a d v e n t u r e

we see. we explore. 

My most recent adventure took me to Washington State and into the Canadian Rockies. Inspired for months about this trip I gazed and I gawped over endless photographs on Pinterest. You could say I got pinterest-obsessed ! I pinned and I pined and I got lost.  

Then.

I saw for myself. I explored. 

Now.

I have something to share with others.

05.31.2015 - 06.12.2015

We started in the United States.

We climbed atop Mt Rainier in Washington State.

"Hiking a volcano has its own set of unexpected thrills." 

We drove. And we drove. Through vastly changing landscapes.

We explored and we saw; glistening mermaid tail lakes, astounding mountains, tall trees and the odd bear.

We ended in Canada.  

"If you have inspiration, you have dreams, you have ambitions, you are motivated. Inspiration can and will, lead to great things."

Listen to this blog via SoundCloud here

Finding Inspiration :

Maybe it is easier for me; as a photographer, I see beauty in shapes and angles, and light. I am also fortunate to have such a vivid imagination and find inspiration in the simplest of forms.

the grain of wood 

in animals

 a map

 a picture

 a cup of tea 

Yes. A cup of tea. 

I can take something like a cup of tea and suddenly imagine myself in a log cabin with the fire roaring and the snow falling outside, suddenly I feel very inspired and warm. If you slow down long enough, you can see beauty and inspiration in anything. 

"inspiration: an inspiring or animating action or influence"

Finding inspiration is one of the most important aspects in life. When life gets you down and you are stuck in a position you despise- you must seek inspiration. To find inspiration, is to find freedom from those things. It is the light at the end of the tunnel. A release. It is being able to breath again.

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"If you have inspiration, you have dreams, you have ambitions, you are motivated. Inspiration can and will, lead to great things."  

So how do you get inspired? For me, it is finding beauty in the simplest of things. It is appreciating and being thankful for little spurts of happiness that glide past us on a daily basis. Someone saying "good morning" to you on the street, or opening the door for you at your local coffee shop. Seeing a dog marching down the street wagging his little tail. Drinking that cup of coffee. In todays society, we move so fast through our daily routines, we are on autopilot. We might be doing the daily commute and arrive at our destination, suddenly it comes over us "how did I get here?" If your life becomes so much of a schedule, a rigid routine and you don't stop to think outside of it, you will not find inspiration. You have to engage with what is happening, literally say to yourself "wake up! Open your eyes"! And you will see inspiration everywhere. Actually taste that cup of coffee, breath in that fresh air, really taste it and feel it. See that dog marching down the street, how happy he is, and just smile. Take it all in. 

"A burst of energy is upon you and suddenly you can and you shall do the things you dream about." 

Once you are inspired, you are unstoppable. Ideas will bounce around and spill out of you. This is when you must write them down or record yourself talking about them. If I go for a walk and I get inspired by the scenery or the smell of the damp wood in the air, I stop, I find somewhere to sit and I look out, I soak it all in. Sometimes I might take a notebook with me on these walks. Ideas come to you when you are inspired. I write. And I write. It could be about something, it could be about nothing. But it is mine, my ideas, my own. Who knows what possibilities could be born out of a few simple sentences.  

Aberdeenshire, Scotland. One of my favourite walks when I am at home in Scotland. 

If, for some reason I can't get outside for that inspirational walk. I read, or I turn to something like Pinterest or Twitter. I read articles about inspiring people, I look at photographs of inspiring things. I ask myself questions everyday, and I answer them. I make a conscious effort everyday to feel inspired.  

 

How do you find Inspiration?

What would you do if you had all the money in the world? How would you live your life differently?

Ask yourself -

"If I had all the money in the world, how would I live my life differently?"

Well, some people might just answer that with, "I want a big house, flash car, flat screen TV, swimming pool (insert endless list of material things) and to sit on my bum and drink and eat, party and get taxied around all day, oh and have people do everything for me." But most people, (I would like to think) would start doing what makes them happy everyday, things that make others happy. They would fulfill their dreams of traveling the world or getting a degree, starting their own company, help others less fortunate, or to finally be able to start and bring up a family.

For me, it might sound strange, but if I had all of the money in the world, I would still want to do exactly what I am doing. I might be able to achieve my goals a little quicker, which would be nice, or be able to fly home when I wanted to see my mum, but alas you also have to try and enjoy the journey while you are living it. And flying back and forth to Scotland would not be an ideal solution for my odd homesickness.

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My journey, the short version- It started with photography which then led to an interest in Interior Architecture and Design. Drawing Floor Plans led to space planning and the combination of all these things, has then driven me towards 3D Modeling and now; 3D Laser Scanning. Pause. This is when I laugh. 

My family industry/business background is laser scanning, surveying, manufacturing. It is ironic that with all of my ideas to pivot away from this industry, follow my own path, that was completely and utterly removed from said industry, to have actually looped full circle and found myself back to where I started. But this makes me very happy. I was lucky enough to go out and explore the world, find my own path, and not be pushed into something I didn't want to do. Growing up, I saw the technology as exciting but the industry, dare I say it? Boring. Dinner table conversations were about surveying, quarrying, mining, distances, measurements; so you can understand, this is not exciting or inspirational conversation to a teenager.

It wasn't until I could start to relate the technology to something that really interested me. Architecture, Interior Design and Photography. It would seem, the world is indeed, a small place and everything and everyone is intertwined. I feel that as technology advances, the world is going to become a much smaller place, where all industries connect and people, relate. This in turn helps with that odd homesickness. :)

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"If I had all the money in the world, how would I live my life differently?"  

I read the question again. If money were no object, I would allow myself to be educated as much as possible, not just in the terms of receiving a degree and to get that well paid job. For the degree is only a piece of paper and that well paid job is not guaranteed, and at the end of the day, you might despise it anyway. But I want to be educated for me, my benefit, for what I want to learn; my passions and my personal goals. A short course, a training session, a workshop, a convention. I think degrees are fantastic and I would probably do another, but they should be catered for the individual, not for the system. (More on this in a later blog.) The trick, is to keep on advancing yourself at every opportunity. I think the best thing we can get out of life, is knowledge. If I hadn't have been involved in those said 'boring' dinner conversations growing up, I probably would not know as much about laser scanning technologies as I do now. And surprise surprise, I have started to use this knowledge. Discovering what I really would change if money were no object has made me realize, I live to be educated, inspired, excited and passionate about what I do. Do not take anything for granted, learn from every situation, from every person, from every job you do, no matter what it is or who they are. For what you learn or who you meet along the way, will probably inevitably, help you in your future. 

 What would you do if you had all the money in the world? How would you live your life differently?