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The story behind a unique image - Nature draws

April 26th, 2022

The story behind a unique image - Nature draws

The story of this image began in the winter of 2016, between December 1, when Romania's national day is celebrated, on this occasion we had an extended weekend and together with some other photographer friends we organized a tour in an area further away from our hometown Hunedoara, namely in the Ciucas Mountains National Park in the Red Mountain area, at the Silva chalet.

We were lucky to be able to reach the cottage by car and we were not covered in snow, everything was fine and beautiful. When we arrived we each settled in and then we went out to explore the area, we had a few hours until sunset and we were excited that we are in an area where we have not been before and we made plans what we will photograph both at sunset and the next day at sunrise, but the next day our plans would change in the evening. Overnight the weather changed so that it started to snow and the wind blew hard, goodbye sunrise. Of course, this weather kept us in the cottage for a good part of the day. It was a real winter weather outside, blizzard, strong wind and snow. After several hours of looking only through the window of the cottage, I decided to go out to take pictures in these conditions, I knew that this type of weather also offers special and original photographic possibilities.

Two or three more friends took courage and decided to accompany me. I started to enter the nearby spruce forest and I started looking for compositions, frames and take pictures. I was very excited and I liked what the forest looked like in such conditions. After about an hour in the blizzard, I decided to go out to the edge of the forest and take pictures outside of the forest. The wind was still blowing at speeds over 80 km / h and scattering snow in all directions. At one point I saw this frame, with the lone tree and different from the group of spruces on the left, this lone tree was a beech. I framed and shot a few frames, the settings of the device were so that I could catch the moving snow and freeze the moment in a frame that suggested movement and blizzard, to perfectly reproduce the atmosphere on the ground and from that moment. Those settings were F 16, 1/25, ISO 400 and I photographed by hand, anyway at the blizzard that was then, it was impossible to photograph from the tripod. I knew from that moment that I managed to capture a special and unique image. I was very pleased with those moments spent in the middle of nature, in the real winter atmosphere and which offered me unique moments. We all returned to the cottage frozen but happy.

Is a unique image, it's like a pencil drawing but still is a digital photograph. This image shows me a real winter scene in which you seem to feel the cold grip you and enter your bones, but at the same time it gives me a feeling of calm. It's a strange feeling.

The image was awarded at different international photo competitions:

Honorable mention at International Photography Awards (IPA) 2019

Honorable mention at The Perfect Moment Photo Contest 2019 organized by Our World in Focus

2nd place at Photo Contest organized by F64 - theme - Forest 2019

The Snow and Ice Award at International Landscape Photographer of The Year 2017

Bronze Award at The EPSON International Pano Awards 2017

Finalist at TransNatura International Photo Contest 2017

Finalist at Milvus Nature Photography Competition 2016

The Ciucas Mountains is a mountain range in Romania.

The highest peak is Varful Ciucas (Ciucas Peak), at 1,954 meters. The headwaters of the Buzau River, the Teleajen River, the Tarlung River and many others are located there.

In Romania, the Ciucas Mountains are considered part of the Curvature Carpathians. Geologically, according to the divisions of the Carpathians, the range is part of the Moldavian-Muntenian Carpathians, of the larger group of the Outer Eastern Carpathians.

The Cheia village is close to the mountain.

This image is available as an NFT, you can find it here: https://foundation.app/@cosminstan/bofn/1

Creativity In Photography

August 20th, 2021

Creativity In Photography

What is creativity? Where it comes from? What do I need to do to become more creative? These questions are constantly asked. They are important and it is good that they are being discussed.
I think creativity is a product of intelligence. I do not think a creative act can be produced by mediocre people, with minor incidental exceptions. Creativity is a product of desire, thought, experience, experimentation and inner conviction. Taken together these five qualities involve intelligence and commitment.
We will take every one of them, although they are so closely related to each other, that it is often difficult to separate them in a satisfactory way.

1. WISH

It is hard to imagine that creativity happens without a pre-existing desire. The person seeking creativity sees possibilities that others tend to miss. Desire must be an active one, accompanied by actions that accomplish the goal. I do not believe in the "bedtime" approach when you want to be creative. Creativity is something you have to follow, so it will not come to you.
Creativity implies to be original, to do something new, something that has not been done, therefore it involves difficulties. Few things can be done without an active desire to succeed. Creative photography can be made in advance with the subject in question that has been photographed by others, or a subject that has not been photographed, or at least not so. This may involve any aspect of field work, processing methods, presentation methods, and any other variables. Desire must be accompanied by the following element, namely thinking; without thinking and planning the desire is just as useless.

2. THINKING

One of the biggest differences between creative photos and less creative, or occasional photos is thinking that accompanies all aspects of the photographic process.
Each of the many aspects of the photo can change the final image. By chance, a happy accident can produce unexpected results even for a fool, but the fool will not recognize the unexpected originality. Only intelligent individual thinking will do so.
Most often, creativity is based on thoughtful thinking, reasoning, planning and execution, unexpected happenings can be part of the process, but after the initial surprise the effect can be incorporated into future planning in a more controlled manner. This requires thinking, intelligence and understanding, as well as some background knowledge about photography. You do not have to be a good photo historist, but you should know something about the history of photography. There are a few benefits in your work on the idea of "original" just to discover that it has been done in the past, except to refine and improve the techniques and techniques used. Moreover, knowing the history of photography can be a ramp for launching new ideas and real creativity.
Thinking also implies the ability to distinguish real creativity from imaginary creativity. Meanwhile any instant you realize tomorrow has never existed and can therefore be considered as original in a deeper, artistic sense that certainly has existed many times before. To do this requires a verification that truly testifies that it has never been done before, and you also need a good personal perspective.

3. EXPERIENCE

This may turn out to be a two-edged sword. Experience can and should free you from focusing on the trivial mechanical aspects of the photographic process and allows you to focus more on new concepts, techniques and approaches.
Experience will tell you what to expect from most of the things you have done in the past and free you from the concerns of the basics.
However, too often, the experience tends to block you in regularly proven habits and techniques that stifle your creative potential.


4. EXPERIMENTATION

Except for a happy accident, the originality does not come without experimentation. Nothing new comes from standard viewing modes or standard ways to use familiar materials. Keep in mind that experimentation is at risk of failure and most experiments encounter a closed road. You have to be willing to try and fail, then try and fail again, and again, and again. This can be frustrating, time consuming and costly, but it can also be a very rewarding reward when the experiment yields positive results. Experimentation can be random or targeted. You can work to improve the weaknesses in existing work or to expand new horizons. It can take a variety of forms. Even if everything looks good, it's important to test new concepts, new combinations and new approaches simply to avoid stagnation and recharge your own batteries.

5. INNER CONVICTION

Inner conviction means how to express your opinion as you see it and how you want others to see it too. Many photographers take pictures of where others have done this before, but a new vision marks the attempt. Just as each of us has different opinions on any subject, we also see things differently in the photo.
If you feel that your vision even in the most ordinary things is unique, then express it by photographing. This also requires you to do what you want to do, even if the value of work is not immediately recognized by others. That does not mean to follow the trends of the moment, public demands or criticism. It means to be yourself and to follow your inner motives. That means having a sense of purpose and pursuing it with an honest approach. Creativity can be cultivated if it cannot be taught. You have to try to do new and different things, to force yourself, but without putting too much pressure on yourself. There is a difference, a huge difference. There are rare moments when someone can be creative when working under pressure.

Creative photography requires intelligence, flexibility, time and effort. Given these qualities, it can not only be achieved but also improved. Creativity is often the process of combining two variables in a way that has never been tried before, or even combining them with more success than ever before. Unique conditions can make a combination to be exceptional, although the same combination may prove to be useless under other conditions.

In the end I want to say that starting today I will offer a 20% discount for all my images, the offer expires on September 15, 2021. To apply the discount use this code YZNDAL.

Thanks for reading

Discount time

August 17th, 2021

Discount time

Starting today August 17, 2021 I will offer a 20% discount for all my images, the offer expires on September 15, 2021. To apply the discount use this code YZNDAL.

Wow Amazing Facts How Nature Resets Our Minds And Bodies. The Benefits Of Nature Photography In Your Home

May 24th, 2021

Wow Amazing Facts How Nature Resets Our Minds And Bodies. The Benefits Of Nature Photography In Your Home

β—πŸ‘‡ The research behind an understanding that natural environments refocus our attention, lessening stress and hastening healing

Paoli, Pennsylvania, is a small town with a local suburban hospital. Patients at Paoli Memorial recover in a row of rooms facing a small courtyard. In the early 1980s, a researcher visited the hospital and gathered information about patients who had undergone gallbladder surgery between 1972 and 1981. Gallbladder surgery is routine and generally uncomplicated, but most patients in the 1970s recovered for a week or two before they returned home. Some took longer to recover than others, and the researcher wondered whether subtle differences between the hospital rooms might explain this discrepancy. Some of the rooms on one side of the hospital faced onto a brick wall, whereas others slightly farther down the corridor faced onto a small stand of deciduous trees. Apart from their differing views, the rooms were identical.

When the researcher looked at their recovery charts, he was struck by how much better the patients fared when their rooms looked out onto the trees rather than the brick wall. On average, those who faced the brick wall needed an extra day to recover before returning home. They were also far more depressed and experienced more pain. On average, their nurses recorded four negative notes per patient -- comments like "needs much encouragement" and "upset and crying" -- whereas those with a view of the trees warranted negative notes only once during their stay. Meanwhile, very few of the patients who looked out onto the trees required more than a single dose of strong painkillers during the middle part of their stay, whereas those facing the wall required two or even three doses. Apart from their view, the patients were very similar, and they had received identical treatment at the hospital. Each patient with a view of the trees was matched with a patient whose room looked out onto the brick wall, so that their age, gender, weight, status as smokers or nonsmokers, and attending doctors and nurses were controlled as tightly as possible. Since those factors were controlled, the only explanation was that patients who looked out at a stand of trees recovered more quickly because they were lucky enough to occupy rooms with a natural view.

These results are surprising because the effects are so large -- much larger than the effects of many other targeted treatment interventions. By some measures, patients who gazed out at a natural scene were four times better off than those who faced a wall. Strong results usually inspire skepticism, but plenty of studies have shown similar effects. In one of those studies, two environmental psychologists approached 337 sets of parents who lived with their children in five rural communities in upstate New York. They scored the "naturalness" of each family's home, awarding points for natural views, indoor plants, and grass-covered yards. Some of the children had experienced little stress growing up, rarely fighting or getting punished at school, but others were bullied and struggled to get along with their parents. When the researchers measured the happiness and well-being of the students in their study, they noticed that those who had experienced hardship were distressed and lacking in self-esteem -- except when they lived in more natural environments. The presence of nature seemed to buffer them against the stresses that hampered other children who lived in predominantly man-made environments.

Nature restores mental functioning in the same way that food and water restore bodies. The business of everyday life -- dodging traffic, making decisions and judgment calls, interacting with strangers -- is depleting, and what man-made environments take away from us, nature gives back.There's something mystical and, you might say, unscientific about this claim, but its heart actually rests in what psychologists call attention restoration theory, or ART. According to ART, urban environments are draining because they force us to direct our attention to specific tasks (e.g., avoiding the onslaught of traffic) and grab our attention dynamically, compelling us to "look here!" before telling us to instead "look over there!" These demands are draining -- and they're also absent in natural environments. Forests, streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans demand very little from us, though they're still engaging, ever changing, and attention-grabbing. The difference between natural and urban landscapes is how they command our attention. While man-made landscapes bombard us with stimulation, their natural counterparts give us the chance to think as much or as little as we'd like, and the opportunity to replenish exhausted mental resources.

Healers in Japan and Germany have long heralded the benefits of natural therapy, recognizing that humankind has spent 99.99 percent of its history living in natural environments. The Japanese version of natural therapy is shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing, which requires that patients walk for extended periods through forested areas while inhaling woodsy scents that complement the sylvan atmosphere. German Kneipp therapy similarly requires that patients perform physical exercises in forest clearings. These alternative therapies aren't just idle cultural quirks, and researchers have found that patients enjoy a wide range of benefits. Among others, compared with people who walked through urban areas, shinrin-yoku patients had lower blood pressure, lower pulse rates, and lower cortisol levels, a marker of reduced stress. People who are exposed to natural scenes aren't just happier or more comfortable; the very building blocks of their physiological well-being also respond positively to natural therapy.

Natural environments promote calmness and well-being in part because they expose people to low levels of stress. These stressful experiences are tame in comparison with the trials and tribulations that most of us associate with stress -- workplace drama, traffic jams, and wailing children on international plane trips. Humans thrive with some stimulation, but we're incapable of coping with extreme stressors, which push us from the comfortable realm of eustress (good stress) to the danger zone of distress (bad stress).

Interesting locations, including busy natural environments, are so beneficial that physicians have begun to suggest that they might offer a cheap and effective way to lessen the effects of certain cancers. One team of researchers showed that women who were recently diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer were far more capable of completing challenging mental tasks when they immersed themselves in natural environments for two hours each week for approximately two months. The interventions began when the women were diagnosed, and continued beyond surgery into the recovery period. Like many distressed patients who begin to battle life-threatening illnesses, the women struggled to complete difficult mental tasks shortly after they were diagnosed. Those who spent time in natural environments improved progressively, regaining their capacity to devote attention to demanding mental puzzles. Meanwhile, the patients who were not exposed to the nature-based intervention tended to struggle with similar tasks throughout the test period.
Attention is obviously a long way from recovery, but patients with sharper minds often respond better to treatment, stick to their treatment regimens, and behave more proactively during recovery. Of course, nature is not a panacea, but it's an inexpensive and effective tool for dampening the impact of illness, and dulling the intrusion of everyday stress.

Article written by ADAM ALTER – The Atlantic

In conclusion


Study after study show that nature lowers our stress levels and helps us feel happier. The point is, your brain thrives when it gets a regular dose of nature. And when you can’t get out into nature as much as you might like, you might as well do the next best thing and surround yourself with it inside. Filling your home with nature photography will remind your brain of all the things it finds calming, rejuvenating, and healing about the outside world and trigger the same mental boost you might get from a tree-lined jog through the park -- your attitude, your focus, and even your overall mental health will dramatically improve.

High-quality Fine Art Prints, for your home and office walls, many sizes and colors for your home decoration and interior design needs.

Benefits to have my artwork in your house:

πŸ‘‰ create inspiration in the home
πŸ‘‰ elevate spaces by adding sophistication and high-end aestethic
πŸ‘‰ create awarness of the need to focus on the self, meditation and that growth happen from within
πŸ‘‰ your attitude, your focus, and even your overall mental health will dramatically improve
πŸ‘‰ you make your house look more luxurious
πŸ‘‰ you make your living room look more expensive
πŸ‘‰ you can find unique home decor