My brother and I photographed a destination wedding in Maui, Hawaii this past week. Here’s a taste of the island in January (Jordan is the talent behind most these shots!). I know it was only 10 degrees here in Omaha (and for most of the country) so we tried to bottle up some sunshine and bring it back home for everyone. Cheers!
Jeremy Cowart has organized an amazing and simple idea that reconnects photographers with the heart of why they create. In a season where a lot of photographers are over-worked and on the verge of burnout, something like this might seem like a lot more work than they can squeeze out of themselves right now. At least, I feel that way sometimes. But what I like about this idea, is that it’s not just another “good thing” I could do if I had the time, energy, or resources. It’s an opportunity to connect with the spirit of the holidays in a tangible way and share life and the gift of a photograph with someone I might not otherwise ever cross paths with – perhaps someone who has never been photographed before. What’s more exciting is that this kind of movement isn’t done alone, but together with a community of other photographers (thanks to Christine Pagan for all her work with starting a local Help-Portrait chapter here in Omaha).
It inspires me because it’s much like the nature of love itself. Love must be given to receive it, but it’s not really love if that’s why it’s being given.
Zach Arias, an editorial photographer in Atlanta, teaches the One Light Workshops and has a lot of insight to share from an honest, unpretentious and realistic point of view. He posted this video recently as part of an on-going conversation dealing with the internal struggle artists go through to create meaningful work, still make a living, and not give up or burnout. For every creative individual, this is a point of real tension. Enter Derrick: a door-to-door salesmen, former felon and unlikely mentor. Check out the video (it’s a bit long, but well worth it).
Listen to the wisdom Derrick shares; he reveals that what keeps a lot of people down is “insecurity – that’s me believing that I’m insignificant or not important without acceptance or approval from other people and when you’re under that state of mind, it allows you to manipulated by negative influences.” He goes on to repeat the age-old advice that success comes from “hard work, sacrifice, and discipline.” But he doesn’t say it with a negative tone of contempt like it’s often been said. Instead, he speaks from a place of encouragement and hope that is truly inspiring. Derrick’s interview is a reminder that genuine joy doesn’t come easily. To reach the real thing, you have to go through struggle to get it. Otherwise, we may have settled for a subtle superficial substitution.
It reminds me of the Switchfoot song “Happy is a Yuppy Word.” The title was inspired by a Bob Dylan quote in response to the question posed by Rollingstone Magazine, “Are you truly happy?” Dylan replied, “Those are yuppie words, happiness and unhappiness. It’s not happiness or unhappiness, it’s blessed or unblessed.” The implications are one seeks a life free of complications, struggles and obstructions while the other learns to live in harmony with them with a constant positive perseverance.
“There’s nothing wrong with me, it’s just that I believe things could get better. And there’s nothing wrong with love. I think it’s just enough, to believe.”
Once again, it’s time to create an image just for the health of my soul… this time around, my thoughts were drawn to the idea of blindness and how to best represent it visually with an old pair of broken eye glasses.
The inspiration came from a group of friends who are reading through Simple Spirituality by Chris Heuertz. The book itself is somewhat of a invitation to journey with Chris as he shares jewels of insight he’s learned from his relationships with suffering people all over the world. Someday, I hope for the opportunity to thank Chris in person (I have yet to meet him, although he’s friends with several friends of mine and we’re friends on facebook). His book is full of graceful yet un-sensationalized language that navigates through very complicated ideas and makes some profound distinctions – the likes of which I’ve been wrestling with for years.
In his introduction, Chris shares a story of how he nursed the wounds of a blind man at the Nirmal Hriday or “House of the Dying” in Calcutta with Mother Theresa. At first, it appears he has nothing in common with this man (they don’t even speak the same language), but as he cleans the maggots from his sores, dries the mucus from his eye sockets and feeds him for a couple weeks, Chris concludes the man’s physical blindness was not much different from his own “spiritual blindness.”
Spiritual blindness could be thought of as the tendency to overlook or ignore how our own thoughts, feelings, and inward dispositions shape who we are as people – for better or worse. In this acknowledgment comes the freedom to accept our own weaknesses and the weaknesses of others while still embracing the hope of someday learning to see. Naturally, I can’t express the ideas as well as Chris has in his book, but it is thought provoking for me as a human being and my vocation as a visual artist…
I want to see.
I love the cinema! No other art form has an ability to communicate so vastly. With its story, moving visuals, and music, it is the closest thing we have to a language of the soul.
Because of my deep love for film, I’m a little curious as to what the Oscars have to say from time to time. In the last couple years, I walked away from the evening disappointed because it felt pretentious, overly indulgent, and hallow with mere flattery. But something was different this year; it was more personally engaging. For the best actors/actresses nominations, past award winners lined the stage and introduce each nominee. The introductions were thoughtful and showed a significant understanding of the people behind the craft – as the camera panned, you can see how the nominees were touched by the words spoken by the previous generation of greats within their community. That kind of honor amongst peers goes way beyond a little trophy. I think it touches the heart of why so many artists create… to truly connect with others.
“There is a crack in everything… that’s how the light gets through.”
Elizabeth Edwards, as she talks about the absence of perfection and persistence of hope
“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.”
-Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple
