visual seeing

Hey everyone,

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I've found some interesting and inspiring discussion groups on the photo editing/organizing site www.flickr.com

Miksang

means "good eye". It is a form of meditative photography whereby the photographer works with both the eye and the mind in the process of awakening one's perception. The flickr site offers Miksang images from students, teachers, interested folks. I appreciate this Buddhist approach to capturing a vision, as I feel it is important for the ease-of-impulse to snap a picture to slow itself down by exercising an amount of mindfulness (thoughtfulness) of feeling, questioning and knowing about a particular perception: breaking it down.

There are 3 levels of the Miksang approach. The first, "Looking: The Phenomenal World" focuses on what makes up the visual sight: colors, shapes, textures. Some and here make me step back and rethink about how I see composition in nature.

The second, "Seeing: Appreciating the Phenomenal World" appears to build upon concepts uncovered in Level 1, yet looks and examines further into connections between the perceptions of visual elements and forms and space. Two tiers, 2A "Dot in Space", 2B "Fields of Perception". The eye and mind should be linked by now, much like driving a standard vehicle or riding a fixed gear bicycle, a communion will allow for deeper exploration to occur, such as by adding different insights: Chinese + Japanese aesthetics along with classic Edward Weston photographs. I.E.,

It would be interesting to have the students of Visual Seeing practice the 1st Level and then delve into subjects like "summer" or "my parents world and my own". Student specific foci must be emphasized, although class themes can apply to all.

The 3rd Level "Perceiving: The Play of the Phenomenal World" gears the Miksang student up to follow his or her understanding, rid of doubt, and come through and be the perception. To quote: "By completly trusting the unconditional power of the gap of perception one drops reference points and connects with the phenomenal world on its own terms." (here In addition continual work in learning about other types of aesthetics and approaches expands to a serious inquiry into a "way of seeing".

The Miksang practice appears to be an intensive study into the person behind the camera as much as it pauses and meditates on what is in front. What I hope to take away from learning about Miksang is not what I initially chalked it up as (to inform notions of composition) but to consider the letters I am typing right now; their shapes and my fatigue in this heat).

They ain't birds!