For Newbies Only: Use Your Camera to Capture My Imagination

Words without images are like eating a hardboiled egg without salt.  You'll get some good out of it, but the experience won't be very satisfying.

My mind (yours too) doesn't understand words.  It understands images. 

We don't think in words, you and I.  We think in images.  A story is a series of images.  So is a movie.  So is your brain. 

A still photo like the one on the right captures your imagination without words.  Immediately, you understand what's happening and who the characters are.  Your mind says "That eagle's in a world of trouble."

We don't think in words; we think in images.  I'll bet you think that's crazy talk. 

Your mind just created an image of crazy talk. It's likely that you couldn't describe the image easily--that's because your mind has to work to convert the image into words, and words are not your mind's native language.  Images are the language of the soul.

As a blogger, you'll soon reach the point where you wonder why people don't comment on what you've labored to write.  It's because you didn't engage their mind before it (their mind) took them some place more interesting.

My web designer, Donte' Ormsby, talks about that interest (or lack thereof) as "stickiness."  When you come to one of Donte's web pages, he wants you to stop for a second.  He's taught me to use images to achieve stickiness.  You can do the same. 

The best advice I've ever had comes from an Israeli motivational speaker with a name that's hard to pronounce.  He said "Words are previews of coming events."  Boaz Rauchwerger is his name.  He's fantastic.

• "I don't take pictures well."  (I can see why.)
• "You're just naturally good with a camera."  (What you mean is "I'm not good with one.")
• "I'm not real technical."  (And I'll never achieve skill behind the lens.)

Rauchwerger insists "If I don't want it, I won't say it."  Because words are previews of things to come. 

So, my newbie blogging friend, go get your camera.  Carry it with you.  When you see something that's visually compelling, take a photo.  Upload it to your computer.  Save it in a folder called Active Rain Photos, and use it in your post. 

Oh, and if you're wondering about the images, and want to know the rrrest of the story, click here.  But please some back and comment.

I'm Mike in Tucson, your preferred Tucson, Arizona mortgage lender.

Think of me as your Active Rain resource.  Call any time.