Exercise 2: Daily Practice

“Things are not difficult to make; what is difficult is putting ourselves in the state of mind to make them.”

Constantin Brancusi.

Dedicate a period each day, (it could be 5 mins, or an hour) over some time from 3 days up to a maximum of 7 days (however, you could continue as part of your practice, if you choose to) to perform a repetitive task or activity.

It could be a purely studio-based activity or related to something in your everyday life. Keep notes on what you are doing, how it progresses and how your relationship to the task changes. Document your progress in a form that suits your activity and reflect on this in your learning log about a text that particularly resonates with your practice. Share your daily routine with your peers via the course unit forum.

LOOKING OUT IN NATURE FOR MY OWN ”HELENIUM”.

Beauty to be discovered.

Day 1: observing.

NOTES-outcome.

I walked alone, holding a camera out in nature, without further destruction, and started capturing photos.
I found taking pictures quite a therapeutic experience. Engaging the right shot, the best ankle, and playing with the filters was challenging but rewarding. I was happy with the outcome and carried along with my goal.
I felt like I was on a quest for a hidden treasure that needed to come to the surface, unearthed to be appreciated and admired.
As the photo shoot was in progress, I felt even more engaged. I started zooming into the details and, to my great pleasure, I found what I was looking for: a whole different world hidden from us.

Day 2: Observing and focusing on the details

NOTES-outcome.

Having the same walk, following the same early morning routine, and enjoying the morning dew, I discovered a whole micro world. A simple bend towards the item captured my attention; a zoom-in and a new perspective appeared before me.

It was a great training exercise with a fruitful outcome.

There is an old saying that the devil is in the details. I would say that beauty is in the details!

Day 3: Monochrome experiments

What if I do the same exercise using only the black-and-white filter?

What if I see some existing ones from this perspective?

NOTES-outcome.

It was a fascinating practice because it revealed that not every shot can captured using the monochrome filter. Some frames came out as blurred or distorted. The positive part is that using that particular way can generate artistic and dramatic outcomes. It can reveal shades and highlight the most colour-toned elements. Noir photo shooting can be an option for someone who wants to capture figures, shapes and shadiness. I enjoyed this technique the most.

Day 4: Night photos

What happens in the absence of natural light?

NOTES-outcome.

I took the camera out in the pitch black. My vision was not clear. I was walking blind with the help of the camera’s flashlight. I took a lot of pictures. Some of them came out irrelevant to what I was looking for. Other pictures were with focus absence. I kept the ones I felt more engaged with. It was another great lesson for me: no matter what the case can be, focus is the best element someone can have to achieve their goals. If you are going blind, you spend more effort. The outcomes are questionable, the quality is out of control, and the result is poor.

Day 5: Bees and butterflies.

On the last of my practice, I came across a large group of honeybees and butterflies.

They were grazing upon a large bush and I carefully approached them and I started taking pictures.

NOTES-outcome.

It was a great experience. The buzzing swarm was busy collecting the nectar; the butterflies were flying constantly from one flower to the other just to enjoy the most of what each one had to offer. A scene full of life and commotion. The hard part was to adjust myself to capture the pictures as soon as I could. The insects were moving constantly and it was hard to be able to focus and press the button. In the end, I had to take a lot of pictures only to keep the best and then, again, process them to the point they are presentable and I was able to use them.