I’m mighty excited that Rose Coloured Glasses starts on Monday!
You can find out a bit more about the class in an interview I did with the gals at Live it to the Full (who are hosting the class) and there is still room if you’d like to join in! Its a fabulous 2 weeks of encouraging photography explorations for a super affordable price!
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I want to tell you the truth.
More truths.
The ones behind the photos.
Because as healing as it is for me to take 50 photos and get one that truly makes me feel empowered, I’m realizing how much it might be helpful to share the ones in between with you. The unflattering ones, the hilarious ones, the ones I never used to share.
I want to demystify this process of self-portraiture, of the process of learning to see your own beauty though photography. Your response to this post where I shared the story behind a new photo and how I chose to transform it rather than delete it. Well, it was a bit of an epiphany for me to realize how helpful it could be if I shared more like these.
I’m ready to share them, the ones in between that I would never have shown you before, but that now I feel brave enough to.
I want to share more of the befores than the afters.
So that when you get one that you don’t like, that you know its just part of the process.
So be prepared for more of this behind the scenes self-portraiture truth-telling.
Starting today, starting now, over at Kind Over Matter I’m sharing some of those images and some thoughts on self-image.
I wanted to share this one with you today too…as it cracks me up (and its good to laugh at yourself)
Because really, when you’re shooting with a remote and you’ve got to think quick, what do you do?
You either drop it, keep it in your hand, or put it somewhere, in this case in my mouth! So here, is the before for today’s main image!
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Two wheels, one black bike, a pathway lined with dozens of hearts.
I knew it would be some good self-care to get out on my bike yesterday, but the heart lined pathway was a sweet surprise. Sometimes just getting out to the forest is exactly what I need. Today was one of those for sure. I ended up taking photos for 3 different projects and came back feeling more rejuvenated and inspired than I’ve felt in a long long while.
Oh, bike ride self-care. I need to remember to manifest you more often!
Here are some shots (and a silly out take) from yesterdays bike ride photo adventure.
I had a realization the other day when I went out on 2 photo walks, the first around my neighbourhood and the second to a spot I love to take photos at.
The first only covered a few blocks of my neighbourhood. Slowly I wandered around capturing whatever I found in front of me. Sometimes it was a flower or something growing, other times an unexpected cat crossing my path or the way the light looked. It felt good to take a street I hadn’t taken before and see a beautiful mural written on a schoolyard.
The second photo walk was actually a photo bike ride. I wanted to take a break from my computer and knew the bright sunshine wasn’t scheduled to last so I took off for one of my favourite places to take photos, this little island in the middle of the city. I had a lovely ride, feeling alive and having lots of space to clear my thoughts. I arrived at the island and immediately felt frustrated as it was lunch hour and was jam packed with people. My master plan of shooting selfies in this spot was thwarted as every spot on this island seemed to have someone sitting there (maybe next time I won’t go at lunch time). I felt frustrated that I couldn’t create what I had imagined I would.
Then it hit me why the act of taking a photo walk feels so vital both to my creative process.
Its because it is unknown.
It takes you on a journey. It invites you not to just go to one spot and try to get a photo, which for me often leads to a feeling of success or failure. But instead it invites you into a process. Of noticing light and shadow, of seeking out spots, of being okay with moving on if a dog starts barking at you or you don’t feel comfortable. You just move on and see what else you can find.
Photowalks shift my creative energy from big expectations to embracing the unexpected.
I hadn’t realized it in that way before, that if I can take the creative process out of a success or failure mode. Out of being determined to capture one specific image and being open to creating the image that I find.
Just a realization of my creative process that I thought I’d share! Here are a few more glimpses of that photo walk.
Changes are afoot.
I’ve been thinking about the evolution of E-Courses and of my business for a while now, jotting notes in my journal and brainstorming the long term plan for my business.
Never in all those notes did I expect to feel the urge to make a big shift in what is at the core of my business. In the big picture, in my ‘Be Yourself’ Business & Life Plan, it makes sense of course, but I’m having a big clarity moment on some changes I want to make in the business.
Hence the fear and excitement.
The knot in my stomach.
Feelings of ‘Who am I to’
and panicked urges to give up.
I know these feelings well and that they aren’t actually signs that I should pack it all in and stop. I know that they are clues that I’m pushing myself beyond my comfort zone, that I’m on the right track even though in the moment they sure feel mighty real.
So, I know this is a bit cryptic in terms of what is ahead and what changes are afoot. One thing I can indeed share right now is that I have been offering a super wide variety of courses in 2012 and while I have loved teaching them, I won’t be offering many of them in E-Course form anymore!
One of those is Light Hunters!
Yes, my beloved Light Hunters…I love light hunting fiercely and believe in the approach of this course and E-Book. I don’t plan to totally leave Light Hunters in the dust, but do plan to let it evolve as it needs to.
Which so far I know means that I won’t be offering it as a monthly E-Course anymore. But before the era of the monthly Light Hunters offering ends, I wanted to offer it up for the month of November.
For the November session I’ll be offering Light Hunters at a special rate. One that you define!
The suggested price for the class is $39 but I wanted to put it out there for its final month at a Pay-What-You-Can Rate. So, you get to define the rate you’ll pay for this session! You can pay the full price, or pay what you can! You are also welcome to gift the class to someone else if you’ve taken it already and want to spread the love!
The course includes 30 days of prompts in your inbox, each day starting November 1st. Participants can share their images in the course Flickr Group and on the last day of the month they receive the 36 Page E-book!
You can join in on the Pay-What-You-Can Light Hunting for November here:
Or find out more on the Light Hunters Page!