Hello, I’m Gill and I write a photography blog inspired by the landscapes of Suffolk and beyond. Please subscribe to read more of my writing and visit my website to view my images.
This week I watched and thoroughly enjoyed the film Nyad which has nothing to do with photography but everything to do with seizing the day and living life to the full. It was an inspiring story of the power of purpose and never giving up on your dreams and if you haven’t watched it I would encourage you to have a look.
The film references a poem - The summer day by Mary Oliver.
Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean —
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down —
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
This poem is about how we spend our time and what we consider to be productive use of that time. Is lying in the grass observing a grasshopper a good use of our day?
‘What else should I have done?’ Says the poem.
In this fast paced world where time is precious, is it ok to spend periods observing, connecting and being at one with the landscape in which we live or is it just a frivolous waste of our precious time?
We all have busy lives, stressful jobs and limited free time so spending it doing ‘nothing’ perhaps doesn’t seem very productive.
My job may look idyllic and I realise I am lucky to have turned my passion into a career, but stress comes with all jobs, no matter how idyllic. Being self employed can be challenging and regular income is never guaranteed. I feel pressure to produce images, to keep my work fresh and consistent and sometimes this can take the enjoyment away from time out with the camera.
So this week I thought I would apply the wisdom in Mary Olivers poem and head out for an afternoon of photography where the process was more important than the results. I would spend the time observing the world around me, reacting to what I found and I would put no pressure on myself at all to come back with an image. This was an afternoon that was all about observation and connection rather than business and earning money.
I decided to head to Ramsholt on the River Deben, a place I know really well and somewhere that holds lots of memories (both good and bad).
I parked the car and headed along the river. It was just after lunch and the morning sun had disappeared behind some heavy grey clouds. The tide was coming in pushing the lines of wadding birds ever closer to the shore and covering the grey mud with equally grey water. This was not a good time to take photos, but it was a good time for a saunter along the riverside path.
As I walked I watched the boats swing on their moorings. I listened to the bubbling call of the curlew as they flew low along the rivers edge. I watched flocks of goldfinches flit amongst the russet leaves of the oak trees and I listened to the river breathe as the incoming tide expelled the air from the mud.
I took photos of reeds, of patters in fallen trees, of the light on the landscape (when the sun periodically showed its face) and I loved being part of the world around me.
The photography may not have produced any portfolio shots (that wasn’t the purpose after all) but the experience definitely made my life richer. For that afternoon I felt connected to the place I was walking through. I felt in tune with the season and loved watching the wildlife around me.
Even though this wasn’t my intention, the walk became a recce trip and I found lots of things that had changed since I last visited and things I wanted to return to when the conditions were more favourable for ‘portfolio’ shots.
I ended the day at sunset sitting on the quay, watching the sun sink below the horizon and the moon dance in the lapping water. These experiences aren’t always easy to convey in photos but they are the things that ground us and connect us with the world in which we live. They are also the emotive things that are good to notice and which make us better photographers in the long run.
So was this afternoon of doing ‘nothing’ a worthwhile use of my time? Absolutely yes, worthwhile and valuable and I would recommend it to everyone.
I would submit that even doing nothing, in this sense, is still productive. Any time spent in focused awareness hones your insight into nature and enhances your artistic vision!
As always a lovely Read, enjoyed your photographs immensely, having a walk with a camera is always enjoyable and never time wasted 🤗