Healing

Sometimes the healing is in the aching!

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Running Towards

What are we chasing? Why do we always feel we need to hurry? What is the real deal? Where are we going? What makes us unique?

Listening to Bye Bye Macadam by Rone gave me a strong feeling of running, movement, reaching a goal, get to the final destination and be completely satisfied with life. The search is over; peace has filled your heart and you ready for whatever lies before you.

It was never an easy road, the path was filled with stones, but you have conquered them. Get over your heal and see...

We tend to forget to take a break and enjoy what is around us. We often live in the past and only think about the future. The present, what is that. The present is everything... The present is who we are.

I strongly believe that the journey is the destination...

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Symbolic elephant meaning deals primarily with strength, honour, stability and patience.

As a dream animal, elephants come into our dreams it is a message that we are able to deal with any obstacle we are faced with at this time. Elephant’s also express advanced sensitivity and social connection, especially during time of death, they travel to a specific place upon their death, fulfilling personal responsibility, even at the end of their days.

It reminds me of being in a situation where I can’t see the solution, where I have to zoom out, be still and find my path through all the obstacles.  Life is hard, but there is a solution for every mess. You never give up on taking the next step and coming closer to your destination.

Photograph by Jessica Keller

We should keep on running towards… Doesn’t matter how long it takes us to reach the final destination of complete satisfaction. We are in competition with no one. We run our own race. We have no desire to play the game of being better than anyone, in any way, shape or form. We just aim to improve, to be better than we were before. That is us and we are free…

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Torn Between Two Realities

Photograph by Jessica Keller

I had the opportunity to spend some time in the Transkei last April.

That is one of my favorite images of my Transkei trip and I would like to share my view on the image. What message I want to bring across with my picture? What it makes me feel? Why I chose to convert it into black and white?

That lady looked very tired, exhausted of doing the same thing every day and I can see sadness in her eyes. If you look at her carefully there is still a glimpse of hope and strength. She has got an eagerness to get to work and to carry on with her daily life. The white cream on her face should probably protect her from the African sun, is that the real reason? 

Living in the Transkei is not easy and hard work. Women in the community get up early and cutting grass with a penga to make some money for the family waiting at home. Life can be very hard in these little villages, most of the women are stuck with a useless husband who think it is better to drink life away. They will take all the abuse and are left with no voice to raise their issues. They will walk tall and will never give up, because they are left with no other choice. They accept and carry on. 

Was the white cream on her face really just a protection for the hot sun? Or does it give the feeling of being someone else at work? Maybe she can hide her true face and the harsh reality.

The white cream might helps to hide all the sorrows that are showing on her face. She gets a break for a couple of hours from the reality at home. I was amazed how happy she was to be working, laughing with her friends, but didn't stop for one-second cutting the grass. It almost seemed like that my camera gave her the permission to look how she really felt. She didn't need to act happy anymore, she wanted me to see that she is waiting for a break. A person can look happy, act happy, but one never knows what is truly going on inside of someone's heart. 

The colors and the patterns the cream created on her face are matching the wall in the background. She almost blends into the wall... An other symbolic meaning of wanting to hide, keeping your secret and not wanting to be seen.

I converted the image into black and white because we live in a world where everything is extreme. People often just see black or white, but I wonder where have the grays disappeared to?

Stop Motion Video

Sharing my stop motion video for a project.

Title: Confused

Song: My Moon My Man by Feist

It shows a young girl who is confused with society. People have got a unique dressing style and know exactly what they want from life. That particular girl hasn't found herself yet. She doesn't know what to wear, she has no clue who she is. In the end she is giving up without a solution. 

Has life not got more to offer than looking pretty? I doubt it sometimes especially in our society today... 

Enjoy what I have created with around 2000 images...

How And Where I Live

The last few years I was wondering how and where I live. I was asking the question over and over again where is my home and where am I the happiest. People would always tell me your home is where your heart is. Where do I belong and what is real?

I grew up in Switzerland, but left Europe with 21 and started a new adventure in South Africa.

How and where I live is very difficult to tell. I'm someone who will take every challenge, try to get as much out of a place as possible. I'm scared to call something just yet home, because as soon as I do there will be goodbyes again. Home is within me. How I live is who I'm.

I photographed existing photos through physical barriers. I photographed them underwater, covered in oil, salt or paint and in this was give commentary on negation of memory.

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

The Unknown

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Sometimes our biggest downfall is that we believe the art we imagine is better than the art we will produce. This causes lack of motivation. This causes ideas to flow but never to be realized. This is fear taking over life.The biggest reason people fail is because they don’t try enough times to get it right. Failure is one of the best things we can experience. It makes success that much more worth fighting for." - Brooke Shaden

What a beautiful inspiration and so very true.

A Heart For Wildlife

In the past few days I had been reflecting on my time spent in Zambia, where I came upon a story which really made me think about the cruelty man has on nature.
We have so little space left on this planet for our wildlife that it breaks my heart when I experience cruelty at this level.

Jonathan was prepared to give me his story about a female elephant which he took care of for 4 days and experienced a hard but in a way still beautiful time...

Jonathan:" At 04:33 in the morning I heard gun shots, I can't remember where I leave my phone sometimes but remember the exact time I heard those shots, something wasn't right about the shots I heard, they were not of a poacher shooting for food but shooting under distress.

After gathering up the scouts we went trekking, trekking to find the poachers and to assess the damage done. What we found infuriated me that people,(human beings) can be so cruel, but that doesn't surprise me. We found a young female elephant in her late teens or early twenties wounded by two types of weapons, a high powered rifle and a home made shot gun.

She was shot in her face, her right side of her body and the right back leg.
The shot gun was fired twice to my count to a charging elephant protecting her 2 month old baby.
Once in her face and when she turned to run away once on her side but it didn't stop there. They went on and shot her again while she was running away in the hind leg with an even deadlier weapon a high powered rifle.

She was seriously injured an injury which would have killed her slowly through weeks of pain while infection took place.The herd ran and left her behind in all the panic and distress of such a violent attack.

When we found her the logical thing to do was to shoot her but I couldn't be certain at that time of the damage, so I got online with the vet we knew and she told me that if I could fly her in she could patch up the injuries except if the elephants bone in her back leg had been smashed by the bullet, so I needed to make sure. But how do you get close to an elephant thats just been wounded, you don't except through love. I had sat with her for 2 days bringing her food and water trying to get close enough to assess the damage without stressing her out further and then the game started.

The game was called throwing sticks, she through a stick at me probably to get rid of me but it was a gentle throw not aggressive at all and when I through it back she responded by throwing it back to me, landing perfectly in my lap, I spoke to her throughout the time we spent together and got very little sleep over the next 4 days, on the fourth day magic happened she allowed me to touch her and check her leg and when I had seen the bullet had not come out the other side, I knew it was bad but then my fears were answered once she tried to step on her leg and I heard the crunch of bone.

In the end of my time with this beautiful new mother, we had to shoot her for there was nothing else we could of done for her. My heart broke at what happened, I had known this herd of elephant well, followed them for 3 moths before the incident and to me it was like loosing a friend."

Jont and his ele!

Pinterest

I never put too much thoughts into the social media Pinterest, but wow what a great medium to get inspiration. I found some amazing stuff on it and got very excited to use it more often.
I actually got excited about photography and again felt the great passion for photography. It just showed once more why I chose to be a photographer.

I would like to share some photographs which inspired me today on Pinterest:

Lesotho

Lesotho, which roughly translates into the land of the people who speak Sesotho. I was finally here and was able to spend a couple of days in this gorgeous 30 000 square km country with my photography friends. A country high up in the Drakensberg mountains completely surrounded by South Africa.

Lesotho what a beautiful place on earth with incredible friendly and open people. People always fascinated me, the different facial expressions, different attitude, different views on life and that we as photographers manage sometimes to capture the reality in the human eye. It was an awesome experience to photograph in Lesotho among the community and to capture the raw truth.

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

When Life Just Takes Over

Do you know that feeling when life just takes over? When you rushing from one place to an other? When you hardly find time for yourself? When so much is going on and you can’t figure out where your head stands?

Well that is exactly how I felt the last couple of weeks... I forgot about my blog...

I was moving house, started a new job, gave my dogs away, was in Lesotho, my car broke down and had to focus on assignments... it was quiet a hectic time with lots of changes and just busy. Dealing with things, which I never dealt in my life with before. But I guess all experience... so my blog had to feel this, but I will be soon back on track...

The Shadow Self

The shadow self is a series of images of a girl which is torn between two worlds. She doesn't just know yet how to deal with her own shadow side. The shadow self is often also called your unconscious mind and as well the seat of creativity.

We create our own reality.

If we want to get to know our Shadow Self, all we need to do is look at the condition of our life. Unwanted experiences are actually a reflection of our own Shadow Self.

The sunflower in the picture represents life, joy, light the exact opposite of what the girl is feeling at that exact moment. Her facial expression shows how every day life can be a struggle full of sadness. But she is clinging onto that flower and is hoping for a beautiful life. She hopes to find the balance between her conscious and unconscious mind. All she has to do is let go of the worry showing her true dark side, no, she needs to let the light and the darkness work together.

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

A big thank you goes to my precious friend Natascha who made that shoot absolutely amazing.

Everyday is the start of something beautiful...

Hope

The last couple of days I spent in the Transkei with amazing people that are out there to help the poor and needy. We had the privilege to share some precious moments with little children in need. What beautiful creatures they are... I loved every second of this trip. It made me think of life.  A little girl in particular caught my attention. She was beautiful with big dark eyes, searching for love and attention, but filled with so much anger.

One of my goals as a photographer is always to capture a picture that is worth a thousands words. My aim is to produce direct, truthful and bold images that tell the stories for those who have no voice. As a documentary photographer I will have many people seeing through my eyes and expecting to see the truth.

The group I joined on that adventure are doing a really great job for pointing out the people living below the bottom line of poverty, for raising awareness about educational and child labour issues. I’m so grateful that I was able to share the experience with the team.

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Some roads aren't meant to be travelled alone.

A Movie on Awareness For A Project

The human race is about to destroy a beautiful continent. Africa's wildlife is in danger... Lots of people are sitting back, getting upset, but feeling helpless... It seems like a devils circle...
My project was about making a 2min video. I was thinking what I can chose for a social commentary. spending a view month at Lake Tanganyika in Zambia I experienced what it means when the society needs to kill wildlife for food. It is a harsh reality...
My short movie is about men who stand up for wildlife and would do anything to stop the killing... Tourism enjoy magnificent sightings during the day, but as soon as the sun disappears at the horizon the human race is out there to kill and destroy. How far will it go? will the next generation still be able to enjoy Africa as it used to be? or will the photographs and film footage be the only evidence? what can we do? i have got huge respect for people as Jonathan Colin who fight for justice and protection. Filming behind a big fence should show that our wildlife might only be safe behind bars... Is that the future we seeking for? Or who should actually be behind bars?

Life is the only game with the sole purpose of learning the rules.

To Be Independent

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Depending on something or someone doesn’t work in the real world. But how hard is it not too? The only thing you want to do is trust people, chances and circumstances.

Certain things can change in a split second. Life could be fantastic filled with good people and love. People depend too often on certain situations and they don’t believe it could change the next day. But life is full of surprises. Don’t depend on circumstances. Be independent, so you will be able to accept every challenge, which will come your way.

Depending on someone leads to disappointment. People will disappoint you... They say that they will never leave your side, but guess what when it gets tough and hard all they want to do is run. And you will stand there with only little hope left. That little hope will often be your life savior... You need to get up and walk tall. Accept that people will come and go. Live your life and make yourself happy.

It is your choice to be disappointed or free. Hope will never leave you, but also can be the biggest enemy in your daily life. Hope sometimes keeps you at certain stages in life, you not moving on because you depending on hope. Make sure you have got the strength to get up and move on. Life is short. Make the best out of it. Stop over analyzing, life is simple... Live your dream and share your passion, never let it go because of depending on a situation or someone.

Nick Brandt

Life is harsh sometimes and it feels like I'm not getting anywhere at the moment.

I would love to switch off, even if it is just for a split second and drift into a world where everything seems to be beautiful.

Nick Brandt gave me the chance to dream for a while. His work is outstanding. He captures stunning photographs of the nature and the wildlife. Some of his photographs are unreal and let you forget the real world for a moment. What an amazing photographer he is... That would be one of my dreams... Living in the bush for a while, experiencing the peace and quiet and capture special, different shots of wildlife and nature.

Please go and check out his website: www.nickbrandt.com. You won't regret it...:)

 http://www.nickbrandt.com/

Documentary Photography

One of my biggest inspirations has always been photography's ability to stop time and reveal what the naked eye cannot see. A photo can speak louder than words.

I have had an emotional roller-coaster ride with certain aspects of my life, especially since moving to South Africa from Switzerland and that is one of the reasons for my great passion for documentary photography.

Nothing brings me greater joy than photographing people for who they are. Documentary photography captures the reality, the truth and one image can change the world.

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

Photograph by Jessica Keller

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.

A Start Of a Creative New Journey

Who am I? 

A question I have been asking myself over the years. I feel like an unfinished puzzle. A question which can drive me mad but at the same time makes life so interesting and special. And in the end life is not about finding yourself, it is about creating yourself. 

I grew up in Switzerland in a very comfortable environment and enjoying a uncomplicated life. All was good until I realized there is so much more to life. I wanted my own adventure and to be different than others, taking a risk without knowing where I will end up. And that was what I did... I left my home for Africa. Lots of new challenges filled with beautiful experiences, but not always easy. In Africa I found another piece for my life puzzle... Photography!  I would like to share what inspires me and share some of my work as a photographer...

Enjoy!