[Dlanor Sekao]

I posted this in another section here in a different context , but decided to see if anyone else goes through the same thing once in a while ?
The last time anything like this happened was almost 5 years ago on 10-10-10. It was right after my vehicle was broken into and all my film cameras were stolen.
I shot the WAVE in AZ with a point and shoot Fuji that I really knew how to master as far as exposure and composition.
The next day a small crowd started to surround me as I was processing my images in a resatraunt at the grand Canyon....everyone was amazed and had lots of questions and wondeful comments.......I didnt realize it at the time , but I was in a creative Zen.....Like being in a Zone....everything just started to happen on autopilot....the creative ability came from nowhere except the subconscious mind.
I thought I had some good shots but it wasnt until I started processing that it hit me........I had captured something that was simply magic and perfect !
It was the first time I realized I had captured perfection and beauty in a very unexpected way.

Here is what I posted (Below)....and I want to know is this what others experience when it all comes together ? This has started happening again with the K3.
Once again the creative Zen....has emerged from the subconscious depths of my soul and mind......and its happening more frequently now. Ive started to feel like I released my mind in order to advance and create...does that make sense at all ? When it happens....my images show it.

"""""To me....shooting any camera with a specific purpose is a holy experience.
If I know what Im after.....arrive early , setup , select my lens , preview for focus and sharpness.......and then set down and wait for the light...while I envision exact composition and shots.
Might have some tea.....and talk with strangers....just relaxing and get goosebumps knowing the "Magic" is going to happen.
I get in this "Zone"......its like a creative Zen.......Everything just starts happening and the creative juices start flowing.......the hidden creative ability awakens and everything turns to gold.
Its a letdown when its over......but then upon viewing my files.....the Goosebumps and tears of amazment start flowing.......I then silently thank God for the magic just created........and then feel the satisfied contentment and satisfaction once again...while the tears and goosebumps fade.
The K3 has a way of magnifying the last set of tears and goosebumps........its simply amazing !"""""

I could care less if anyone thinks Im nuts or a wacko....this is honestly what is starting again. Its like maybe all the years of learning , reading , experimenting , shooting.....have slowly matured and embeded in my subconscious. I dont still now how to describe it....it just all happens and comes like second nature without any thought or stress trying to get it right. I operate from intuition , curiosity , and a free perspective.....it just happens.

I feel like Ive started to enter for the first time into a unfamiliar yet wonderful realm.......And before I hear it from one of you smart Pentaxians on here....NO funny green stuff or magical mushrooms are involved....lol

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Last edited by Dlanor Sekao; 01-18-2015 at 12:24 AM.

[Don Boyd]

az1895, if your images are as straight as your words I'm sure they're amazing.

[RMabo]

So you're entering a state of flow when it doesn't feel like you're doing photography, it's more like it is happening to you and your camera. It is effortless... That's what flow is about, a moment without struggle and suffering, a moment in total presence with life as it is Now - it can absolutely be called a Zen-moment... Zen as in a state of meditation and total awareness in the presence of now. Congratulations.

[Dlanor Sekao]

So you're entering a state of flow when it doesn't feel like you're doing photography, it's more like it is happening to you and your camera. It is effortless... That's what flow is about, a moment without struggle and suffering, a moment in total presence with life as it is Now - it can absolutely be called a Zen-moment... Zen as in a state of meditation and total awareness in the presence of now. Congratulations.

Yes...thats it..."Flow"......is that what is happening ? Its not about Rules , thirds , Fstop , light meters , etc......something beyond all the rules of Photography........ Everything gets blocked out.
Like thinking and stressing for the shot leaves.....creating and capturing just happens without obvious thought getting in the way...................Zen is what I call it..?

[magkelly]

When I was first taking dance I was very focused on learning the steps. We all were and that was normal. Ballet is complicated, but somewhere in my 4th year something happened and I was able to just dance. I guess it was a body memory thing finally kicking in. I knew most of the steps at that point so I was just able to let go do them and just dance. It made a huge difference in me, in my dancing, and in my enjoyment of dancing.

Photography is exactly like that now most of the time. Shutter speed excepted, I still get tripped up on that now and again, I don't have to think so much about settings and that. I'm so used to doing it that I can work almost on auto pilot. I just get into the groove and shoot most of the time. I know exactly what you are talking about. It's something that happens to me all the time when I am working now. It's like I'm doing photographic yoga or something. I just go with the flow and let it happen. Being relaxed about it and not fussing so much, being in the moment and letting it happen, it's just made me a better photographer.

This is one of the reasons I don't get too involved with the tech though. The more messing I have to do with lights, umbrellas, reflectors, flashes and that the less easily I can get into this state. I try to keep the setup as simple as possible. The less I fuss the better my work usually ends up being. That stuff it's just the background and that's how it should be. I don't like to spend all my time thinking about where I should move the lamps or what my flash settings should be. All that should be automatic. My focus really should be on my subject, nothing else...