Introspective Lenses 4 Life

A philosophical observation derived from a few of my photographs.

Is it perception that leads to perspective, or is it perspective that shapes perception?

Are they intertwined to form a lasting bond?

Is it one layer upon another, or are there layers within each other?
What is truth?
(Did you notice that I do not ask what is the truth?)
Where do you look?
How do you look?
How do you choose?
What do you perceive?
Riddle me, please.

Little by little and step by step.
The picture unfolds its mysteries.
For there, within, experience speaks. Wordless.
To each perception, a perspective’s bias.
To each perspective, a bias in perception.

Mountain range alongside Hwy 63 outside of Geiranger, Norway.
Why did I zoom in on this mountain peak section?
What was I trying to capture?
Where did your eyes first gravitate?
How do light and dark, and shapes play a role in layering your thoughts?
How does a border, chosen by me, affect your viewing experience?
What would you do differently? Why?
Is there a difference in the way you perceive my wordless expression between borderless and border perspectives?
What words or feelings immediately come to mind when you focus on the horizon?
Does anything change for you by looking again, this time from another vantage point, land to sky/sea or sky/sea to land, wherever your eyes did not take you first? What about from the horizon to the edges?
How does this relate to perception and perspective?

Following the same process of philosophical observation, I invite you to find your vantage point as you are drawn to the horizon, taking time to stop with me. Find your unique perception and perspective.

Would you include a border?
How would you choose a border, size, shape and colour?
Is this how perspective finds a voice?

“The Eyes of the Sky Coming For Me.”

Why not, “The Eyes of the Sky Watching Me”? How do the slight changes alter the horizon or change the context”

I believe that once I label one of my photographs, or identify its location, it has the power to automatically touch your field of vision, shifting and shaping your perception. I do this however, to share with you a part of me, my thought process, and the effect a photograph has upon me.

I encourage you to discover yourself by observing and questioning the photograph. I do not edit or use filters. My photography is like me. Remember though, the eyes see more deeply and further afield.

A photograph is to the eyes what words are to an experience.

Looking out to the distant horizon from Honningsvåg Beach, Norway

Karlsøy Municipality from the Norwegian Sea to Tromsø, Norway

Touching horizons, mountains, and sea,
a place of tranquility for me.
Under a blanketing sky of grey
the water reflects shadows today.
Across a fjord, rays of sunlight
brighten the view, perceptible light.

Who/what is the author of your truth? Perception? Perspective?
Is truth relative to the experience and interpretation of life’s happenings?
Is there a weight hanging low over you?
Are you able to discern shades of perspective that alter your perception of reality?
What is reality? Is it a matter of perceptible perspectives, temporarily altering your relationships with your horizons and therefore life’s happenings?

Where do you perceive horizons?
What emotions do they provoke?
How do you evaluate them?
Near or far?
In or out of focus?
Will they touch?
Is it necessary?
Peripheral or proximal?
What do you perceive?
How difficult it is to hear your own voice.

I find mine in listening to the sights and sounds I try to capture in my photographs. I perceive truth in natural landscapes where I feel as one with the lessons I understand for me. I am much more aware of how perspectives and life’s happenings opened my heart, mind, and soul to the horizons I touch. It’s a spiritual awakening wherein I breathe the freshness of perspectives acknowledged, adjusted, and accepted for their part in my life of exploration, knowledge, truth, and peace with myself and those around me, tangible and intangible.

© All rights reserved. Vicki Nicholls 2025