I recently started reading Christine Valters Paintner’s new book, Eyes of the Heart: Photography as a Christian Contemplative Practice. Photography has been one of my pastimes for many years. What drew me to this book was two-fold: Christine’s photography and my desire to learn again how to “see” images and not just “look” for images.
The online class that accompanies Christine’s book started this week. You might be able to still sign up for the class here.
I am working through the book at my own pace. The first assignment is a wonderful lesson in seeing a rather mundane object as something fresh and new. For me, this meant seeing my tea mug, which I use almost every day, in a new way. I set the timer for 15 minutes and received over 40 images in this short amount of time. Here are some of my favorites. (NOTE: Click on the first image in each set and you can see each picture in a slideshow.)
Tea Mug in the Kitchen
Tea Mug in the Dining Room
Tea Mug in the Family Room
Tea Mug on the Deck
Tea Mug on the Grass
Tea Mug on the Rocks
What is fun about this task is that once you open your eyes and heart to the object, you truly start to see it in a new light.
What every day, mundane object in your life could you look at in a new light?