Janet Worne - Thoughtful Photography

Looking Beneath the Surface

The more time I spend in my backyard, the more I see that fascinates me. We have a pond that I have photographed before but only for what was on the surface. This week I discovered another world beneath the lily pads. Nothing new, I realize. What photographer hasn't already discovered the magic of the underwater universe? Saturated colors, crooked perspectives, rippled shadows--all contribute to beautiful imagery.

But today I thought about how those images can be a metaphor for the best way to approach people photography. Most photographers, at least initially, make surface photos of people. The best photographers dive beneath the surface to discover the real person below.

Mont Saint Michel

I can’t talk about magic places without mentioning Mont Saint Michel. I believe that any thoughtful person who visits this place will agree with me that this is truly a spiritual and magic place. During our honeymoon trip to France last September, Paul and I made a special trek to the Normandy coast to see this ancient abbey for ourselves.

At dusk, modern day pilgrims gather on the causeway to watch the sun set (see the photo in my banner above). People are hushed and reverent. You can almost hear the whispers of pilgrims from long ago, walking the same path to enlightenment’s door.

Even the animals seem to be enchanted, as if they were playing parts in a Disney movie. I could swear they hear my urgent thoughts as I try to mentally guide them into the optimum position for a photograph. They gladly cooperate. A dove dips its head as if in prayer over a gravestone. A herd of sheep heads straight toward my camera, kicking up French dust, with the abbey rising from the landscape behind them. I feel transported in time.

The Watcher

Waghdan came from Iraq and quietly stole the hearts of all who met her.
She rarely spoke and was content to sit in a corner and watch the world go by.
I felt as if I already knew her.
It struck me then that here I was later in my career and I was watching a watcher.

How Do You Photograph a Magic Place?

To me a Magic Place is where the collective intelligence of a people from long ago still lingers, infusing the very stones with their spirit. You may know what I mean when I talk of an Old Soul—a person who when you first meet them you know they are special. It’s as if they are more evolved than the rest of us and possess a greater understanding of the world. Their wisdom is palpable.

Some places have this same sort of wisdom. Pueblo Bonito at Chaco Canyon is one of those Old Soul places. You can feel it. As if the breath of the ancestors still mingles with the canyon breezes that flow through the ruins. More than that, it is a sacred place where the gods themselves still hold court.

How do you capture this magic with a camera, a device that is firmly rooted in our modern, digital world? I don’t know if I can answer that. I think you have to be there, be still and let the spirit of it flow through you. Then you begin to feel the magic and photographing it becomes easy. Light, history and your own spirituality come together in a visual expression of the place.