The Healing Factor of Photography and Nature

And how photography taught me to see beauty in the small things in life

I forgot the healing factor of nature. For a moment. I wasn’t feeling great. I was weak and lazy. I told my grandma I couldn’t motivate myself to do anything. Despite the fact, I had so much to do. Or because of the fact that I have to do so much.

She just said “Go outside, go for a walk, then you will feel better. I always do that when I’m not motivated to do things.“

Right.

The mind

I am usually the one telling others (or myself) how good walks in nature are for the health. Not only for your physical strength but also for your mental health. But right now I was feeling so bad, I didn’t even want to tell myself to go for a walk. I needed someone. That someone that gave me the push I needed.

It had been raining for five days in a row now. I looked outside. The sun was shining. The temperature gauge showed 22 degrees Celsius.

She is probably right. I should just go.

Am I telling myself while I grab my camera. I’m not intending to go far. But I’m intending to go slow. And I want to look for the beauty in the small things out there.

Because that is what photography taught me. If you are walking around with a camera in your hand you are physically looking for something beautiful. If it is a building. A mountain. A person. A flower. Or an animal. Your intentions are to take a beautiful shot of the object.

This means that your mind changes the moment you have the camera in your hand. The moment you look through the scope you are searching for the beauty in something. You are trying to get the perfect shot to show others how beautiful this object is. The moment I have my camera in my hand I am looking for the beauty in nature. Because I like nature. I am looking for the small things that make me happy.

Like this little ladybug. It was sitting on this beautiful lily and didn’t move. It somehow stole the show of this beautiful flower. Or it made the whole scene even more unique. I love ladybugs. They are so inconspicuous and small. But everyone likes them.

Roses

I do like flowers, but I am not a red-roses type of person. I adore a lot of different flowers. And also lots of succulents. But roses aren’t mine. Except if they are yellow. But today I find a lot of pictures of roses on my SD-card. Today I even found the beauty in those things which aren’t special to me. Because I am carrying my camera with me. Because I am on a mission finding the beauty in the small things in life. Like seeing roses.

“When life throws thorns; hunt for roses.” — Anonymous

The beauty of a residential area

I am walking through a small residential neighbourhood. I wonder what people are thinking seeing me walking around here with a big camera in my hand. But who cares. People think a lot. People judge a lot. And you and I should care less about what others think.

Like the daisies growing on this lawn. They just bloom. They don’t care about the yellow and purple flowers next to them. They don’t compare themselves. They don’t think about the fact that other flowers are taller. Brighter. Stronger. And maybe more popular. They just do their thing. They grow. They bloom. They produce seeds. And grow another blossom. I love daisies. I want to be like one. Just with a bit more yellow than them.

It has been a week now since I am staying with my grandma. As old as she is, she’s still an amazing woman. Inspiring. What she achieved in life. Impressive. How much she gave us, the grandchildren, for our future. A lot. And how much advice she is still giving. Even if she doesn’t understand why I work on weekends. Because nobody works on weekends. But that’s okay. Because she told me now to go outside. What I did. Because I needed it.

I needed it.

To see the beauty in life again. To see the beauty in the small things.

To get motivated again. To get motivated to do those things that have to be done.

To get inspired. To get inspired to write this article.

To smile again. Because I feel much better when I smile.

To greet others. Because when you greet someone on the street you erase half of the suspicions the other person just created in their mind about you.

To see the beauty in something familiar. I’ve known this area since I was born. But haven’t been here for a few years now. I definitely never have walked through this neighbourhood taking pictures of flowers, rock gardens, and trees.

The rock garden

I started a rock garden in my parents' garden plot. Years ago. But I loved it. I loved being creative. I loved watching nature being creative. And I loved creating a piece of art. And a rock garden is a piece of art. It is more than just some flowers in the soil. It is more than just placing rocks around a rose bush. It is more than just buying some succulents. It is art. A rock garden is an art. Art that changes and evolves with time. Art that develops over time to something even more beautiful.

Just like a tree. It changes as well. Over the seasons. And over the years.

Nature is amazing. My mood switched around. It switched completely. Because I went for a walk. With the camera in my hand.

Looking for the small things in life that make me happy.

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