Summer is not a great time for the type of photography that I like doing, so it is important that I start making plans for that time and beyond.
This time last year I was feeling very despondent and was ready to give up a lot of my photography. Though that was mainly the business side of it. I wasn’t really sure where I was going with it or what I should do. It was the summer blues.
This year I have decided to take a different approach. It will affect this blog, but only short term. So I am going to share with you what I will be doing.
Summer in Australia
It has to be said, and I know that many of you won’t be surprised to hear me say this, but,
I HATE SUMMER.
It’s true, I do. It really drives me nuts and I just can’t do the sort of photography I want to do. I’m sure that was the major problem I had 12 months ago and I didn’t know what to do.
This year, I have decided to approach it differently.
Making Plans for now and beyond
The one thing I learned last year was the at I had to be smarter about what I would do for summer. So over the last month or so I’ve been making plans about what I can do. The clouds are not going to appear as often and chasing them can be impossible, so I need to wait for the right weather. That isn’t going to happen until next March or April. That is months away.
The big question was what was I going to do over summer.
Last week I told you I was being a housewife, and I’m loving it. There is nothing to be ashamed of with it, IT IS MY CHOICE. It is something I want to do and I feel so much happier with that decision. However, I still want to do my photography. So let’s see how it can all work together.
Housewife/Photographer
Of course, it can work. You already know that I want to clean up the house. I have made great progress with that and for the first time in many years, I’m falling in love with my house again. As the work progresses I am remembering why we loved the house in the first place.
One thing that I am doing more of is cooking and it has reminded me about my love of baking. Yes, you read that right, baking. It is something I loved doing as a child and it brings back fond memories. So I have bought a KitchenAid and I’m planning on doing a lot more baking. Really and the logical thing seems to be to plan on doing food photography. Why not?
So I am making plans for the summer which will include doing more baking and then photographing what I make. The other thing I want to concentrate on is macro photography and doing more still life. I really suck at still life and I want to master it.
While I am doing all this I will be planning work for when the weather gets to what I want to take photos for my exhibition. So the beyond summer part. A good plan I think.
This Blog
It is going to mean cutting back on this blog a bit. I will still post, but will only be two or three a week for the next couple of months.
Last summer I started a new blog, Caught Midway, which I never did anything with and so I have decided that when I not blogging here I would blog there. That blog is more for my mid-life crisis, whatever that is. I will give you links to it when I get started. I think that site will suit more of what I want to do at this point in time.
So wish me luck, I hope this summer won’t be as depressing.
The photos today are from around summer in 2014/15.
Great stuff as always.
I really like the shaded bare trees and how they contrast with the rest of their scene.
This Summer has been quite loathsome thus far.
Thank you, that’s great to hear.
You can say that again, summer is sucking so far. Not at all how I thought it would be. I hope you aren’t near the fires.
I wish you luck… :))
Thank you so much.
Being retired, I totally get what you mean about being home. No obligations to others than those of your choosing gives a lot of freedom. I also get your frustration about what to photograph. Here in California we have had our first rains, and there are – gasp! – clouds. Normally we have an endlessly blue sky. It makes inspiration for photography more difficult as things become increasingly brown and burnt (literally and figuratively – fires). So, what to do?
I think you are really smart to realize what issues you are facing and to make plans to counter them. Trips, processing techniques, focus studies can all help inspire, but I also find for myself setting goals, even a bit abstract and not on a timetable, help. I think you will find yourself more content than you were, but also perhaps more satisfied, too.
Looking forward to the results.
The freedom is good. I am enjoying that as well. I think our summers are similar. Blue, blue and more blue. I hate them. Though I love them when I’m home as we have a lot of solar panels.
Thank you, I think it was smart too. I got so depressed last year, and I’m glad I’m getting back to it now. So much to experiment with. Goals are great things, I just wish I was better at committing to them. Maybe that is something I need to work on.
Thank you, though to see many of the results you might need to look at my new blog, https://caughtmidway.com/blog/
All good luck to you with your new life, Leanne π
Beautiful photos.
Thank you so much Irene, it will be nice to be able to do some photography with the air con on. lol
I am so excited to see that you are in a better place mentally than last year. π If I can be selfish, I love your work. It inspires me. But your plans make a lot of sense, and it is great if you are happy. If you get bored, plan a trip up here to the northern hemisphere. We are in winter, with that beautiful, softer light you love. Wishing you all the best, Leanne.
Thank you so much Tim, I’m really happy now and am looking forward to trying some new things. You will still see some of my work, that won’t stop, there just won’t be as much. I would love to come back to the Northern Hemisphere, but I just don’t have the funds now. You never know.
Well good luck in your new adventures, and I hope you have much happiness.
Thank you so much Tim.
π