Share Six Blog Circle – July 2019 | This Is Me

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I’m not going to lie, this month’s Share Six theme puts me waaaaay outside my comfort zone. And what do I do when I’m forced outside my comfort zone? I hide. In life and in photography, whether that is through avoidance, behind people or behind the lens, I hide and I find a mask. When I’m confronted with the option of fight or flight, I choose flight so you’ll find me cowering in the corner with a pile of excuses. I am non-confrontational, I hate being centre-stage and I am almost as introverted as they come.

All photographs are self-portraits
~ Minor White

Every image I take, every single one that I share, is part of me. They come from such a deeply personal place that they are surely a reflection of my ‘self’. So if my soul is already out there for everyone to see and to judge, why is it so hard to put myself in front of the camera in the more traditional sense? I’ve given this some thought and come to the honest conclusion that it is because I’m shallow. I might be too much of a thinker for my own good, but I’m also vain and I know it. The images I create and share for all the world to see, they are my mask and frankly that mask is more appealing than my face.

How am I comfortable sharing these images with you now? Well for one, I’m not, but also because I’m hiding still. My safety net is creative techniques and experimentation so that is how I am hiding today. Maybe this wouldn’t be {This is Me} however, without my signature in-camera moves.

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Ok, so this last one isn’t me hiding per se, but I still can’t look right at you!

Life begins where fear ends
~ Osho

Thank you for joining me for another month at Share Six.

Post your {this is me} image on our Facebook page SHARE SIX or to our Instagram gallery by using #sharesix_thisisme. A new theme will be posted on 6th August.

Up next is my friend and talented photographer, Sharleen of Sharleen Stuart Photography. Click here to see her images and be sure to leave her some love!

Share Six Contributor

Share Six Blog Circle – June 2019 | Quote

As photographers we often find ourselves looking to words for inspiration or for words to pair with our images on social media. This month Share Six is looking for you to share your favourite or most inspirational quotes with us. I recently came across a quote that really speaks to me and my approach to photography:

“Creativity doesn’t wait for that perfect moment. It fashions its own perfect moments out of ordinary ones.” ~ Bruce Garrabrandt

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Thank you for joining me for another month at Share Six.

Post your {favourite quote} and accompanying image on our Facebook page SHARE SIX or to our Instagram gallery by using #sharesix_favoritequote. A new theme will be posted on 6th July.

Up next is the incredibly talented Kathy Ledbetter. Please Click Here to see her images and be sure to leave her some love!

Share Six Contributor

30 Minutes in the Life | February 2019 – In The Car

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“Thirty Minutes in the Life” features ladies from around the world as we capture 30 minutes in our lives as mothers, wives, daughters, sisters and friends {and photographers}.  This is a blog circle so please be sure to visit the next photographer in the circle.

This may not be a traditional 30 Minutes in the Life documentary; this is 30 minutes inside my process.

I often get asked about my thought process when I’m creating abstract images: do you set out with the intention to capture an abstract image? Do you have something particular in mind or a particular technique that you want to try? What is your motivation? The answer is: it varies. If I plan a trip to the beach or to see the sunset somewhere pretty, I have every intention of capturing it in a creative way, but other times, the compulsion comes completely out of the blue and at a time when I least expect it.

Last weekend we went London for the day. We went to the Natural History Museum, showed the boys where I use to work nearby, and then went over the road to the Albert Memorial and had ice cream by the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain in Hyde Park. I documented the day through photographs, as you would expect, and I planned to use one element of that adventure to share with you, and I probably will soon enough. However, on our way home, driving down the M3 with weary feet and through bleary eyes, I found the cloudy tones of grey and the whooshing of the traffic capturing my imagination and compelling me to pick up my camera. It was either that or a power nap! I hadn’t set out that morning with that intention; it was in that moment, feeling compelled to capture that feeling: how the motion of the motorway made me feel after a long and tiring day.

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Of course, my thought process and motivation will be different on any given day. I photographed the same section of road just a few weeks ago – maybe it’s something about the boredom of the M3 – but on that day it was the speeding lights that made me pick up my camera (and it hadn’t even dawned on me that it was the same road until now).

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Thank you for joining me again this month.  Up next in the blog circle is the fabulous Sonia Epple Fotografie. Please click here to visit Sonia’s page. Want some more amazing inspiration? Keep following the circle to see what other photographers from around the world have shared this month – and don’t forget to leave a little love on their pages!

Share Six Blog Circle – October 2018 | Shooting Through

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Life has been getting in the way of the blog recently, but I am shooting-shooting-shooting and working on some exciting things, so keep an eye out for some catch-up posts and news sharing soon. But for now, to the task at hand.

This month the Share Six theme is {Shooting Through}. There are so many ways to interpret this theme, but the way I see it, it essentially comes down to layers and framing. Whether you deliberately hold an object in front of your lens, where the image becomes as much about the object and the way it manipulates the image as it is about the subject itself, or use natural elements or objects already in situ, it is all about creating dynamic interest and depth to your image.

With the rapid onset of autumn, this week I’ve found myself drawn to all the magical colours of New England, how they play off against each other as the change takes place at different speeds. I started at seeing the pops of red and orange between the greens, and as is often the case, I started to play:

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Thank you for joining me for another month at Share Six!

Post your {Shooting Through} images on our Facebook page SHARE SIX or to our Instagram gallery by using #sharesix_shootingthrough. A new theme will be posted on 6th November.

Up next is the fabulous Nicola of Nicola MacQueen Photography. Please Click Here to see her images and be sure to leave her some love!

Share Six Contributor

10 on 10 | September 2018

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Our crazy summer is behind us; now it’s just a blur of memories and images on a hard drive (most of which are still unprocessed, haha). But instead of dwelling on the happiness of what has been, I am looking forward and focusing my attention on something new.

The weekend before school started I dragged my family to the beach. That may not seem like such a chore but after a long busy summer, believe me, it was! I had a vision, a specific look for a specific image, that I wanted to achieve, so I was thankful they humored me. My initial short list included 165 images so I guess you could it was a successful trip!

My favourites are destined for a spot on a large public white wall, so for this month’s 10 on 10 I’m sharing a few captures of the kids (after they stopped sulking) and some of my almost-favourites. Gah, I love the beach!

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Until next time,

~Ceri