Sunlit

Sunlit

Sunlit © 2011 Bo Mackison

Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change – this is the rhythm of living. Out of our over-confidence, fear; out of our fear, clearer vision, fresh hope. And out of hope, progress. ~ Bruce Barton

Change is in the air, and it’s not only the changing of autumn trees.Though the change in the trees has been spectacular this year.

In a few hours, I’ll be getting on a plane and traveling to Long Island to celebrate the wedding of my older daughter. There will be a wine tasting, dinner under the stars, a clam bake and picnic on the beach, oh yes, and a wonderful marriage ceremony. Another spectacular event for this autumn.

If I’m not around for the next few days, I’m either traveling, taking photographs on Long Island, drying my eyes, or eating wedding cake!

Congratulations to the happy couple, Jeanne and Judy!

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. Bo is taking a few days off to celebrate a special family occasion.

 

Study in White

In White

Study in White © 2012 Bo Mackison

Flowers… are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty out-values all the utilities of the world. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hard to believe it is almost time to say goodbye to the month of September.  Soon the flowers will disappear from the gardens, but there will still be photographs to remind us of their beauty. It is easy to walk past a garden bursting with colors and textures, and never see an individual flower. But when the eye studies a single bloom, there is much to see. I love how all the simple parts join to give this flower a stunning visual presence.

I photographed this white flower, identity unknown, in early September at Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison Wisconsin.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She has a backlog of floral photographs, so she will be sharing botanicals for many days to come.

Cool Colors in the Garden

Cool Blues and Greens

Cool Blues and Greens © 2011 Bo Mackison

Every gardener knows that it is the very impermanence of the garden that makes it precious.
The beauty of the garden lies in its constantly changing nature,
in the waves of colors and shapes that constantly pass through it.

~ Philip Martin

I have been to Olbrich Botanical Gardens on four different occasions to photograph these same Elephant Ear Plants. Twice I have photographed the gardens at 8 to 9 a.m. The other two times I visited the gardens later in the morning – about 10 a.m. til almost noon. Each time I have come away with markedly different photographs even though I am 1) using the same camera, lenses, and equipment including a tripod, 2)  shooting mostly in shaded areas or shot using light filtered through the plants — there has been an August bright sun with few clouds each time, and 3) I am shooting the same four or five plants.

Lighting is key in photography, and it is one of the joys and wonders I constantly work with. Light that is perfect one moment, disappears the next. As a photographer, one must seize the moment, there is no going back.

When I downloaded the photos to the computer from my last photoshoot, I was surprised to see such pronounced blue tones in the background plant. And even a few purple hues on a small part of the plant in the left lower area. The light green stem against the other deeper colors added the contrast needed to keep this from being a photograph of a bunch of foliage. And the added features of the patterns of lines and the plants’ textures are hard to beat.

A Zen sort of photograph, I can get lost in all those colors and textures.

Sure am having fun visiting these plants just about every day. Too bad they live on the other side of town!

Visit Through a Photographer’s Eye and see some remarkable photos in the photo of the week collection.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She is spending as many mornings as possible in the gardens. Prime garden time in Wisconsin and the gardens are full of treasures.

Silhouette of Stillness

Sunburst Chairs

Silhouette of Stillness © 2011 Bo Mackison

There are moments when you absolutely need someone to show up like magic, not because you need something nice, but because you need your world view transformed. You need some hope to be born in you. You need to know in one moment that someone believes in you. You need a kindness midwife to hold the space so you can show up like magic for someone else the next time around.  ~ Jen Leman

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC.

Time to Bloom

Tulip, Upon Opening, at the Allen Centennial Gardens, Madison Wisconsin

Time to Bloom © 2011 Bo Mackison

“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” ~~Anais Nin

I thought it would be difficult to live on my own in Arizona. I had never done such a thing before–live nearly 2,000 miles from my husband and my family, take care of the details of my day, all day long, day after day, week after week. But it didn’t take me as long as I expected to settle into the life of living “solo.” I kept busy, I stayed focused, I wrote out a to-do list every morning, or sometimes the night before, and I steadily went through the list each day. Not that I got everything I wanted to get done, done. But I made a serious dent in my list almost every day.

Fast forward to today–nearly two weeks after I packed up my Arizona things and drove back to Wisconsin. I thought things would go on rather smoothly when I returned home. I’d stay focused. I’d get my work done. I’d take care of the details of my days. Wrong. Wrong. And wrong.

I’m going through an adjustment period that I simply didn’t expect. I can’t concentrate. I’m not shooting as consistently each day as I was in Arizona. (And I could give some excuse here about the gray skies and how late spring is, but I could figure out a work-around, even for crummy weather, if I chose to do so.) I’m getting the absolute necessary items done — I’m meeting my deadlines, I’m preparing for my upcoming art fair schedule–the first show of my season is less than two weeks away, but I’m struggling.

I compared what I was doing in Arizona with what I am doing in Wisconsin. And I came to a conclusion of sorts. In Arizona, I saw everything as new, everything was an opportunity to seize because it might be the only opportunity that I had to go to a certain place or see a certain thing. Now that I am back home, it is easy to put off any plans I make. If the weather isn’t perfect enough, or if I had a toss-and-turn night and I’m feeling out of sorts, I cancel any plans I had in my head.

After all, those places will be there when I get there. Wait. Really?

So now I am returning to a few of my Arizona habits.

Number one. I am back to making a daily to-do list, as much as I’d prefer to just wing my schedule. I simply don’t get the things I really want to get done if I don’t adopt at least a few organizational habits. I hate to admit that, but it’s true. So each day I list at least three things I need to do for my photography business and I list a place to visit. It doesn’t have to be far–some of my favorite gardens are only a mile or two away from my home.

Number two. At least once a week, I plan on going further from home. There are dozens of places in Wisconsin that I have had on my to-visit bucket list for years. Once I week I am dipping into that bucket and going on a Wisconsin “explore.”

In fact I am on an “explore” right now, spending the night in a historic house I have wanted to visit for years. I’m feeling more focused already. I’ll report on my special visit soon, and let you know how the “Wisconsin plan” is going.

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I am back home after spending the first part of 2011 in Arizona and had a few rough weeks adjusting to life back in Wisconsin, but things are looking more optimistic now — now that I am back on the “plan.”