Photography

One thing that has helped me do more looking into rather than looking at is taking photographs. Looking through a camera lens forces me to see every element of the scene, person, or object I am taking a picture of. It forces me to focus on what it is I am really trying to take out of a situation. Is it beauty that I see? Is it a memory I am too afraid to let pass me by? Taking photographs forces me to see rather than look at.

I took this dragonfly photograph in July last year. I was enjoying the sun in my backyard when I saw this dragonfly fly past my face and land on an almost dead dandelion. I had my camera near by and began to take pictures of the dragonfly. 

Taking this photograph made me notice details that I had never noticed before. I had never really seen a decaying dandelion. I had never seen the way its yellow petals curled above the white seeds almost ready to emerge. I had never really noticed the way a dragonfly's wings were detailed with lines and boxes. I had looked at a dandelion and dragonfly before, but I had never really seen either. 

This is one of the best examples of how looking through a camera lens allowed me to really see and fully appreciate the beauty before my eyes.