I bought my first camera, half
gifted to me, for the very reason of taking my own pictures for my website and
look book. I realized quickly that I needed a studio and a load of other things
that I did not have. So I hired a professional photographer with a studio to
shoot our website. But, I also take a lot of the non-studio photos myself.
I felt as if the investment was
paying off. I could do my own photography day to day if needed when the moment
struck me and I wanted to show off what I was doing. It made blogging easier.
It made getting new product previewed quicker. But then one day I was shooting
photos of a new skirt with a friend of mine and looked down at my feet to spot
something sprouting. I quickly bent over to see the pod like bud breaking
through the new spring ground.
My model waiting patiently as I
continued to photograph several other oddly shaped plants. And then I got back
to the photo session.
It wasn’t until I was home pulling
the photos of my computer that I realized I didn’t have anything to do with the
photos of plants. I’m not a nature photographer. They really didn’t have a
place to go. So, I left them on my desktop.
I stared at the bud in one of the
pictures for weeks. It was so beautiful that I didn’t want to delete the photo,
but still didn’t know what to do with it. Finally it came to me. The shape
reminded me of a skirt blooming upside down from the fresh ground. So what did
I do with it? I sketched it. I sketched it twice. Now there is a slew of
sketches and a prototype of this skirt in our studio.
A few weeks after the first sketch
I was exiting my house in the evening and realized I was in love with the
blooming tree in my yard. So I ran in and took some pictures. Honestly, I took
tons of pictures. So many that my neighbor asked me what I was photographing
our tree for. I told her in home art work to hang up. Which, even though would
have been a good idea, was not my initial intention. Like the first set of
photos, I did not have a clue what to do with the photos I was taking. They weren’t
going on my website or my blog. They were just going to sit on my desktop
again.
This time I found the use for these
in a few days. I was in the studio with a dress I wanted to make and couldn’t
decide on the fabric. As I was scanning online I glimpsed at the photo again
and immediately went to our fabric bolts. I knew I wanted to make the dress in
the same colors as the photo I had taken.
And currently, that dress in
charcoal and rose, is selling on our website. The question should not have been
what should I do with these photos, but why the heck didn’t I think about it
before. I find most of my inspiration from nature. Sometimes when inspired I am
able to write it down. Other times I try to remember it until I write it down
but never do. The camera is not just a convenience. It’s a tool for capturing
my inspiration when it hits.
Yes, I still use it to mostly take
pictures of my clothes for the business. But now you’ll find me every few days,
pulled over on a back country road, stomping through the brush taking pictures
of what inspires me. I can’t think of a better way to enjoy my camera.
If you enjoy these photos and want to use them please provide proper credit to Rum and Couture with links. Thank you.
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