Beauty everywhere you look.

 

I was stumbling around on South Congress today, I think I overdosed on staying home and doing chores earlier. I escaped. I brought along a small and discreet camera and paired it with a nonsensical seeming lens; the 28mm f1.4 M lens. The camera was a Leica CL; a small APS-C mirrorless camera. 

The young woman in the two images above was sitting outside in front of a coffee/juice shop enjoying a cool beverage when I first noticed her. But I walked by...for about ten feet and then decided that I really would like to photograph her since her eyes seemed so alive. I asked if I could make a quick photograph of her. She was delighted. I shot four frames and then thanked her profusely. 

The encounter was just the spark I needed to make my day great. 

When the universe delivers a wonderful subject it seems a shame to walk on by....

Shoes at the coffee shop. What?

 

 Decided to become "re-interested" in the Leica CL camera. Why? Because I suddenly realized what a fast 28mm lens is ultimately good for. It's for use as a 43mm "normal" lens on an APS-C camera. And you know what? It works really well...

I was focusing on the tasseled loafers in the mid-frame...

Gone to the market. Looking for colors.

Nothing quite like a brisk Spring day, bright sunshine, deep, rich colors and a steady hand with a camera in it. It's gray and cool in Austin now. Today. About a week and a half since I returned from my fun trip to Montreal. An okay day to swim. But not a great day here for photographing bold colors and blue skies. 

Swimming is so sweet. Gliding through the water is akin to flying. Flying is something humans don't do well without a lot of "structure" around them. But swimming and gliding through water is a complete immersion into 360° sense of touch, of feel. Every square centimeter of your body in touch with something elemental. 

It's not something you can describe to the left brain but something you can enjoy with your right brain. It's not a formula, It's a sensation. A feeling. To be a bit closer to everything...

And all at once you are self-propelled. Making your way through another transparent medium.

Photography is, to me, the process of immersing into an ever changing landscape that sits just in front of me. Awareness of every sensation makes it more real. More visually accessible. 

Holistic Art. The process of being immersed in your own reality.