The Passionate Pursuit: Imagination and the 'Mind's Eye'

A Trillium Dream

          I believe everyone is capable of generating mental imagery. Imagination is one of human beings greatest gifts. Imagination gives us the ability to mentally visualize anything the way that we want. We are able to visualize an item in a place that it is not and think of how it might look before we ever move said item into the new location. I have always been blow away by the idea of mental imagery and how large of a role it plays in a creative and successful life.

          Imagination is a tool and a skill. It can be extremely basic and also do things that seem impossible. As with any skill, imagination starts at a rudimentary level. It takes endless practice to hone. I define imagination as having an intention when generating a mental image. The 'Mind's Eye' is a completely different element of the mind to me.

          The 'Mind's Eye' is similar to Imagination in the way that mental imagery is a part of the process, but the two could not be any more different. To me, the 'Mind's Eye' is the embodiment of artistic aspiration. It comes in a flash and is free from intention. It is when you see an element in the landscape from miles away and have somehow had a mental image flash in your mind of the most beautiful and flattering composition possible, to your personal taste of course.

            The 'Mind's Eye' image is the one that is not going to be captured the first attempt, it might take several attempts, even years to get 'just right.' However, when that image is finally captured the feeling of bliss and excitement is overwhelming. That is when we realize that every bit of effort put forth while chasing the image in the 'Mind's Eye' was always worth it without a doubt. 


Technical details: Canon 7D, Canon 24-105L lens (@28mm), 3-stop reverse graduated neutral density filter, ISO 100, F/22 for Refraction to achieve the 'Sun-Burst' in the image, 2 seconds.