Familiar Things New

It was right in front of me the whole time, but I didn't see it. Or, to put it more accurately, I'd been seeing it every day for so long that I finally stopped noticing it.

Let me start at the beginning.

With flowers in full bloom in Charlotte last month, I felt the annual urge to capture their beauty. So one day when the lighting was favorable, my camera and I headed to a colorful flower garden in the city.

Unfortunately, there was a slight breeze which I hadn’t noticed until I set up my tripod and moved in tight with the macro lens. Viewed from such a close distance, the flowers were bobbing and weaving significantly in the breeze. Nailing a crisp focus was almost impossible unless I tied the stems to a stake for stability – which was not an option, because touching the flowers in this garden is not allowed.

After about an hour of taking moderately successful shots I walked home, disappointed.

But I soon received a pleasant surprise. I found the elegant, highly cooperative flower I'd been searching for – and it was right in our bedroom at home. An orchid plant sat on a small table, with sunlight streaming through a gauzy white fabric covering the window behind it, providing a soft, sweet back lighting.

How could I have forgotten about this?

The English novelist and illustrator William Thackeray said, “The two most engaging powers of a photograph are to make new things familiar and familiar things new.”

My task with this orchid was to make a familiar thing new – to see it with fresh eyes, as if encountering it for the first time.

I took a moment to appreciate its splendor more fully. I admired the enticing colors and alluring shapes which are designed to attract pollinating insects. How could such a wonder have become invisible to me?

I mounted my camera on a tripod and took just four pictures, making slight adjustments to the focus and composition each time. I was finished in about five minutes, making this one of the easiest photographs I’ve ever taken.

This orchid experience reminded me that we should never stop appreciating things just because they've become steeped in familiarity. Whether it’s a flower in our home or a loved one we've known for many years, it’s all too easy to overlook the beauty and joy that they bring to our lives.

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