This morning as I worked on my daily river birch tree photograph (part of a 30-day challenge I created for myself) I struggled to find energy to continue the practice. It is day 21 of this challenge and I feel like I have no more ideas. Like Raymond once said in the old sitcom Everybody loves Raymond, “I’ve got nothing” — no new ideas, no different angles, no more different lenses, and very little enthusiasm.
So I simply pick up my camera and begin making photographs of this tree that I love. Never mind if they are repeats of photographs I’ve made before. In reality they cannot be repeats because this is a new moment and a new day. And as so often happens when I begin to work slowly feeling like I am looking
Through a Glass Dimly
ideas began to flow. First I made simple photographs of the tree beside the pond. Then I set my camera ISO to 100 and aperture to f/16. That gave me long enough exposures to play around with camera movement. I tried moving the camera up and down slowly, then left to right, and finally tried moving it in a circle. Then I zoomed the lens in and out as I made the photographs.
And when I uploaded the photographs to my computer I saw some images that intrigued me.
Day 21 River Birch Tree Photos
Showing Up
What I’ve learned about my creative process is that first I need to show up. Even if I don’t have any ideas in mind, looking through the viewfinder of my camera begins to unlock ideas I didn’t know I had.
Life is about showing up, so is writing. That’s why I sit at my desk every day and dance my fingers across the keyboard.
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If you asked me what I hoped to accomplish with my 30-day river birch photo series I’m not sure that I could tell you. The main thing for me is to keep showing up every day and to notice my feelings and my questions about whether this is worth doing. Then, no matter what, I want to make a photo of the tree each day.
21 Days of River Birch Tree
This is the other secret that real artists know and wannabe writers don’t. When we sit down each day and do our work, power concentrates around us. The Muse takes note of our dedication. She approves. We have earned favor in her sight. When we sit down and work, we become like a magnetized rod that attracts iron filings. Ideas come. Insights accrete.
― The War of Art: Winning the Inner Creative Battle
Perhaps my main goal for this project is to set an intention and then to show up to carry out that intention. Every day. No matter what. Looking through a glass dimly is sometimes as good as it gets. But sometimes our intentions crystalize into a creative project that has meaning and heart.
Wishing you a beautiful weekend.
May you walk in beauty.
Note: All photos in today’s post were various river birch tree photos from today, day 21 in my 30 day challenge.
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