In one drop of water are found all the secrets of all the oceans; in one aspect of You are found all the aspects of existence.” - Kahlil Gibran
I love poetry but I have never been one to compose something in such a beautiful that it could be called poetic. My brain does not naturally come up with ways to convey words that stir the emotions of the heart.
My wife is an amazing poet. It was the artistic use of words that paid her way through college. For me though, I look on as an observer of her talent and the talent of many great poets, gives me a sense of wonder into an unknown part of the human brain.
I stumbled across another unknown this week within my photography...
My 5am wake up call
For some bizarre reason, the other day I awoke at 5am on the dot. It is not as if I never get up early, but as a natural born night owl I would rather stay up late. Which the night before I did stay up late like usual. That morning though, when I was awake there was no interest in sleeping again.
I had a strange energy of feeling ready to go for the day. As my family was asleep I wondered what to do? Should I edit some video, should I edit some pictures, perhaps record a video, or work on some writing? The possibilities were endless.
I decided to head out for some photography and catch the morning sun. I packed simply by only bringing one lens with me, my 50mm. I made a point to not shoot manual and stick to aperture priority. The biggest thing was that my goal was just to shoot pictures because I wanted too.
I have become so focused on my zine and producing images for that purpose, that in a way, I feel iv lost of bit of that… Je ne sais quoi… freedom I guess you could say. I had been holding back a bit trying to get the best out of every image instead of just taking pictures because I want to. So this day would be for me.
Boats, boats, boats!
I think there is always something for every photographer that we are naturally drawn too. For me its boats. I can’t explain why as I really don’t know much about boating. I am not that good as a fisherman and the concept of living at sea perplexes me.
What I do know though is that being on a boat and sitting in the middle of the ocean with nothing around is probably one of the most relaxing experiences for me. There is something about the ocean that just calms my brain down and let’s me know that it is ok to relax.
I love the smell of the crisp salty air. I love watching the waves dance back and forth and side to side. The ocean is so vast and there is countless marine life swimming around underneath but its so peaceful and organized. I can not begin to imagine the hidden mysteries lurking beneath in the shadows yet to discover.
As I walked along the beach I took some time to visit the local marina. As it was early in the day, fisherman were preparing to go fishing. There were boats selling tickets for tours to see dolphins. Some visitors were there to purchase fishing tours hoping to come home with dinner.
I always wonder what life is like for those who work with the ocean. I know it must be hard work and sometimes a challenge to get by. Yet, the ones who do it must have a specific love for it that I am unaware of. Just like I have a love for photography that many might not comprehend.
I love exploring the unknown. Learning is something I try to do every day and this day taught me something special. It taught me how vital it is to really love what you are doing and not focus on the work aspect of it. I have gotten so caught up with photography work the last few months that I forgot a bit of why I was doing it. Going out early this morning was such an energizing moment and in a way helped me to re-center my focus on the joy of the process.
I produced and published my first YouTube video. If you would like to check it out here is the link below. It was quite nerve racking but super exciting to get the first video done.
Thanks and thanks for sharing the article. I really like the third picture with the water reflecting the boats.
An early morning photo walk is something I really like to do as well (once I get myself to get up at 04:30 ;-)) Especially in the summer months, because at these really early hours, it's still nice and quiet (and cool) outside. Nice images, reminds me of a few days in Croatia some years ago, where I also got up early to do a photo walk in a small fishing town (https://ronaldsmeets.substack.com/p/retroreflection-issue-14)