Friday Photo

The Importance of Play

The other day I was coming downstairs, totally engrossed in all my recent stresses. I’ve been worrying myself about things I don’t really have total control over --- so much so that I’ve had bizarre dreams of angry disco bees and black fire ants (I know fire ants are not black… they’re red… but work with me here… it was a dream).

And there it was --- a wistful request for attention.

My cat Daisy is pretty no nonsense. When she’s hungry, she does the stare. When she’s angry, she flips and slaps her tail. When she’s trying to lure you into your own demise, she offers her belly for a rub (makes it easier for her to nail your unsuspecting hand).

When she wants to play, she either sits by her favorite toy or she puts it someplace to let you know it’s time to engage with her. I mean really, how am I supposed to resist this face?

So we play. I “tease” her with the felt mouse. She keeps her claws sheathed. It’s all very civilized… and accompanied by the soundtrack of her purr.

Life will get in the way of living if you let it. Sometimes you need someone who doesn’t speak to jolt you out of the mindset of “I’m overwhelmed and I just don’t want to create until I get all my ducks in a row.”… (Incidentally, I’ve never really seen ducks line up in a row… they adopt more of a loose hangout).

My stresses are still present. But I think I’m better equipped to deal with them now that I’ve had a bit of playtime.

 

Hello Sunday...

I love my cat. Apparently she hates my camera.

Friday Photo

Taking Control

This week I've been working on, among other things, one of the 3 books I'm writing. It's a course-book based on my Intro to DSLR class that I teach at the Light Factory and it's designed to get people to take control of their digital cameras instead of shooting in Auto mode.

It's an interesting exercise --- going through my syllabus and seeing how the information flows best and trying to write everything down so that it makes sense. The dynamic is different when you don't have a student in front of you and you don't have their interaction to see if what you just laid out actually makes sense and helps them grasp the concepts.

A confused expression on a person's face speaks volumes and is, in my experience, one of the best forms of feedback a teacher has.

One of my photographic goals in life is to give as many people as possible the information they need to take control of their images... so they can show the world what they see instead of just accepting that whatever happens when they click the shutter is the actual truth.

Now it seems I have tasked myself with taking control of words, not just images. It's a little outside my comfort zone, but it feels good.