She was beautiful. A woman in her sixties, she was sitting by the window in the sunlight, wearing a light green cardigan over a lemon yellow sweater which clashed wonderfully with her red hair. I wanted to go up to her and ask to take her photo, but instead I stood watching her until my coffee was ready, and then I walked out past her and headed to work. 

I strongly believe that life is too short to be in a hurry. If you can’t avoid the trip from A to B, why not make sure you enjoy it, even if that means the trip takes a little longer? If you have to perform a task, why not do it as well as you can in order to be proud of it? Photography is staying open to receive images from the world, and maintaining that openness takes time. Time to notice, time to pause, consider and – maybe – press the shutter button. Time to keep your line of sight clear of everything else happening in your life – or time to process what you see through your experiences, be they good or bad. 

Day after day so far in September the sun has been shining, with temperatures way above 20 degrees Celsius in the afternoons. I catch myself looking forward to cooler weather. I love this in-between time, when it is – at least usually – cold enough to get out the scarves and gloves that have been forgotten over the summer, but not cold enough to require cumbersome coats and boots (don’t get me started on why I hate winter). Normally during autumn I revel in russet and red and yellow and orange, the warm colours of the sunlight and the changing trees, but this year I am drawn to black and white, a shift that usually doesn’t happen for me until November. Sure I have got images with those perfect autumn tones that I wouldn’t dream of converting, but many others beg for a monochrome treatment. I think it’s because the black and white brings out the purity of this light.

What is the light like in your life right now? Feel free to share in the comments.

˜ All the best from Jenny Graver.