What inspires you in your everyday life?
I get asked this a lot. This is so hard to answer. Because sometimes I don't feel
inspired at ALL! Sometimes inspiration just comes and you don't even have to try to find
it. It's everywhere. But other times it's just NOT there for you and you really have to
SEARCH for it. It's SO important to stay inspired so you can keep improving....and so you
don't produce garbage photos. I recently watched the DVD "What Remains" which is a
documentary about the photographer Sally Mann. This was hugely inspiring and has left me
feeling like I want to work on creating photos that are TRULY beautiful and meaningful.
I think it's good to be inspired by this type of work. Classic, beautiful, and timeless
imagery.
What advice can you give our readers about looking through the lens in a new way?
This is not only advice to others, but this is also advice to myself. I have TRIED
seeing things differently when i look through a lens....but in all honesty I see things
the way I see things. I don't know how much I can change my vision. I can't photograph
things like anyone else....because we ALL see things differently. I DO know that I can
change how I connect with what I am photographing. Feel it more. Love it more. Be more
a part of it. I am tired of shooting and then looking at the back of my
camera....shooting, chimping, shooting, chimping, shooting, chimping. I feel like I have been missing SO much of photography by focusing too much on the final outcome of a photo. I have been missing the connection of people. Their love. Their relationship. I have been working extremely hard to be more in the moment and connecting to what or whom I am photographing. This inspires me SO MUCH. This is the best way to do things differently
and create photos that are lovely AND mean something. Focus on feeling more connected to
your photographs. Put a bit of your soul into them. don't just focus on the way they
"look".
Do you feel what I'm saying? If not, these photos say it all:
