Kat Eye Studio

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Photo-Heart Connection: February

Life is sometimes messy and complicated. We may get a bit weathered as we go along. We may occasionally be battered by events and use. Everything is not always as it seems. The facades we build can crumble and fade over time.

And yet… We can create a beautiful composition out of that which is weathered and worn. The imperfections we hate to show the outside world create interesting character and depth that would not otherwise exist. We aren’t perfect. We can’t be perfect. Should we even try?

Imperfection and texture is more interesting in my photography, why shouldn’t it be in my life? Would I rather have my life perfect and glossy? No. I learn from the imperfections. I gain depth from the experiences that are uncomfortable, no matter how much I hate them in the moment. I am who I am, because of what I’ve experienced.

So it’s once again time for me to embrace the mess, the imperfections, and see what new compositions I can create.

Welcome to February’s Photo-Heart Connection! As in January, my choice for the month could not be anticipated. After last month, I didn’t even try to guess! Apparently, this lesson about accepting imperfection and mess as part of life is one I continually need to learn. It comes up for me again and again. Thankfully, the love of imperfection and texture in my photographs helps to show me the way to this life truth.

Do you have continual themes that arise in your photography? Consider what these recurring themes tell you about yourself. Finding these themes and exploring them is part of the power in the photo-heart connection.

It’s your turn to share your photo-heart connection. The link up below is open from March 1 through 7. If you have any questions about participating, read the guidelines in this post here. As a reminder, this project is open to everyone, regardless of whether or not you’ve participated in my courses in the past. I look forward to learning more about you in this month’s photo-heart connection.


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Photo-Heart Connection: January

Be strong, this image first whispered to me. You are strong, I felt inside as I looked at it. My heart resonated with the message. These letters have weathered a lot. You can tell, by the scuffed paint and the textured brick. But they have been carefully preserved, too. Notice the bricks around them, how they’ve been scrubbed clean but the letters have been saved. A message for those that come after. A message for my heart.

As I’ve grown older, I look less and less to external validation. The insecurities of my youth have been replaced with a quiet confidence. Confidence in my strength, and also my vulnerabilities. I’ve learned that admitting vulnerabilities and imperfections doesn’t make us less of a person. It makes us human. Accepting ourselves as we are makes us stronger.

I want this kind of strength, to weather what life brings and to share my purpose and passion regardless of the imperfections.

I have this kind of strength within me already.

That is the message of my Photo-Heart Connection this month. A message of strength, confidence, and empowerment. As I mentioned yesterday, I was surprised that this photo, of all of them, had the strongest heart connection. It seemed like it was bashing me over the head in some ways, being so obvious. But as I went with my feelings and wrote about my connection today, I can see why this photo connects with my heart so deeply. This was the message I needed to uncover.

What did you discover in your Photo-Heart Connection this month? I look forward to visiting you, and reading about your heart connection as you link in.

If you would like to learn more about what I mean by a “photo-heart connection” and how I chose my photo for this month, visit yesterday’s post. You can also find the guidelines for participating here. The link up will be open through February 7th.



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The Also-Rans: Getting Ready for the Photo-Heart Connection

As we approach the first Photo-Heart Connection link up tomorrow, I’ve been getting ready. I’ve been going through my photos from the month, looking for the one I feel the strongest heart connection. I thought I would share my process with you today, as prep for the link up that opens tomorrow.

When we get down to it, what is a photo-heart connection? A heart connection is, for me, a reaction that bypasses my brain. It’s not about what I think of the image, or how technically good it is. It is not about how others will react to it. It is how the image makes me feel. When I have a heart connection, I feel it in my body. There is a little jolt, that tells me of a strong connection. Have you ever noticed how we feel emotions in our body first? Even though we will have thoughts that accompany emotions, they arrive split seconds later. I want to tap into the signals from my body, before my brain starts to filter, and then explore what I find through this process.

Here’s how I prepped to find my photo-heart connection this month:

  • Throughout the month, I saved a low-res copy of the files I worked with into a specific folder. This way, I had all of my January photos in one place to start the process. I didn’t save every picture I took in January here, just the strongest ones. The ones I cared enough to share on my blog. I will always want to share photos with a heart connection. I also included images from my archive I worked with this month. I don’t care what year they are from, I want to learn by this process without putting too many rules on it.
  • I found a time with no distractions to start the process of review. It is important to be focused and without distractions – if you hurry through this process with limited time, or have interruptions, you are not going to be able to notice the reactions in your body that tell you of the heart connection.
  • There were 44 photos in my file for the month, and I went through and viewed the photos one by one. I noticed my reaction for each. It was pretty clear in this first round, which were at the bottom with no reaction and which I felt something for. From this, I created sub-file with the one I felt any sort of reaction. I was down to ~12 photos.
  • The next round was a little harder. I had to spend more time noticing how I felt in my body with that image, what emotions came through. Even though I cycled through the images several times, this round still wasn’t too hard. I got it down to a final four photos that created the strongest heart connection for me.
  • Finally, I went through the final four very slowly. I let each one sit on the screen, alone, for a while. I first noticed how I felt, then I asked myself what this image was telling me. This was where I let my brain come into the process a bit more, I wanted to understand why the heart connection was there. As I did this, I noticed that there were two that felt stronger to me. As I slowly considered both, it became clear to me which image was my top photo-heart connection for January.

I thought I would share the 3 runner-up images of my top 4 today along with the process. These images are from different times, of very different subjects, evoking different responses within me. Two were taken this month and one in June 2011, so it’s clear that time of capture is not a factor here. The message I read from the heart connection with each was very different. All of these are great images, some of my recent favorites in fact, but they weren’t my strongest heart connection.

I wanted to share these today to remind you it’s not the strength of the image, in purely aesthetic terms, that matters in this process. It’s the not the date of capture, it’s not the composition, it’s not technical perfection. It’s the strength of the heart connection. It’s what you can learn about yourself, through the photos that speak to you.

I was surprised with the photo that had the strongest photo-heart connection for me this month. I can’t wait to share the image with you, and what I learned from it, tomorrow.

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It’s Almost Time!

It’s almost time to get started with the Photo-Heart Connection! The first link up, covering your January photo with the strongest connection, will be open February 1 through 7. Only 4 days away! I can’t wait!

Not sure if you are participating? Want to hear where the idea came from and learn more? Take a listen to this interview.

PS – Don’t assume from the images in the video that you have to use photos with hearts in them to participate. We just used my recent Evidence of Love portfolio along with the interview.

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Develop a Photo-Heart Connection

This image, shared last month, speaks to my heart and soul. I love the textures of the wall, and the complexity of what I see in the window: Outside, inside and the reflection. It represented what I was feeling at the time, a low point for me creatively, a winter reflected in an otherwise normal, but unique, exterior. But within that winter, hope could be found in the blue sky and the blooming flowers. While it may not be my top image of 2011, it is definitely my favorite for the last half, since moving home from Italy.

As I’ve come out of my low point in December, I’ve realized that one thing I am craving is connection. Connection, like this, of my heart to my images. Connection to other photographers who seek this same relationship in their photography. Looking back, it is not a surprise I felt this way, without a Find Your Eye course running in December. The connections I find with the participants seems to fill this need for me. I’ve described it as finding “kindred spirits.”

As I’ve thought about 2012 and what I want to do, this theme of connection keeps coming up. I want to extend the connection I find through Find Your Eye to everyone, so I’ve brainstormed this new idea for a monthly blog series: The Photo-Heart Connection.

The idea: At the end of each month, review the images you worked with in that month for the one that gives you the strongest connection to your heart and soul. Write about that connection to the image in a blog post or in a photo description on Flickr, then link into the monthly link up. You can get to know the other photographers seeking the same connection, by visiting the links and reading their experiences. We will find our kindred spirits.

The Guidelines:

  • This is a monthly link up, open from the 1st through the 7th of each month to post on your previous month’s photo-heart connection. In my Photo-Heart Connection post on the first of each month, I’ll share my image for the previous month as I did above, along with ideas on how to deepen your own photo-heart connections.
  • Pick one photo, with which you feel the strongest heart connection, to share. The photo shared can be any photo that you worked with in the last month, either newly captured or edited.
  • Write about your heart connection with that photo. Why does the photo speak to you? What do you feel?
  • Link your permalink into the Photo-Heart Connection link up.
  • Linked entries must include the Photo-Heart Connection button (available on the sidebar here). We want to share and build the sense of community of photographers seeking the photo-heart connection.
  • As you can, visit the links of fellow participants. Comment and discuss your experiences and build your connections.
  • The goal of this link up is connection – to your images and to other participants. As such, the focus is on quality over quantity. Links will be moderated to ensure they follow the guidelines, including both photo and writing about the photo-heart connection.
  • For reminders, be sure to sign up for the Kat Eye News. I will time the newsletter to arrive the last week of the month to remind you of the link up beginning on the first.

Participation is open to all! You don’t even have to link in if you are uncomfortable sharing. You can do this monthly exercise on your own to achieve an increased photo-heart connection. For those of you who have taken the Find Your Eye courses, participating will keep you moving on the journey you started in class. It will also be a great companion to any other photo project you might have going this year, such as a 365 or a 52-week project, deepening your experience.

I have a feeling that if we all do this monthly for the next year, we will see some incredible things happen in our photography. I also have a feeling that other companion ideas will come out of this, on the theme of connection. I hope you’ll join me to develop your Photo-Heart Connection this year. The first link up will be posted on February 1!