The sky offers so many surprises – but sometimes we are so busy we forget to look up
Look up when you are out and about today – what do you see?
***
Tomorrow 17-year old photographer Ffion Atkinson shares her story. More tips throughout the week!
do what you love Page 78 of 94
Photography Fortnight Tip #3: Seek out colours you dislike
We often notice only those things we choose to notice, and zone out thing we inherently dislike. Although I love sunny flowers, I am not generally a fan of bright yellow. So I went in search of it, and found so much waiting for me.
What is your least favourite colour? Where can you see it around you now?
Come back tomorrow for more tips!
Photography Fortnight Tip #2: Take part
Often we have a natural inclination to try to fit an entire object in the frame, however big that might be. Try to resist that sometimes (especially if photographing something quite ordinary), and go for bits of an object instead. Sometimes the results can surprise you – and end up much more artful. The image above is of part of a beautiful ceramic serving dish I found in Greece.
What ordinary things around you have beautiful parts?
Come back tomorrow for more tips!
Do What You Love interview – Roxanne Krystalli
Today I am thrilled to be able to share this interview with photographer, storyteller and conflict management professional, author of the wonderful blog ‘Stories of Conflict and Love’. Harvard graduate Roxanne has ‘lived, loved, laughed, worked, photographed, and agonized in Latin America, East Africa, the Balkans, and the Middle East’. We talked about seeing the world differently through the lens of a camera, life in post-conflict zones and about the role of creativity in making the world a better place. Dive in…
Image via storiesofconflictandlove.com
Photography Fortnight Tip#1: rule of thirds (the classic!)
This is one of the oldest ‘rules’ of photography, but it is so powerful when you consciously try to use it.
Imagine your viewfinder split into a 3×3 grid of nine same-sized rectangles. Try to place the subject of your photo along one of the dividing lines (above), or in a place where the grid lines intersect (below).
What rules do you like to break?
More tomorrow!
Introducing Photography Fortnight on Do What You Love!
For the next two weeks this space will become a place for celebrating photography – and I hope you will stick around for the party!
I love photographs. Memories captured, beauty preserved, promises unspoken.
My Dad is a trained photographer and apparently one of my ancestors was the first ever photojournalist! I have been taking photographs for years, with all sorts of different cameras. In the Do What You Love e-course go out and about in search of beauty and explore what kind of photographers we are. This has made me reflect more on what kind of a photographer I am. I am fascinated by the way the subject matter of my photos has changed hugely at different times in my life.
When I was younger I used to take pictures of everything (and often process them in my Dad’s dark room in our garage, marvelling at the magic as the images emerged in the developing solution). In my early twenties I travelled a lot on my own and lived abroad for several years – in this period I mainly took photos of landscapes and buildings.
Then I spent several years working for UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) and found myself drawn to people’s faces, especially those of children in developing countries – and food (in street markets etc).
More recently I seem to take more random pictures of details – my feet, textures, the sky – and I can’t stop taking pictures of flowers lately. Funny how it changes over time.
I am drawn to simple photos that show raw beauty – whether in the subject, the colour or the feeling of the image.
In the next two weeks I am going to share some of my favourite tips, along with interviews with fantastic photographers (Roxanne Krystalli, Christine Boyd and Xander Neal).
I hope you will also join in and share your own tips and tricks. And if you fancy getting out and about a bit more with your camera this month, why not join Susannah Conway’s ‘August Break’?
So tell me, what kind of a photographer are you?
PS If you want to start seeing the world in new ways, why not join the Do What You Love e-course. Registration is open now!
Some sacrifices aren’t sacrifices at all: Jenny Shih shares her story
Today’s shared story comes from Jenny Shih who believes in doing work that matters and living a life you love.
Some sacrifices aren’t sacrifices at all.
Two years and two months ago I quit my corporate job because my heart and soul told me it was time to move on. Co-workers, friends, and family saw me as foolishly sacrificing a nice, steady paycheck, great benefits, and 10-year career with a solid professional reputation for some wishy-washy “follow your heart” baloney. But I knew that I would be sacrificing my life, my zest, and my sanity by not leaving.
On the outside it looked like a sacrifice. On the inside, it felt like freedom.
It’s true, income was not guaranteed and success by any measure was also uncertain. My heart and soul were aching so badly every minute I was inside those office buildings. Every cell in my body longed for something more meaningful than working for a company that manufactured high-tech office products. I needed freedom. It wanted to make a difference in the world.
For the first six months after I left that job I was scared out of my mind. Most days I was so afraid that I wasn’t able to enjoy my newfound freedom. I was afraid I would have to return to a job to pay the mortgage. I was afraid I would fail at starting and running a business. I was afraid of the shame I would feel if I had to crawl back to that company and ask for another job, especially when I was so clear that I couldn’t work there any longer. But I still new it had been the right choice.
As time passed and I calmed my fears, I began to feel the freedom I created for myself. Every day I wake up knowing that I am in charge of my day. I get to decide when, where and how I work. Yes, I am reliant on myself and my own work for income to pay the bills. There are days when it’s still scary, but I have no regrets.
Leaving my job, something that looked like a sacrifice to others, was not a sacrifice at all. The real sacrifice was working in a job that was killing my soul. It would have been a sacrifice to my whole being to not listen to my need for more meaningful work. I would have sacrificed my soul and my sanity to stay at my corporate job, and that was a sacrifice I wasn’t willing to take.
Jenny Shih works with women entrepreneurs with world-changing ideas they need to unleash in the world. She is the creator of the idea flight kit, a free guide that covers everything you need to get your idea up and flying. You can find Jenny at jennyshih.com. Image courtesy of Alex Demchak.]
***
“Life-changing”, “Revolutionary”, “Awe-inspiring”, “Transformative“ – just a few of the ways former participants have described the Do What You Love e-course.
Do you fancy some of that in your life? Do you want to get closer to identifying your true passion and finding a way to do what you love, for life? Then this is for you!
The Do What You Love e-course is open for registration now. The adventure begins on September 26 but places are limited so book now to secure your place. This is the last time it will run this year.
This is your chance to join a global tribe of like-minded people who will support and encourage you to find your way.
It could be the most influential six weeks of your life…
Do What You Love interview – Cristina Adami
It feels like such a privilege to share this interview with the incredibly talented up-and-coming fashion designer and artist Cristina Adami. A recent graduate of Central St Martin’s School of Art and Design, Italian-born Cristina is literally a ‘rockstar designer’, having created costumes for Florence Welch, lead singer of Florence and the Machine, for the band’s latest tour, and recently established her own label. Cristina’s gorgeous ethereal work caught my eye at a fair in London recently. It is hard to describe just how beautiful her work is – light as air, romantically wispy, other-worldly – so I asked Cristina describe it herself, and tell us how she has gone about making her way in the industry. I am delighted to share this fascinating insight into Cristina’s world.
[Image: Lewis Buchan]
On interviews and privacy
I seem to have had an influx of requests for interviews lately. As I sit at my desk right now, I have two written interviews to respond to and an audio interview to prepare for by the weekend. The questions are interesting, thoughtful and inviting, but they have made me realise how uncomfortable I am with being asked questions about myself.
This is a very odd realisation for someone who has interviewed over 100 other people on TV, radio, podcast and in writing.
This is a very odd realisation for someone who has invited scores of other women to share their bravest, most personal stories on her own blog.
This is a very odd realisation for someone who has been interviewed countless times on television, radio and in newspapers in the context of previous jobs.
But the difference now is that it is about me. What do I think? How do I feel? What do I dream of? No briefing notes, company policies or ‘official lines’ to take. No media officers on hand to consult. Just me, my thoughts and my words.
It is strange, because when I created the Do What You Love e-course I managed to pour so much of me into it – through tales of adventures, musings on my approach to life and questions I asked myself. But it is as if the e-course classroom space is like an extension of my own home – warm, safe and private. Outside is a whole different matter.
Not long ago I was talking to a PR professional about my life, and she bombarded me with question after question to try to understand who I was, unpicking each thread of my complicated life web to understand how I got to where I am now, and what that really means. And then (after two hours of me answering her questions), she said something that really surprised me. She said, “You are a really private person, aren’t you?”
Really? Me? World-travelling-people-loving-beauty-seeking-wandering-adventurer me, a private person? But then I realised she was completely right.
- I would much rather tell other people’s stories than my own, even though I have some fairly crazy stories to tell by anyone’s standards.
- I would rather keep my dreams quiet until they have come true, and then celebrate with family and friends.
- I would rather only hint at the love story in my life, than spread details and photos across every blog post.
- I would rather be an ‘international woman of mystery’ (as my friends often call me when I email them from far-flung lands) than in-your-face or predictable.
- I would rather seek out knowledge out in the world, than endlessly analyse my own internal world.
- But that’s just me.
I am happy that way.
A conduit for other stories, and slowly – very slowly – opening up the pages of my own book and turning them leaf by leaf.
How about you? Do you ever question just how much to share?
***
“Life-changing”, “Revolutionary”, “Awe-inspiring”, “Transformative“ – just a few of the ways former participants have described the Do What You Love e-course.
Do you fancy some of that in your life? Do you want to get closer to identifying your true passion and finding a way to do what you love, for life? Then this is for you!
The Do What You Love e-course is open for registration now. The adventure begins on September 26 but places are limited so book now to secure your place. This is the last time it will run this year.
This is your chance to join a global tribe of like-minded people who will support and encourage you to find your way.
It could be the most influential six weeks of your life…
Life-changing events led us to do what we love: Hillary Rubin and Cathy Bueti share their stories
Today’s shared stories come from Hillary Rubin and Cathy Bueti who have overcome huge life-changing events – including the loss of a loved one and a serious illness – to discover their life’s purpose and passion.
Hillary Rubin
For me doing what you love is being in alignment with your desire. I’m not a believer of purpose even though it’s in my tag line and women come to me to discover what their purpose is. Most of it really is work to go back to what they love, tune into what they desire or rediscover what they love now.
I have seen from my personal experience when I’m not doing what I love my soul aches. When I’m not doing what I love my body cries. When I’m not doing what I love the best part of me dies.
In 2010 my husband had a crisis – or what I call a course-changer. He was not doing what he loved and like a good man was providing for our family. His soul suffered so much that he ended up in the hospital.
It was scary to see the man I loved suffer. He had a foot of his colon removed and made a promise to himself never to do it again. Today he is healthy in mind, body and spirit.
Now we have a contract that we do not take on projects, jobs, or clients unless it is for something we love to do. I cannot think of a better commitment to have to yourself and with your partner.
Being a Gemini, I love to do so many things and always like to have a healthy learning curve. At the beginning of my life most of my choices were from survival of what I had to do. I chose to move to NYC to study at Fashion Institute of Technology. I loved it. I felt alive and free.
I went from doing windows at ABC Carpet and Home to being a fashion editor at a menswear magazine, and then to styling, to producing fashion shows, to having my own PR company and then at the top of my career landed a plum job at Prada.
Prada was not as cool as I thought. I hated it but wanted to be on the in-crowd so I stuck it out as much as I could.
Until my time in fashion came to a painful end with a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis. After I let myself out of a prison of victimhood, I was on a new quest to heal myself and to my surprise found what I loved.
It was through my pain that I found what was next on my what-I-love-to-do path as an artist, healer and cultural creative. I devoured all I could in the alternative realm to defy my prison sentence of ending up in a wheel chair. In 2002 I moved to LA to take a yoga teacher training course and worked as a PR director for a fashion company. It was worth giving up a six year relationship, a fabulous apartment in the west village and the fast hip lifestyle for my healing cocoon.
But I really did not give anything up… I got so much more.
Right after my yoga teacher training ended, I started teaching and never stopped. Something came alive in me. Not only was I healing but I was stimulated like never before. It was love at first sight. I was on my path. I travelled the world teaching yoga, connected to amazing people and ended up getting certified in Anusara Yoga(TM).
Not only did I love teaching classes, I went on to create a yoga podcast called Hillary’s Yoga Practice + produced my own bestselling DVD called Yoga Foundations with Hillary Rubin.
I loved it and never looked back.
With hindsight, I know now that whatever I do creatively is my body of work. It will always evolve and I cannot do it wrong. I listen to myself and let my intuition guide me. When the fun stops that is my red flag to shift my attitude or let it go so the next wave of creativity can come in.
If you are feeling challenged to do what you love then I suggest you release the following:
- Release the need to care what others think – live your life for you.
- Release the need to have it ‘perfect’ and take small baby steps.
- Release the need to believe your fears – you don’t know if you’ll fail or succeed unless you go for it
Once I released this for myself I was able to flow and evolve. I have a foundation in yoga, am a spiritual life design coach and a multi-passionate entrepreneur. I help women stop licking their wounds and create a life filled with passion, purpose and unshakable self-confidence. I love creating valuable content that breeds transformation and freedom to live the life you desire.
What’s next for me is launching a group program for women to get back to prosperity without shame, be healthy without guilt, find purpose without overwhelm and be happy without excuses, publishing my first book and hosting my television show called Get Real with Hillary.
[All images courtesy of Hillary Rubin]
Find out more about Hillary on her website or connect on Twitter.
***
Cathy Bueti
I remember loving art when I was a child. I was always doodling something or spending hours with my coloring books. My most vivid art memory was when I created a pastel butterfly in the fourth grade. As I grew older art seemed to disappear as life got in the way. A crazy childhood with an alcoholic father, my parents divorce, becoming a widow at 25, and then a diagnosis of breast cancer at 31 halted any thoughts of creativity. I graduated college with a degree in occupational therapy and worked for almost 20 years in the healthcare field. After my husband was killed I began keeping a journal. I discovered I enjoyed writing. I continued journaling during my cancer experience and began writing a book hoping to one day share my experience and help others. It was during this time I also discovered a love of photography and most recently painting.
I remarried eight years ago and am now a 10 year cancer survivor. During the first few years after I finished my treatments I realised that something was missing. It was getting more and more difficult to work with patients after having been one myself. With my husband’s support I left my day job as an Occupational Therapist a couple of years ago and have the opportunity to create everyday. My life has been tough but what I have found is that creativity helps me deal with the fear that comes in a life after cancer. Being creative gets me to a nice place in my head and quiets my mind. I get lost in those moments with my art. I am discovering myself and seeing all that I am capable of which is more than I ever imagined.
In May 2009 my memoir “Breastless in the City” was published and I was able to fulfill my dream of being a writer. Last August I started my blog Artsy Butterfly where I share my creative life, pieces of my art, and pieces of myself. I also opened an etsy shop which allowed me to achieve another goal and put my art out there into the world to hopefully inspire others.
It was scary to leave a career I had done for so long. I thought, “who am I to even dream of anything else?” Then I thought about how much I have lost and how short life is. I started to realize that I couldn’t let the chance pass me by. I longed to live in the moment and do what would make me happy every day. I believe that everything I have been through has led me to this moment. I wouldn’t be who I am without surviving those difficult experiences.
I can’t help but smile when I think about the man who has shared a few pieces of my art with his little girls. One of them wants to be an artist too. It makes my heart happy to know they enjoy my work. It connects me with the little girl I was so long ago… the one who drew that pastel butterfly.
[All images courtesy of Cathy Bueti]
Cathy is a self taught photographer and mixed-media artist living in Brewster, New York. Visit her at Artsy Butterfly.