It was the end of a rough week and I needed a distraction that might balance out the pressures and help my soul find some solace. So, what better way than to grab my lens and explore the joys of a long-exposure shoot downtown Tampa.
There is so much for me yet to learn in squeezing a different style of shot out of my camera and there is no-one better than my good friend Jax in patiently helping me piece together the necessary adjustments that create arty images worth capturing.
Over the years she has very much become my muse, not just patiently working her side of the lens, but giving meaningful guidance and suggestions that take my limited knowledge and hone my skills into a memorable shoot like this one. I hope you enjoy this little selection of shots we captured together last night.
After I dropped her back home and I drove back to mine in the wee hours of the morning, the whole concept of “muse” played around in my head. It wasn’t a novel concept to me that she was very much mine. But rather I began to consider how each of us can draw inspiration from others in life, far beyond the camera/art aspect.
In many reaches of our existence, we struggle through life alone. Regardless of our relationship or family status, there is much of our growth and development that comes solely from within. And then there are bits that we draw from others within our circle. People that mentor us, or inspire us. People that inadvertently challenge us to be better people ourselves. People that help us to step out of our comfort zone and experience a facet of life that only exists outside our box.
And our box becomes bigger because of them.
These are the people that add real value to our lives with their presence, friendship, or love. Our lives become more complete because of them and our batteries take a charge.
The “no-man-is-an-island” concept is very much what I am trying to get at here. And the whole idea of “self-made-success” is really a bogus notion that only the selfish and egotistic idiots out there could really believe.
For the rest of us, we should surely understand that any success we have is a shared success and therefore any glory we experience should also be shared. If we can share it with those who have helped us experience the success, then great! But we should also share it with those in whose orbit we have the opportunity to muse a little.
As Jax remonstrated with me last night, one of the biggest gifts we can receive in life is the gift of being able to give to others. And giving of ourselves (rather than something material) is perhaps the biggest gift of all.
Have a wonderful week and if you happen to know Jax, be sure to let her know how “a-musing” she is!
Neville,
Nicely done.
I happen to really appreciate the “ night scenes – city†type of photography which captures the beauty of a city in the wee hours.
Even though man-made, the lights, reflections, people, loneliness, quietude and stark contrast to the noise and bustle during the day can be an inspiration and offer a variety of subjects.
You have to know how to capture the moment though. Kudos.
I appreciate what you have done and the narrative is spot on.
Regards
John
Thank you John … it was a wonderful evening with Jax and kept me out well beyond the normal bedtime for me. That’s the sign that you are enjoying yourself; when you suddenly notice it’s four hours past your bedtime and you still aren’t tired!