Hands down, one of the most inspiring talks at Mystic Seminars 2016 was by Erika and Lanny Mann of Two Mann Studios.

They spoke for almost two hours and I swear every person in the room was captivated from start to finish.  There were several very emotional photographers sitting around me, which proves that what they had to say was so relevant to so many of us.

While I enjoyed the entire talk, there were several points that stuck out to me. To continue from my previous post:

Point #2: It’s not what we do with our camera’s to create interest, its what we pay attention to to find it

I love this.  For so many reasons.

At the end of wedding season last year I took a look at my work and started to wonder if I was being creative enough.  I’m always so focused on emotions and connections that I don’t always push myself to think outside of the box and create the kind of photograph that could win awards (think the big sweeping environmental portraits of Iceland that are so popular right now).  I had the tiniest doubt creep in that maybe my style wouldn’t be what people wanted.

Until I heard Erika and Lanny speak.  They basically gave me permission to stop worrying so much about trying to create something spectacular with tricks and angles and perspectives, and to focus on what really matters at a wedding: the people. To keep my eyes open, to look for the interesting stories, and to be ready for whatever happens.

Which leads me to:

Point #3: Let the Creativity Happen

Erika referenced a lesson she learned from a poet.  In this poet’s mind, they weren’t the best writer with the most interesting stories to tell, but they believed that the words and feeling of every poem came from the universe.  The believed that poems floated around and every once in awhile they would come upon the poet.  When the poem hit their mind they had to frantically get it down on paper before the poem could float away to find another poet.  If they weren’t ready to let it in, the poem never materialized. But when they had an open mind they could grab on to the ideas as they floated past and create something amazing.

For the photographer, the poem becomes creativity in our work.

I love the idea that I don’t have to try so hard to “be creative”. That I can focus on what I love to capture, look for the interesting stories, and let the creativity happen when it floats by in the universe’s wind.

Now I know this sounds hippy dippy, and I’m not really a hippy dippy person, but this idea to let the creativity happen is so freeing for me.  I don’t have to search for it.  I can find it anywhere.  I can find it when I’m least expecting it and I have permission to go where it takes me.

As if to prove a point, the day after this talk, my roommates and I headed to the Oregon coast to do some exploring. We were not looking for the green forest we found on our drive out of the park, but we stumbled across it and recognized that if it inspired us, it was worth exploring.  We explored for an hour, taking photos, marveling at the beauty, and just being present with our cameras, each other, and what we were experiencing.  And I love the photos we created.

Because we let it happen.

So, thank you Erika and Lanny for your inspiring talk–I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time.

Photo above taken by Savannah Chandler, Photographer in the magical forest.