Your all-time favorite posts…
My 2012 in pictures…
The world through my eyes…
Expanding your range…
Orbs — the easy way…
A river runs through it…
Seeing the forest and the trees…
Infinite…
The other day I was thinking about where to take my blog in the months ahead. I have a few ideas, but things are still percolating. When I looked back I was surprised to realize that I had been averaging 10 posts a month since I started blogging, and lately it’s been more than that.
I’m not a terribly regimented kind of blogger — I tend to post when the spirit moves me. I don’t plan ahead much at all, and my blog tends to reflect what I’m seeing and learning and loving most in the moment.
Bottom line, I blog because I love to make and share images.
I never set out to compete in the numbers game. I’m really happiest if my blog attracts kindred spirits — anybody who is on a journey — inwardly and outwardly — and wants to see where creative image-making will take them. YOU are my tribe.
I know I’m a huge fan of so many photography-oriented blogs out there. And it has certainly been gratifying — and astonishing — to see that views, visits and followers have been climbing steadily over time on this one. And to notice the depth and thoughtfulness of the comments you leave.
But I’ve never tried to figure out what will appeal most to blog readers, contrary to the advice of the pro blogger types. I don’t really know what kinds of posts speak to people…
So I thought it might be fun to have a look at what my stats say. Over the last almost two years, these were the posts with the most views and comments, in no particular order.
- Seeing the forest and the trees…
- Photostory: A taste of Prince Edward County
- Expanding your range…
- The world through my eyes…
- Making a photobook…
- Orbs — the easy way…
- Wanderlust…
- A river runs through it…
- Infinite…
- My 2012 in pictures…
I’m happy to see that I still like all of these posts. I don’t find myself cringing when I read them again, so that’s good. Many of them were from my first year so they have had more opportunity to accumulate views.
Many of these posts feature more than one image (a few are compilations or photostories), and a lot include some kind of reflection on what I’m learning about photography or life.
So what should I make of this?
My goal is not to change my blog into something that it’s not and I’m not, but if I can make it better and give readers more to chew on and respond to, then I want to do that.
So should I challenge myself to go bigger with some of my posts, both in text and images (when the subject merits it, of course)? Should I share more of what I’m learning in words rather than let the images speak for themselves?
For those of you who have a personal photography blog, I’m curious about how you decide what type of posts to emphasize. And what do you look for when reading a personal photography blog? Do you want to be inspired, informed, instructed, or entertained? Or are you seeking something else?
I feel so incredibly privileged to be part of an online creative community that includes you. I am endlessly inspired by your creations. I continue to be deeply grateful for opening up new worlds and possibilities to me.
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But the scene is grey…
When the prophet, a complacent fat man,
Arrived at the mountain-top
He cried: “Woe to my knowledge!
I intended to see good white lands
And bad black lands—
But the scene is grey.
Stephen Crane
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Our world so familiar…
Many of us have made our world so familiar that we do not see it anymore.
An interesting question to ask yourself at night is,
What did I really see this day?
John O’Donohue
Linking with Little Things Thursday
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The day’s blank slate…
In the morning, everything is new.
The day’s blank slate lies before me,
ready for my writing.
May it be words of beauty I write.
May it be deeds of grace I do.
May it be thoughts of joy I think.
All the holy ones, listen;
this is what I pray.
Great spirits of the four realms,
Holy ones of the realms of minds,
Kindreds of yore,
as I go through the day,
keep my eyes open wide.
May I not miss beauty.
May I not miss joy.
May I not miss wonder.
Keep me awake and aware of the world.
Thanks to Ceisiwr Serith…
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Grateful for peaceful people everywhere…
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At sea…
At sea, I learned how little a person needs,
not how much.
Robin Lee Graham
We’re heading south in a couple of weeks to live on our sailboat once again. We’ll stay in one place getting the boat ready for the first month or so, then after that, who knows? If I’m a little quiet on the blog in the next while, it’s because we’ll be running around getting ready to leave.
Going down the list, checking things off….
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The New York Series, Part 9…
Broadway impressions…
They say the neon lights are bright on Broadway
They say there’s always magic in the air…
Every time I go to New York, it’s a whirlwind; it’s a blur. It’s colourful and intense and magical. It’s full of contrast.
I tend to relive unusual moments from previous visits in snatches — oh yes, there was the time on Broadway that Joan Rivers stepped on my sister’s foot and didn’t apologize…and the time I saw one of the stars of Knots Landing, David Selby, looking sad and alone in a New York restaurant, and the time we saw Oprah Winfrey entering Tiffany’s with her entourage (or was that just my imagination?)…
I remember my first Broadway show back in 1982. Ellen Burstyn starred in a one-woman show called 84 Charing Cross. I was bowled over by the rich and intricately decorated theatre (I think it was the Nederlander) and was held rapt for a few hours by her tour-de-force performance.
Since then, I flash back to Kathleen Turner lolling about on a bed in a silk dressing gown in Indiscretions, Tyne Daly belting it out in Gypsy, Twiggy and six-foot-six Tommy Tune dancing up a storm in in My One and Only, Paul Giamatti making his Broadway debut in Arcadia, the emotional power of Les Miserables, the pride in watching Canadian Brent Carver star in Kiss of the Spider Woman, the surprise of David Hyde Pierce in a role so unlike Niles in Frasier in Curtains, and the thrill of seeing hero Alan Alda playing in the urbane and witty play Art.
Somewhere in there I remember laughing at Lily Tomlin’s amazing characterizations in her one-woman show The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe. Thirty years of Broadway shows do become a bit of a blur from this vantage point, but ah, what a beautiful blur!
This time I saw the musical Lady Day, featuring the incomparable Dee Dee Bridgewater as Billie Holiday, one of my favorite jazz singers.When I closed my eyes, I really thought I was listening to Lady Day herself.
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The New York Series, Part 8…
Just a few details observed in the Big Apple:
Some of the subway stations have amazing mosaic tile work…
A message from Park Slope…
Brooklyn brownstones…
Framed by the fall…
Preparing for dinner at Casa Mono, a wonderful Gramercy Park Spanish tapas restaurant…
It was Halloween, so we could expect a few ghosts and other characters…
A parade of costumes in Gramercy Park…
Window detail…
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The New York Series, Part 7…
My photo safari in New York City
The iconic Chrysler Building from below
My take on the Grace Building
Reflections of the Empire State Building
Lines, beautiful lines
Before I left for my recent trip to New York City, I made a shot list, and on it were several of my favorite places. In previous posts I’ve featured the Flatiron Building and Central Park, which were right at the top.
But I also wanted to shoot Grand Central Terminal, the New York Public Library, Times Square, the Chrysler Building and the Grace Building, all places I had been before, but wanted to see again through my camera’s lens. But I doubted I’d have the time to shoot all of them since my visit was quite short.
Luckily I stumbled on a solution. I found out about a small group photo safari offered by a knowledgeable photographer. It was highly rated by Trip Advisor and so I signed up for it online. It was a three-hour tour of iconic places and buildings, many of which were on my list.
Zim: we couldn’t have had a better or more passionate instructor/guide…
The morning of the safari, I met up with my group of seven at a breakfast spot across from Grand Central Terminal. I got there early, after figuring out my way on the subway with no problems. The first two people I saw with cameras were a lovely mother and daughter team from Birmingham, England.
Over coffee I learned that Sharon was treating Molly to a trip to New York to celebrate her 18th birthday. Sharon was enthusiastic about photography and just learning her new DSLR. Molly was on a point and shoot. They had arrived in New York City the day before and were still adjusting to the time change and the overwhelming sights and sounds.But they were gung ho to make the most of their week in the Big Apple.
Gradually the others arrived and then we met our fearless leader, Zim, and did a round of introductions. In addition to Molly and Sharon, on the tour were three Australians, one American living in Singapore and me, the token Canadian. Some of us had DSLRs, some point and shoots and some smart phones. Jack, a serious hobby photographer, told me this was his fourth photo safari during his three-week trip to New York. He was shooting with a wide angle 10-20mm lens that made me drool with envy.
But Zim did not discriminate. Her safari offered something for everyone — at all skill and experience levels — and we all left with wonderful images of New York City after the three hours, which just flew by.
Zim had a route that she followed to cover the major icons, but she left plenty of room for spontaneous shooting. As she led us, she walked ahead, but backwards, so she could talk to us.
Zim encouraged us to shoot icons like taxis and police cars and dispelled the idea that it’s illegal to photograph police or their cars.
Every so often she would stop and point and say: shoot this! We would snap away, and because the group was so small, she could easily do the rounds to comment on our composition and exposure etc. and make very helpful suggestions to improve our captures. One of the things I liked most about this photo safari was the immediate feedback you received and the easy tips that you could put into practice right away.
It was crazy busy on the streets of midtown Manhattan. A true New Yorker, Zim did not wait for lights to cross the street. She just charged ahead in the middle, followed by her merry band. At one point, as we all forced the oncoming traffic to stop for us (yikes, I hate jaywalking!), I waved to the fancy black sedan in thanks. Zim called out: “You didn’t just wave thanks to that car did you?” And I called back: “Sure I did, I’m Canadian!”
I’m definitely going to do another safari in New York (next time it’ll be Times Square at night) — and other places as well, where I can. I highly recommend the experience. I came back with so many images that I haven’t even begun to process. If you have any questions about this photo safari, please feel free to ask me in the comments.
Sherrygaley.com 