When Art Imitates Life

Yesterday I posted a photo on my other blog with a few lines describing my recent quandary with a certain four-year-old. Nothing terrible, just terribly trying. I thought it was interesting that many of the comments over there mentioned that my struggle was somewhat evident in my photo, no explanation necessary. It was so nice to feel understood in that way. A picture is sometimes really worth a thousand words--none of them spoken--all just translated intuitively through visual communication. I take great comfort in that—in the power of the capture.

Over the weekend, during a low moment, I stepped outside for a little fresh air therapy when right near my front door these tender leaves caught my eye. Tiny droplets from the previous night’s rain were catching the only glimmer of light offered by the morning diffused with weather. The leaves looked so delicate and sweet. It wasn’t until I pulled the images up on my monitor that I noticed a sadness, as the frail foliage seemed to be weighed down with each drop, weary of the burden. I felt through the image what I felt myself.

So, does all this mean we do truly create photographs that mirror the state we’re in? Do we shoot saddled with our sorrow, or jubilant with joy allowing our intimate vulnerabilities to be exposed through our work? Or, do we instead shoot through our exhaustion and despite our weariness in order to seek some kind of clarity, powerful enough to lift us from our fog? Perhaps it’s all dependent on the very moment we click and what we needed more; to express ourselves or to save ourselves.

If you’ve got a shot that speaks volumes for you, you know we’d love for you to share it.

Comments

[leslie]

Goodness Tracey...this photo is simply stunning and, yes, evocative of sadness but filled with such beauty at the same time. I do have poignant and sad photos but I thought I would share my happiest photo instead today...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lesophiephoto/1109893809
I thank you Sisters again for all of the inspiration. I am so thrilled that you are here :)

[Shama-Lama Mama]

Maybe its not so much that we "create photographs that mirror the state we’re in" but that we interpret photos based on where we are standing, what we have been through, where we feel we are going.

This picture isn't sad or tired to me at all. It looks clean and restful.

Maybe your weariness with your burden is what you are seeing because that is how you feel right now. I bet if you come back in six months, this picture will say something completely different to you.

[Lori Seaborg]

I love the boost that photography can give us when we're down. It was a gloomy dismal wintry (to a Southerner) day and I couldn't find ANYthing pretty to shoot, so decided to just focus on the bare sticks of barren trees, when I found this bit of hope: http://www.flickr.com/photos/loriseaborg/2230377952/

[Lynsey]

I'm contributing a picture of one of my dogs. I took a whole series of pictures last spring when we first got Nanuck. I love how he is smiling in this shot. It is a favorite of mine because we rescued him from living on the street and I think it shows his happiness in finally having a home.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7898099@N07/2292985365/

[Bunny]

Oh, I think this is where the "art" of photography comes in. Your mood or point of view will slant the perspective and the final image. I just love these leaves. The color in the background is so cool.

[calissa]

Mmmm, great post!!
I have two of these pics that come to my mind right away.

The first... a sunflower my roommate and I planted, very unsure whether we could make it grow. Well, it grew and I remember seeing it in mid-bloom and couldn't resist a picture. So it was priceless to see it DURING its growth process and then once it was done, I walked outside and caught it facing the sunlight, bright and big. Very symbolic to me. Here....
http://www.flickr.com/photos/marycalissa/2249967949

And second... this simple picture. I can so often relate to the bear. I have a full-color version, but I really liked how the selective color turned out... I feel like it brings out the plight of the forgotten bear tossed aside. I think this is one of my favorite pictures on a personal level.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/marycalissa/2256700444

[*pixie*]

This is beautiful. I love the extra shallow depth of field.

[kacey]

Wow, this post sure spoke to me. We've had a horrible, cold, icy winter.My pics have been grey and dreary this winter. I just came out to visit my parents in California and can't get enough of the color exploding all around me. It makes me smile. I want to just bury my face in the colors of these flowers I just posted.

http://www.wineonthekeyboard.com/2008/02/26/introducing-summer-weather/

[toyfoto]

I love how photographs seem to have their own voice.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/toyfoto/526939982/

And also that sometimes people just can't quite translate the language.

I find that happens a lot in art. Some images speak volumes to one person but only whisper to others.

[camerashymomma]

i love that photo and i also see the droop of the leaves, just hanging, kinda sad. i think it's like you said, but a combination of the both. we shoot through our emotions but also have that in our eye when we go looking out in the world. wonderful post! you make me think about my photos with more depth. thanks for that.

[Lucy]

That's a fantastic shot. I daydream about being a photographer who can capture emotions in such a beautiful way.

Thank you and all the Sisters for this site. There are no words for how inspirational it is.

[Jacki]

I see the sadness in the droop of the branch but the photo speaks to me of hope. My eye is caught by the water against the fresh green background. I believe that where there is water there is life for plants and for me that's hope that winter is almost over and surely spring must be around the corner.
I have the spring planting bug bad and even here in Texas it's just too soon. My daughter and I have started seeds inside so here is my image of hope and growth for the day.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23899543@N08/2292227003/
http://www.flickr.com/photo_exif.gne?id=2292244753

[cotterpin]

Much like the post entry, I didn't realize my picture would symbolize the changes I was dealing with when I captured it. The picture is one of my favorites now- but I can't look at it and not remember the foggy conditions I was dealing with at the time also.

http://cotterpinhouse.wordpress.com/2008/02/26/we-interrupt-this-regularly-scheduled-program/

[Mrs. Eaves]

What a beautiful photo, and I really appreciate the words, too.

I took a picture of a crocus in our yard yesterday - a spot of color in the dry winter grass. I really love how the petals are cupped, eagerly waiting, hoping to catch sunlight on an overcast day.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrs-eaves/2291989259/

[cherryfizzy]

Looking at this shot, I realized how much I, myself, long for the water -- just as she seems to...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cherryfizzy/2293466619/

lovely shots,everyone!

[Cocoa]

I find I am drawn to photograph things that express my emotions at the time. Its interesting to look back on my files of photos and see what I was feeling based on what my photographs are like. Here is one of my happiest captures. It tells a story. Even with the choices of swings and bicycles (in the background) my daughter chose to splash in the rain puddles instead.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7914841@N08/2220962197/in/set-72157603801459227/

[Betty]

I took this timed exposure on a night out with my husband. We had gone to San Diego Bay to take some night shots for a photography class assignment and it was unexpectedly magical. Since we were there for work, not pleasure, I expected to just go, get it done and go home... but my husband was sooo sweet about helping me, wanting to set my tripod up for me, carry my gear, etc... and then he wanted to sit and talk under the stars. It was dreamy.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carmensandiego/2286714053/

[simply]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/22779383@N08/2283975245/

I just wonder what this little guy is thinking? does he think "oh what a beautiful sunset" like I do?

~simply~

[tracey]

I am loving your input here sisters and really appreciate this comment from Shama-lama mama...
"we interpret photos based on where we are standing, what we have been through, where we feel we are going."
I think this is such a true part of the translation of images.

I also wanted to show you the image BEFORE I put it through Light Room and tweaked it. It feels more hopeless in the original.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/maypapers/2294478750/
So maybe as I processed it I was lightening up the mood--giving myself a little hope in the madness of it all. Who knows. But I love musing on it.

[marné]

This photo always makes me feel hopeful. I feel like the flower unfurling, hopefully growing to my full potential.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/heylucyloo/155855019/

[krystyn]

Occasionally I find myself in the middle of turbulent storms longing for the moment when the sun was still on the horizon saturating the sky in it's beauty.

http://krystynheide.com/blog/2008/2/26/when-life-imitates-life.html

[Charlotte]

Oh my thats gorgeous!

[Shalet]

Beautiful photo Tracy! I love the processing.

I find that photography helps to lift my mood - especially if I'm having a craptastic day. It enables me to see the beauty in small things that I may otherwise pass by. I'm always happier after taking pictures. This one I took to relieve the stress from packing for a big trip.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/peculiarmomma/1362477165/

When my little ones are giving me trouble I take out the camera and start shooting. I find they clam up pretty fast. Plus, I can show it to their dates when they are teenagers. ;O)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/peculiarmomma/431651644/

[maya]

Well, it's probably not a coincidence that I've started driving around taking pictures of houses, though I didn't think about it until I read your post. Right now we live in an apartment, but we want our own house so bad!

When I started my new blog in January, I had just started exploring the small towns surrounding my city and taking pictures of what I found in the old downtown areas and the houses that surround them. I was connecting that desire to wanting to hold the memory of my grandparents and linking it to the present for my daughter, but I didn't think about it being a mirror for "the state I'm in." It sure is, though. I drive around and look at these houses, taking pictures and dreaming of the day when I'll have my own.

We have lived in apartments in three different states over the last 3 years, so it's no wonder I'm longing for a permanent home.

http://springtreeroad.typepad.com/springtreeroad/2008/02/oliver-springs.html

[Aileen]

Too funny. I wrote my post for the day on my blog, and then came over here to see what the Shutter Sisters were doing. We're doing the same thing! And my post is already up. My pictures definitely mirror our lives right now. And it's not that pretty.

http://makemineaquad.wordpress.com/2008/02/26/move-away-from-your-screen/

[nicky thomas]

I LONG FOR PEACE


peace. sleep. calm. restfulness. gemutlichkeit. time for myself.

this is my life
http://flickr.com/photos/nickythomasphotography/2294702966/in/photostream/

round and round and round and round. chasing my tail. never reaching my objectives. collapsing into bed at the end of the day feeling like i've failed. failed to clean the house, failed to listen to my children, failed to have that quiet cup of coffee with my boyfriend. As i sit here, i have a head full of thoughts. I have a house viewing tomorrow. I need to clean, i need to plant the herbs i bought today in the garden, i need to pack Izzy's gym kit, i need to phone the nursery about that cheque, i need to, i need to, always i need to .. never i did.

[Charlotte]

What an inspiring idea for a photo challenge. Thank you yet again!
http://mothernaturesdaughter.blogspot.com/2008/02/was-checking-out-shutter-sisters-as-i.html

[Liz]

At first, I couldn't really see the sadness and burden in this lovely image because on first glance it speaks to me of light, life, elegance and grace. Then I compared it to your "before" version and it clicked. The original slate blue really brings the melancholy. I think that's an interesting lesson in itself: how differently we respond to colors.

I've looked at this image many times today, admiring the gesture of the leaf, loving the string-of-pearls water droplets in the background, envying the fact you've got droplets when I've got more flakes coming! In a way, it's like a haiku -- really compact, really evocative.

[Bipolarlawyercook]

I think that our art is in having an eye, and in being able to capture details that others' eyes would glide over. But I question whether I want to make the viewer interpret the details the same way I did-- at this point, it's enough to ask them to look closer-- what they see when they do is not something I want to control.

[Tanya]

A picture I took today for my daily photography project almost shouted at me. And then I read this post. Wow. Life has been so crazy (newly married, full-time teacher plus grad school), but sometimes you've just got to "bloom where you're planted."

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tanyamills/2295317450/

[Kelly]

I think the photos I take very often reflect the mood I'm in at the moment but I also find that when I'm feeling down, taking photos really brightens my mood and inspires me.

When I took this one, I was feeling overwhelmed with love for my husband and son:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/momofthreewi/2286427203/in/set-72157603976765521/

[tracey]

Thank you all for your inspired comments today. I am humbled by what you are shaing here--your thoughts, your insights and your images.Thank you, thank you.

[Jules]

How funny! Just today I realized how directionless I have been felling lately. I'm just worried that time is slipping away from me, and that I will look back with regret that I didn't do more--that I will look back on my life and that it will be a blur. I was sitting on my bed taking pictures of myself and when I looked at them I was shocked to find one of me that was very blurry, with my clock flashing in the background. It honestly coudln't sum up better about how I feel! http://www.flickr.com/photos/poemgal/2296264275/

[Rebecca]

http://rebeccasmith78.blogspot.com/2008/03/winter-beauty.html