Friday, April 5, 2013

Focus On Life ~ Up Close!

I skipped Week 13 ~ Keep The Faith. Sowwy! :(

The topic for week 14, I think, is every photographer's favorite. The macro shot!

Sally says:


"Start exploring the details of the ordinary up close and
glimpse a world that you may never have noticed until you observed it magnified!  Get up close and personal with the subject of your choice and snap a macro shot!   
 
How close can you get?"

 This is definitely a challenge, for both the lens and the eye behind the lens. The lens is challenged with presenting the minutest detail it is capable of. The lens, however, shows everything the way it is. It does not analyze, it does not judge. The eye, and the mind, the heart, behind that eye judges! It always needs to decide whether it likes what it sees, whether it wants to accept the truth that the lens is presenting! 

A lot like life, really! We need to decide how close we want to get to anything, we need to decide what we can accept and allow into our lives, and what to do with things that look entirely different when scrutinized closely! 

Sometimes, up close, things look prettier than they look as a whole.
Like a daisy! In a group, it looks just like any other, pretty, for sure, but not all that remarkable.
They are surrounded by dry stems and other wilted flowers. Just like a person melting into the madding crowd...


 But get close to them, see each and every characteristic and quirk, and that same flower, or person, is so much more than we would have ever imagined! Complex, beautiful and one of a kind!

 
On the other hand, some things, and people, look perfect when looked from the outside. Perfectly clean, smooth, happy with no worries...


But get close, and you will see how murky their lives are, the fine cracks and lines, how weathered they are! These lines may just be signs of wisdom, a life well lived, experiences collected, or something truly ugly.



You never know what you will discover when you get close. We always have to make that choice...do we want to discover what things really are? Are we strong enough to accept it if it is not all rosy and cosy? 

I am a very curious person by nature. I need to sniff and dig and "find out". But lately, I am realizing that I do not have the ability to digest things that are not ideal. I fight it, I try to "fix" it, and I suffer. I have also realizes that I cannot change that idealist in me, so am trying to keep my curiosity in check and not find out at all ;-) 

But I sure do want to see what everyone else has found out up close and personal...at Sally's blog:
http://thestudiosublime.com/2013/04/06/focus-on-life-week-14/

45 comments:

  1. some wonderful photos, and some wonderfully perceptive words...
    sometimes, standing back and juat accepting things is the way to go... but sometimes close scrutiny is called for... there's the wisdom - knowing when to do what :)
    i missed last week too... glad to be back :)
    have a great week x

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    1. Oh, I skipped on purpose, it was a touchy topic for me.

      Glad you liked this one! I had not planned on making this one philosophical too, but such was the mood yesterday :)

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  2. Beautifully written with great photos! Aren't we humans a fickle bunch?

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  3. Ahh - very interesting observations about getting up close. It seems that getting up close also takes a bit more time, something we do not always invest. The daisy center is just awesome. It looks like there are hundreds of tiny daisies inside!

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    1. Yeah! True...takes time and energy and thought. All of which is becoming a luxury these days.

      I took that daisy pic while I was watering my plants...was mesmerizing!

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  4. The glass looks kind of neat up close! But love the flower pictures!

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    1. Thank you! The glass pic is cropped to a much smaller size, so lost a bit of the sharpness it had..

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  5. Interesting comparison. And your flower, while lovely, does not hold the depth of the glass. Hmmmmm.

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    1. Thanks Beti! I was really resisting taking a pic of flowers..since that's the first thing that comes to mind. But I did one as time was running out, and then I saw the glass at my lunch hour a couple days back! The glass pic is cropped to a much smaller size, so lost a bit of the sharpness it had :(

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    2. I guess there is more depth to it...coz you can see a LOT of things, not just the glass and the water, but those tiny droplets giving a micro view inside the macro shot!

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  6. WOW.

    I love this post. The second paragraph really spoke to me especially with what I'm going through right now. The part of about the glass really spoke to me in how I was looking at someone this week and judging them. And lastly, this statement spoke to me again about myself.

    "You never know what you will discover when you get close. We always have to make that choice...do we want to discover what things really are? Are we strong enough to accept it if it is not all rosy and cosy? "

    Every word right no time. Thank you!

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    1. Thanks Adrienne. It was my state of mind too...that made me write this, so I guess we are in the same boat right now :)

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  7. Very interesting. I think I know what you mean. I would like to be informed about world events but sometimes I just can't bear listening to more news, or more in depth when it all becomes too much. Curiosity is a wonderful thing you can see that spark in you in your photos

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    1. Yup! That, and also looking deeper into a person's character. You might find flaws that are just not acceptable, yet have to live with

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  8. Nice shots! I do agree macros are fun. :)

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  9. OMG, love the photos! Especially of the flower. I could soooo see this blown up on canvas and hung in an art gallery! And the close up of the glass....fantastic! I could see using that as a design for jewelry! Great job!

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  10. Good point, Kashmira - excellent one, in fact! Getting close to someone or something holds unexpected discoveries :) Love your pictures - can't keep looking at the macro of the glass!

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    1. The language Nazi is going to get you, Alicia, you mean you can't "stop" looking at it, right?

      I love that pic too...did you notice the little droplets that give a micro view within the macro?

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  11. Great photos. That last one is amazing and so interesting!!!

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  12. Very, very cool pics Kashmira! great post!! I love the perspective of backing up to see the full subject - then getting a close up where you wouldn't know what it is like your glass. Well done!

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  13. Your post today is very interesting. It made me think more about life. Your pics are lovely too.

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  14. A beautiful and well thought post! You definitely hit the nail on the head when you say that things are not what they seem from a distance. Up close the details tell us a very different story - sometimes beautiful and sometimes not so much.

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    1. Thanks Katherine! loved your post too..read it on my phone, so not commented yet, but will be hopping again soon!

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  15. Hi Kashmira,
    Very interesting and phlosophical. Love the shots of the flowers and the glass of water especially the close up of the glass.
    Therese

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  16. Those are great photos, Kashmira! I love the flower and the close up of the glass is amazing. I would never have guessed what it was.

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    1. I know...right? I had planned on getting something obscure...like the skin of a really old person or something. But no old ppl here, lol :)

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  17. Fantastic macros Kashmira! Things and people definitely look different up close and personal.

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  18. Great, great shots! I love the happy yellow daises! And the texture on the glass - wonderful.

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    1. Thank you! I loved the glass one too...took it with the iPhone...wish I had my dSLR

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  19. I love your thoughts/words this week. You always write things that make me think and I love that! Your photos are exceptional and the macro flower is so gorgeous - just like you my dear!! But I just have to say "Wow!" on the glass macro - super cool!! :-)

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  20. How wonderfully introspective..taking what you see behind the camera and interacting with it in a non-physical way..awesome!

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    1. Thanks Stacie! This series is making me think too much, lol :)
      I thought up the whole, reallllly serious post for this week yesterday while watering my plants (that seems to be when I do all my major introspecting)!

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  21. Oh I love these pictures and your take on getting up close. Very nice!

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  22. What a fantastic job you did with this interpretation, both the beautiful pictures and your words to match. I really liked your analogies and hope that you don't lose your curiosity to doubt and fear. You seem too open and thoughtful to close yourself off.

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    1. Thanks Laura! Turns out I am too open, and others around me are not, and its really really hurting me :(

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