Do you ever find yourself framing potential shots as you take a walk or drive down the road? How often do you actually stop to make the picture? Or do you feel like pulling over is too much of a hassle? You’re too busy. You don’t have time for that.
With three kids often in tow, I definitely got in the habit of framing a great shot in my head, but continuing to drive right by. The trouble is, I would often be haunted by all the images I didn’t make. The unrecorded frames were burned into my memory, added to a picture book of sorts, a collection of missed opportunities. Except I was the only one who could flip through the pages.
The expression, “stop and smell the roses,” was really lost on me. And yet, I’d continue to see image after image in my mind everywhere I went. I couldn’t shut it off. Eventually, I came to realize that not everyone saw the world through the lens of an imagined camera and to appreciate that there was something different about me – not better, mind you, but different.
The artistic eye that I couldn’t seem to shut was drawn to beautiful architecture, geometric shapes, high contrast light and shadow, vibrant colors… The world was begging to be documented. So, I started bringing a camera with me everywhere and photographing whatever was of interest. Sometimes, I had trouble capturing my vision through the lens, lost in translation, I guess. But still, I continued trying and I’d occasionally be rewarded with shot I was happy with.
Now, it’s not really an unusual thing for my kids to have me pull over, hop out of the car, and click away. Sometimes, they hop out too.
Life is too short for anything less.
Lea & Lens 
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