I’m a memory keeper. I pick up my camera and capture an image in order to preserve something that is meaningful to me. In years to come I want my images to evoke a feeling inside me. I want the memory I capture to well up tears of love inside my eyes and warm my heart with emotion. I’m also an artist and I crave creating. Photography allows me to preserve the memories I want to cherish in a way that feeds my creative soul. I also believe in magic. I believe that there’s something very special woven into the minutes of everyday life. Photography helps me capture those memories and then create images which show my viewer how magical I feel life is. Discovering the magic in everyday moments is really not all that difficult. Let me share with you how I infuse a little bit of magic into my everyday images.

1. The Magic in Light: One of the first lessons you will learn as a photographer is the importance of light. Light can make an image sparkle and shine. Now light is an extensive topic and I could go on for days and days about it but if I can give you one tip it’s going to be to use light in a way that makes your subject shine. When I’m using light, no matter the type, I want my subject to be illuminated in some manner by the light. If you watch how light is falling on your subject and capture your subject when he or she is well lit you’ll be well on your way to infusing light’s magic into your images and creating images that come alive.

2. The Magic in Movement: Next to light movement is probably my second favourite element in which to add a touch of magic into my images. I adore movement in my photography. The act of movement infuses an incredible sense of nostalgic energy and vitality into an image. Running, jumping, twirling, walking…give them all to me forever!

3. The Magic in Depth: A photograph by nature is flat and two dimensional yet we live in a three dimensional world. There are many different compositional techniques that can be used to make images more dynamic and in my opinion magical. Some of my favourite techniques to infuse a touch of compositional magic are the use of leading lines, framing and layering.

Leading Lines: Leading lines can help guide a viewers eye into an image, they can create amazing depth, which helps an image become more three dimensional, and they are extremely effective in identifying a subject, which helps the subject shine within an image.

Framing: Framing can come in many forms but helps identify a subject through use of a frame. It’s fun to get creative with frames and use both natural and man made frames to isolate your subject within an image. I think effective framing adds a touch of magic into an image.

Layering: Composing images in a way that incorporates foreground, middle ground and background elements can really help an image come to life. There are many different way in which to layer an image. I love to shoot through objects, such as glass, flowers, shrubs, trees, lace and even enjoy using tools like glass and a prism. I think these tools can helps infuse that magic I’m looking for within my images.

4. The Magic in Evoking Visual Senses: As a photographer my main goal is to capture and preserve memories. I want to feel something when I observe an image. Capturing images in such a way that evokes one or more of the human five senses of hearing, sight, smell, touch or taste will help my images feel more dynamic and infuse touches of magic.

5. The Magic in Capturing and Creating: If I can leave you with a final word of influence it’d be to go out and capture images that infuse who you are into them. Shoot from your heart and go about creating images that make you smile. Preserve your memories in the way that only you can. That in and of itself infuses an incredible about of magic.