RGW Inspiration: Words and Images

Overcoming Your Fear Firstly, I'm going to offer up a host of platitudes: “One does not discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.” ~Andre Gide “Do one thing every day that scares you.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt “No man ever achieved worth-while success who did not, at one time or another, find himself with at least one foot hanging well over the brink of failure.” ~Napoleon Hill “He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson "Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy." ~Dale Carnegie Actually, that last one is my real springboard ... ;o7 Here's the key to overcoming fear: DO! Fear isn't actually supposed to be the crippling emotion we allow it to be.  It's a driving force.  It's an energy source to be capitalized on! If you're feeling fearful about...

Are you an artist? ––– If you are a photographer and you've ever wondered if you are an artist, I offer you this from Ansel Adams: "Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas. It is a creative art."   Sure, there are photographers that only document what is in front of their lens, and you may well be one of those. So how can you tell if you are an artist? This is what I tell my students:  You are an artist if you wish to create something with your media which communicates more than its component parts.   Now, you become a remarkable artist when you become fluent in the language of how to communicate with the tools of art and move past merely documenting what is in front of your lens.  An artist will use these tools to show us what we have never seen before.   The best artists will show us what we never could have imagined.  This is the stuff that makes your jaw drop, makes you stop in your tracks and makes you say, "Wow!"  I am still a...