Shutter Sisters Oasis

I have to admit, fear of the unknown almost got the best of me, and I thought about getting out of it after signing up, but I bit the bullet and went for it and I'm so grateful!   My time at Shutter Sisters Oasis was life-altering, beauty, love, friendship, creativity and FUN!

My first textured iphone image!

I didn't know a single soul when I arrived at ACE in Palm Springs but I was immediately embraced by many!   There were at least 100 women there from all over the U.S., and a couple from Canada, England and the Netherlands...all of them brilliant photographers!  The woman I first sat next to for our arrival cocktail hour is the woman I ended up spending much of my time with.  Thank you, Bonnie Blue Eyes!

Bonnie

The Shutter Sisters were designated their own pool and the area known as 'the compound', where we ate meals, played, swam, relaxed on cushy couches, printed our images, and learned new lessons from some of the Shutter Sisters contributors.

Lauren

There were six of us who became an unspoken pack, but each person I had the chance to meet or share a story with is ingrained in my heart forever.  Even the women I didn't get a chance to know, you are with me.

Women are an incredible force on this planet..abundant in love, support and creativity so together we soar.  This was so evident in our time together.  I learned so much while there and although the event took place in my home state, I had a few firsts!  It was my first time up the tram at that high elevation to hike amongst the beautiful pines.  It was also my first trip to the Windmills where I nearly blew away in the morning and also my first trip to Joshua Tree.  The weather was beautiful, the moon was nearly full and the company was incredible.

It's me!.............Photography:  Lin Eagle

Honestly I had no idea what to expect from this gathering but I can tell you I came back with more than I would have known how to imagine.   Every detail was covered.   In addition to all of us women (and two working men), there was food, swimming, lessons, cocktails, sunshine, gifts, prizes, movies, food, rest, dancing, laughter, polaroids, lensbabies,  instagram, stories, happy tears, love, hugs, color, friendship, inspiration, joy, tutus, chucks, hiking, imagination, beauty, and so-so-so much more!   It was a happy time.   I never saw anything less than that.

moi

This event changed me.  This realization is still unfolding each day, and in fact, I've revised this post many times because of that.   I've realized that I need to laugh at myself and with myself a lot more!  I've realized that I need to collaborate more, and I learned that I need to look at myself more...that maybe I have been hiding behind the camera and unable to smile if I ever put it on myself.

Me again......................Photo by Lin Eagle

I'm so grateful to Tracey Clark, Myriam, Kim Klassen, Xanthe, Meredith, Kristin, and all of you who guided us on this incredible journey.  What a place, what a space, and all put together with so much grace!   It was easy.  We were well cared for and sufficiently loved.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!  Big love to all the Shutter Sisters!!  I look forward to next year.  I will not miss it!

I'm inspired to shoot some video (thank you Xanthe), and I'm super excited to start using my phone's camera and to have a presence on instagram (thanks to just about every Shutter Sister).  I know it will keep unfolding as it is meant to with the clear intentions I set for myself on my photographic journey and in my life.

I'm feeling blessed. xoxoxo

Black and White

A while ago a very good friend of mine gave me a Minolta X-700 film camera.  It was his father's who had passed away so it meant a lot to me to finally take it out.  It was quite a different experience than with digital, but it taught me more about getting it right in camera and not relying on post!

My friend Charlie gave me a few tips and off we went to Balboa Park, with most of the images being snapped in the Botanical building.

This was from my very first roll.  It was so strange not to be able to see what I shot until the film was developed but the wait was worth it.   Gordon Allen was with me in spirit!

The Time of My Life

I had a big Birthday this year and chose to give myself a gift I would remember forever.  I went to a very intimate gathering of women in a Photography workshop with Joyce Tenneson, one of my very favorite photographers, and in fact, the first photographer who showed me how visible the soul could be in a photo.

Joyce Tenneson Photography

I spent six days with six women and Joyce; meditating, sharing fears, and peeling the onion, so to speak, in order to get to those great creative juices we all have inside of us.  Even though it was a month ago now, the lessons I learned are still unraveling to this day and I know they will continue for a long time to come.  Joyce was extremely generous in sharing what she has learned through the years so that perhaps our lessons wouldn't be as severe.  

We met many of her artist friends who all shared their secrets as generously.  Though we may not have thought so at first, we were vulnerable, creative, artists... making beautiful images to share with one of our icons, Joyce Tenneson, in this beautiful town in Maine.

Perhaps the greatest creation of the entire week was our community.   We all shared a house...four women from Norway, and two of us from the U.S., and never once was there a moment of tension.  We were there to support and be supported and we were just that.  We shared our breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, our vulnerabilities, our tears, our art, our gear, our ears and our hearts and we created a circle of strong, supportive, creative women who I have no doubt will continue to grow together and uplift each other through the years.  We were and are blessed.

Spring

Today is the first day of Spring!   Well, yesterday was, anyway...now that I'm writing after midnight.
I had the urge to be amongst the flowers today so I got in my car and drove North to the Carlsbad Flower Fields.  Although this is not one of the millions of beautiful Ranunculous growing or being picked there, it is one of the many orchid plants green-housed there.  I added my own magic after being inspired by Kim Klassen and her texture work, so I've created something new...

Enjoy!

Balloons!

My friend Ana and I had fun on this windy day with balloons.   I'd had a vision of a woman in red holding red balloons and finally I got to shoot it!  I worked with texture a little bit on the shot with Ana that helped to make the colors pop and add more contrast between her and the background...

Beauty and the Beach

Although many of my photos are of the ocean and the beach, my favorite photos to create are  those of people.  I love to capture the beauty inside each person in such a way that they might see something in themselves that may not have been so apparent before.   I had the pleasure of photographing this woman, Jo, for the second time and we had such a great time shooting.  I could see as I snapped away that there were many gorgeous photos, not just because we had the great light of the sun on this gorgeous beach, but because of Jo's ease in being herself...a gorgeous person from the inside out...

Walking on Water

I know I've been absent from my blog for awhile but I've returned!  I've been super inspired recently, learning new techniques and taking a little more time to connect with nature.

These shots are from yesterday where I spent the day in Coronado with my friend Chris who was visiting from Australia.   That's her in the above image.

After the storms early last week, there have been more tide pools and as cold as the water was, we couldn't help getting our feet wet while checking out all the sea creatures that love these shallow waters.

Feeling Blue

Mermaid

Blessed with a beautiful model and a gorgeously sunny day in November.  Just now getting to the editing!

My Girl, Katy

I decided to try my best portrait lens on her and though it was super hard to keep her still, I loved this one for all the softness and bokeh around her.   I sure do love this 13 year-old girl!

Me and the Ocean

It just seems to be my go-to place, the ocean, which is one of the biggest reasons I love living where I do. Ever since I was a wee one, the beach was pretty much my favorite place to be.  I spent most of my Summers as a teen on the beach, and find that I could never live too far away from it.   In my 366 day project on flickr, I've had four days of the ocean.  Out of nine, that's a lot!  Here's one of my faves from Windansea, La Jolla.   I love using my 10-20mm lens here because there's so much to see in the rocks under your feet, as well as way out where the god rays burst through the clouds on the ocean.

Looking Back and Moving Ahead!

I've been wanting to do a video of images from the past year (with music) but time does not allow for it at the moment.  The year was a nice one for me, 2011, filled with new experiences while tapping into new genres.   Here are some of my personal favorites from last year.

I was approached by Getty Images to license my images, and they continue to ask for more at a speed that I am not capable of getting to right now.  It takes model releases and in some cases, editing of logos, etc., and at this time, I am working to finish the jobs that I have in progress.

I found that I love creating art, and do so from shooting a fig split in half, to photographing a beautiful pregnant belly.   Though straight out of the camera work can be so beautiful, for me often times it just feels incomplete.  Sometimes I can convey what I feel from the image with no post processing and other times it needs something that the camera simply can't create.

Photography is still new to me...I can say that I've been doing it professionally for a year and a half, and my biggest success comes in not saying no when I'm afraid, and in really listening to my heart.  I've learned not to spend too much time thinking about whether anyone likes what I've created (except for my client, of course).  My success is in knowing that a finished image resonates with me...as it is my name on it.   I do my best not to post a photo that I can't look at and feel a little warmth or extra beat in my heart.  It has been such a great feeling to know that those who enjoy my work probably share a lot of what I feel inside.

I have been so inspired by the many artists I've been exposed to through the year.  Far too many to name here.  They all move me for different reasons.  I love Erik Almas for his romantic composites, and will always love Miss Aniela for being one of the first photographers who caught my eye on flickr with her painterly, colorful, multiplicity images.  I love watching the evolution of her work into fashion, but her incredibly deep work taking place out in nature takes my breath away.  I'm grateful for Christina Greve of Divas and Dreams for inspiring me with her incredible portraits, but also for inspiring me with her generosity and giving spirit.  She reminds me that you must always give, for without giving, there is no receiving; there simply couldn't be.

One thing I've learned too, is that we need community as Photographers.  We can't do it alone...it would be so lonely and so much less gratifying.   I love the community of photographer friends I am a part of and the way we share with, inspire, and support each other.  I've learned so much from all of you and I'm forever grateful.  May the circle keep expanding!

I have found that time is a precious commodity as a Photographer. I work hard to split my time between photo shoots for clients (which I absolutely love!), being out photographing nature, or creating something that I've sketched on paper or in my mind, and studying...learning how to create something that I've been dreaming of...

Without stating what my goals as a photographer are for 2012, I hope to show you, through my flickr stream, on my FB fan page, and here, as I continue to explore new avenues and tap into my soul on a deeper level to express what's there.  I can only say that I plan to use my time wisely, and to share a lot!  I'm looking forward to seeing how it all unfolds!

I wish you all a blessed, creativity-filled New Year!