Positive Outlook | Weekly Photo #123
Ok, so you’re going to have to bear with me this week because as I sit here, starting to write this week’s post, I already know it’s going to be a bit of a long one but please stick with it as I hope for some of you, it will prove useful.
At the time of posting, yesterday being Sunday 10th October was World Mental Health Day and whether you struggle with this yourself or not, and let’s face it, most of us do to some extent, it’s a chance for people to contribute to this mission in any way possible.
This is my way.
Personally, I consider myself incredibly lucky that although I struggle at times with self-confidence, social anxiety and periods of stress, it is something I’m able to (on the whole) manage on a day-to-day basis. So many people are not so fortunate and have to fight with everything they have in their locker, every single day to overcome their own mental health issues and although I don’t come at this from a point of authority, I think it’s too important not to talk about in this week’s post. Thankfully, the issues I do have to deal with don’t take a front seat in my life too often but that’s not just down to random luck or just how I happen to be wired, it’s also because I am aware that I do need to look after myself, regularly checking in and taking stock with how I’m feeling within myself. It’s obviously not fool proof but it seems to be an effective approach that works for me most of the time.
As I’ve got older, I’ve prioritized certain aspects of my life which I feel helps me keep on top of things and photography is one of them. It plays a huge part in how I keep my mental wellbeing in check and along with the usual creative benefits this craft gives me, I also know it provides me with an outlet to be active, de-stress, take a break from the chaos of “real life” and be in the moment for a short while.
I won’t go into all the benefits photography (or any creative outlet) can bring to one’s mental health as I’ve previously written about it and although this article is a couple of years old now, the message it carries is still as valid today as it was back then.
It’s strange to think but I truly believe you can help your mental health literally anywhere and doing anything. As long as it makes you happy, helps with stress and allows you to take time out, being present in the moment then it really doesn’t matter what the activity is. Whether it’s scaling a mountain, working in the garden, having a walk in the forest or like me, being out with the camera, it can still be mindful, meditative, helping you to process, which, goes a long way towards improving your mental health and turning negative, overwhelming thoughts into positive, manageable ones.
Fujifilm X-T30 | XF16mm F2.8 | 16mm | 1/125th Second | f/4 | ISO160
I have photographed London for years. It’s where I cut my photographic teeth and although I knew back then that the craft was helping me get out into the great outdoors, or in this case, into the city, what I didn’t realise at the time was how good this was and continues to be for my mental health.
I absolutely love being in London around sunrise as the city takes on a totally different feel. Gone are the noises, the hordes of people and traffic and instead you get an almost privileged opportunity to experience a deserted city, having it (almost) all to yourself to explore and in my case photograph. It was during one of those quiet mornings, I took this photo of the Shard from across the Thames.
I was on one of my "keeping things simple” shoots on this particular day as I had just my smaller Fujifilm X-T30 camera and compact 16mm F2.8 prime lens. Although having the right gear with me on a shoot is important, I can’t describe how liberating it is to shed the load every now and then and head out of just a single camera and lens. After taking a photo of the Girl and the Dolphin fountain on the other side of Tower Bridge, I found this composition as I walked along the cobbled street in front of the Tower of London.
It’s a simple composition with the viewers eye taking a journey into the scene, along the path, past the ornate street lamp, to the tree which then leads the viewer around the top of the image towards the focal point, being The Shard. I love the fact that the lights were still on in the street lamps, the hazy diffused light and those interesting lines created by the tree branches. Getting as close as I could to the tree on the right and with my settings dialled in, I took the photo.
As I mentioned at the start of this post, raising awareness for mental health both in terms of treatments and prevention is so important and the one way we can all help is to talk about it openly, normalising the topic and recognise when you or someone you know needs support with their mental health. Here in the UK, we have some excellent charities such as Mind and The Mental Health Organisation who work tirelessly to raise awareness and provide support to those in need with a wealth of helpful advice and tools on each of their websites. Although these sites are UK centric, much of the information they share is helpful regardless of where you’re from but if you’re not from the UK and looking for something a bit closer to home, I’m sure most countries will have their own national charities which can probably be found with a quick google search.
If you got all the way to the end of this post, thanks for sticking with it and I promise, next week’s post will be shorter.
Cheers.
Trevor
This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.