/ Mental Habits

Sometimes you just don’t see until you look

Wherein I reflect upon picture and becoming more aware of my surroundings.

I took this photograph while at my grandparent’s house the day after Christmas:

365-171_Window at Grandparent's House

I didn’t really think much about it. Was just snapping some photos and I have a thing for windows. But today when I say down to post my Project 365 photos, I really fell in love with the composition of the picture. Somehow the balance of the shapes just really makes me happy and I get just the barest sense of melancholy that, like a hint of chili powder in your brownies, makes the sweet all the better.

I thought to myself that if I hadn’t needed to find a picture for my project, if I hadn’t gotten into the habit of taking pictures on a daily basis, if I hadn’t been aesthetically unhappy with some of my other photos of the day . . . I wouldn’t have actually taken the time to look; to actually look enough to see.

Even with taking pictures on a daily basis since July, I still often forget to look enough to see, to listen enough to hear, to eat with enough deliberation to really taste. Maybe this picture will help remind me when I forget to pay sufficient attention to the here, the now, and the joys that are all around me.

On this day..

5 Commments

  1. I’m really diggin’ your pics! This one is really nice (not my fav, but really nice). You are inspiring me to give it a try…I don’t know if I’m dedicated enough, though.

    Why don’t you put your pics on your own site?

  2. Thanks. I don’t think this is my favorite either, but feel it has a certain something that I didn’t expect when I took it.

    I use Flickr because it makes the exercise at least a partly social event – which helps keep me invested in making sure I keep up and post regularly. Plus, on the egotistical side, a lot more people see my photos on Flickr than read this blog.

    I’ll be honest, if I didn’t have a camera in my phone, I think the whole project would be harder. But having a camera with me everywhere means that even if I get stuck I can take a picture of something. It also helps that I have a good view of Providence from my apartment windows when I get stuck for a photo.

  3. Peter: this is an excellent image. I think you have quite a good eye and in your photos are a great number of superb images. I loved the shots on the CDs you gave Mom and me for Christmas. We’re off to SC tomorrow. Keep on clicking.

  5. I didn’t know about that . . . thanks. Interesting what captures people’s imagination, isn’t it. Sometimes simple can be remarkably powerful.

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