Joining in Cathy’s self-portrait challenge for Blogtoberfest. Not a huge fan of having my photo taken (especially by me) but this one is quite fun – took it in Cape Cod a couple of weeks back, having caught the sun out on a long bike ride.
How do you feel about taking your own photo? Do you get self-conscious? Do you see it as a way of getting a photo you actually like?
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For more self-portrait bravery from Blogtoberfesters see here.
There was a lot of laughter on this trip. In my last post about Squam I just wanted to share some of the (many) lighter moments.
Travelling to the retreat in style…
You can imagine our faces when Leroy and his mobile home rocked up to pick Louise and me up from the bus station. Not quite the shuttle we had been expecting, but we were delighted to find it filled with tea and biscuits and friendly new faces.
Wondering how apt it was that my cabin should be down this road…
Feeling lucky to share a cosy cabin with such wonderful ladies (Nina, Sylvia, Jayne, Kirsten, Brittany + Steph who is not in the picture.)
Getting lost in the forest in the middle of a torrential downpour late at night with six girls laughing madly (our cabin was called ‘Wayonda’ for a very good reason). It looked something like this…
Admiring the work of fellow artists Andrea and Jess at the Visions of Squam exhibition at Mocha Rising in the cute nearby town of Centre Sandwich.
Thank you Squam Lake for having us, and thank you Elizabeth for bringing us together.
An old friend of mine, renowned wildlife photographer Koichi Fujiwara, is busy preparing for a big exhibition of his photos which opens later this month in Japan. The images he captures are a mixture of stunning, cute, and thought-provoking but they all have one thing in common – they tell the story of the environmental crisis our world is currently facing.
In ‘The Earth is calling us – listen to Nature’s voice’, a special exhibition to coincide with the COP10 Biodiversity Conference in Nagoya, Ko shares a stark snapshot of the state of the planet. Through beautiful photos he shows how our actions are completely shaking up the world’s ecosystems, and the impact that is happening on some of our most treasured animals.
As a perpetual traveller and the only person to have photographed every species of penguin in the world, he is taking the planet’s pulse first hand. From Komodo Dragons in Indonesia and Giant Spiny Chameleons in Madagascar, to Orang-utans in Borneo and seals in Antarctica, Ko has brought back a suitcase full of visual treasures from his travels, but with a frightening message about what we might find (or not) if we travel to those same places next year, next decade, next century.
If you happen to be in Nagoya, do check it out. If not, you can always see some of Ko’s photos on his website Nature’s Planet or peruse one of the many books he has written. (The site is in Japanese but is easy to hop about and find photos.)
He got me thinking about the importance of photography not just to capture beauty, stash away memories and catalogue history as it happens, but also to influence the future. The seemingly inevitable doesn’t necessarily have to become history, if the images are powerful enough to make us change how we live in the present.
What powerful images of our time have you seen lately? Do share with a link!
So to one of my three workshops at Squam – a photography class with Susannah Conway of unraveling fame.
I love the soulful polaroid shots that appear one after another on her blog, and was interested in absorbing some of the magic. After learning a few rules, and then being encouraged to go out and break them all (my favourite bit), I snapped away.
In the woods…
And by the lake…
Have you broken any rules recently?
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More on my Squam experience here: Reflections of Squam – I dreamed a dream
Thank you friends, for opening your hearts and sharing your laughter
Today’s Do What You Love interview is coming to you from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where I am recovering from four awesome days at the Squam art retreat. Artwork and photos to follow after I have processed the details of a very special experience.
For now I want to share this interview with Jessica Gonacha Swift, a painter, surface pattern designer and illustrator. I have always been drawn to Jessica’s gorgeous fabric designs but have just seen some of her original art work in the Enormous Tiny Art Show here at the Nahcotta Gallery in Portsmouth and they are just as juicy. Jessica is married and lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her two adorable cats. She has been a working artist since 2003, when she was 23 years old. Today she is sharing a peek into her creative life.
(Note: since this interview Jessica has moved to Portland, OR)
A visit to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park does wonders for the soul. 500 acres of stunning parkland, with internationally renowned sculptors’ work dotted here and there. You can picnic by a Henry Moore, hide behind a Barbara Hepworth or get lost in the forest near the David Nash stairway. You can even take an outdoor class in bronze casting. And it is free to get in!
My man and I had a lovely couple of hours strolling through the land, making up stories about what each piece really meant, and sheltering from the rain in the cosy shadow of the big trees.
Do you love adventure like I do? How about skiing to the South Pole? Tim Moss fancies a go at it, but unlike most people who just dream about it, he is actually going. In January he will be accompanied on his ‘Inspired by London 2012 South Pole Adventure’ by an Olympian (Derek Redmond), a Paralympian (Marc Woods), and a Special Olympics athlete (Declan Kerry), as they ski to the bottom of the earth to wave the British flag in the name of participation, inclusivity and accessibility, and marking the 100th anniversary of Captain Scott reaching the Pole.
At university Tim decided on a whim to organise a mountaineering expedition to Kyrgyzstan, a country he’d never heard of. In his words, “It all went horribly wrong, I had a wonderful time and have been trying to have as many adventures as humanly possible ever since.”He now runs adventure consulting business The Next Challenge, helping others to live their adventures. Tim is a guy who really does what he loves.
On days like this I feel very lucky to work from home – Sunshine, freshly baked gingernut biscuits cooling in the kitchen and a pot of tea by my side. What better way to get in the right frame of mind for working on exciting business plans?
There is a cute water feature surrounded by white stones which remind me of island hopping in Greece, although we don’t actually turn it on very often as it seems like such a waste of water. The neighbour’s cat tends to get more use of it, as a mirror in which to preen himself…
And there is a wall of black bamboo which reminds me of where I used to live in Kyoto, surrounded by rice fields and bamboo forest.
But my favourite bit of the garden is this sunken table, which has benches on each side and played host to a party of 15 with room to spare last weekend. We had the clematis cut back a bit, got rid of the bindweed and tidied up the deck so it is now a lovely shady place to gossip, play cards or relax with a chilled glass of wine… It looks magical at night, all lit up with small spotlights in the steps, and little candles on the table. Now all we need is a barbecue…
Having lived in flats with no outdoor space for years, this is a very special place indeed.
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For more peeks around our new house see here.
