Our world is filled with beauty…much of it obvious and in plain sight. Most everyone would agree that nature provides us with many wondrous, awe-inspiring, and magnificent sights such as sunrises, sunsets, rainbows, flowers, mountains, oceans, forests, birds, water falls, glaciers, clouds, etc. There are also many man-made things around us, such as architecture, paintings, sculpture, hot air balloons, stylish vehicles, stained glass, lighthouses, etc. which delight and tantalize our eyes.
While there’s an abundance of beauty in our world that’s obvious and all around us, there’s also beauty to be found in unexpected places which are not thought of as beautiful or attractive. In fact, there are some things in this world that most people, including myself, would consider to be ugly, unattractive, distasteful, or at the least…ordinary and mundane.
What if we challenged our perceptions about beauty and took a closer look? I started doing that several years ago and was amazed at how ordinary things turned out be extraordinary when I took a closer look.
I started off with photographing reflections in puddles of water, as well as the debris in and around the water. At first glance I’d notice trash, pieces of glass, and other odd things scattered around, and the puddles and debris didn’t seem to reveal anything beautiful; however, once I looked closer everything changed. When I observed and photographed my surroundings in greater detail I saw the beauty in and around the puddles, as well as in the discarded items left behind by others. Then after exploring small puddles of water, I started taking a closer look at the reflections in the small creeks and streams I’d come across. Again, I was amazed at the beauty I found…beauty I had previously not really noticed.
Then I started photographing dumpsters. I was fascinated with the incredible rusty, scratched, dirty, and graffiti-covered surfaces that looked amazingly beautiful once I got closer and really looked. A whole new world opened up to me, and though the dumpsters were a bit on the stinky side at first, I eventually stopped noticing the noxious smells once I became absorbed in photographing the textures. Taking pictures of trash cans and dumpsters is one of my favorite things. It’s exciting to explore all the details on those surfaces!
My search for unnoticed, unseen, and unexplored beauty then took me to smudges on glass. I didn’t make a conscious decision to photograph them like I did with puddles and dumpsters, but rather I stumbled across them one day when I was really trying to be open-minded to the unobserved beauty around me. When I found the incredible world of smudges, I was ecstatic! Here was another fantastic world right under my nose and right in front of my eyes, but it had gone unnoticed my entire life. Now that I know it’s there, I can be delighted and amused by their stories any time I choose! 
There are also numerous stories and unlikely beauty to be found in shadows, and while I have always been aware of shadows, I never really thought of shadows as being complex or intriguing…that is until one day when I looked up on the wall and saw the most amazing shadows I’d ever seen. I was fascinated at their complexity and intricacy, and I wondered how I could have missed their beauty and how they dance and play with light. It’s not like I wasn’t exposed to them. I remember my mom making shadow puppets on the wall, but those days were long forgotten until recently when I rediscovered the dark beauty of the Shadowlands.
While the shadows like to dance and play with light, light rays, on the other hand, prefer to dance and play on water surfaces, as well as other surfaces near the water. As a child, I was fascinated with caustics, but then as I grew older, I somehow stop noticing them. I don’t know why, but perhaps it was because their beauty wasn’t as obvious as flowers, clouds, sunrises, etc. Then one day a few years ago, just as I rediscovered the beauty and complexity of shadows, I also rediscovered the incredible world of caustics, and I must admit, they take my breath away. When I see the sun rays dancing on the water, I feel immense joy. It’s hard to explain why caustics leave me breathless, but they do. I love trying to capture the glimmering light, and the amazing patterns which present themselves to me as their stories unfold.
As I continue my exploration, continuing to looking beyond the obvious, I’m quite sure I will find other elements of beauty that may have been overlooked, unnoticed, or forgotten. I’ve no doubt that my journey will lead me to many interesting discoveries , as well as beautiful stories which are embedded within the fabric of this fascinating world of ours. We only have to believe and be open to seeing them because they’re right there…just waiting to be noticed.
Lovely photos Sheila, and subjects close to my own heart. The beauty in everyday details. Your last section reminds me how I used to tease the canteen lady at college, by asking for coffee with milk, but no sugar or caustic curve. Ah, the wit of youth!
Thanks so much for looking, Lois, and also for you kind words about my pictures!
Ha ha about the coffee with no sugar or caustic curve! I can only wish that I had any with at all…in my youth or in my middle-aged years. 
I try, but unfortunately, my wit is wit-less. 
Thanks again, Lois. 