Aleksandra Galert's Blog: I'm thinking about...
August 31, 2016
How much math is there in the art?
There are songs that for a period of time you can hear on the radio over and over again. Few days ago, I was sitting with my friends when we heard the latest music hit for the x time. This was the starting point of our discussion. I don’t know if you’re aware of the fact of how much research is done on the popular songs. You think they just come out straight from the artist’s heart? Maybe some of them do. But the music business is the money business. So before spending a lot on recording, music video and promotion the agents have to be sure they’ll earn their revenue. Everything is carefully checked: which rhythms had the hits from the last years, what were the songs about etc, etc.
You may feel confused and disappointed. How can that be? You might even feel cheated. You might be wondering if the same thing is happening with other modern artists: painters, photographers, designers and so on. But let’s try to be reasonable for a moment…
If you look carefully at the history of art, you’ll find out that most of the biggest and most famous works were not created just as the result of artists’ inspirations. They were ordered by rich clients, like cardinals, kings, aristocracy, who wanted to get a particular result. Of course, the artist was adding its style to it, but they also had to eat, so they were fulfilling the clients’ needs, and so that their artistic taste.
Is that so different from the current situation? Aren’t we the clients not even knowing that we ordered a piece of music until we get it? Our delusions about creating art can get harmed now, but until we like what we get is it so important whether the inspiration came from the morning coffee or the scientific research? Probably in a few centuries people will still be watching/listening with astonishment some of the pieces created now, not caring much for the source. So let’s just enjoy the art as it is.
You may feel confused and disappointed. How can that be? You might even feel cheated. You might be wondering if the same thing is happening with other modern artists: painters, photographers, designers and so on. But let’s try to be reasonable for a moment…
If you look carefully at the history of art, you’ll find out that most of the biggest and most famous works were not created just as the result of artists’ inspirations. They were ordered by rich clients, like cardinals, kings, aristocracy, who wanted to get a particular result. Of course, the artist was adding its style to it, but they also had to eat, so they were fulfilling the clients’ needs, and so that their artistic taste.
Is that so different from the current situation? Aren’t we the clients not even knowing that we ordered a piece of music until we get it? Our delusions about creating art can get harmed now, but until we like what we get is it so important whether the inspiration came from the morning coffee or the scientific research? Probably in a few centuries people will still be watching/listening with astonishment some of the pieces created now, not caring much for the source. So let’s just enjoy the art as it is.
August 30, 2016
Have you ever seen a bad newborn?
Have you ever seen a bad newborn? I don’t mean a naughty or shouting one, but a mean one, whose eyes would scare you. I haven’t. I don’t think anybody did. We always say children are so Innocent, so pure. So what happens later? Why some of those lovely creatures turn into monsters? Is it the world that influences us so badly? Or is it in our genes? Or both? Or is there something else?
There have been many research on that subject, but the result is still unclear. Some scientists say it’s the environment that shapes us. But what about the kids brought up by the loving families, who eventually become too similar to their biological parents they had never met? So are these genes? I doubt, as many of us seem too different from our own relatives. We’re not clones. So what is it that shapes us?
There’s the theory of tabula rasa – the blank page. It’s one of my favorites, I must say. It states that when we’re born, we are like that blank page, not knowing nothing. And throughout our lives we fill this page with experiences, emotions and knowledge. I think that is something important. From my own life I see that what had a big impact on who I am where the people I met, the books I read, the travels I made. These are the things that make me different from my parents. What makes me similar? My genes and the way they brought me up. I’m not a scientist. I just describe my observations. But I think we should consider that every experience, every little thing we see in our life can influence us more than we could have ever imagined. You probably know this feeling when you realize that from your past you remember some small detail you could have never expected to remember. And probably you do, because it was something important for you, even if it didn’t seem so. Or maybe you still didn’t even realize it’s meaning.
What I’m trying to say is that we should be more aware of the experiences that surround us and on those that we choose for ourselves. Eventually, garbage in, garbage out.
There have been many research on that subject, but the result is still unclear. Some scientists say it’s the environment that shapes us. But what about the kids brought up by the loving families, who eventually become too similar to their biological parents they had never met? So are these genes? I doubt, as many of us seem too different from our own relatives. We’re not clones. So what is it that shapes us?
There’s the theory of tabula rasa – the blank page. It’s one of my favorites, I must say. It states that when we’re born, we are like that blank page, not knowing nothing. And throughout our lives we fill this page with experiences, emotions and knowledge. I think that is something important. From my own life I see that what had a big impact on who I am where the people I met, the books I read, the travels I made. These are the things that make me different from my parents. What makes me similar? My genes and the way they brought me up. I’m not a scientist. I just describe my observations. But I think we should consider that every experience, every little thing we see in our life can influence us more than we could have ever imagined. You probably know this feeling when you realize that from your past you remember some small detail you could have never expected to remember. And probably you do, because it was something important for you, even if it didn’t seem so. Or maybe you still didn’t even realize it’s meaning.
What I’m trying to say is that we should be more aware of the experiences that surround us and on those that we choose for ourselves. Eventually, garbage in, garbage out.
October 22, 2015
Are we the experimental rats?
Lately I’ve noticed an interesting trend in the young-adult literature and movies. I’ve found it for example in two dystopia books: “The maze runner” by James Dashner and “Divergent” by Veronica Roth. The trend I’m talking about is seeing the life as an experiment. In both of the books the main characters eventually find out that their life was controlled and examined by other people sitting in some laboratory, that the home they took for a save enclave surrounded by danger was in fact their prison. The phenomenon of the popularity of such ideas seems fascinating for me. A few weeks ago I’ve been talking with my aunt about those books and the vision of life as an experiment, when she said: “You know, there might be some true in that. Like with the books of Jules Verner – everybody thought it was a total fiction, whereas many things appeared to be true”. I have to admit I was surprised at that statement. It made me think it all over even more deeply.
Why do people want to believe such things? Why do people underestimate their freedom? I guess the answer is simple: because it’s easier. On every failure you can just say it was programmed that way. Somebody else is taking the decisions. You don’t have much influence on what you do. That vision is equally pessimistic as the Shakespeare’s theory theatrum mundum – the world is a theatre and people are the actors directed by God. I guess the experiment theory is the modern version of the one of the theatre that was present even in the ancient times. Which is actually fascinating that even so many centuries later, people still think similarly. Our live conditions have changes, the technic has developed, but the human fears and problems are still the same. On the one hand, they want freedom, but on the other, when they really get it, they turn their minds into the direction of pessimistic theories that we are just the toys in somebody else’s hands. Freedom is difficult: you’re the one responsible, it depends on you if you achieve your goals or not, it depends on you what your life will be like. This scares people. Just look at the work market: how many people dream about starting their own company, about making some difference? Many, many, many. And how many actually do something to achieve it? Very few. Why? Because it’s easier to go every day to the same office, do what the boss tells you and later go home and not worry. Starting something on your own demands much more, and the most difficult is that you have no boss there, no guide. You’re all alone on the ocean full of storms and unknown reefs. But I believe it’s better to try and fall and learn and fall again, instead of just obeying the orders of others. Because when you go through the storms, you see the unbelievably bright sun on the sky clear as ever.
Why do people want to believe such things? Why do people underestimate their freedom? I guess the answer is simple: because it’s easier. On every failure you can just say it was programmed that way. Somebody else is taking the decisions. You don’t have much influence on what you do. That vision is equally pessimistic as the Shakespeare’s theory theatrum mundum – the world is a theatre and people are the actors directed by God. I guess the experiment theory is the modern version of the one of the theatre that was present even in the ancient times. Which is actually fascinating that even so many centuries later, people still think similarly. Our live conditions have changes, the technic has developed, but the human fears and problems are still the same. On the one hand, they want freedom, but on the other, when they really get it, they turn their minds into the direction of pessimistic theories that we are just the toys in somebody else’s hands. Freedom is difficult: you’re the one responsible, it depends on you if you achieve your goals or not, it depends on you what your life will be like. This scares people. Just look at the work market: how many people dream about starting their own company, about making some difference? Many, many, many. And how many actually do something to achieve it? Very few. Why? Because it’s easier to go every day to the same office, do what the boss tells you and later go home and not worry. Starting something on your own demands much more, and the most difficult is that you have no boss there, no guide. You’re all alone on the ocean full of storms and unknown reefs. But I believe it’s better to try and fall and learn and fall again, instead of just obeying the orders of others. Because when you go through the storms, you see the unbelievably bright sun on the sky clear as ever.
October 21, 2015
Why should I eat pizza in Thailand?!
Just a few days ago I came back from my trip to Thailand and I have to confess one thing: I’m totally in love with the thai cuisine. Even before, I was found of it, but now I’m addicted, especially to the green curry. I was choosing a different restaurant each day, to try different dishes and styles of that aromatic cuisine. But there was something irritating me. Once I entered a bar, encouraged but the stuff standing outside and promising good prices and great dishes. Nevertheless, when I opened the menu, I was disappointed. It was full of steaks and other things I know, but there was not much to choose from the thai dishes, so without much hesitation I left the restaurant. At the exit, one of the waiters asked me for the reason of my leaving, so I answered that they had to little thai food to choose from. His answer was hilarious for me: “Be we have pizza and pasta!” Why should I eat pizza and pasta in Thailand?! It sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? They have an amazing cuisine and they encourage me to eat Italian food in Thailand? Firstly, I eat original pizza and pasta for a few months a year. Secondly, from my experience I know that the Italian dishes made outside of Italy, usually have not much to do with the originals.
Thinking about the situation mentioned above, I came to a few conclusions. I’ve notice that many western tourists choose so called “save” food. Wherever they go, they eat pizza, fries, spaghetti, burgers etc. They are scared of I don’t know what. Of course, not only the western culture seems quite closed for the new tastes: when Chinese visit Europe, they dine only in Chinese restaurants. Such behaviors are so surprising to me! Cuisine is a very important part of every culture. Eating pizza wherever you go is like traveling around the world and never leaving the hotel nor seeing a native. I know people are scared of some bacteria our bodies are not used to. But come on! In China, in the old town of Nanjing I ate the best noodles in my life, even though it was better not to look at all the dirt around. And I was perfectly fine! In the same place, from the street food seller, I bought some very good shashlik, although the meet was unknown to me, so I prefer not to think what I ate. But it was very good, anyway. Even though in Shanghai, in a restaurant full of Chinese, I could hardly choose something out of a wide menu, as it’s beyond my capabilities to try a turtle or the eyes of something, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’ve tried the Chinese cuisine. I always look for the new tastes. Not trying the local cuisine is like visiting Paris without seeing the Eiffel Tower. So I strongly encourage you not to be closed minded and open yourself for the new cultures and their tastes. I know that some things might not seem appetizing (e.g. fried tarantula in Cambodia or the smell of durian – an Asian fruit), but you can discover unbelievable new tastes which existing you’ve never even expected, like the sweet and delicate one of the mangostin (another Asian fruit). So you still think you know it all? I can assure you, you ain’s seen nothing yet.
Thinking about the situation mentioned above, I came to a few conclusions. I’ve notice that many western tourists choose so called “save” food. Wherever they go, they eat pizza, fries, spaghetti, burgers etc. They are scared of I don’t know what. Of course, not only the western culture seems quite closed for the new tastes: when Chinese visit Europe, they dine only in Chinese restaurants. Such behaviors are so surprising to me! Cuisine is a very important part of every culture. Eating pizza wherever you go is like traveling around the world and never leaving the hotel nor seeing a native. I know people are scared of some bacteria our bodies are not used to. But come on! In China, in the old town of Nanjing I ate the best noodles in my life, even though it was better not to look at all the dirt around. And I was perfectly fine! In the same place, from the street food seller, I bought some very good shashlik, although the meet was unknown to me, so I prefer not to think what I ate. But it was very good, anyway. Even though in Shanghai, in a restaurant full of Chinese, I could hardly choose something out of a wide menu, as it’s beyond my capabilities to try a turtle or the eyes of something, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’ve tried the Chinese cuisine. I always look for the new tastes. Not trying the local cuisine is like visiting Paris without seeing the Eiffel Tower. So I strongly encourage you not to be closed minded and open yourself for the new cultures and their tastes. I know that some things might not seem appetizing (e.g. fried tarantula in Cambodia or the smell of durian – an Asian fruit), but you can discover unbelievable new tastes which existing you’ve never even expected, like the sweet and delicate one of the mangostin (another Asian fruit). So you still think you know it all? I can assure you, you ain’s seen nothing yet.
September 7, 2015
Would I be a superhero?
Reading my favorite fantasy books I often ask myself: How would I behave in that situation? The characters of such stories are usually ordinary people finding themselves in the middle of a conflict between good and evil, and eventually it turns out they are the only ones who can save the world. We admire such characters because on one hand they are like us, on the other they are heroes we wish we were. And how would we behave? Would we be so brave? Would we put all our eggs in one basket and risk our lives to save the world?
We never know what life will bring us. Maybe we’ll never have to beat Sauron or won’t have to be afraid of dark wizards. The Black Lord of our lives can be losing a job or a close person, a serious illness or addiction. Everybody has some dark power in their lives that is bringing despair and taking all the energy away. Whatever it is, we have to be heroes of our own lives. Like the folks Sam was talking about in “The Two Towers”:
Sam: Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?
Sam: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo... and it's worth fighting for.
So the next time you find yourself in some difficult situation just take a deep breath and imagine what your favorite character would do if they were in your shoes, then take another deep breath and do it yourself.
We never know what life will bring us. Maybe we’ll never have to beat Sauron or won’t have to be afraid of dark wizards. The Black Lord of our lives can be losing a job or a close person, a serious illness or addiction. Everybody has some dark power in their lives that is bringing despair and taking all the energy away. Whatever it is, we have to be heroes of our own lives. Like the folks Sam was talking about in “The Two Towers”:
Sam: Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?
Sam: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo... and it's worth fighting for.
So the next time you find yourself in some difficult situation just take a deep breath and imagine what your favorite character would do if they were in your shoes, then take another deep breath and do it yourself.
May 7, 2015
When is it the time to change your environment?
A year ago I was at a crossroad in my photography education, as I wanted to make some course ending with a certificate. On one hand, I could stay with a group of people I liked very much and a teacher, who taught me a lot. That “master” as we called him, was starting to teach in a free public school in my city. On the other hand, I found a very interesting private school in Warsaw (around 100km from my city), for which, of course, I had to pay quite much. I chose the second option and now I know it was a very good decision. Here’s why:
I’m still a member of the Facebook group that I spent so much time with and I noticed something that, I have to admit, irritates me and makes me a bit bored with that group. That is the fact that the group doesn’t develop. Always the same people post pictures, always in the same style, and our monthly competitions for the Photo of the Month lost their energy and are won always with the same kind of pictures. I know many of those people go to the school, I rejected, but I don’t see much evolution, much progress. I don’t say that the group is bad: it is full of people, who take pictures just for fun and that is enough for them. And I’m happy of their joy. But this is too little for me. I appreciate what the teacher taught me, but I already know his opinions on different aspects of photography, and he won’t teach me much more, except for maybe some technical issues. And it’s also not enough for me.
Choosing the school in Warsaw was one of my best decisions in life. Yes, every two weeks I travel there for a weekend, I have to sleep in a hotel and I come back exhausted on Sunday night, while on Monday I have other classes. Yes, I pay for it, while the other school was for free. But this one is worth every effort. I’ve learned things about photography, I had no idea even existed. There are many teachers in this school and they are on purpose chosen the way that each of them has a totally different opinion on photography. Now I’m getting used to it, but at the beginning, after a weekend spent with 10 different opinions and ideas, I felt as if my brain was exploding! And it was great! The headmaster wants us to create our own opinions on the basis of knowing so many possibilities. It seems the teachers demand a lot, especially at the beginning, when you feel totally lost with all those new information, but it turns out it’s doable. They encourage you to try new things. I see a big progress in my pictures and I’m solving the problems earlier I couldn’t deal with. And now the thing I love the most about my new school: it’s the first educational unit, where I heard ‘Write, what you think’. In every school, especially in law school, I hear ‘Write from books of wise people, because what can you write on your own if you don’t know anything’. I’m sure you know it from your own education, more or less all schools are like this. But in this one, I heard from my professor, who is a known and respected photographer: ‘Write what you feel and think. Absolutely, don’t read any commentaries of others! Just watch the pictures and write! You can write whatever you want, you can write that you don’t like my pictures, but it has to be your opinion!’. The first school that cares what I think!
Coming back to the title of this post, I think it’s essential to know, when to say ‘Stop. It was nice, but I need something more now’. I wrote all that story about my photo schools, because I think it explains the best what I want to say. It is good to get to know opinions of different people, even if you disagree. But to be able to disagree, you have to know them! It opens your eyes to the existence of the new worlds, you had no idea about! The change of the environment helps you to develop, make your progress, find yourself and become better at what you do. It might be hard to ‘cut the umbilical cord’, but you don’t have to cut it totally. I’m still in touch with the people of my first photo group, but I understand them less and less. People change, evaluate and it’s good. That is how progress is made. So if you’re on the point of life, where you feel you’d like something more, don’t hesitate. Just change your environment. Remember that if you change nothing, nothing will change. If you dream about something, but you don’t change anything in your life, nothing in your life will change! That’s the thing! So keep in mind, what the people you’re leaving had taught you, be grateful for that, and move forward, ready for meeting and learning the new. Remember that you’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with. So choose wisely and don’t be afraid to make the next step.
I’m still a member of the Facebook group that I spent so much time with and I noticed something that, I have to admit, irritates me and makes me a bit bored with that group. That is the fact that the group doesn’t develop. Always the same people post pictures, always in the same style, and our monthly competitions for the Photo of the Month lost their energy and are won always with the same kind of pictures. I know many of those people go to the school, I rejected, but I don’t see much evolution, much progress. I don’t say that the group is bad: it is full of people, who take pictures just for fun and that is enough for them. And I’m happy of their joy. But this is too little for me. I appreciate what the teacher taught me, but I already know his opinions on different aspects of photography, and he won’t teach me much more, except for maybe some technical issues. And it’s also not enough for me.
Choosing the school in Warsaw was one of my best decisions in life. Yes, every two weeks I travel there for a weekend, I have to sleep in a hotel and I come back exhausted on Sunday night, while on Monday I have other classes. Yes, I pay for it, while the other school was for free. But this one is worth every effort. I’ve learned things about photography, I had no idea even existed. There are many teachers in this school and they are on purpose chosen the way that each of them has a totally different opinion on photography. Now I’m getting used to it, but at the beginning, after a weekend spent with 10 different opinions and ideas, I felt as if my brain was exploding! And it was great! The headmaster wants us to create our own opinions on the basis of knowing so many possibilities. It seems the teachers demand a lot, especially at the beginning, when you feel totally lost with all those new information, but it turns out it’s doable. They encourage you to try new things. I see a big progress in my pictures and I’m solving the problems earlier I couldn’t deal with. And now the thing I love the most about my new school: it’s the first educational unit, where I heard ‘Write, what you think’. In every school, especially in law school, I hear ‘Write from books of wise people, because what can you write on your own if you don’t know anything’. I’m sure you know it from your own education, more or less all schools are like this. But in this one, I heard from my professor, who is a known and respected photographer: ‘Write what you feel and think. Absolutely, don’t read any commentaries of others! Just watch the pictures and write! You can write whatever you want, you can write that you don’t like my pictures, but it has to be your opinion!’. The first school that cares what I think!
Coming back to the title of this post, I think it’s essential to know, when to say ‘Stop. It was nice, but I need something more now’. I wrote all that story about my photo schools, because I think it explains the best what I want to say. It is good to get to know opinions of different people, even if you disagree. But to be able to disagree, you have to know them! It opens your eyes to the existence of the new worlds, you had no idea about! The change of the environment helps you to develop, make your progress, find yourself and become better at what you do. It might be hard to ‘cut the umbilical cord’, but you don’t have to cut it totally. I’m still in touch with the people of my first photo group, but I understand them less and less. People change, evaluate and it’s good. That is how progress is made. So if you’re on the point of life, where you feel you’d like something more, don’t hesitate. Just change your environment. Remember that if you change nothing, nothing will change. If you dream about something, but you don’t change anything in your life, nothing in your life will change! That’s the thing! So keep in mind, what the people you’re leaving had taught you, be grateful for that, and move forward, ready for meeting and learning the new. Remember that you’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with. So choose wisely and don’t be afraid to make the next step.
When is it the time to change your environment?
A year ago I was at a crossroad in my photography education, as I wanted to make some course ending with a certificate. On one hand, I could stay with a group of people I liked very much and a teacher, who taught me a lot. That “master” as we called him, was starting to teach in a free public school in my city. On the other hand, I found a very interesting private school in Warsaw (around 100km from my city), for which, of course, I had to pay quite much. I chose the second option and now I know it was a very good decision. Here’s why:
I’m still a member of the Facebook group that I spent so much time with and I noticed something that, I have to admit, irritates me and makes me a bit bored with that group. That is the fact that the group doesn’t develop. Always the same people post pictures, always in the same style, and our monthly competitions for the Photo of the Month lost their energy and are won always with the same kind of pictures. I know many of those people go to the school, I rejected, but I don’t see much evolution, much progress. I don’t say that the group is bad: it is full of people, who take pictures just for fun and that is enough for them. And I’m happy of their joy. But this is too little for me. I appreciate what the teacher taught me, but I already know his opinions on different aspects of photography, and he won’t teach me much more, except for maybe some technical issues. And it’s also not enough for me.
Choosing the school in Warsaw was one of my best decisions in life. Yes, every two weeks I travel there for a weekend, I have to sleep in a hotel and I come back exhausted on Sunday night, while on Monday I have other classes. Yes, I pay for it, while the other school was for free. But this one is worth every effort. I’ve learned things about photography, I had no idea even existed. There are many teachers in this school and they are on purpose chosen the way that each of them has a totally different opinion on photography. Now I’m getting used to it, but at the beginning, after a weekend spent with 10 different opinions and ideas, I felt as if my brain was exploding! And it was great! The headmaster wants us to create our own opinions on the basis of knowing so many possibilities. It seems the teachers demand a lot, especially at the beginning, when you feel totally lost with all those new information, but it turns out it’s doable. They encourage you to try new things. I see a big progress in my pictures and I’m solving the problems earlier I couldn’t deal with. And now the thing I love the most about my new school: it’s the first educational unit, where I heard ‘Write, what you think’. In every school, especially in law school, I hear ‘Write from books of wise people, because what can you write on your own if you don’t know anything’. I’m sure you know it from your own education, more or less all schools are like this. But in this one, I heard from my professor, who is a known and respected photographer: ‘Write what you feel and think. Absolutely, don’t read any commentaries of others! Just watch the pictures and write! You can write whatever you want, you can write that you don’t like my pictures, but it has to be your opinion!’. The first school that cares what I think!
Coming back to the title of this post, I think it’s essential to know, when to say ‘Stop. It was nice, but I need something more now’. I wrote all that story about my photo schools, because I think it explains the best what I want to say. It is good to get to know opinions of different people, even if you disagree. But to be able to disagree, you have to know them! It opens your eyes to the existence of the new worlds, you had no idea about! The change of the environment helps you to develop, make your progress, find yourself and become better at what you do. It might be hard to ‘cut the umbilical cord’, but you don’t have to cut it totally. I’m still in touch with the people of my first photo group, but I understand them less and less. People change, evaluate and it’s good. That is how progress is made. So if you’re on the point of life, where you feel you’d like something more, don’t hesitate. Just change your environment. Remember that if you change nothing, nothing will change. If you dream about something, but you don’t change anything in your life, nothing in your life will change! That’s the thing! So keep in mind, what the people you’re leaving had taught you, be grateful for that, and move forward, ready for meeting and learning the new. Remember that you’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with. So choose wisely and don’t be afraid to make the next step.
I’m still a member of the Facebook group that I spent so much time with and I noticed something that, I have to admit, irritates me and makes me a bit bored with that group. That is the fact that the group doesn’t develop. Always the same people post pictures, always in the same style, and our monthly competitions for the Photo of the Month lost their energy and are won always with the same kind of pictures. I know many of those people go to the school, I rejected, but I don’t see much evolution, much progress. I don’t say that the group is bad: it is full of people, who take pictures just for fun and that is enough for them. And I’m happy of their joy. But this is too little for me. I appreciate what the teacher taught me, but I already know his opinions on different aspects of photography, and he won’t teach me much more, except for maybe some technical issues. And it’s also not enough for me.
Choosing the school in Warsaw was one of my best decisions in life. Yes, every two weeks I travel there for a weekend, I have to sleep in a hotel and I come back exhausted on Sunday night, while on Monday I have other classes. Yes, I pay for it, while the other school was for free. But this one is worth every effort. I’ve learned things about photography, I had no idea even existed. There are many teachers in this school and they are on purpose chosen the way that each of them has a totally different opinion on photography. Now I’m getting used to it, but at the beginning, after a weekend spent with 10 different opinions and ideas, I felt as if my brain was exploding! And it was great! The headmaster wants us to create our own opinions on the basis of knowing so many possibilities. It seems the teachers demand a lot, especially at the beginning, when you feel totally lost with all those new information, but it turns out it’s doable. They encourage you to try new things. I see a big progress in my pictures and I’m solving the problems earlier I couldn’t deal with. And now the thing I love the most about my new school: it’s the first educational unit, where I heard ‘Write, what you think’. In every school, especially in law school, I hear ‘Write from books of wise people, because what can you write on your own if you don’t know anything’. I’m sure you know it from your own education, more or less all schools are like this. But in this one, I heard from my professor, who is a known and respected photographer: ‘Write what you feel and think. Absolutely, don’t read any commentaries of others! Just watch the pictures and write! You can write whatever you want, you can write that you don’t like my pictures, but it has to be your opinion!’. The first school that cares what I think!
Coming back to the title of this post, I think it’s essential to know, when to say ‘Stop. It was nice, but I need something more now’. I wrote all that story about my photo schools, because I think it explains the best what I want to say. It is good to get to know opinions of different people, even if you disagree. But to be able to disagree, you have to know them! It opens your eyes to the existence of the new worlds, you had no idea about! The change of the environment helps you to develop, make your progress, find yourself and become better at what you do. It might be hard to ‘cut the umbilical cord’, but you don’t have to cut it totally. I’m still in touch with the people of my first photo group, but I understand them less and less. People change, evaluate and it’s good. That is how progress is made. So if you’re on the point of life, where you feel you’d like something more, don’t hesitate. Just change your environment. Remember that if you change nothing, nothing will change. If you dream about something, but you don’t change anything in your life, nothing in your life will change! That’s the thing! So keep in mind, what the people you’re leaving had taught you, be grateful for that, and move forward, ready for meeting and learning the new. Remember that you’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with. So choose wisely and don’t be afraid to make the next step.
March 13, 2015
Group power?
Have you ever noticed that many of the most successful people ever were staying together? Like, for example, Albert Einstein, who knew Maria Skłodowska-Curie for years. They were spending holidays together, meeting at the science conferences, working together for the League of Nations. Or the famous Parisian salon of Gertrude Stein, where she was accompanied by such icons like Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway or James Joyce, to name just a few (you can see it in the Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris”). You must have been amazed listening about the famous meetings in Els Quatre Gats thinking: “Wow! It must have been extraordinary! So many so talented and famous people in one place!”.
The thing is that yes, they were very talented, but what we can assume is that without those meetings and company of each other, they would probably be neither that successful nor famous. We think that they met when they were already on top, but it’s not true. It was often the starting point of their careers. You must know the saying: when in Rome, do as the Romans do. A group of people with quite similar interests and goals helps to motivate and inspire each other. When you enter a group of people where success and wealth are something normal, you start becoming like them. Things that earlier seemed impossible or very hard to achieve, suddenly become as usual as eating breakfast. You learn what your fellows do, you start sharing their way of thinking and thanks to this, you become like them – in a positive meaning of this phrase. In such a group, you can remain individual and special, but you’d be surrounded by people, who believe in the things you do, who encourage you to move forward, who don’t say that something is impossible. Such group is a power.
Of course, it’s not easy to find such a group, especially if you’re at the beginning of your way. But it’s crucial to work on it, look for the people who succeed in what you want to succeed in, learn from them and share your ideas with them. As Jim Rohn said: “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” So if people who surround you are not motivating you and they don’t believe success is at all possible, don’t count on big results on your side. Of course, you can’t change your family, but you can reduce the negative influence they have on you (if they do), by spending time with people who encourage you to be your best self. As I said, it’s not easy to find such people, but it’s worth the effort.
The thing is that yes, they were very talented, but what we can assume is that without those meetings and company of each other, they would probably be neither that successful nor famous. We think that they met when they were already on top, but it’s not true. It was often the starting point of their careers. You must know the saying: when in Rome, do as the Romans do. A group of people with quite similar interests and goals helps to motivate and inspire each other. When you enter a group of people where success and wealth are something normal, you start becoming like them. Things that earlier seemed impossible or very hard to achieve, suddenly become as usual as eating breakfast. You learn what your fellows do, you start sharing their way of thinking and thanks to this, you become like them – in a positive meaning of this phrase. In such a group, you can remain individual and special, but you’d be surrounded by people, who believe in the things you do, who encourage you to move forward, who don’t say that something is impossible. Such group is a power.
Of course, it’s not easy to find such a group, especially if you’re at the beginning of your way. But it’s crucial to work on it, look for the people who succeed in what you want to succeed in, learn from them and share your ideas with them. As Jim Rohn said: “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” So if people who surround you are not motivating you and they don’t believe success is at all possible, don’t count on big results on your side. Of course, you can’t change your family, but you can reduce the negative influence they have on you (if they do), by spending time with people who encourage you to be your best self. As I said, it’s not easy to find such people, but it’s worth the effort.
February 26, 2015
Life is not a math formula
In my photography school, I have a colleague, who is trying to find a formula for everything: in such cases use this lens, for such pictures use this aperture, for those choose longer shutter speed and for editing these use Photoshop, but for others Lightroom. The problem is, in photography, as in any art, there’s no formula. You just have to get to know some rules and then use your brain, heart and experience, to create pictures that express yourself. Nobody can tell you exactly what you should do and this is the hardest part of it, but also the best one. That is why art creations are a never ending story, as there are endless ways to paint, write or take pictures. Even if it seems there are only a few technics to use.
This example made me think, that with life, it’s exactly the same. Nobody can tell us what we should or should not do, because they are not in our shoes. Like in the art you create your own style by trying and loosing, in life it’s exactly the same: you find yourself this way. That is why trying to copy somebody else’s life usually ends up as failure, because everybody’s different, and that is what is so beautiful.
William Shakespeare said: “Expectation is the root of all heartache.” Another quote I read lately, this time of Audrey Hepburn is this: "I decided, very early on, just to accept life unconditionally; I never expected it to do anything special for me, yet I seemed to accomplish far more than I had ever hoped. Most of the time it just happened to me without my ever seeking it." Comparing those two quotes of such famous people I come to conclusion that maybe sometimes we fail, because we just want too much. Has it ever happened to you that you wanted something so badly and it was never coming, but when you eventually stopped thinking about it, it came true very soon? I think in our busy lives, we should create a balance between our hard work and race for success, and just keeping calm and being happy. Time will show what comes out of this formula.
This example made me think, that with life, it’s exactly the same. Nobody can tell us what we should or should not do, because they are not in our shoes. Like in the art you create your own style by trying and loosing, in life it’s exactly the same: you find yourself this way. That is why trying to copy somebody else’s life usually ends up as failure, because everybody’s different, and that is what is so beautiful.
William Shakespeare said: “Expectation is the root of all heartache.” Another quote I read lately, this time of Audrey Hepburn is this: "I decided, very early on, just to accept life unconditionally; I never expected it to do anything special for me, yet I seemed to accomplish far more than I had ever hoped. Most of the time it just happened to me without my ever seeking it." Comparing those two quotes of such famous people I come to conclusion that maybe sometimes we fail, because we just want too much. Has it ever happened to you that you wanted something so badly and it was never coming, but when you eventually stopped thinking about it, it came true very soon? I think in our busy lives, we should create a balance between our hard work and race for success, and just keeping calm and being happy. Time will show what comes out of this formula.
February 12, 2015
What a barman taught me?
Why, even by doing the simplest things, some people are much better than others? Why we prefer one waiter and not the other? Is it talent? Sense of humor? Kindness? Yes, it is. But I believe there's something even more important: passion.
An inspiration to write this post was a barman I met in Palermo (Sicily). Peppino is a tall guy with long, gray hair. So what makes him so special that everybody loves coming to him? I think it’s because he loves what he’s doing. In Malox (that is the name of the pub where he works), there is no drink list – the whole list is in Peppino’s head. People come to him and say things like: ‘Peppino, I have a broken heart. Make some drink for me’. And he does. And everybody is very satisfied with it. Doing every drink, he explains exactly what he’s doing. Some of the actions I have never seen before by making drinks, like burning a lemon.
But what makes those drinks so special? The fact is, that even if it's a drink that you can order in any other bar in the world, like e.g. Mohito, it tastes better. Why is it so? For me there’s only one explanation: he really loves what he’s doing. Peppino doesn’t just come to work as a barman. He’s trying to make people happy, to make them forget about everyday problems and take some relax drinking a cocktail they like. So little and so much at the same time.
After visiting Malox I started observing other barmen, but I never saw this passion in their behavior. I can’t really explain it. It’s the language of the body and the results of the work that attract us. We intuitively choose people who are passionate, because we know their work will be better. When I see a barman who seems to just be dreaming about going home, how can a result of his work be outstanding?
The conclusion out of this story is that even if you’re the most talented in something, but you don’t put your love into what you’re doing, your work will never be special and better than an ordinary one. It will never influence people or make them happier. It's just the way it is.
An inspiration to write this post was a barman I met in Palermo (Sicily). Peppino is a tall guy with long, gray hair. So what makes him so special that everybody loves coming to him? I think it’s because he loves what he’s doing. In Malox (that is the name of the pub where he works), there is no drink list – the whole list is in Peppino’s head. People come to him and say things like: ‘Peppino, I have a broken heart. Make some drink for me’. And he does. And everybody is very satisfied with it. Doing every drink, he explains exactly what he’s doing. Some of the actions I have never seen before by making drinks, like burning a lemon.
But what makes those drinks so special? The fact is, that even if it's a drink that you can order in any other bar in the world, like e.g. Mohito, it tastes better. Why is it so? For me there’s only one explanation: he really loves what he’s doing. Peppino doesn’t just come to work as a barman. He’s trying to make people happy, to make them forget about everyday problems and take some relax drinking a cocktail they like. So little and so much at the same time.
After visiting Malox I started observing other barmen, but I never saw this passion in their behavior. I can’t really explain it. It’s the language of the body and the results of the work that attract us. We intuitively choose people who are passionate, because we know their work will be better. When I see a barman who seems to just be dreaming about going home, how can a result of his work be outstanding?
The conclusion out of this story is that even if you’re the most talented in something, but you don’t put your love into what you’re doing, your work will never be special and better than an ordinary one. It will never influence people or make them happier. It's just the way it is.
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I write about the life, the world, what concerns me, what inspires me...
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I write about the life, the world, what concerns me, what inspires me...
Join me and enjoy! :)
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