I had to rent a car this past weekend while I was shooting a wedding on a beautiful vineyard in California (yeah, I know, cue the violins) and they didn’t have the one I reserved. But I didn’t care and took the big other one. It was an Equinox, but I only realized it when I noticed that the same day was the fall equinox, too. I was reading something over lunch and went to get in the car and there in big old gold letters on the side was “Equinox”.
Why am I telling you this?
Because we are all moving waaaaay too fast most of the time and life feels so much sweeter when we pay attention. When I choose to slow down I notice things I didn’t before. It’s like wearing a different set of glasses.
I’m not saying you should be wildly impressed by the Equinox story. It wasn’t really THAT exciting. But it was the reminder that was important: pay attention and so much more is revealed to you.
Maybe bike instead of drive. Or walk instead of bike.
Take time between bites of food to savor and chew and appreciate the flavors.
Lay in bed an extra minute before starting your day and soak in that super comfortable just-woke-up body.
Literally stop and smell a rose.
Be curious.
Look people in the eye and ask them how they are doing and mean it. Especially people serving you like cashiers, hosts, and bartenders.
If this sounds nice to you, I encourage you to give it a try.
Then I invite you to apply it to your photography. The next time you grab your camera–for fun or a gig–take time to really look around you. How could you should differently this time, this frame? We have a kind of muscle memory go-to when it comes to portraits, especially if you’ve been shooting for years.
Slow down and see how much more ground you can cover.
