Vision

I have a new favorite person I have just met. Well, perhaps I need to rephrase that. I have a new favorite person I have just come in contact with. No, that's not right. I have a new favorite person I have become aware of...

You see, I have just come to be aware of Dave duChemin through a book he has written, as well as through a blog he writes. The book in question is "Within the Frame" which is a book about the "why" of photography as opposed to the "how" of photography and it intrigued me deeply when I came across it recently in a bookstore. The entire book is about discovering your artistic vision, nurturing it, and creating from it. And I think Dave hits the nail on the head. He writes passionately about vision (he even has a recently published book about vision entitled "VisionMongers") and although his craft is photography and therefore geared to photographers, his writing is deeply about living life fully; about living life creatively. And, being a photographer, his pages are filled with stimulating, motivating, and enriching images that speak to that place in our hearts and souls that are beyond words.

In glancing through his book and reading some of his blog posts (check out his blog at www.pixelatedimage.com/blog/) I have come to realize that his work is not photography. His work is more about education, inspiration, and communication. He aims to educate people about humanitarian causes in the world; he hopes to inspire people to connect with others who might need some help; and he intends to communicate in a visual and visceral way. My sense is that photography for Mr. duChemin is a tool that allows him to create something moving, not just for himself, but for others as well.

And that is the piece that moves me; his intention to create something that moves himself and others. He appears to have put himself in service of something greater than himself and as a result has the ability to connect deeply with other people through images, and now words.

I have written in the past about living a creative life, not just in the sense of creating artwork, but more importantly in the sense of being creative with the common things in our lives; having a sense of play and wonder with being alive. It seems I have discovered someone who does this and is actively encouraging others to do so as well. While his medium is photographic images and books about the photographic process, I find his subject matter carries over into the overall context of this blog; exploring how to live creatively. As such, I would encourage you to glance through his book the next time you are in a bookstore (or better yet, buy a copy-Mr. duChemin would like to be able to make a living from his writing so that he can devote more time to humanitarian causes), visit his blog (at the very least you will be rewarded with looking at some beautiful photographs), and even visit his online eBook store "Craft and Vision." You just might gain a few ideas on how to live life creatively. I know I have!

As always, I appreciate any comments or feedback and hope you have found this blog post helpful and meaningful. Please also visit my website at http://www.koipondcounseling.com/

My best,
Brian

P.S.-The image at the top of this blog post was shot by me at sunrise on a trip to Mexico last fall. Seeing as I am often so moved by the images on other people's blogs I thought I might try to post some images to this blog to keep the creativity flowing. Who knows, perhaps I'll even manage to find some images to go with the specific subject matter of the individual posts. Let me know what you think.