February 7, 2022 • 74

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #185: Change

This week, we’re delighted to welcome John Steiner as a new member of our Lens-Artists team. For his topic, he asks us an intriguing question: What does change mean to us? My answer covers different types of change–some obvious, others more subtle.

Change From Morning to Night

Nothing endures but change.

Heraclitus

Change is inevitable and predictable, but why does it surprise, annoy, upset and confuse us?

Life is always in flux. There’s an ebb and flow to the day and the weather, just as there is an ebb and flow to our moods, as well times of happiness and sadness.

From early morning to late at night, the skies lighten and darken, threaten and clear, obscure and clear. Here’s a series of images taken of the Duomo in Florence from day to night.

  • Changing Skies Over the Duomo. Shot with a Fuji XT2.
  • Duomo at Sunset
  • Duomo at Night

Change in the Seasons

The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.

Socrates

The change in nature from winter to spring or summer to fall seems effortless, joyful. Fighting change seems to be part of the human experience, except for an enlightened few. I’m trying to embrace change, but it’s a work in progress.

Daffodils Before Budding and After

Change on a Global and a Personal Level

The world as we have created it is a product of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.

Albert Einstein

I think it’s safe to say that our world is in the midst of tremendous change. We are questioning our concepts of gender, race, democracy, autocracy, progress, materialism, freedom….to name a few.

Here’s a set of change on a more personal level. My husband, pictured on the left at age 7, is boarding a plane to Minnesota with his mother. They were on their way to the Mayo Clinic, where Rich would undergo life-saving cardiac surgery with the gifted, brilliant surgeon, Dr. John Kirklin. On the right, here is Rich again many years later with his wonderful white hair and white rimmed glasses. Clearly, the operation was a success and changed the course of his life…and mine, too!

Subtle Change….White Car, Red Car

Some change is subtle and happens in the blink of an eye. Last week, I was standing on a street corner near the Langham Hotel in downtown Boston and I captured the image on the left just as a white car passed. Then a minute later, a red car sped by.

Circling back to John’s initial question, change is a complex concept for me. Some changes are easy and welcome, like a change of scenery, a change in the light or the seasons. Others are far more worrisome and challenging, like the shift from middle age to that 30-year expanse that we erroneous call “old age.” I am trying to redefine my “later years” into a time of fulfilling long-held dreams and finding meaning in creative projects and reaching out to others.

Thanks Amy for last week’s inspiring Travel challenge. I loved seeing what travel means to all of you–at its best and even at its worst.

We hope you join us this week for John Steiner’s Change challenge. I’m looking forward to seeing what change means to you.

Next Saturday, February 12th at noon, Sofia Alves of Photografias will leading the challenge, so be sure to visit her beautiful site for all the details.

Until then, have a safe and inspiring week!

Categories: LENS-ARTISTS, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, Photography

Tagged as: , , , , ,

74 replies »

  2. Ahh… Duomo in Florence. Beautiful images of the Subtle Change. Wonderful to hear the success of the operation for your husband. There are many changes we have to adjust; very well said about our personal level of change.

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    • Thank you, Amy! We are very, very fortunate that Dr. Kirkland performed not 1, but 2 life-saving operations on Rich. We are so thankful to him. Glad you like my “take” on change. Ugh. Sometimes it’s so hard. Take care and have a good week.

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  3. An interesting interpretation. The OH and I watched a TV program last night about Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years as our monarch. It was odd to see our lifetime pass through in the space of an hour – so many changes. It left us feeling rather subdued. Time passes so quickly.

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Hi, Jude. It’s true. So many changes. I think sometimes of the years growing up with TV, a clock radio, no computer, a stereo, no cell phones…etc., etc. A world of difference from today. And yes, Queen Elizabeth has lived a long, long life and has been at the forefront of all the major historical/political events during that time. Amazing. I loved The Crown, by the way!

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  6. I really like the two images of the hotel. Beautiful composition from that viewpoint. Of the three shots of Duomo, I really like that sunset. Beautiful!

    It is so true that some change is easy, other changes are harder to “swallow.” There are changes we can affect, and changes that affect us, but in any case, there is but one constant, change. 🙂 Love your take on it, Patti.

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    • Hi, Nes. Wow. Many thanks for your thoughts and kind words. 😀😀. Yes, trying to gain wisdom through the changes. That’s the goal. Some changes are easier than others! Have a good week, Nes. Thanks again.

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  10. A beautiful post, Patti! And I was glad to be reminded of some positive changes too. Rich and You – and a happy life. My husband’s grandmother lived almost 100 years and was born in the 1890’s. She was a remarkable woman, and I often wondered how she was thinking, living through so many major changes in her life.

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    • Hi, AC. Thank you! Some changes are positive, others negative. A mix. And yes, we are so grateful that Rich’s surgeon repaired his heart and gave him all these years with us. ❤️. I wonder too about our grandparents who lived through so much. The flu epidemic, the depression, two world wars….unbelievable. Have a good week. I hope you have some wonderful walks in the sunshine.

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  11. Terrific interpretation Patti – I adored your Duomo photos, all of them! the building with 2 different cars was very clever, and of course it is impossible not to love the change Rich experienced – what a frightening time that must have been for his mother. How amazing to still have that photo! I hear you about the aging change, not so fond of that one myself but as they say, beats the alternative! Wishing you a wonderful week ahead.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Thanks so much, Tina. We are so thankful for John Kirklin’s amazing skill that gave Rich so many years of life. I am trying to imagine how his parents felt when the doctor told them he wouldn’t live for more than a few years. Unbelievable. He surprised them all. 😀❤️. I will be thinking of you this week as you travel north. Take care.

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  12. I love your approach to growing older…gaining experience, as I like to think of it, Patti. The Duomo photos are wonderful, but I really like your bulbs to daffodils too. And Rich- that’s a great name for a lucky guy!

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  19. Wonderful photos of the Duomo, especially the one at Sunset ~ and all all the photos were excellent, but especially liked the contrasting shots you made at the Langham hotel ~ great perspective/framing and then the white/red car passing by add a nice symmetry. Beautiful post.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Hi, Dalo. Many thanks! I saw the hotel lit up at night and I loved how it looked…especially from that perspective. I really appreciate your feedback. Many thanks!

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  23. These photos really blew me away, and also the stories they tell. Especially the series with the Duomo of Firenze is magnificent.
    The photos of Rich reminded me of a mesmerizing work which I’d seen in an exhibition in Rome: it was a series of passport sized photos in which an artist photographed himself every day for forty years.

    Liked by 1 person

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  26. Everything about this was uplifting. Even the challenges, are to be embraced, aren’t they?

    I loved how you talked of the ebb and flow of life. The sky and daffodils were reflective of that. The story of your husband brought a tear to my eyes. Look at his mom. That strong and beautiful smile and poised demeanor, and yet not knowing what changes were around the corner.

    Loved the love that poured from this, even the knowledge of loving yourself as you/we have a few more creaks in the mornings. lol. Donna

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