I’ve rummaged through my archives and found some treasures. A small shoe my son wore long ago. A green-eyed friend I once spent Christmas with…
…a glass of champagne from my daughter-in-law…
…some bumpy rope from a three mast Great Lakes schooner…
…my sister’s camera…
…a soft waterfall…
…a round nail-head in an old fencepost…
…and some beautiful jewelry that resembles my daughter’s work.
This Scavenger Hunt reminds me of a favorite song by Dan Fogelberg:
Here is a poem that my lady sent down Some morning while I was away Wrote on the back of a leaf that she found Somewhere around Monterey
And here is the key to a house far away Where I used to live as a child They tore down the building when I moved away And left the key unreconciled
And down in the canyon the smoke starts to rise It rides on the wind ’til it reaches your eyes When faced with the past the strongest man cries Cries
And here is a sunrise to set on your sill The ghosts of the dawn moving near They pass through your sorrow and leave you quite still Sitting among souvenirs
And now, I’m feeling quite nostalgic and content, grateful for my life and the beauty that surrounds me. Thanks, Anne, for this Challenge! Do visit HER POST to see all the possible items to search for in Lens-Artists posts this week.
Why bother to take a picture of a common object? Well, in my mind, a photograph elevates the common to the extraordinary when the lighting and the composition are exceptional. There’s something very exciting about being able to capture the beauty of everyday items.
“The only difference between an extraordinary life and an ordinary one is the extraordinary pleasures you find in ordinary things.” ~ Veronique Vienne
“Even the common articles made for daily use become endowed with beauty when they are loved.” ― Soetsu Yanagi, The Beauty of Everyday Things
“Beautiful things of any kind are beautiful in themselves and sufficient to themselves. Praise is extraneous. The object of praise remains what it was—no better and no worse. This applies, I think, even to “beautiful” things in ordinary life—physical objects, artworks. Does anything genuinely beautiful need supplementing? No more than justice does—or truth, or kindness, or humility. Are any of those improved by being praised? Or damaged by contempt? Is an emerald suddenly flawed if no one admires it? Or gold, or ivory, or purple? Lyres? Knives? Flowers? Bushes?”
― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
If you’ve never thought of a simple egg as beautiful, check out our Challenger’s post: Ritva is amazing at seeing beauty and capturing it in light and composition!
“But in a still life, there is no end to our looking, which has become allied with the gaze of the painter; we look in and in, to the world of things, in their ambiance of cool or warm light, in and in, as long as we can stand to look, as long as we take pleasure in looking.” ― Mark Doty
“Bartholomeus went on, ‘I wanted to show that these objects are sensitive, suffer at the coming of night, faint at the departure of the last rays, which, by the way, also live in this room; they suffer as much, they fight against the darkness. There you have it. It’s the life of things, if you like. The French would call it a nature morte, a picture of inanimate objects. That is not what I’m trying to show. Flemish puts it better: a still life.” ― Georges Rodenbach, The Bells of Bruges
Patti has served up a worthy challenge for us this week: still life photography. I think of this genre as belonging to the studio or a fine arts classroom. It is all about creating a composition that is compelling, whether that be because of the juxtaposition of objects, or the light playing on textures, or the depth of field that draws the eye deeper into the photo. When I think of the shots I have taken that might qualify for this category, I think of the ones I spent more time staging. There’s a certain amount of creative manipulation that goes into this kind of photography, and I must admit, I don’t often go to those lengths. But when I do, it’s a lot of fun…and some frustration. I often know the WOW! result I want, but somehow, fail to get it. Playing around with the idea of the shot is exciting, though. I am really enjoying seeing your posts on this theme!
scillagrace 