What Really Matters

What happens when you choose once and for all to put what matters to you in the viewfinder, regardless of who approves or understands?

What happens when you claim your craft, your art, your expertise and stop asking anyone more established or proficient or experienced to say it's good enough?

What happens when you throw away the rule book and all the measuring sticks and just say what you were afraid to say all along?

I am a photographer.  Here is my work.  Learn from it.  Let it speak to you.

In many ways, this is what publishing Expressive Photography has meant to Tracey and the rest of us here at Shutter Sisters.  Many of us are not professionally trained photographers.  Most of us learned how to use our cameras on our own, asking questions from whoever had the time or patience to listen.  Some of us didn't know this was a passion until we looked through the lens at our ordinary lives and realized we were bearing witness to honest beauty and real magic.

Like many of you, our education in photography came over years, hand and hand with our own personal development.  While we were learning about aperture, composition and shutter speed, we were also mastering the art of how to see, how to really see what's worth honoring in an everyday life.

Not everyone will appreciate our particular contribution to the photography conversation at large.  A quick scan of certain reviews and the Shutter Sisters inbox reveals that Expressive Photography has actually riled some members of the old guard--an outdated and small contigent of the fading old boys club that has dominated the professional photography scene for so long. 

But times are changing.  At this particular moment in history, it's no longer enough to have the longest lens or the most sophisticated mastery of your technical skills.  What matters is your ability to infuse your work with heart and soul--whether you're standing on the fields of Rwanda watching two young girls wait for a miracle or whether the miracle is already standing in your own backyard. 

This is why we wrote Expressive Photography.  We believe in what you see, and we know that this book will inspire and help you show everything your soul already knows about what matters the very most.

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Today, on this last day of the month where our One Word Project encouraged you to "express" yourself, we're asking those of you who have read our book to leave your comment in the review section of Expressive Photography at Amazon.  One line will do.  Help us tell the world why expressive photography matters--no matter what your point of view.

Hello Summer!

This summer I'm co-hosting the Mondo Beyondo Dream Lab, an online class about rest, play and the power of kindness.  Since I knew we'd need a new collection of images to post with the lessons, I commissioned my kids (plus four or five more neighborhood friends) to help me stage a little photo shoot.  All the children involved were a little bit too grownup for bubbles (mom, we're tweens, not kids), but everyone really got into it when I showed them how the bubbles were showing up in the screenfinder.

Whoa, Mom! How did you do that?? That's cool!

I didn't do it on purpose, but I had to agree.  There was something about the combination of shooting in the golden hour, taking an extra step in and turning slightly toward the sun that took our bubble shots to a whole new level.  Add some giant circle earrings and a circle wand, and you're good to go.

So c'mon, sisters, it's summertime afterall! Bust out the bubbles and show us what you can do.  I'd love to see what other cool effects we can get with a little water, sunlight and suds. If you don't have your bubble wand in hand then show us anything that speaks to you of summer. Yes! This is yet another photo contest!!

Show us what you’ve got between now and Sunday night at midnight PST over in our OWP Flickr pool and leave a comment here with a link to your shot. Only one image per person please and only those images shared through links in the comments here will be considered. There will be one “Grand Hello” winner that will receive a 36X24 canvas (Hello!) and 2 runners up that will win a 20X24 canvas compliments of Hello Canvas, of course!

For more summer inspired photography prompts like this one, it's not too late to sign up for Picture Summer with Tracey Clark.  Class starts next week on July 1st! Hello summer!

Hello You!

Anyone who has been through a difficult time can appreciate how healing (and thought-provoking) taking self-portraits can be.  Sometimes you just need to face yourself in the mirror.  Sometimes you need to be willing to see exactly what you look like in order to silence the constant critic who can't stop exaggerating your worst faults. 

The truth is, we are all more tender, more fragile, more strong and more beautiful than we can bear to imagine--but it gets one step easier if we're willing to pick up the camera (or the iPhone) and take in all of who we are, through a more forgiving lens.

I've been doing this everyday for the last few weeks.  I think it's helping me get grounded and remember who I am, after all I've seen and been through over the last year.

Do you need a nudge to turn that camera back around on your beautiful self?

Hello Contest!

It’s time for a June Mini Photo Contest. That means it’s time to share your best image that fits our theme this week. Today, it’s Hello You! So show us YOU in all your self-portrait glory between now and Sunday night at midnight PST over in our OWP Flickr pool and leave a comment here with a link to your shot. Only one image per person please and only those images shared through links in the comments here will be considered. There will be one “Grand Hello” winner that will receive a 36X24 canvas (Hello!) and 2 runners up will win a 20X24 canvas compliments of Hello Canvas, of course!

So hurry, hurry--don't be shy.  We're eager to see your sweet face--exactly as you are right now.

We Are Together

There's nothing to say after a moment like this.   Only that to be together is everything.  I know now that much is true. 

It's not too late to be a part of this miracle.  For more of this story, go here.

Photo by Stephanie Roberts

Powerhouse

She's a powerhouse.  Confident, defiant, playful, determined, a force to be reckoned with. 

Whenever I feel myself wimping out, I see Goreth in my mind.  She faces the truth of it all and does what's needed, odds be damned.  She meets her challenges with a crazy kind of courage, when anyone else might cry or laugh.  She shows up and lets her power be seen, just because you asked.

I need that kind of strength right now.  I need that kind of courage.  Do you?

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Today we need to see your powerhouses.  The women who make you stand a little straighter when they walk into the room.  The ones who make you brave in your mind when you need to make a tough decision.  Feel free to mine the archives, dig out the polaroids or take us down memory lane.  It'll be worth the wait to see the face of strength, to see the power in hope.