True Colours
Tag: wisdom
“Solitary Moments”
This blog post is inspired by a Photography Exhibition I went to today.
The Exhibition featured the images of Chris Donaldson, Frank Alvaro, Ray Finneran, Enrico Scotece and Paul Dorahy, three of whom I have known personally for many years. They specialise in Medium Format Monochrome Film Photography, and develop and print their own images.
“Solitary Moments” for them are those moments when they pre-visualise the idea and image, then spend the time photographing the scene, with the camera on a tripod. It is quite likely that they may only take 1 – 4 images in a day… Their “Solitary Moments” continue in the act of developing the negatives and seeing the finished prints appear ‘like magic’ in the developing tray.
Having experienced the above, I can certainly identify with the “Solitary Moments” they are speaking about.
Shooting Medium Format Film from a tripod-mounted camera slows you down. This helps you get a feel for the scene that you want to photograph i.e. the greater connection you have with the subject the greater chance you have of communicating what you want to say. Here the pre-visualisation continues as you imagine what the final image will look like before you take the photo.
It is later, in the Darkroom that you continue the process to achieve what you set out to communicate initially.
It reminds me of the “Solitary Moments” I have and am experiencing in my aim to become a better writer of Poetry and my fledgling steps of becoming an Oil Painter.
The processes whilst different in terms of the technology used, have some parallels.
I remember on my last trip to Joadja, a historical Shale Mining town in New South Wales, Australia. I took my camera gear and a visual art diary, pens and pencils with me.
These days I shoot digital and whilst the urge was there to do what many do with DSLR’s these days, i.e. shoot a 100 shots and then move on, I decided to sit down and ‘get a feel’ for what was in front of me, absorb the sense of history whilst studying the light and possible compositions.
The pencils came out first and I began to make some rough sketches after walking around the subject. I jotted down in a few words about how I felt and what I was seeing (which later became the poem below). The camera came out next and I again walked around the scene, pausing to take it all in before I started to shoot.
“Solitary Moments” are precious things to experience.
They also come whilst I am fleshing out an idea for a poem, when I sit at my canvas and endeavour to communicate what I feel I want to say, or when I am writing a speech.
I, like the photographers in today’s exhibition are looking forward to many more…
Written by David Johnson
1 May 2016
Exhibition details:
The Bowral Art Gallery – home of the Bowral & District Art Society & BDAS workshops. 1 Short Street, Bowral NSW Australia (02) 4861-4093
April 27 to May 10 Solitary Moments – Chris Donaldson, Ray Finneran, Frank Alvaro, Enrico Scotese and Paul Dorahy.
For more “Solitary Moments” click on the following links:
http://www.chrisdonaldson.com.au
http://www.rayfinneranphotography.com
A Humbling Thought…
Walking With The Mind
It’s A No Brainer Really…
It is a ‘no-brainer’ really.
At age 53 you would have thought that I would have realised this before now. The quality of sleep affects your productivity. Very simple.
I knew this before today but was not very good in practising it. All sorts of things and reasons stood in the way.
In my earlier years, say even up to my 30’s, I was what you would call a morning-person and a night-person. Not a very good mix!
I loved to stay up late and wanted to get up early, particularly if there was a pre-Dawn or Dawn photography shoot on. I would be excited about this and had trouble getting to sleep because I couldn’t wait to go on the shoot.
Other things that impacted my sleep quality were the distance from where I lived to where I worked. When I got married we made a decision to live 100km’s SW of Sydney (there were logical reasons which I won’t go into here), the only trouble was, for most of that time it meant a 2 – 2 1/2 hour journey each way.
When I arrived home I was quite tired but quickly gained ‘a second wind’ which meant I would stay up late to enjoy the things I wanted to enjoy, then get up at 5.30am and on we’d go. This went on for 16 years…
My wife and I now run a Home Office for our business so travel times have obviously reduced, but that doesn’t always mean we get early nights. Anyone who has run their own business knows that to be successful you need to work more than 9-5 in it, plus I have other involvements as well as my ‘About’ page on this blog will attest.
I have a very active mind anyway and sometimes that stops me from getting to sleep straight away as well.
Friday night (after my Life Coaching session), I knew I should have turned in straight away, but became interested in a movie which did not finish till nearly 1am. Unfortunately I woke up at 6.16am. Not a very good sleep and although I did achieve some things yesterday, I did not get done anywhere near what I had planned.
Last night I hit the pillows early (for me) on a Saturday night, 10.15pm in fact and upon waking up this morning at 7.45am, I was ‘full of beans’ as they say.
Upon rising this morning I:
– did a bit of reading from 3 different books, including one on Art
– came up with 4 ideas for blog articles
– one poem
– wrote 6 1/2 pages towards a book that I have been wanting to write for many years
– actively jumped into some exercises recommended from the Life Coach session I had on Friday night
– started some house chores
all by 11am.
The lesson that I need to learn and actively apply to my life is that a good night’s sleep is invaluable.
In comparing how I feel today (to yesterday) maybe finally I will put some things into practice to ensure I get the amount of sleep I need to be as productive as I can be.
Written by David Johnson
17 April 2016
Life’s Fragile Funnel
At The Foot Of A Dream
Oscillating Thoughts
Raise The Bar
Review your goals
Raise the bar
Look to the future
You’ll see from afar
Roll up those sleeves
Dig right in
Look at that dream
And start to begin
In no time at all
You’ll be on the road
Moving forward
Instead of being towed
That mental check-up
You gave to yourself
Was the key
To your self-help
Reward yourself
Along the way
The journey of growth
Is your payday!
Written by David Johnson
January 2016
© CommunicatingCreatively/David Johnson 2016
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