in my neck of the woods. The reflections of the trees make dark shadows in the water, and the contrasting snow covered branches give this photo the look of a beautiful painting.

Be sure to take a look at Natalie's flickr stream here.  It will make you smile!  

We hope you'll play too as we look forward to seeing our flickr stream and Instagram feed fill with beautiful shadows this month.  

More Good than Bad

by Cathy

I’ve been reading a series of books by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. These children’s books are a prequel to J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. When Pearson’s daughter was five years old her family was reading Peter Pan together. She immediately wanted to know how Peter met Captain Hook. Ridley Pearson, a New York Times bestselling author, knew he wanted to tell the story about how a boy became Peter Pan. Barry and Pearson tell of how Peter came to be on an island with mermaids, pirates, Indians, lost boys, and Tinker Bell. As I read the books it quickly became evident that shadows were a predominate theme. In fact, the second book is entitled Peter and The Shadow Thieves. Evil was portrayed by a shadowy character who captured the shadows of others.

This got me to thinking about light and shadow, good and evil, happiness and sadness. In photography both light and shadows are required to make an image. If we only had light, our photos would be overexposed with no texture or depth. If we only have shadows our photos would be underexposed with no forms to recognize. In much the same way, we all have times of light and shadows in our lives. We have periods of intense joy and happiness and moments we feel doubt or hurt. These times of light and shadow create who we are. Do we want to totally avoid life’s shadows? I think not. How we handle the shadowy times gives us depth and forms our life. If there were no dark shadows, we wouldn’t appreciate the good times.

"Life is at its best when everything has fallen out of place,

and you decide that you're going to fight to get them right,

not when everything is going your way and everyone is praising you."

~ Thisuri Wanniarachchi

Here’s some things to do the next time shadows enter your life.

• stay positive – there really is a light at the end of the tunnel
• get creative – make the situation better
• learn something – find out what went wrong
• focus on what you can control
• have the right people around you

"Be thankful to those painful moments of your life,

because that is what shaped you to become who you are now."

~ Pradeepa Pandiyan

I know that taking my camera on a long walk helps me deal with the shadows in my life. With camera in hand my focus is turned to something else, usually the beauties of the world. I know we are all troubled by what is happening in our nation and in our world right now. Some of us are troubled by what is happening in our own lives, but instead of dwelling on the bad let’s look for the positive and be grateful for what we have. Let's take the bad with the good and seek joy!

"At times the world may seem an unfriendly and sinister place,

but believe that there is much more good in it than bad.

All you have to do is look hard enough.

And what might seem to be a series of unfortunate events

may in fact be the first steps of a journey."

~ Lemony Snicket

Shadow Casting

by Cathy

The sun has been hiding behind the clouds for the last several days. From morning till night it’s overcast and somewhat gloomy. I miss the sun. I do love a rainy day now and then, but I need the sunshine. Being under cloudy skies has me dreaming about bright sunshiny days and that leads me to thinking about shadows.

I’ve had shadows on my mind for another reason, too. I belong to a group led by Kim Manley Ort that is reading a book in which each chapter is the author's definition of a common word. We read the chapter, think about what the word means to us, and then take a picture to illustrate the word. Our word this week is shadows. 

One of the things I like to do after reading the chapter is to look up the word in the dictionary and see if there is a different definition other than the common one. When I looked up the word shadows I was surprised at how many meanings there were and how many ways it can be used.

There’s the common meaning which according to my Merriam Webster Dictionary is a “partial darkness or obscurity within a part of space from which rays from a source of light are cut off by an interposed opaque body.” Shadows are inevitable. If you have the smallest amount of light and something blocks it, there will be a shadow.

Shadows fascinate me. They appear calm and peaceful. They are quiet. They make not a sound as they fall across something. A shadow can be the perfect shape of an object or it can be a slight suggestion of the original object, just a trace or hint of what is blocking the light.

I love to find patterns in shadows, pull in close with my camera, and create an abstract that has to be studied to know what is real, what is shadow, and what in the world is it anyway!!

Of course we cast our own shadow when we stand out in the sun, but there is also a different kind of shadow we cast; the shadow we cast on others. The definition that touched me the deepest was “persuasive and dominant influence.” The shadow that is a pattern of who we are can fall on those around us and influence them positively or negatively. I have a responsibility to cast the right kind of shadow that will be a positive influence on others.

I asked myself these questions:

What is the effect of my presence on other people?

Do I cast a strong shadow?

Do I cast a shadow of inspiration, gladness, and hope?

Am I ready to offer encouraging words?
Do I have a face of cheer?

I never want to cast a shadow that is depressing and disheartening. I want the shadow that I cast to be cast with love.

This blog at Focusing On Life casts its own shadow on each writer and each reader. I haven’t been contributing here very long, but I have been a reader since the first post. The shadow that Focusing On Life has cast on me has been one of encouragement and inspiration; of love and support. Knowing those that contribute here, I know that will never change. We are so grateful for each of you whether you faithfully read our words or drop by now and then. We want to inspire you, to encourage you, to make you smile, and to give you hope. We want our shadow to be cast with love.

"Because everything we say and do is the length and shadow of our own souls, our influence is determined by the quality of our being." - Dale Turner

Seeing Shadow in a New Light

by Kelly

Shadow owes its birth to light.  John Gay

It's one of my favorite things about my old house...the way the light spills into my rooms.  Especially in the mornings. And I've probably taken a million pictures of it over the last several years.

It used to be, that when I shot these kinds of photos, I would always over-expose them a good bit or lift the shadows in post-processing.  As a light-seeker, I wanted to focus on the light.  I wanted my photograph to tell the story of the light.  And to that end, I thought that I could best tell the story of the light by diminishing the shadow.

But here lately... I don't know if it's because I'm getting older or because I have a little more life experience under my belt.  Or maybe it's because I am growing and evolving as a photographer...who knows.  At any rate, lately I find the shadows to be intriguing - I am learning to appreciate the mood and drama they lend to a photos - and so therefore I do not work to diminish their effect.  I am learning to see shadow differently.

On a histogram, shadow is not the absence of light, but it is at the opposite end of the spectrum from light.  Opposite derives from the word OPPONERE which means 'to set against'.  It has many meanings, but these I found to be of particular interest:

• opposing
• diametrically different
• contrasting
• conflicting

As I pondered shadow, light, and conflict, it all made sense.  Conflict happens when two opposing forces are set against one another...it is an important element in any good story.  Conflict creates drama and tension in story because it adds an element of doubt.  Conflict makes a story interesting, but it's also important in that is sets up the plot.  Conflict is the root of a story and and it conveys information and engages us in ways that words often cannot.

In Greek literature, the use of conflict as a narrative structure is known as AGON - the central contest - hero vs. villain.  And the hero's ennobling struggle against the protagonist is what they believed made a story worth reading.

Conflict makes a story worth reading.

In photography, shadow serves a similar function.  Shadow is set against the light and therefore creates conflict and tension in an image. There is drama and mystery in the unlit parts of a photo.   But doesn't shadow also tell us something about light? Because there would be no shadow without the light. By its very nature, shadow points to the light.

Shadow tells the story of the light.

I am learning to see shadow in a whole, new light (pun totally intended).   And as I begin to embrace shadow in my photography, I am also learning to appreciate the shadows in my life. I will always be a light-seeker..this is my passion and a guiding principle in my creative vision. But I will no longer avoid the shadowy areas of my life for fear of them. No...from now on, I will acknowledge shadow...I will use shadow...because I know it will point me in the direction of the light.

Until next time,

Kelly

In The Shadows

by Leigh

"In photography, there are no shadows that cannot be illuminated." ~August Sander

As photographers we spend most of our time focusing on light…searching out light…determining the quality of light, the quantity of light…..but the opposite can also be just as intriguing.  Shadow seems magical to me…kind of mysterious.   It's like shadow is it's own spirit living among us, dancing in the light….playing hide and seek in the light.  We chase them and hunt them and try to expose them.  They create intrigue in our photos and tell a story that go beyond the surface of the photograph.  Shadows seem to have a mind of their own and perhaps that is why I find myself so drawn to them.

We so often overlook the potential of photography's dark side and risk missing so many creative opportunities.  They can be used inventively and bring another dimension to photos.  Light and shadow are as linked together as they are in painting and literature.  When is the last time you composed an image using shadow as your core creative concept instead of the quality of light?  Go ahead…try it.  You might find this the creative spark you've been looking for.