Exploring the Beauty in Photography

Seems like the more I listen, the more I hear people talking about the gear, the business of photography, the widgets. Let us not forget the simple love of photography.

I understand why there’s so much rhetoric in our industry about the business of photography and the gear and the gadgets. There is the common stereotype that most creative people aren’t good business people. There is fear. Gear is easier to talk about than vision. Exposures are exact, the camera dials have numbers. There is a ‘right’ answer to many of these questions.

But where is your love of pictures? Where are your actions that back this up?

Can you pick up a book of photographs and get lost in it? Can you walk around with your iPhone or Android or your point and shoot or whatever and take 100 pictures knowing that they’ll never be for a client or a portfolio? Do you love hunting for pictures? Will you stay up late or get up early for pictures? Do you sometimes ‘see’ life as a photograph?

It’s different for all of us, but when you can take a break from all the chatter, remind yourself–as often as you can–why you love photography.

The beauty of capturing the smile on the face of children

Plenty of beauty can be seen and experienced here at Longwood … including the beauty of watching children develop an appreciation for (and excitement about) horticulture and the natural world. It’s our hope that one visit is enough to spark a child’s interest … to inspire that child to pay closer attention to plants and trees growing in his or her own surroundings … or even inspire that child to grow something of his or her very own. Even though we find ourselves in the winter months right now, it’s still a fantastic time (as is any time) to broaden children’s understanding of the natural world around them.