Calm

Mystery

No I do not think we went overboard…

The great thing about American cities is that you do not have to travel the world in order to see different continents. It is all there laid out for you. Even better, you get to experience China the way it was in 60’s. This picture is just showing how versatile one place can be with Italian Barber, John’s baber shop, Van Phong Dich Vu etc etc.

Estonia

Last year me and my friend made a trip through Estonia. I did not make a lot of pictures. But I did make few which you can see here. So, this will be a very subjective portrayal of Estonia.

If you ask me what Estonia is like, I would probably say that it is mostly about nature…for me. Even most Estonian towns somehow look like they just got lost in the nature.

Surely, we have at least one Soviet block building in each village but still, perhaps oddly, those have somehow become part of the nature for me. And many remains of old kolkhozes just in the middle of nowhere…

 

Estonian nature is not grand. I was always amazed while I was still living in US. Americans, for them going to the nature means you need to see something grand. You need to be entertained. Estonian nature is not really about entertainment…well unless you have problems with heart and are afraid of being overstimulated. I would say quite the contrary, Estonian nature is about peace. I don’t think I have ever felt so calm anywhere else.

 

I think part of it must be about the feeling of home for me. I guess we are still conditioned to feel comfortable in certain environments. But I don’t think my evaluation is entirely subjective here. It is not that I don’t enjoy other types of nature, other countries…they just give out a different vibe. US, as mentioned, gives a vibe of grandness…You know, go big or go home. Southern Germany gives a vibe of organization…they have even managed to organize their nature. Eastern Germany give a vibe of abandonment…as if nature is saying – we once had civilization and wealth here.

But it is more difficult to give an answer as to why Estonian nature broadcasts calamity. I guess part of it is my cultural background here which tells me to respect old trees etc….But… I think part of it is about skies. Estonia has great skies…clouds…openness. The sea oddly feels calming even if its stormy. I guess partially because of colors…Estonian sea is never too bright, never too dark, it is just these muted colors.  Even then somehow the sound of waves feels calming enough.

It is quite interesting therefore to see what is happening in Estonia over the last twenty years….All this rushing for the next great thing. Estonia is a future oriented country. In comparison East Germany is a past oriented community. One believes all the great things were in the past, the other feels all the great things are in the future.

Estonian rush for success is luckily not still in the level of US. But there is some angst and dissatisfaction driving people forward. But there are still inklings from the calamity. Estonians know how to relax, how to zoom out. This zooming out almost always contains pieces of nature…Nature is an important part of most Estonians lives.

 

Crossroads

Today I listened to Cody Jinks song heavy load quite a bit. The song has this verse

The train jumped track some time ago
You can’t root that heavy load
It’s all downhill from now
And sure we paid the toll
Train jumped track some time ago

And it is not necessarily that I feel like there is something terribly wrong with my life and everything is downhill from now. However, what I feel the song captures very well is the far reaching effect of some decisions. You know you made one decision years ago and it set you to the road which is very difficult to revert from now. In your mind you sometimes go back to this decisive moment and imagine your life completely different. You will never know what would have happened but it is scary how crucial some moments in life can be…

Childhood optimism

What I have gained in wisdom over the years I have lost in naivety and idealism…..Sometimes I do not know if this is a fair price.

Something mundane right infront of you

I have been into macro photography since forever. I find it facinating what kind of world opens up to you when you focus on little things.

I am usually not the one for details. I like to see the big picture…generalize, stereotype, so perhaps this is why this experience with this little world that is out there totally unexplored is so exhilarating. It is hard for me to switch out, just be present. My mind is constantly racing. But I feel during these few stolen moments I can.

The pain of the beauty

There are moments when you have this person coming to your life and suddenly everything looks so bright. The colors are so strong that they hurt your eyes. You feel like again, you live. The world is changing and twisting in front of your eyes.

Time for new macro

I feel that when you take a closer look at the insects, especially dragonflies, you get the sense that they, as humans have character. That must sound weird, but to me they really become persons, individuals. This is why I prefer to take direct shots of them.

the sea

If I could choose one love of my life that would probably be the sea. I have never been able to imagine living far away from the sea….it just feels crowded. I would miss the openness, the winds and freshness. If I could name my favorite object for taking picture it would probably also be the sea. I do not know other object that would be so changaeble and would give chance for so many versatile picture. Even during the same day.

This picture itself presents the sea of summer night. It is warm, calm and inviting. one can forget mundane troubles as one lets the waves carry oneself. Suddenly there is nothing else besides you and the sea.