Posts Tagged: Zen Photography Retreats
3 to 5 day inspirational journey to transform your mind – body – heart – soul + creativity – professional photographer
blog post: wishing or doing?
“If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of potential – for the eye which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible. Pleasure disappoints; possibility never.” — Soren Kierkegaard
If I were to wish for anything, I’d wish to create an interactive dialog with the many visitors that come here to the Zen Photography blog. Thank you for honoring me by reading my posts (we have many visitors from all around the world). Despite our not being able to meet in person, I’d really like to hear your thoughts and strike up a conversation on how you relate photographically with my writings. Having a connection is essential in supporting one another on our photographic journey – I will always welcome your input here.
So, let’s consider our photographic potential for a moment…
Many of us have a passion for photography, whether we are just beginning to learn it or we are someone who is in the thick of a solid career.
As a new photographer, how many times have we seen the potential in wanting to create from a scene or a moment only to have the outcome be disappointing as we struggled with camera settings or we mistimed our shots? All that possibility leading to all that disappointment. That’s called frustration. Frustration leaves many a shooter to rely on P – which does not stand for Professional or Potential, in my book!
Or, perhaps that passion for our photography has led us to move from enthusiast towards an actual career as a photographer – all that potential, all those possibilities…all that struggle as we make our way down an unknown path without a mentor or a coach. That’s how it was for me, nearly twenty years ago. What was I thinking?! As a typical creative person, I was thinking about the potential, the excitement, the possibilities – everything I knew I could do, despite not knowing how to go about doing it. That didn’t stop me. I blazed a trail for myself and for many photographers that followed after me. But that trail blazing came at an expense at times – there’s a LOT of learning to be done as the sole owner of a photography business. That is one thing I know for sure. Those who tell you they’ve learned or know it all (at any time in their career), probably haven’t learned anything at all.
Each of us is on our own journey; we all learn in our own way, pace and time, but you now have the opportunity of learning from people who have experience and are here to guide and help – Team Zen. They are a gift. I wished I’d have had someone to mentor me as I was learning photography and the business of photography – THAT is a whole ‘nother story, believe me.
I’d like you to consider your potential while reading this post, then consider the things you spend time wishing for…those possibilities that look so enticing yet are still out of reach. Are you achieving your photographic or business goals by planning and harnessing your potential instead of just wishing that things will happen? Do you have a plan to learn more about photography, or more about operating your photographic business?
Please share your thoughts here with us. What do you see as your potential vs. what you are wishing for. ‘My potential is: ___________________.’ ‘I wish __________________ .’ Can you feel the difference between them?
If you need some photographic or business guidance, consider taking a Zen Photography 2-day Workshop, or attending a Zen Photography 5-day Retreat, or having 1:1 Coaching. Team Zen can help you learn to see differently and create from your potential in a way that will move you thoughtfully towards success.
This isn’t a race, it’s your journey.
Namaste, Team Zen | Joanne Bartone
ABOUT THE PHOTO ABOVE:
Canon EOS 7D | Canon 16-35mm L f/2.8 IS @ 16mm | ISO: 400 | f/8 | 1/160 | Provincetown MA | Image refined cropped and enhanced for color + tonality in PS5
blog post: contemplative photography
“If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.” — Buddha
Whether or not it is a single flower we approach photographically, or the abstractions of shadows and light, the point here is that photographic “seeing” goes much deeper than what we are actually seeing.
There is an almost intuitive seeing and a knowing involved in photographing…what direction is the light coming from – am i adding light to my subject or scene, or using the ambient light alone – is the light high or low, blue, pink, yellow or orange – how am i relating to my subject, or to my light – what or who is my subject – what rules of photographic design am i going to use as i photograph – will i use selective focus or selective composition – do i want it to be a colorful image, or do i desire the simplicity (or complexity) of a black + white image…these decisions are spontaneously and intentionally considered as you contemplate the outcome of your image oftentimes in what can be mere moments.
The mental focus used to create a photographic image is nothing short of miraculous; nearly as miraculous as the single flower…but not quite…
I believe that when we can step beyond looking and move more towards seeing the miracles present in our chosen subjects and the miracles in the light and in composition, it can change our whole approach to our photography.
When we contemplate the purpose and message of our photography it can open our creativity to growth we never thought possible.
Helping people move more towards contemplative photography is exactly what we love to do.
Join us for a Zen Photography Workshop and create with intention. An on-line workshop on Contemplative Photography that will be available by July 2012. We believe you will find it to be of great value if you are looking to see differently.
Namaste, Team Zen | Joanne Bartone
ABOUT THE PHOTO ABOVE:
Canon EOS 5D | Canon 24-70mm L f/2.8 IS @ 70mm | ISO: 100 | f/4.0 | 1/1250 | Provincetown MA | Image refined cropped and enhanced for color + tonality in PS5
blog post: pursue your path
“Pursue some path, however narrow and crooked, in which you can walk with love and reverence.” — Henry David Thoreau
The “path” of photographing has so much significance for so many people…it can be an outlet for creativity, a means to document life and loved ones, a way to earn a living…photography and the act of photographing is multifaceted! it’s a path that can instill immediate awe and excitement, both while photographing and through the visual rewards of the end result: an image that evokes emotion or memories. photography is a powerful medium of expression! no wonder so many people have such tremendous reverence for it.
Zen Photography Safaris | Workshops | Retreats will assist you in refining the photographic path you have chosen, at any level of experience.
Take a moment to share what your favorite photographic subject is with us.
Namaste, Team Zen | Joanne Bartone
ABOUT THE PHOTO ABOVE:
Canon EOS 7D | Canon 24-70mm L f/2.8 @ 28mm | ISO: 200 | f/11 | 1/30 | DL Convention Center | Pittsburgh PA | Image refined cropped and enhanced for color + tonality in PS5
blog post: knowing ourselves
“Knowing others is wisdom; knowing yourself is enlightenment.” — Lao Tzu
There are many people that touch our lives. we learn from them in many ways; how to cook, how to drive, how to lawyer or doctor, even how to photograph. we become busy learning and doing; very busy. and in all this busy-doing we often lose touch with ourselves. if we can be still and introspectively return to ourselves we will gain enlightenment, not just knowledge.
At Zen Photography Safaris | Workshops | Retreats, we offer just the right balance of knowledge and experiences to help you gain wisdom, but most importantly, Satori (enlightenment).
Namaste, Team Zen | Joanne Bartone
ABOUT THE PHOTO ABOVE:
Canon EOS 5D | Canon 24-70mm L f/2.8 lens @ 28mm | ISO: 100 | f/5.6 | 1/160 | Kentuck Knob Chalk Hill PA | Image refined, cropped and enhanced for color + tonality in PS5
blog post: inspira-Zen
“Inspiration is a different thing. Through inspiration you start on the journey, not on any effort of copying. You move on your own path. Inspiration is just a challenge. A thirst arises, and then you move. Tantra says, ‘Be inspired, but don’t become imitators.’ Always remember that you are your own goal.” — Osho
“Tantra” is akin to principles or ethics based upon Divine Universal principles.
Zen Photography Safaris | Workshops | Retreats was created with the intention to inspire, guide and inform people who love photography, no matter what the skill level.
We can derive our inspiration in many ways…here, i simply want to focus on the inspiration for our photography.
Perhaps we find inspiration for our photography from the beauty of nature, or the repetition of patterns at an industrial site, or perhaps from the irony presented often in life, and we can even find it through the work of other photographers – all are beautiful and viable ways to become inspired as we move through learning to see and photograph all that we are seeing. the challenge then, presents itself with taking the inspiration you have found and integrating it into your own creative process without copying what you have been inspired by.
Tricky.
Consider this:
When you can approach being inspired as a challenge where you integrate that inspirational source into your own creative process, instead of copying it verbatim, you will have stretched, extended and liberated your OWN creativity, and THAT is exciting! this liberation will then extend further and move you to places of personal and professional growth that you previously only hoped for.
The various practical experiences and lectures available to you at Zen Photography Safaris | Workshops | Retreats are designed to help you get in touch with and integrate your inspirations into your own creative process. we look forward to helping you fuel your soul and direct your creativity towards your own truth.
For more inspiration to reflect upon, please refer to our INSPIRA-ZEN-AL BLOG posts where you will find inspiration for your personal, creative, technical and business needs.
Namaste, Team Zen | Joanne Bartone