#seeingbeyondseeing

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I Guess it's time to begin...

After nearly fifty years behind the lens of a camera it's time to play some catch up. God only knows how many slides and negatives, both color and black and white, I've actually created since I pressed the shutter some half century ago. Suffice it to say that it's been more than just a few. And this isn't counting the hundreds of thousands of images that are already digital that I've made in the past twenty alone! It's a visual chronicle of my life thus far and I'm looking forward to documenting my impressions and feelings as I bring these images that I've had stored away for so long to the forefront of my memory once more.

For even longer I used to keep a written journal. In fact I began doing this in 1972 at the start of my High School years and I'm happy to say that I still have those journals. For those of you who are football fans you may be interested in knowing that the 1972 Orange Bowl was won by Nebraska over Alabama that year, 38 to 6, and that Stanford squeaked by Michigan 13 to 12 in the Rose Bowl. I used to watch way too much football back then. Now I don't watch any games anymore. Life is too rich with other things to keep my attention I'm delighted to say.

Somewhere along 1975 my attention was diverted by thoughts of what I was to do with the rest of my life. I had met a girl in High School. She would become my wife, and much to my delight, still is. I joined the US Army and it took us places and allowed us to do things we never would otherwise have imagined being or doing. Today I am scanning some of those slides and reliving how blessed I have been. My images have become my visual diary and I hope you don't mind me sharing some of these things with you here as I move through this project of a lifetime.

In case you are wondering what one of those things was that I was doing way back when, here's a little visual clue. Until next time.

[vickynosecrets]

#quote #wordstothinkabout #photography #photographer #wynn #bullock #seeingbeyondseeing

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La Moue, A Visual Story of Creative Transition (Part Three)

La Moue No. 8 (en Pel Maché) This is the beginning of the real journey through the many nuances and possibilities for transforming a digital photo into a Pel Maché. With this change we start to see a more creative style emerge which imparts a new character to the piece.

La Moue No. 9 (en Pel Maché) Did someone say mood? We've gone a bit crazy with mood in this rendering to heighten the visual mystery. Does it work? You will be the judge of that, but there's no denying the piece has a totally different emotional feel to it than the original does. In the upcoming renderings I'll be sharing an even deeper Pel Maché approach.

La Moue No. 10 (en Pel Maché) Is it a drawing, a photo, an airbrushed something in between? A resounding "Yes" to all three but unique in its interpretation of the subject. Now is when we begin to realize the possibilities of the Pel Maché transformative process. Wait till you see what comes next!

La Moue No. 11 (en Pel Maché) With this rendering of our original photo through the Pel Maché process we've created an almost solarized and stylized poster look in our subject. This extra added creative "umph" has made and entirely new interpretation of the image possible. The malleable beauty of Pel Maché begins to show its light.

La Moue No.12 (en Pel Maché) In today's interpretation of our studio created digital photo  we've begun to sling and apply a bit of digital paint in the off chance we can do a bit more visual justice to our original subject. Now we begin to grasp the full capability of this thing I've named Pel Maché. As I wrote with the unveiling of La Moue No.11, the malleable beauty of Pel Maché begins to show its light.

La Moue No.13 I wanted to create a retro comic book style look to the piece where spot color and halftone bring a different feel to both the subject and the image overall. The nuances of creative expression are virtually endless with Pel  Maché as this rendering in particular showcases quite well.

La Moue No. 14 Another step in the comic book style rendering of this Pel Maché piece. By adding an appropriate border which appears aged and worn a new and unique impression is once again created for the image. A different story line develops in the mind.

La Moue No. 15 (en Pel Maché) In this transformation I've introduced the element of color back into the image along with an aggressive pen drawing style. Different, yet subtly vibrant, the effect once more transforms this simple image into a unique Pel Maché art piece.

La Moue No. 16 (en Pel Maché) Scroll back and look at the original image file from June 21st. How much difference in the initial impression does this visual transformation impart to the art piece for you? Pel Maché frees  the photographic  artist to play, experiment and interpret with their feelings in the same way a painter, poet or musician wields the tools of their creative craft.

La Moue No. 17 Nearly unrecognizable from the original image file this Pel Maché dramatically showcases what it is to begin at one point and work towards a uniquely new and artfully different point in the process of creating a new piece. Imagination is the only limitation in the realm of Pel Maché.

La Moue No. 18 (en Pel Maché) This image completes the La Moue transformation series and I want to thank you for sticking with me this past couple of weeks. As you have seen the journey can be varied and unique. No two transformations will be the same as this isn't a push button software process. It's a hybrid art of digital photography fused with digital painting in the fast emerging creative field that I've named Pel Maché.

 If you have  questions about this hybrid art of Pel Maché and it's place            in creative self expression contact me at the email below.  I'd love to connect with others who are interested in or currently creating digital art through the hybrid combination of digital photography and computer art creation            software.                           Seeing beyond seeing. It's more than meets the eye. Discover the  how and the why at the The Photo Forum where image creation  is only part of the story. I'm available for commissioned portraiture as well the sale of current existing pieces.                         Email mddaphotoforum@gmail.com for more information on learning to open both eyes and heart to endless creative possibilities.

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A Modern Pilgrim’s Progress

Or rather, a modern pilgrim's progress from a world of one reality to another, delivered under the similitude of a nightmare.

There's a saying attributed to the Chinese that is reputed to be the English translation of an ancient Sino curse; "May you live in interesting times". However upon research one finds it's more likely that it originated among English speaking Americans. I rarely take or post selfies. I'm not a fan. But then if you looked like this guy It's understandable. I do have a reason for doing so today though.

My point in sharing these two selfies with you today is as an icon of personal reflection to the perfect analogy of the perfect storm that is the draconian conditions we are being asked, some even say coerced or forced, to live under currently in this country and in others around the world. Oh baby, we’ve come a long way through navigating an interesting year, and now find ourselves sitting bare naked on the cold floor of reality, staring a new one square in the face, and wondering what it may bring us, or perhaps take away.

The aforementioned perfect analogy to these interesting times we find ourselves slogging through can be found in a two part book published in 1678 by John Bunyan titled 'The Pilgrim's Progress'. It's still available for reading today and If you haven't I suggest you do so. As analogies go it's pretty perceptive given our current State, (country, world), of sordid affairs. Filled with talk of swamp draining, death, destruction, morality, the antithesis thereof, and even walls with gates, perhaps it's a tale written ahead of its time for a generation just waiting to arrive on the current  questionable shores.

Regardless it's a book deserving of being dusted off and given a glance. It beats watching endless reruns of Gilligan's Island on the internet, hands down and appropriately washed of course. Just don't let the morality tale and clearly Christian leanings of the writer cloud your mind and prevent you from exercising your critical thinking skills. There's too much of that happening as it is. It's best none of us add more insults to the obvious injuries, perceived or real, up or down, left or right, black or white.

It's reported that in 1966 Robert F. Kennedy gave a speech with this observation; "There is a Chinese curse which says 'May he live in interesting times.' Like it or not, we live in interesting times. They are the times of danger and uncertainty; but they are also the most creative of any time in the history of mankind." How interestingly appropriate and prophetic.

As in 1966 we too find ourselves navigating interesting times of uncertainty and shear terror. Each of us is on a trek, willingly or otherwise, modern pilgrims one and all,  on a path of yet to be fully defined or unveiled, progress. Happy Trails.

Seeing beyond seeing. It's more than meets the eye. Discover both the how and the why at the The Photo Forum where  image creation is only part of the story.    

Email mddaphotoforum@gmail.com for more information about opening both eyes and heart to the endless creative possibilities.

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Solitude

In a cathedral of nature's making, walls of autumn color illuminate the beauty that surrounds me. Here, among the trees, sitting on this sacred bench, I sense the spirit of all things as it flows freely through and around my innermost being. And now, in this moment of solitude, I feel whole and complete, letting go of all things and simply giving way to this moment to welcome a deep and humbling presence which is and will always be a cherished and much loved friend.  

Seeing beyond seeing. It's more than meets the eye. Discover both      the how and the why at The Photo Forum.      

Feel free to mail me at mddaphotoforum@gmail.com for more information about The Photo Forum.

©2020 Michael D. Davis    All Rights Reserved

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Home

This is the land I grew up in. Regardless of how picturesque, quaint, plain or extravagant there's nothing more comforting to the soul than the feeling one gets of knowing they are home. No matter how healthy or ill, fearful or elated, the knowledge that one is in a place of physical and emotional comfort and safety can never be replaced and perhaps never truly be duplicated.

Often we think of home as being that physical space we grew up in and where we spent our childhood or most cherished years. It's not that way for everyone though. There's a saying; "home is where the heart is". No truer words have ever been spoken.

Where does your heart dwell these days?  Is it in a place of comfort and safety? If so you are truly blessed. If not, ask yourself why not, and be painfully honest with yourself as you seek the answer. We each deserve a loving home that's comforting, safe, full of hope and opportunity. Rest assured that, If we don’t know where that is, we must do all we can to find or create it.

© 2020 Michael D. Davis   All Rights Reserved

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A Symbolic Gesture

There's a wall of wooden planks near where I live. Scratched upon it are names, dates and messages from those who've passed by.

These lines have become intertwined through the years, into a layered mosaic, rich with the symbols of lives lived, loved and long since moved on.

It's a fitting symbol of both complex and simple gestures, etched into the resilient fiber of life's existence, that remain long after this wall no longer stands.

What mark might you make, for those who pause to ponder, affirming your journey and passing along this path?

©2020 Michael D. Davis All Rights Reserved

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Dogwood in Bloom

This is a backyard phone photo of one of my favorite subjects in spring. We have this gorgeous dogwood tree and I just had to share these beautiful blossoms with you in hopes of  lightening the emotional tone that drones on and drains our emotional energy these days. There's much to be thankful for if we choose to seek it out.    

Here we are in May with spring springing all around us, birds are singing and the sounds of social distancing are deafening. Talk about a downer in a normally cheerful and upbeat season of renewal and rebirth!    

Agendas and manipulations abound and continue to sprout forth like weeds in a world of April's tearfully watered fields. As the wildflowers grow, fertilized with glee by those who profit from the fears of a future uncertainty, We are left to wait, watch, and shelter dutifully. We socially distance with only the fertilizer   we are fed to determine the direction in which we will grow.

I may be a simple artist, writer and teacher but fading away quietly while someone plucks my petals and burns my roots with chicken manure isn't my style. It's how we each choose to react to the things we're fed, and those we allow to feed us, that determine whether this field of flowers we call home will continue to blossom freely or simply fade away.    

The art of Seeing beyond seeing. It's more than meets the eye. It's what we experience & share with others using tools like introspection, insight, and imagination. Together let's broaden & deepen our creative skills & practices in  business & life. 

© 2020 Michael D. Davis   All Rights Reserved

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Aim High

On the eve of yet another year and another new decade I share this image with you of the USAF Thunderbirds. Since 1953 people have marveled at the precision and teamwork of the pilot's who fly in this elite group of aviators. It takes focus, dedication and the ability to practice and improve to successfully maneuver through every turn and loop they perform in close proximity to each other. Each member must  be capable of  clear 20/20 vision.

What a fitting analogy for each of us as we enter a new year and decade. In order to anticipate every  twist and turn in life and be ready when things throw us for a loop, we too must be focused, dedicated and committed to reaching our goals and stated mission in life. Like the Thunderbirds these things are a discipline practiced daily in mind, body and spirit, with complete focus being directed toward the goal to be achieved.  

As we contemplate our direction in this new year and decade we might consider this. Without there being a point on the horizon, a goal to focus on and aim towards, we will never get off the ground and our dreams for success will never be realized. Aiming high to reach our dreams doesn't rely on aimlessly flying in circles. Dedication to achieving new heights through a disciplined 2020 vision does.

The art of Seeing beyond seeing. It's more than simply creating a pretty picture. It's about the stories we tell ourselves and share with others using the tools of light, insight and imagination. Email me if you're curious and let's chat about how we can connect to broaden and deepen your creative perspective. 

©2019 Michael D. Davis   All Rights Reserved

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Where There’s Smoke

Smoke is used as a symbol and indicator of many things in life. It might mark a position, serve as an alert to a problem and even become a screen to hide behind. It can also be the result of the process of creating something of value. In the case of the accompanying image it is used as a tool for dramatic emphasis during an airshow.

One thing is certain about smoke. It gets people's attention. Light, heavy or dark, smoke alerts our senses and makes  us sit up and take notice. In some ways smoke is a fitting analogy for our lives. We all leave a rhetorical and symbolic smoke trail while traveling through the firmament of time. Some folks leave trails that linger for centuries while others are simply a flash and puff that vanishes almost as quickly as it appears.

Symbolically fire has often been used as an indicator of the passion and energy dwelling at the core of one's spirit and soul. Smoke then might be considered the visible sign of the existence of that felt and witnessed yet unseen source of symbolic burning. A shooting star may leave a trail lasting but a mere second, while the smoke from that trail may linger for much longer.

Have you ever paused to reflect on the nature of the rhetorical smoke trail you create in life, consciously or otherwise, that others might take notice of? Is it one that creates a desire in others to follow in hopes of discovering the source that feeds its existence? How long might that smoke trail linger once the source has been extinguished and what latent legacy might that trail leave for others to follow? What smoke trails do you choose to sit up, take notice of, and follow in your life? Why?

The art of Seeing beyond seeing. It's more than simply creating a pretty picture. It's about the stories we tell ourselves and share with others using the tools of light, insight and imagination. Email me if you're curious and let's chat about how we can connect to broaden and deepen your creative perspective.

©2020 Michael D. Davis   All Rights Reserved

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Fall

There's a reason it's called Fall. In many parts of the Northern Hemisphere most of the leaves have parted ways with their branches and like colored confetti fallen to the ground where they lay in a thick blanket to gently decay into the soil, or, more likely to become the bane of those tasked with raking them up into great piles, only to have children come along and scatter them to the wind once more as delightfully bright and light objects of play and imagination.

I love Fall. It's become my favorite season with its vivid blue skies, glistening frost filled mornings, days brimming with gentle breezes and swirling shades of brilliance dancing in the warmth of a waning sun that warms both face and heart. At night when temperatures drop as quickly as the morning leaves, the stars shine bright like the million tiny lights soon to adorn homes and shops across the land to mark what many call the most wonderful time of the year .

This all gives a photographer reason to pull out that one precious lens, used sparingly for occasions such as this, like the heirloom carving knife that makes its appearance only twice, perhaps three times each year, to assist in sharing those special holiday meals with family and friends on the short days leading into longer, colder nights. It's a joy to have the proper tool to use when it's needed. It can make a marked difference in how a creative person plays and applies imagination in preparing a gift of this visual feast called Seeing beyond seeing with family, friends, associates and the world at large. Many Blessings and the Happiest of Holidays everyone. 

© 2019 Michael D. Davis   All Rights Reserved

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Nature’s Texture

We are intertwined in the very fabric of existence itself. Each mark we leave, no matter how small and deceptively insignificant becomes another brush stroke, mingling, mixing, adding tone and contrast to all that surrounds us. We are no less important than the clouds in the sky, the waves of the ocean or the earth upon which we stand.

All is fluid and changing on this great canvas of time with no two moments ever being the same. Whatever thought we share or action we take is destined to make its difference in this great masterpiece. Each deserves thoughtful contemplation as we explore and search for meaning, seeking just the right place to leave our mark upon the movement of an ever larger universe. For in the end, as in the beginning, we  are one with nature's texture and the fabric from which its very existence is made.

The art of Seeing beyond seeing. It's more than simply creating a pretty picture. It's about the stories we tell ourselves and share with others using the tools of light, insight and imagination. Email me if you're curious and let's chat about how we can connect to broaden and deepen your creative perspective.

©2019  Michael D. Davis   All Rights Reserved 

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Windswept Breakers

Here's an image that originally began its life as a 35mm transparency in the 1980's. It was digitized in the 1990's, and  transformed   yesterday, by the use of modern software programs, into an image with full extended tonality Ala the Zone System.

If you're not familiar with the Zone System of previsualizing the final outcome of an image's tonality, it was made popular in the 1940's through the black and white large format work of  Ansel Adams. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

I hope you find this little informational tidbit helpful and that      you enjoy the photo as much as I enjoyed creating it and then recreating it for you. I do teach and mentor, groups or individuals      on the subject of photography so if you live in, or near, my area please feel free to connect with      me if you are interested in some instruction. I'm also available for remote teaching via email, phone and Skype.    

© Michael D. Davis - Visual Artist . Writer . Teacher

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Black and White Friday

I'm not shopping. While hoards of humanity assault the stores this post holiday I sit quietly at my computer typing out a simple message to those of you who may see and read it. I love what I do and am thankful and sincerely blessed to share with you on a daily basis. The gifts I choose to give come from a creative mind, an active imagination, and from the heart. Like these trees they are three pillars supporting my stand in a forest of many. I'm delighted that you have chosen to look, perhaps to contemplate and even to See beyond seeing. So today instead of looking for deals I continue to give, the day after Thanksgiving. I give thanks to and for each of you and I pray I will continue being blessed to do so for a long time to come. The art of Seeing beyond seeing. It's about more than creating a pretty picture. It's about the stories we tell using the tools of light, insight and imagination.  Email me if you're curious and let's chat about how we might connect to broaden and deepen your creative perspective.

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A Quiet Contemplation

To me this image illustrates the importance of the quiet contemplation that we all increasingly need in our lives. It represents a quiet space where we can dwell, whether physically or imagined, when we willingly allow the reality of life to cloud the manifestation of our best self. Please allow me to explain.

With all the negative noise and activity surrounding us in life it's difficult to slow down long enough to just "Be" our best selves. Pulled, pushed and probed by the hyper emotional and manipulative experiences and issues we face daily the normally protective resistance in our mind and soul, not to mention our heart, wears thin. This affects our judgement, relationships, and our ability to function in a proper, peaceful and balanced way. The result is an insidious and pervasive social sickness. We see it, hear it, and feel it almost non-stop in society today, and it's eating nearly all of us up from the inside out.

The good news is there's an easy remedy. But this remedy comes at a cost. It requires that you give up some of your most precious commodity in life; your time. Thirty minutes ought to do just fine. You see, the cure for this negative social epidemic is not found from outside our self but rather from within. it's as easy to cure as One, Two, Three once we resolve to self medicate with this cure on a regular ongoing basis.

1. Find a safe place to sit, alone, turn off your phone, and quiet yourself by clearing the chatter in your mind.

2. Relax inwardly and outwardly by closing your eyes, and just contemplate the silence and sounds of nature around you. As you begin to let go of the stress and tension you may be feeling at the moment Imagine a warm sunlit breeze moving through your body. It doesn't matter if you're inside or outdoors, just let this unseen warmth move around and through you both physically and mentally.

3.Now imagine releasing all those negative thoughts, concerns and fears that you've stored up and been holding onto inside. Imagine watching them float up and way like balloons, released into the sky. When you feel you've released all those negative things from inside, Let the space you've freed up completely fill with that warm sunlit breeze now surrounding you and give a silent thanks for all that you have and are becoming and all that you have to share with others.

Challenge yourself to do this often, with sincerity, and allow it to become a habit in your life. When you do your life can't help but change for the better as you experience and feel things in a more positive way.

Thirty minutes a few times a week? Not a bad investment to change your life and the lives of those around you don't you think? Start this habit and keep it up for a month and I promise you'll truly understand the meaning of the phrase “Seeing beyond seeing”. Happy Thanksgiving.

© 2019 Michael D. Davis    All Rights Reserved

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Transition

From coolness to warmth, earth to sky and sand to water we look, seeking to see beyond our horizon. In childhood and adulthood we contemplate memories past and present, walking on the edge of the meaning and purpose of life. Through sunrise and sunset waves of time wash over, beneath, above       and within us while traveling our transit, from then, to now, and beyond, perhaps to distant shores yet to be explored. "Is there meaning?" we ask. The answer comes to us, being what we have known from the beginning,"Only if you create it". - MDD

© 2019 Michael D. Davis - Visual Artist . Writer . Teacher