Photography is a craft unlike any other, and there are no limits to its virtuosity. Through selective composition, ordinary objects can become a photographer’s key to form and abstraction, exposure and lighting can illuminate mood and feeling, and ultimately, even the subject itself may guide the story within the frame. The photographs in this week’s selects are prime examples of how people deliberately reveal ingenuity and beauty, no matter what a scene may hold. It takes courage to search for and capture honest moments. A photographer’s intentions, obsessions, and convictions remain on permanent display through the images he or she captures. Playful images reveal a photographer’s aptitude for joy, beautiful scenes expose a photographer’s openness to surroundings, and profound images speak to a photographer’s poetic propensity. Sometimes it may seem frightening how personal and intimate photography can be; in the same way, photography holds no limits, because its power is held in the beautiful complexity that each and every one of us embodies. Bill Brandt, the renowned 20th century photographer whose aberrant style was all his own, alluded to the bounds of photography by saying, “Photography is not a sport. It has no rules. Everything must be dared and tried!” VSCO

I am an unprofressional photographer. I do have a cool camera with all the bells and whistles, because my parents sweetly gifted it to me one Christmas. I’m the family member designated to take photos. I’m the girl who sees the world differently — that which others find trivial, boring, and uneventful inspire me since I have the opportunity to capture them. Technology today — iPhone cameras and the ability to share photos almost instantly — I am borderline obsessed.

In the age of Instagram it’s easy to fall into a trap of “photography insecurity.” This, in my definition, is not sharing a photograph or thought for fear it won’t get that many ‘likes.’ Or deleting a photo after it’s been up for a couple of hours, because it only received 11 likes. I have fallen into that trap before, and quickly became annoyed with myself.  If you’ve ever been there, friend, let me tell you this: post, share, document, photograph whatever fills you with joy. It’s your space, do with it whatever you want. Ignore the number of likes you receive. Be careful to not allow that measure to hinder your desire to share what you see, moments you capture… your life. This full, abundant life God has given.

Hello, freedom. It’s too wonderful.

I become genuinely excited over capturing an interaction, plant, winding path, piece of an old town. Sure, the exciting things as well, but especially the simple things.

“A good snapshot keeps a moment from running away.” Eudora Welty

The beauty of Instagram is that if someone becomes annoyed with all my photo-sharing they can unfollow me. Right? Yes.

I am passionate about photography simply for the sake of photography — capturing sweet and beautiful and fleeting moments. Leaving them raw or editing them to be even more unique that the moment itself.

Words are deep, and useful, powerful, and important… but a photograph just adds something extra.

Anyone else like me?