The feeling of being inspired can give you such an energy and confidence boost.  It can get you up off the lounge, out of the job you hate and even make you follow your dreams.  I love being inspired.  I love that feeling of coming out of a movie with my mind racing and struggling to sleep that night while I go over and over each scene. I love hearing a new song that instantly clicks with me and can distract me from any stresses racing through me head.  And lets face it, exercise is so much easier with a good beat.  In my younger days my brother in-law and I would blast out our game song before each and every indoor soccer match. Always helped get the blood pumping!  I also used to do a lot of creative writing when I had a lot of free time (i.e. before kids), and writing went hand in hand with listening to music to keep me inspired and in the right emotive state.  I could listen to the same song over and over again and it wouldn't loose its influence on me.  

Ultimately the dream of any artist, be it painter, songwriter, filmmaker or photographer, is to inspire something in others.  That's the challenge.  Can an artist transfer their inspiration onto someone else and manipulate how they feel after hearing, seeing or watching their work.  Often if you don't like a movie, its because you felt nothing towards the characters on screen.  Growing up, music always had the most influence on me. I learnt the piano and the flute and really cherish all the memories I have of playing in my school band.  Really there is nothing like the feeling of being surrounded by people making music and adding your own music to theirs.  Composer John Williams is an icon for me and has created some amazing music.  We use to play his Jurassic Park theme song in the band and I still remember the feeling it evoked, (I also remember the very tricky flute score.)   He is so good at pushing our emotions with his music that most of the time you're not even aware of it. 

In January 2000 I was backpacking with a friend that was greatly inspired by Art and on our travels some of that passion rubbed off.  She would walk me through some of the greatest galleries in the world and with her words opened up a new world to me.  I'd never really taken the time to look at works of art by people like Monet, Van Gogh and Picasso.   One hallway at The Met in New York had a sculpture that inspired me so much I had to go and buy a book about the sculptor from the shop. Just so I could see The Kiss again.  It might be worth mentioning I was young and looking for the love of my life at the time.  Auguste Rodin inspired me so much that when I had the chance to go to Paris I made time to go to the Musee Rodin.  It was packed with people admiring his work and a wonderful way to spend a few hours.  He was masterful at putting so much emotion into his sculptures and I would be surprised if you haven't seen one of his greatest works, The Thinker.

In this day and age of a camera being in everyones back pocket, photography has become a major influencer in how we see the world.  During the Vietnam War photojournalism played a major part in bringing the war into everyones lounge rooms like never before.  There is many photos from that war that influenced people to take a vocal stance about the situation,  and it is again that images like that are influencing the world today.  With a single image you can make someone cry, laugh, smile, despair, make a difference, become fearful, and many other feelings. With my photography I love capturing the beautiful connections that can occur between people and trying to capture the soul behind the faces in front of my camera.  Thats why I take photos of people.  I want people to smile and be inspired to love each other by my images.  Lately I have seen so many images that have evoked other feelings then love. Images that cause sadness and sometimes fear.  As we age we remember so many things that have inspired us throughout our years and it saddens me so much that there are people inspired by only negative and damaging influences.  It may not always be possible, but try and fill your life with good inspirations and watch the wonderful effect it has on your soul. 

Cheers

Michelle