Creative Juices

You have probably noticed of late my passion (or obsession) for pictures. I’m totally in love with my new camera and totally in love with taking pictures. I haven’t felt enthusiasm like this for a very long time. To be honest, it’s very refreshing to have a creative outlet; something to focus your energy on (although some would argue my energy could be better spent elsewhere i.e. house work).

If truth be told, I have always been somewhat creative in my endeavours – now I’m no artist and couldn’t draw to save myself, but I do like to use my hands and love to take a step back and see what I have created. I went through a scrap booking stage before children but time unfortunately got a hold of that interest. I have always enjoyed crafty type activities but again time got the better of me with those happenings. I have no doubt that I would have been a builder/carpenter or a tradie of some kind in my past life – cause I love tools!

It’s ironic really, that I became a lawyer – I mean what creative juices does that entail? Others may argue differently, but all I see is a desk job and loads of reading and a lot of writing/typing/dictating. Hence, my need for an artistic outlet – something that I can grow into; something I can love and best of all a finished product that I can look fondly at and know I created!

Photography fits the bill on so many accounts is it any wonder I love it. I can’t help wondering how I didn’t stumble over it long ago. We all take photos right? It’s something I have been guilty of for a long time (taking way too many photos). I took photographs yes, but did I really take them? Did I look at what I snapped as a story; a piece of art? Possibly not. Over the last few months, I have gained so much insight into photography and the ‘art’ of it that my brain is bursting with its new found knowledge. Who knew there was so much to learn? Who knew there were rules to composing a shot? I certainly didn’t. Photography is so much more then looking through the viewfinder and pressing the shutter button – it just is!

What’s really got me though is the ‘processing’ side of things. I love Photoshop - read: if I could spend all day mucking around on there I would - and the fact you can change a photo from a great shot to a WOW shot. It’s amazing! Processing has probably been the most frustrating part of my very short journey to date. I guess it’s no wonder when you practically need a degree to operate it. Practice makes perfect as they say and I’m slowly but surely getting there, practicing with every spare moment I have.

It’s uplifting to look back at photos I took a month ago and see improvements. At this stage, improvement and a sense of accomplishment is all I require – oh - and the gorgeous photos of my children, which brings me to crux of why I was drawn to the camera. I guess what I love most about photography is the moment it freezes in time. Literally, a moment captured that otherwise could never be relived. A moment in time, forever frozen...

A moment frozen for ever in my heart (and on my wall!)