Taking Photos

"I take photographs with love, so I try to make them art objects. But I make them for myself first and foremost...that is important."

-Jacques-Henri Lartique

Sometimes I wonder what I would do, if I didn't have my camera. I can just be having the worst day, but if I can just focus for a few minutes with my third eye, I will eventually calm down and relax. Lately I have been needing those moments more and more.

Recently, I started posting photos on Flickr again. That's been really fun. I spent this weekend looking through old files from last year, to maybe give a second look to some photos which I may have dismissed as not good enough. My needs are a lot different this year, I have had to slow down a bit when it comes to taking photos. It has made me a little more forgiving of my own mistakes with the camera. As a result, I have several candidates in mind for a painting I would like to do later this summer.

I know for sure it will be one of my florals, so now I will have to make up my mind on what colors have been catching my eye the most. Last year i was seeing a lot of blue everywhere. The above photo is a good example of that. It has not been touched up in any way, the natural lighting combined with the season and colors immediately found in and around Berkeley all came together naturally for this photo. It is one of many that had that blue casting to it. Blue was definitely last years color.

This year I seem to be finding more of a balance, but still I seem to be noticing a lot of red in my travels. Signs, flowers, clothes, in the sunsets. I don't know, I used to go through my monochromatic phases, but then for a long period of time, I took very little notice of the colors and just concentrated on lighting. Hmmm. Do you have a certain element that is always a part of your creative process? When you take photos, do you find your eye is drawn to a certain color or theme?

I have a collection of photos posted over at Flickr that is a pretty good representation of my photo journeys with both my digital and my non-digital cameras. I could use some feedback. Go have a look see and tell me what you think. My photo taking changed dramatically after I switched to mostly digital photography. I would be curious to know your thoughts. In some ways I think I relaxed more after I switched to the more economical process, somehow not worrying about the cost of processing film has made everything a lot more comfortable. Just click on the Flickr badge on my sidebar to visit my pages.

Alan started a Flickr page this weekend as well, it's going to be an alternative to posting on his Blogspot blog for a while. After the AOL Exile of last year, it was difficult for him to find the time to learn the new way of posting over here. Between the yuckiness of the whole situation and his schedule at work...it all seemed pretty bleak that he would find the groove again. Flickr has him interested in sharing his creativity again...that's kinda fun. :) You can find his page here.

There are some awesome photographers signed up to play along with the Round Robin Challenge coming up next Wednesday. The subject will be "Free," which was chosen by Phinney. There is still plenty of time to sign-up, just visit the official Round Robin journal and follow the easy-to-follow instructions. It's a great way to make new friends and gain new readers, and also...to just have a good time sharing your love of photography. Recently we had a new Robin joins us, Connie, and we will have another new Robin coming along for our challenge this time as well. Be sure to drop by and welcome Suzanne. She is a lovely lady I met just a couple weeks ago. She takes some really impressive photos, so I know it will be great fun to have her join us.

-OndineMonet
"The Wicked"
Berkeley, California
Spring, 2005
Late Afternoon