Wednesday, August 31, 2011

space to breathe

Dandelion macro

It’s all about leaving space. Empty space, but that makes it sound worthless and it isn’t. We need space in our lives, time to stand and stare, time to ponder. It can look like empty space from the outside but from the inside it’s rich with possibilities. It’s too easy to cram our lives with too many activities, too much to do, leaving no space to renew ourselves, and creativity only really happens in the empty spaces.

We need that space to allow us to breathe easily; it’s the space that makes the rest of our lives satisfying instead of an endless, tiring, round of busy-ness. A bowl is only useful because of the empty space inside it, and music can only be made because of the space inside the instrument.  And of course, music is only music because of the spaces between the notes – otherwise it would just be a jumble of sounds.

Negative space in photographs also gives room to breathe, to appreciate the subject of the picture, to avoid being distracted by other things. And just as having that space in our lives helps to enhance the rest of what we do, having that space in our photos – the space we call negative - can positively add something, as it definitely does in this beautiful image by lwsantos.

gilly of the camera points both ways 

IMG_5343-1 copy
img_5343-1 copy by lwsantos

13 comments:

Kirstin said...

Oh Gilly, these pictures certainly do leave space for us to breathe. Beautiful.

Eileen said...

So very beautiful! Airy and ethereal. Love these selections!

GailO said...

What a wonderful post! I love both of these flora themed photos!

gina said...

Beautiful images to illustrate your inspiring post. Thank you!

christina said...

a beautiful pairing.

Ashley Sisk said...

What a beautiful way to look at negative space.

Bonnie Zieman, M.Ed. said...

Exquisite images and wise words that apply to so much more than photography, as you say.

Holly ~ Soupatraveler said...

Gilly! These are both such stunning images! And your words...you are looking right into my head!

Laura Santos said...

I'm honored to have my image on here!! Thanks for sharing it!

urban muser said...

beautiful, delicate shots!

Anita @ GoingALittleCoastal said...

Beautiful images and a wonderful description. Negative space is also essential in decorating a home. Sometimes a home can be too cluttered and the eye has nowhere to rest. It needs the negative space for the items you love to shine.

staci said...

BEautiful, leaves me speechless !!!

Unknown said...

Beautiful pictures and inspiring words! Just looking at the creates space in my soul. ty

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