A Daily Practice
“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”
What is a good photography practice?
Keeping our files organized?
Studying light?
A streamlined editing process?
While all of those practices are necessary skills and part of business housekeeping, there is still one that I believe, that overrides all of them in visual storytelling. One that by nurturing it daily, refines our photographic eye. And that one practice is the practice of active observation. Not only is being in the place at the right time important to capturing a moment, but it’s actually seeing and finding moments right under our nose (or eyes.) Sometimes the “moment” or your next photo may come from simply lowering your camera and looking around you, seeing how the light interacts with the scene before you, the colors, the shapes, the patterns, the energy and the rhythm of the moment. When I first began shooting, I would more often than not eagerly snap away without actually “looking” at my subject first. To really look at something isn’t just about seeing what’s in front of us, but really look at it with curiosity and interest as if we were going to memorize in our mind. How many times have you driven down the same street day after day, but never really looked and taken in the drive? The red mailbox you pass every day, the spring flower bed that reaches over the rock wall, the way the light filters through the trees leaving a dappled effect on the road, the weathered shutters on the cottage… some people couldn’t even recall what their daily commute even looks like! It’s like passively listening, you’re hearing what is being said or played but it’s going in one ear and out the other. When you actually see something, you literally see it in a completely different way. It’s hard to describe, but you know when you really are looking at something. Take a family member for instance who you see all the time. Do you really see them and can actively recall how their eyes change in the light, how they have new wrinkles and lines around their eyes from smiling, how they have a dimple on their left cheek? So often what is so obvious and apparent to us we often overlook because we see it all the time! Active observation is a conscious practice that we can use throughout our day, even in mundane moments like the commute to work or errands. Learning to actively observe is the core of how to develop a photographic eye.
How often do you actively take in your environment?
Do you really stop and look at how the light changes on the horizon at sunset? How the colors change from violet to gold in the clouds?
Do you actually take the time to see how the petals of the tulips are unfurling in your garden?
The beautiful part is when we do actually take a moment and truly look at something, fully taking it in, it begins to change in our eyes. It’s more beautiful. More intricate. More delicate. More layered. Brighter. Colder. Our perspective widens and we can notice things that we wouldn’t have otherwise.
I think this practice is best done without a camera in hand. Because when we do have our camera, we can get distracted and lose focus on actually seeing what we are seeing. I know it sounds silly because we are always observing and taking in the world with our eyes, but sometimes when the camera is in our hand we can literally lose sight of actually being present and observing without the pressure to snap a photo.
Here are some simple tips to strengthen your ability to actively observe and develop your photographic eye:
On a mundane task or during a typical commute to errands, work, or the store, etc, really look at the drive, the scene, the colors, the patterns, the energy, and the place as if you were to recall it back to someone else in a story like fashion.
Spend a moment in nature and sit and observe in silence. No music, no noise, just you and the natural surroundings around you and really see what’s around you. How green the moss is, how the dew is like diamonds in the grass, how the birds flutter in the trees. Active observation in silence in the natural world will train your eye to take a step back, reflect, and see the world around you in an entirely new way. (A way that was there all along yet you didn’t notice.)
People watch (or nature watch if you prefer!) pick a spot in your community or town and simply sit and watch what is unfolding around you. Take in the characters, The light, The sounds. The buildings. The colors, The patterns…all of it. Was there something you didn’t notice before? Does it look differently to you than it did before?
Yes, we all live busy lives, things to do, people to see, items to check off our list. Maybe you think you don’t have time for these practices but in truth, we always are looking and observing, it’s a question if we are actively looking that matters. Maybe it can be a 3-minute meditation you do in your garden as you observe the scenery around you. Maybe it’s while you drive to the supermarket to pick up your dinner ingredients. The more you do it, the more it comes naturally and your photographic eye will sharpen over time. It will become something you can’t switch off. You’ll see things you never noticed before. You won’t be able to help it, photos will just be there waiting for you. I remind myself throughout the day to stop and really look and see what’s around me; remind myself to be fully present and actively observe what’s unfolding before me. Sure I may snap back to reality and go on about my day, but the more we open our eyes and truly see what’s in front of us, the more we see potential moments worth capturing and sharing.
