Photo Cruise

As I am a huge fan of cruising I would like to invite you to join me on an Eyespiraton Photo Cruise.  

Get inspired by all that's around you. Feel and absorb the energy of all things, See details you'd normally miss. No more anxiety or stress.  Even on the busiest ship or in the busiest city, Eyespiration can be found.

Eyespiration is the cure to stop you feeling lost. I am able to travel to any part of the world to teach you to See with Fresh, Pure Eyes: Eyespiration.

I can teach you to find your calm using your smartphone or camera. If you do not want to take photos, feel free to take what I call 'mind pictures'.

Being a Life Coach, Photographer and Visual Consultant I will guide you trough the process of Eyespiration. Eyespiration - being inspired by what you See - is found anywhere in the world.

By choosing a cruise you'll combine business with pleasure, a vacation with daily consultancy and coaching workshops. Write off your vacation by hiring photographer and life coach Melanie E. Rijkers.

Sunrise Eyespiration

See Life from a different perspective

Wouldn't it be cool if you are able to find innerpeace by'just looking' at life with Pure, Fresh Eyes? I will teach you how to focus on the present moment, and feel more connected to life than ever before. 

It's not mediation, though the outcome will be a very peaceful state of mind.

We will ground, connect with the place and the people around us. You will not feel alone again, no more anxiety, just Seeing and experiencing Pure (Self) Love. Join me on this Journey of Hope, Healing & Health.

If you feel lost and are grieving the loss of a loved one, plz join our seminar at sea: the Bereavement Cruise 19-26 April 2020. I will be presenter and will lead Eyespiration Photo Walks onboard and a beachwalk in Cococay.

I also often attend a spiritual cruise, and will happily lead you through that process of joining one. My first ever cruise was an Alaskan cruise and I still long to go back. 

Being in the moment 

Mindfulness is everywhere, but in Alaska... you cannot miss feeling the connection. I hope to be onboard the Beyond Words Cruise to Alaska June 2020.

If you'd like to join me, please shoot me an e-mail. 

Mind, Body, Spirit Coaching: Eyespiration workshop are 1 to 3 hours per day. We will watch the sunrise and sunset, and take a mindful  photography walk, even in a busy spot I'll teach you how to connect to the moment and experience stillness.

Stillness of the heart.

Join me at any cruise. Or retreat. Based in Amsterdam area I can also guide your trip to Ibiza, Mediterranean Sea, Greece, Italy or Bruges, Belgium. London and Paris are my backyard, here I lead heaps of Eyespiration photo walks.

Experience the Simple Life. Learn to See Pure. As a business owner you can write off the entire trip, even a cruise or retreat.

© Melanie E. Rijkers 2019

www.Eyespiration.com

Dutch: PuurZien.nl 

Pink skies and water, Eyespiration photo walk, day 3

 Pink skies and water Eyespiration, day 3 Sunrise Photo Walk San Francisco Bay Bridge.

1. Greet the day. Go watch the sun rise and let the light surprise you. Being in the moment was never more easy. © Eyespiration.com  Photo Walk 1.1 Morning mindfulness

E-book videos Mindfulness Photography

 #SFWC18 Building your brand: I just started with uploading the videos that go together with the first (free) chapter of my #Eyespiration e-book. © www.Eyespiration.com

Reflection and the Bay Bridge, day 3

© Eyespiration.com
Photo Walk 1.1 Morning mindfulness

Photo Walk day 3: clouds in colour

 © Eyespiration.com  
Photo Walk 1.1 Morning mindfulness

Reflection. The Pink. Day 3

 Day 3. Pink sky and water. San Francisco Bay Bridge.

© Eyespiration.com  Photo Walk 1.1 Morning mindfulness

Sunrise San Francisco Bay Bridge - photo walk day 2

 © Eyespiration.com 
Photo Walk 1.1 Morning mindfulness

Dancing Reflection. San Francisco Bay Bridge Eyespiration

 Reflection. Watching the sun rise. San Francisco Bay Bridge is mesmerising.

© Eyespiration.com  Photo Walk 1.1 Morning mindfulness

Photo Walk day 2: calm water

 Sunrise Eyespiration Photo Walk San Francisco Bay Bridge. 1. Greet the day. Go watch the sun rise and let the light surprise you. Being in the moment was never more easy.

© Eyespiration.com  Photo Walk 1.1 Morning mindfulness

Photo Walk day 1: wild water

 Sunrise Eyespiration Photo Walk San Francisco Bay Bridge. 1. Greet the day. Go watch the sun rise and let the light surprise you. Being in the moment was never more easy.

© Eyespiration.com  Photo Walk 1.1 Morning mindfulness

SFWC 2017 Eyespiration Photo Walk

Way cool pic of my Eyespiration Photo Walk for Writers at the San Francisco Writers Conference February 2017, taken by Marjoleine van Nunen, thnx! 

#Eyespiration: backlight through bride's veil 

I am explaining how to See the Light coming through the bride's veil (top photo). Bottom photo shows a quick phone pic of the situation. The backlight is so beautiful, creating a light silhouette of the bride - white wedding dress and veil work very well.

I was leading a writers inspiration walk at the San Francisco Writers Conference, when we encounterd this wedding couple on the steps of St. Grace Catherdral on top of Nob Hill. With an open mind and perception you can really See the Beauty of the World.

#Eyespiration is mindfulness with your camera, using even phones to capture the beauty of the world around us. You can join my photo walks all over the world, or book me for private sessions and masterclasses. 

www.MelanieRijkers.com 

#SWFC16 San Francisco Writers Conference 2016 Event Photography

San Francisco Writers Conference 2016

Together with Michel Switzar of DutchLines.nl I attended, photographed and lead the Writers Photo Walk at the SFWC in February 2016. As always the energy is vibrant and the speakers, agents, publishers and writers are fab!

Check out my photo series of Presidentsday weekend:

See, share, like all 300+ photos on Facebook, Flickr and Google+





© Artstudio23.com (ft. DutchLines)

MOVED!

Looking for my older (English) blogs? Check PhotographerWanted.blogspot.com

This blog will be my writer's blog (in Dutch) from now on,
welcome!

Loving Vivian Maier

'Finding Vivian Maier' - Yesterday I finally watched the documentary. What a remarkable woman. I loved her work, right from the start, when this film wasn't made yet and Mr. Maloof was still searching for her. Her images are addictive and it's kind a funny that we (I assume most people who love her work feel this too) are waiting for new work to be published as kids waiting for Santa. Excited!!

It was good to see Mr. Maloof's work and effort, as I until now only read about in online. And how very funny that the kids she used to be the nanny of, gave such different destriptions of her. She must have been troubled by deeper thoughts, most likely something happened to her as a child and screwing her head up about men, and life in general too.

"I am a spy" she said. And she most likely meant it. She was a hoarder. Collecting sound (interviewing people in the supermarket) and 8mm film next to all the beautiful photos she took. She was a dark, closed person, but via her work she tells you who she is. It's sad she died poor, but when you learn about the tax payments cheques still being kept in her belongings, I think it's her screwed up head that most likely said "do not take that money from the government". She still lived a fairly free life, no husband, no kids.

Than the story about her newspapers, piles of them, OMG, you've seen people like this before on tv. And nothing may be thrown out, as "It's to be used later". The newspapers she collected were all about dark subjects too, crime, murder, rape. She was always looking for this darker side of society, like taking one of the girls she was babysitting to a slaughter house to take photos and film footage of. Or taking photos first, of the boy who got run over by a car, instead of comforting him being his nanny.

Poor woman. She must have felt not alone, but with too many. She most likely was a bit schitzo, but aren't we all?!? I don't think she felt alone, I think she was just scared. Scared of the big, angry world, and without a parent raising her not to be afraid, she turned out like this. All the kids still remember little off things she did. 'Accidents', but not really.

And she kept taking all these photos. She really was a ZIENer, like me. I see. She sees. It's not the camera, it's her vision. Her vision of the world. And in her case: the darker side of it. As if a lot of things she ran into (on the street) were crazy. To her, the world was a crazy place.

And I feel sad for her. I am a ZIENer who looks for the beauty in life, happiness is there, on every corner, but people don't SEE (it). I can tell you how to see and get positive energy from life, not to be scared of it. The Miksang Contemplative Photography I now teach, helps people to see the positive side of the crazy, mad world. I wish I could've talked to her 20 years ago. I wish I could've inspired her to lighten up, just a little.

The two best moments of the documentary for me were the photos of her world trip, that selfie of her, standing on deck, of a sea ship. That was the first real happy photo of her, with a SMILE and happiness in her eyes. As in a lot of the other selfies she's looking away, or she looks into the camera with that troubled view... Dear Vivian, what on earth was troubling you? What happened that you turned out this dark? Abandoned by her family, or maybe even assaulted?

I wish she could've seen the shows that are here now, with all of her photos. I think the reaction of people to her work would've brightened her day, her mind, her soul. The second best moment of the documentary is the moment in that little French village of her, where her work is exhibited and this fragile, very old lady sees her (diseased) husband in one of the photos. Heart breaking, the way she reacts. And for her daughter who's witnessing this too, a priceless moment! This is a moment they will never forget and think back of with nothing but joy and happiness. Positive energy.

Vivian, you can make people feel like this. I can make people feel like this. It's a gift and I feel sad you weren't able to witness the effect your pictures have on the public. People are moved by your work. It's a valuable historic document, but it's also a very good vision of this crazy world.

Vivian, I love you. I hope you have now found the peace you were looking for. 

Thank you for showing us the world from your eyes.

One of my own 'Vivian Maier' street photos - selfie at Venice Beach 2014

City trip Los Angeles #ikzieikzie

Venice Beach - Miksang moments

Social Media Week Rotterdam 2014

This week it's Social Media Week in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. I offered to tutor my Mindfulness with Photography Workshop, so I did yesterday and will do tomorrow again. It was a lot of fun!

The key word for social media now seems te be 'ambassador', as this is what your clients / fans / reposters / likers are.

Isabel Mosk of Think! spoke about destination marketing and how to use your (city) ambassadors, have them create stories. Storytelling was another key word of the #smw14 

To look at someone's travel pics makes you want to go to that destination, did you know the most stories on Facebook are about travel (stories) and that people admit when seeing a friend's holiday pictures it inspires them to go to that destination.

The Destination Experience - like Bristol's taxis were hospitality trained and now also function as tourist info points.

When she showed the video Canada explored by Canadians I immediately thought that even though residents (amateurs) created all footage, you really need a team editing those shots into one flashing, cool video. Professional image makers know how to.

Remarkable stories are shared. Make sharing accessible - cities who provide free wifi have more online (free) content - I immediately had to think of my own city Breda. A few years ago there was a city marketing campaign, but now not so much. Breda Next only just started ('city making') and I thought why not think of a good # for Breda and free wifi will do the rest.

We are the city of image culture, and I learned at MOTI image culture is all around us. Breda should be remarkable. Rovaniemi, Lapland - home of Santa -  does a really good job! Use passionate niches.

Two of my photos on the wall

Michele Boccamazzo talked about Philips' Instagram campain: 

people who follow you want to know about your experience. Again: storytelling. 

Q: How can Philips design an experience on Instagram? As a start they just reposted content, not creating new content. Then the #led story of a lady going to work in city was introduced - as street lights change the city - from yellow to white. People started a conversation online when noticing the difference.

Latest campaign #lightislife is slightly different, Philips took the concept light as start - Philips being the light company - but also without light there is no photography and 'light is also hope'. Philips wants to inspire people in another way instead of selling the product. Inspiration by storytelling but not only by photographs. 

Influencers are not photographers, it's not just about pictures.

Now I ask myself: What do we need to be then? We ARE image makers, making image culture. But: 

A photo says more than a 1000 words. We must never forget - as #beeldinflatie (image inflation) is here now.

How do you to choose the right content?? By hiring an image maker as advisor, not so much as content creator, more like an editor!

English will be Dutch

My name is Melanie E. Rijkers - pronounce Rikers - I am a ZIENer. Ziener is a Dutch word for prophet. I am not the prophet who predicts, but I am a human being who SEES what other people don't (see).

ZIENer in Dutch is also 'person who sees'. ZIEN = to SEE. Capitals, as people often look at the world, but don't really SEE it. My faith is to make all of you see, the beauty of this world. SEE and feel its positive energy.

Mindful? Yes, very. But also very Miksang. In Tibetian "Good, Pure Eye". Pure contemplative photography.

My photography shows subjects of life as they are, SEEN as they are. Struck by its beauty or remarkable appearance, in detail often, life is photographed by me. Pure, real people and places. I love the world - and yes, I travel a lot. Check out my photos on my Flickr account.

Follow my Tweets and Instagram. I will keep you posted and hope to inspire you by my positivity. 

Just my brain - photo: Julian Cash - light painting of me at a SFMusicTech in San Francisco

Vivian Maier

http://www.vivianmaier.blogspot.nl/

"I acquired Vivian's negatives while at a furniture and antique auction while researching a history book I was co-authoring on Chicago's NW Side. From what I know, the auction house acquired her belongings from her storage locker that was sold off due to delinquent payments. I didn't know what 'street photography' was when I purchased them.

It took me days to look through all of her work. It inspired me to pick up photography myself. Little by little, as I progressed as a photographer, I would revisit Vivian's negatives and I would "see" more in her work. I bought her same camera and took to the same streets soon to realize how difficult it was to make images of her caliber. I discovered the eye she had for photography through my own practice. Needless to say, I am attached to her work.

After some researching, I have only little information about Vivian. Central Camera (110 yr old camera shop in Chicago) has encountered Vivian from time to time when she would purchase film while out on the Chicago streets. From what they knew of her, they say she was a very "keep your distance from me" type of person but was also outspoken. She loved foreign films and didn't care much for American films.

Some of her photos have pictures of children and often times it was near a beach. I later found out she was a nanny for a family on the North Side whose children these most likely were. One of her obituaries states that she lived in Oak Park, a close Chicago suburb, but I later found that she lived in the Rogers Park neighborhood.

Out of the more than 100,000 negatives I have in the collection, about 20-30,000 negatives were still in rolls, undeveloped from the 1960's-1970's. I have been successfully developing these rolls. I must say, it's very exciting for me.
I found her name written with pencil on a photo-lab envelope. I decided to 'Google' her about a year after I purchased these only to find her obituary placed the day before my search. She passed only a couple of days before that inquiry on her.

I wanted to meet her in person well before I found her obituary but, the auction house had stated she was ill, so I didn't want to bother her. So many questions would have been answered if I had." - John Maloof

Wow... how can you do that, take 25,000 photos and not develope them... in this days of age we're able to immediately see what the photo looks likt, as it appears on the lcd screen of the camera... how exiting this must have been for Mr. Maloof. 25,000 Undeveloped negatives... wish I has been there to see it all with my own eyes.

Am a sucker for old photos...just love 'em!

Vivian Maier - New York

www.vivianmaier.com

World Wide Photo Walk 2013

We'll be guiding the Breda walk of Scott Kelby's annual world wide photo walk 2013! 

Mood boards for wedding photography ...or better not?

....It’s incredible how Pinterest has taken the wedding industry by storm. My husband and I have always been, and still are, big supporters of Pinterest. It has been such an incredible tool for our business and has helped so many brides find our work. It can be a great place for brides to gather wedding ideas, color schemes, flowers they love, etc. It wasn’t until recently though, have we started seeing the negative affects of Pinterest on wedding photography.

Pinterest can discourage the creative process, as states above photographers via Petapixel.

Well,

we can and are able to (re) create all #pinterest wedding images, as long as clients pay us for it... and THERE'S the problem... like the bride on the bed mentioned in the article. That's a completely styled moment, like an ad, with no real documentary moment in it, but a well thought concept.
When I make quotes for weddings like this, my clients are shocked. But they do bring in a mood board and yes, then the budget is like those for a commercial shoot in an advertising campaign: multiple the quote of a documentary wedding... 

www.Artstudio23.com is willing to shoot any wedding, anywhere in the world, € 1500,- per day + travel expenses. Also if you are really looking for something different, out of the box images. Or perhaps a Trash The Dress shoot afterwards? Been there, done that, multiple times.

We are flexible, out going photographers who are experienced and we will guarantee perfect wedding album photogrpahy. Based in the Netherlands, but we are working world wide.