Kat Eye Studio

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Quiet and Empty

What a difference a few hours makes! During the day, this location in Piazza San Marco by the Doge’s Palace is brimming with people. People in line to tour the Basilica, people shopping at the overstuffed souvenier carts, people wandering around taking photos. But just a few hours later, near midnight, it’s almost empty. How wonderful for me!

Recently, my husband asked me why I don’t like people in my photos. Sometimes I will patiently wait for minutes for just the right shot, as people move in and out and through the frame I’m trying to capture. He and my son have to wait patiently too, until I’m ready to move on. They are good sports, I must say!

But there is a good reason for it. What I’ve discovered in my photography, is that I like to provide a place for the viewer in my photograph. A place for the imagination to wander. If there are clearly other people in the photo, if they are the subject, then the viewer might just see those people, and their experience, from the outside. If it is of an empty place, the viewer can participate in the photo… project themselves into the place, let their minds wander, imagine themselves there or create new story in the place. We all have a unique vision to show the world, this one just happens to be part of mine right now.

So, today I ask, what story do you see in this photo? Have you ever had that experience with a photograph before?

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When life gives you rain…

Take photos anyway! This photo is from a back alley in Orvieto, a hill town in Umbria. I love the old scooter, the textures of the wall, the greenery and the reflections of the wet ground. A peaceful little scene, I can almost feel the cool, damp air.

The two days we spent in Orvieto on our April were rainy. I found that I wasn’t as inspired to take photos – have you ever tried to take good photos with a two handed camera while holding an umbrella? Not the easiest thing to do. But the photos I did take, I find that I like. They have a very different mood than the sunny, perfect weather photos. Maybe even a little more character.

As we travel around, sometimes only a day or even less visiting a new place, I have to make the most of that time. Regardless of the weather, my goal is to capture some essence of that place. I don’t have the luxury to visit again and again, to study a certain place in all light, all weather, all seasons. And you know what? I find that’s ok. I’ve learned that when life gives you rain, you take photos anyway.

As usual, another life lesson we can take beyond photography or our other creative endeavors. Today, here in Italy, it is rainy. I think I’m going to make the most of it!

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Speaking of Unique Vision


Wow.

Yesterday we went to the Steve McCurry Sud-Est 1980-2009 exhibit in Milano.

What an amazing photographer, able to capture the feel and story of a place and time. Able to capture the essence of a person’s soul in his portraits. You feel like you are looking right inside them, and in return, they move something in you.

My goal of photographing and sharing the exhibit was not to reproduce his work, that is already done beautifully in the exhibit website and on his own website. My goal was just to show how they were presented, and how powerful and moving the photographs are. Seeing them large scale and in person was amazing. It showed me something different about how you can experience a powerful photograph.


In some ways, as a photographer myself, it was overwhelming. I mean, in the face of such greatness, why do I bother? But in light of yesterday’s post, I remember that I have something to contribute too, my own unique vision. Steve McCurry’s vision is beyond amazing, he is clearly an artist of extraordinary talent.

All I can say is… Wow.