I’m going to be honest: sometimes I just need to hear something nice. The desktop background on my computer alternates between sweet and inspiring Winnie the Pooh quotes, and I have a little booklet on my desk of motivational sayings that keep my spirits lifted. I surround myself with people who lift me up, both on the internet and in person. I am a junkie for happiness. I take all that I can get, and I try to give it back in the same amount, though I often fail, I fear.

This week I was thinking a lot about inspiration, and how when I am happier in my life, I am happier with my art. I create much easier and with more control when I can internalize joy, and so I jotted down a few quotes that have helped me with centering myself and feeling good.

1. Include others in your quest for greatness.

Amazing deeds most often include other people. When you are thinking up your next great business idea or day out with friends, consider how your actions could positively effect someone else. The more you help others, the more you help yourself. I don’t know if I would have believed that if I hadn’t been living it for the last couple of years. The more I give to others, the better I feel inside.

2. You are never too good for anything.

Time for a humble pill. We may do great things. We may make great achievements. We may have cause to celebrate our lives. But never, does that ever, give us the excuse to feel as though we are better than someone else. The more we see each other as equals, the sooner we can get off our horses and play nice. Someone told me once that I need to say no to more people, and that was a very true statement. But the reason for saying no to someone should not be because the thing you’re saying no to is beneath you. All opportunities are just that – an opportunity to get out of it what you want.

3. If you want change, create it.

Rarely are we trapped in life. More often than not, despite our bad situations or good ones, we are not locked into the life we are currently leading. We have infinite power to make decisions and cultivate change. Start with something small that annoys you and work up to bigger decisions that can truly change the course of your life. Every time I make a big decision, I do so mindfully, thoughtfully, and with great excitement for what is to come…because when you enact change of your own free will, whatever comes next is of your own doing.

4. Stop forcing yourself into pants that don’t fit.

Everyone knows when someone is wearing pants that are a size too small. And in much the same way, when something in your life doesn’t fit properly, it is probably very obvious to those around you, and even more so to yourself. Don’t mistake the life you fell into for the life you should be living. Transform into a life that befits your dreams.

5. Find balance between making yourself happy and making others happy.

It is rare to find someone who sits in a happy medium between giver and receiver. Often we give too much of ourselves or take too much from other people. Finding that balance creates more goodness in the world, and cultivates healthier people, too!

6. Do the things that other people say are crazy or impossible.

If you are doing something that someone says can’t be done, you are well on your way to expanding the way that people think. Failing at doing something crazy is just another story in the bucket of amazing and fun things you tried to do. Succeeding at doing something crazy makes that thing less crazy and helps other people on their journey to fulfilling their dreams.

What are your favorite nuggets of inspiration?
Share them below!

Hello LOVELY community! This is the final day of our 3-week collaboration and I am just so thrilled with the results. I hear time and time again, when I’m out at different events, that community is dead and it’s every man/woman for him/herself. But I believe that there is community everywhere if you are so willing and bold as to create it, or join it, or give back to it. We, as creatives, are too often taught that to be vulnerable in a community is weakness. It is your allowance to other people that they may make fun of you, judge you, or bring you down. But I believe that community is strength. It is what brings us together, not what rips us apart.

I’ve chosen a winner for the collaboration, but that doesn’t mean that this picture is any better than any other – who am I to judge, anyway? I chose a winner based on the attempt – based on the interpretation and how much it inspired me at first glance. I was a little bit worried about choosing a winner, since I fundamentally don’t believe in competitions, but then I remember who you are – that you are a group who would not judge me for picking one out of so many, and you, who would be happy for whoever won, and gracious toward everyone. That makes my butterfly wings flutter.

Here are the WINNERS — That’s right, plural, because I liked these two so much for completely different reasons, and in the end felt I couldn’t judge one against the other. In random order…

Julie Mullin’s image stood out to me because of it’s simplicity and strength. She didn’t have to show a lot to make the viewer understand the image. The shadow of the bed across the girl’s face paired with her expression and moody lighting drew me in immediately and I’ve been thinking about it ever since I saw it. It reminded me so much of childhood, with a fantastic sense of innocence, and I truly commend Julie for achieving that.

Julie also made a video to go with her image, reading the story aloud and showing part of her creation process!

Theresa McManus’ image is overtly powerful and full of fury. The red color of the dress screams strength while the lighting says war: the war above, the war within. The way she used the sword in this image in such a proactive way really grabbed my attention. And finally, the ray of light that she included really made me center in on the subject and highlighted the intensity of the battle raging within our main character. Not to mention that light had a flair of heaven, which goes well with the ending of the story, too.

Fantastic work everyone! Please scroll down to view everyone’s work (in alphabetical order), each linked to their websites, and pocket that inspiration for a beautiful week! Barbara, Julie and Theresa – Please get in touch with me so I can send you some goodies!

The STORY

A year ago I traveled to France to shoot in the most spectacular location I had ever seen. I got there, concepts planned, props in hand, and I shot all day long, for hours and hours straight. I took the images home, proud of what I had done, and yet I had no desire to edit them. The longer I waited the more I came to terms with the fact that I would never edit them. They had lost their magic. They weren’t as special as I thought they were. They were complicated and the lighting wasn’t right, and I felt really down about it. I could have edited them and I could have created something from what I had, but I knew that I was going to go back, and so I didn’t touch them.

A couple of months ago I did have the chance to go back. I went in with an idea but didn’t put too much pressure on myself to do what I had sketched out. Instead, I helped other people shoot throughout the day and contented myself with enjoying the moments I shared with my friends. At some point in the day someone found a dead bird. I went to the attic where the bird was resting and I sat with it for a long while. I pleaded with someone to let the bird stay where it was for a time. The truth was that I wasn’t finished with it. I have a very deep and sincere connection to animals and death, two things one wouldn’t normally pair together, and I am inspired by separately. But put together, I become overwhelmed with emotion – and inspiration.

I find beauty in death, light in darkness, and inspiration in the macabre. This is how it has always been. I embrace it. It makes me who I am. And so I found beauty and inspiration in that tiny bird and what it meant to me, in my life, at that time. To me, inspiration is how we most authentically manifest our truest self. It is why we create. I took that little bird with me throughout the day, carrying him as I looked for locations to create self-portraits, while coming up with a narrative for him, and for myself.

I challenged myself that day. I went into the chateau with ideas in mind that were safe and easy and would guarantee results from the shoot. But when it came time to shoot, I didn’t do what was safe or easy for me. I did several things that I almost never do, as a rule for myself. I shot directly at light sources. I shot in harsh light. I didn’t overcomplicate the work with a lot of Photoshop or heavy editing. I kept it simple, posed how I felt, and embraced the emotion of the day. It felt right. It felt respectful, in a way, for my little co-character. It was all perfect, no worries and massive inspiration. At the end of the day my friend asked if I had anything solid to take away from my shoot. I said I had no idea, and I didn’t…and I didn’t care. It felt wonderful to do what makes my heart soar, to try something new, and to connect with my deepest inspiration.

The TECHNIQUE

While shooting each of these images, I exposed for my skin tone. Because I was so often shooting at a light source, that meant that windows were blown out and the surroundings were bright in order to see detail in my skin and dress. I shot each image underexposed as well, so that everything but the light source fell into darkness. While putting the images together, I used a manual HDR type of stitching process, matching up the darkened window with the nicely exposed images and combining them.

In Photoshop, I spent a lot of time refining the light. In each image, I identified the light source, chose how soft I wanted the light to be and began to create softer light coming from those sources by adjusting my curves layer like this:

I added vignettes to each of the images to make the light stand our more.

I spent a good deal of time selectively changing colors. For example, in the image with the red floor, I had to selectively enhance the color of the floor. It was naturally orange/pink, so I made it a more uniform color and enhanced the darkness and saturation of the red tones. In others I selected the dress to change or enhance the color, and in others still I selected walls/doors to change colors.

To finish each image I softened them to give a more painterly look, since the light spoke to me as being like something from a classic painting.

The CONCEPT

When I found the bird, I wanted to create a small series that would honor his life while also speaking about the fragility of life and how heavy death can feel. The first image I created was the one where I’m standing next to the large feather. In it, I wanted to show how small we can feel around death, and how looming it can be. In a way, we shield ourselves from death so that we can experience life, but it is only when we accept our imminent demise that we can appreciate the impact our life can have.

The second image I created was the one laying down with the bird on the floor. I really pushed myself with this one and the lighting, but I felt it was important because that particular lighting spoke to me about fragility. It seemed so perfect, with the way it raked across the subject and bird, highlighting the shape and form of the lifeless pair. I wanted to pose like the bird, solemn and asleep, eternally or not, to embody the beauty in death.

The third image I went about creating was the white feather on my back. I posed in that space first sitting up and realized quickly that the light would not allow for such a pose, with it being so directional and harsh. That was when I decided to take a concept I had planned for a different room and try it out here. To show the weight of death (and life) was something that was important to me. Death weighs heavy on us all, whether it is thinking of our own or dealing with that of a loved one. All of these images speak to both instances.

The fourth image was taken in the room with the red floor and black dress. I wanted to dress in mourning, yet also like a blackbird – ominous and strong at the same time. Foreshadowing death perhaps, or mourning someone’s life, was what I was thinking of when creating this image. When I started editing I was thrilled with how stark of a contrast it presented in color and light, and I thought that appropriate in such a dark image.

The fifth picture was the one on the bed, looking up at the feather. To me, death feels like a dream – it is something we consider but cannot imagine, something we dream of but cannot feel, and something that is, often, better not to think on. I personally struggle with many dreams of death and darkness, and this felt an appropriate connection for me, visually, to the theme at hand.

The sixth picture was meaningful to me because of a memory I have. When my grandmother died I remember lying on a set of stairs, I couldn’t even say where now, and looking backward out the window, feeling the light on my face, and wondering if it was my grandmother touching my face. I saw these stairs and the light shining down and wanted to create an image in that fashion, looking toward the light with the little bird in my hands, as if offering him up to the light. All of these images deal with light and darkness in a literal and metaphoric way.

I hope that you can find something in one of the images that speaks to you.

She is filled with heaviness
like rain water sitting on a window sill,
cracked wood, fogged glass, unseen.

She is filled with heaviness
like autumn leaves under a long winter snow,
waiting for the melt to breathe again.

She is filled with heaviness
like a small dead bird filled with worms,
under the weight of a feather.

Share with me a series you’ve done, or a theme you are connected to.
Remember to never apologize for what makes you unique.
It is, indeed, what makes you so wonderful.

Unless you can’t function at your optimal level because of it. Disorganization is something I have challenged head on this year. I redesigned my office so that everything has a place. I organized my email so that I answer them quickly instead of waiting sometimes months in between. I have list apps on my phone and desktop to keep me on task, and I have a nightly and morning routine that keeps me organized as well.

Those have been huge changes for me, and the results have been spectacular. I no longer panic about missing emails or wonder as I fall asleep what I need to accomplish in the morning, and those small changes have been really big for my well being. Just by having my emails caught up on and always having clear goals planned, I have decreased my stress. I have more free time, I worry less, and I enjoy working more.

Here are all of the changes I made. The video also shows my new office, and I included some “extras” (re: ridiculous) clips at the very end. Apologies for the focus issues in this video. I think I need glasses.

1. Wake up early. When I am up early, I feel an odd sense of pride, as though I have already accomplished my first mission. I am taking advantage of my most productive hours, no one else is awake then, and I have time to fall into a routine.

2. Drink water. This is another one of those things that makes me feel motivated and healthy. I drink 3 liters of water a day. I drink one of those liters before I do much else in the morning. It energizes me and allows me to feel accomplished.

3. Stretch & meditate. I do this each morning in the open air and it makes me feel invigorated and alive. My body hurts less throughout the day (the Fibromyalgia can really make my joints hurt) and I feel inspired by the time I sit down to work.

4. ToDoist. This is an app that I have for my desktop that allows me to write out, per category, what I need to get done and then check it off the list when I finish. It also has tons of other features I haven’t even tapped into yet. Absolutely adore this app to pieces.

5. Email organization. I have my email categorized into three main folders: My immediate folder. Anything I put in there needs to be dealt with within 24 hours. My pending folder, where emails that require follow-up go. And my assistant’s folder, where emails that deal mostly with scheduling go. If I hit inbox 0 for my personal immediate inbox everyday, I feel significantly less stressed and I sleep better. I try to do this in the morning before any other tasks so that I am still excited to complete the other things on my to do list.

6. Happiness & resolution documents. I keep two text files on my desktop. One says “Happiness” and the other says “Resolutions”. The happiness document lists all of the things that makes me feel healthy and happy on a regular basis so that I can always check in on it to make sure I am doing what makes me feel good. My resolutions document simply lists all of the things I want to accomplish this year. It is always in sight and I can keep on track that way.

7. Inspirational quotes. The image on my desktop background is always rotating through inspirational quotes that I’ve downloaded in image form. Mostly from Winnie the Pooh and Alice in Wonderland, these quotes remind me all the time of who I want to be and inspire me to reach for more.

8. Hard drives. I keep my work backed up on two hard drives that are almost always at my computer plugged in. One I travel with and the other stays put. Because I have them out in the open, often plugged in, I never have to worry about finding a document because they are all, essentially, already on my computer waiting to be found. I organize my images based on folders of: YEAR — TITLE.

9. Uniform password. For my passwords on my computer and social sites, I have a root word for my password. Take LANTERN, for example. And then I add on a signifying word to that for each website. Let’s say we are signing up for Flickr, you would write LANTERNFLICKR so that you never forget your password and so that they are always different. I have two base passwords – one that my assistant and husband know, and one that is for personal use only.

10. Colornote. On my phone, just as I do with ToDoist on my desktop, I use a to-do list app. This allows me to write out a checklist or text document that I can later transfer to ToDoist if I am traveling.

11. Inspiring workspace. I have never had a space of my own that I have found inspirational, so this year I redecorated. I got new desks, a filing cabinet, and I even decorated my walls. I filled my office with props that I have used in photo shoots and hung my work on my walls (other artists coming soon). Everywhere I look there is a touch of something personal and special, and it makes me feel excited to sit down to work every day.

You can check out the video for what my new office looks like.

How do you keep organized? Any special tips that make you feel extra healthy, productive, or motivated?

When you want something and you take steps to make it happen, you are enacting change in your life. It is the scariest part of the process. We tend not to fear having the idea, or seeing it through once we’ve started, or reaping the benefits, or even failing. We fear the moment when we decide to disrupt our lives. Very much like the first step onto a tightrope, we have no idea what to expect. Will it hold me? Will I fall? Will I stay balanced? Will I hurt myself? Will I turn back out of fear?

But there is a reason why the first step is the hardest. We are programmed to fear change. We are programmed to fear the unknown. But we are also programmed to seek challenges. We are programmed to want more than what we are given. We are so excitingly human because we think for ourselves and develop our own dreams and fears to go along with them. What separates one person from another in the end is which path they chose, and how they affected others along the way.

My fear is to stay stagnant. I fear decaying in my own filth, for lack of a more graceful phrase. In other words, I don’t want to cultivate fear and live in that environment. I want to see the fear around me and step through it. I want to live a life worthy of bravery and kindness. I want to live a life worthy of who I want to be.

When I’m starting to feel too comfortable, I wake up at 5am and jump in a lake. When I think my art looks the same, I do something that I don’t know how to do. When I feel myself becoming mean I immediately do something kind. When I look more favorably in the face of greed I immediately push it away for gratitude. We are so full of contradictions. Move forward or stay behind. But in the end, it is not how far ahead we got in life, it is how strongly and willingly we made the decision to move forward at all. We might get pushed back each time we try, but the choice is still our own, and it should be in favor of betterment.

We all have infinite potential built into us right now. We could make so many choices this very day that could change our lives and the lives of others. What decision will you make? How will you challenge yourself? How will you be a positive force in the lives of others? How will you promote passion?

The question is not how much, or how little, but simply how. Do not measure your decisions on the amount of change, but on the fact that you chose change. Find the strength to move forward, no matter how many times you get pushed back. Make the decision to accept change – it will happen whether you welcome it or not. And above all else, take the first step onto the tightrope. Your dream may be closer than you think.

Each has a different meaning for me, though all relating back to nature. The first was photographed in my hometown, and it was important to me to feel at one with nature as I had felt while living there, and still so often do. The second was for a more magical feel, as though the leaves were cloaking the subject as she stood and allowed it to happen. And finally this new one, a Mother Nature homage, as the character stands upon a dead and dull landscape. She breathes life into it.

This next week I’ll be taking some lights out into the forest for the first time, planning some bigger concept images, and working more on storytelling. These are the areas I feel I need to work harder and so I am. People don’t get places by standing still, after all!

(Though it does feel nice to rest your feet from time to time!)

Model: Stephanie Perez

But then I got older, and I thought a lot more about what it means to truly be a leader. It doesn’t mean that you have people following your every move, or that you speak in front of big groups of people, or that you make epic speeches like in the movies. It is a solidarity with oneself, a resolve to do what makes your heart sing, and the confidence to move forward without following someone’s footsteps.

We are all leaders and we are all followers. What matters most is not whether you are predominantly one or the other, but if you are leading yourself. The rest will follow.

How often, in your own life, do you choose the road less traveled? How often do you give yourself permission to go where no one has gone before, or to do something out of your comfort zone. It is easier to follow because it is safe. We find security in knowing that someone else has been through what we will go through. Yet someone had to be first. Everything starts with something. Don’t live your life with someone else’s decisions.

Take hold of what is dear to you. Lead yourself through the unknown and trust in your instincts. Know that you have the power to pull yourself up should you fall, the ingenuity to break new ground, and the love of self to know it is worth it. The greatest things in this world are achieved through personal exploration. Do what you love because you love it. Don’t search the internet for an instruction manual. If you should fall, you will get back up. Falling is not failing, it is a lesson learned on the way to success.

Move bravely on your journey, and you may soon find others following in your footsteps.

There comes a time for everyone to feel as though they lost the path they once walked and instead are falling into an endless abyss. There are times when we suffer and we feel so greatly we think we might collapse from the weight of it. There is not way to categorize suffering or happiness or darkness or light. There is only our personal experience, our personal triumphs, and how we see the world once the feeling has passed. We are all different, and the weight of our experiences grows or lessens with us.

Whenever you are feeling like the world is too heavy, or that the path you walk is getting harder to see, know this:

The world did not create a path for you to walk softly; you create your own path to walk passionately.

No one has given you heartache or happiness; you respond to those feelings and your response defines you.

It is not the job of another person to provide for you; it is your job to fulfill yourself, and in doing so, to fulfill others. 

There are endless amount of criticism; your job is to provide goodness.

Others will try to bring you down; it is your job to lift them up.

The world will send enemies to challenge you; remember that mutual hatred requires reciprocation. 

The darkness in your heart can feel eternal; you must believe that nothing lasts forever.

The world can seem like a dark place; give it a piece of your heart as often as you can so that your presence may light it.

—

website   |   facebook   |   twitter

]]> https://www.promotingpassion.com/quotes-to-heal-a-wintry-heart/feed/ 11 https://www.promotingpassion.com/promoting-passion-video-blog-5-hard-truths/ https://www.promotingpassion.com/promoting-passion-video-blog-5-hard-truths/#comments Mon, 17 Mar 2014 14:16:48 +0000 http://www.promotingpassion.com/?p=1220 Read More Read More

When I was little I told my dad I wanted to be a writer, and he let me write.

When I was little I wanted to make movies in Hollywood, and my parents showed me how to apply to film school.

When I was little I thought I’d try photography, and so I took some creepy pictures of myself in my bedroom.

When I was little I wanted to be a fairytale character, so I got some cheap dresses, dyed my hair red, and pranced around in a forest.

When I was little I decided I wanted to be one with nature, so I made myself into a tree.

When I grow up I want to be little, because when you’re little you believe that everything is possible.

When I grow up I want to live my dreams and always believe they can be real.

When I grow up I want to play make-believe every day and imagine myself as the main character in wonderful stories.

When I grow up I want my childhood values to follow me everywhere I go.

When I grow up I’ll see the world and color it with my vision of beauty.

Right now I am little and I am grown, I am nothing without my imagination and everything because of it. I am moving forward and looking back and taking my life experiences everywhere I go. I am the creator of my own little world, the character in the story of my life, and I remember the little girl who wanted to be a writer and a filmmaker and a storyteller and I remember the grown up who wanted to be a photographer and an educator and I say thank you. Thank you to little me for dreaming and to my parents for encouraging and to grown up me for listening.

We are what we believe we are.
What are you?