What’s Your Muse?

Mark & I would like to welcome a new voice to this blog— Jamie MacDonald. He’s a nature and stock photographer that lives in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula but, more importantly for us, is passionate about mirrorless photography. He brings to this blog an impressive knowledge of Olympus gear and is one of the nicest photographers in the mirrorless world. You can see and hear him on The F-Stops Here Podcast.

Up until about 2 years ago if you’d asked me what a muse was I’d have probably told you it was a beautiful person who is a source of inspiration for an artist. Or I may have even given you a history lesson in Greek mythology about the Nine Muses, the daughters of Zeus.

But ask me today what a muse is and I am likely to tell you that a muse can come in any size, color, or shape. It can be a living thing, or an inanimate object. Case in point? My muse for the last two years has been this 100-year old barn about seven miles from my home. I happened upon it by chance one evening while taking a more scenic route to the store.

It was August, and the sun was getting low on the horizon as this goliath barn came into view. And as silly as it may sound, it stopped my heart for a moment. I was awestruck at the size and placement of this barn in the rural countryside of Michigan, and it compelled me to drive down the dirt road and get a closer look. Since then I make sure to regularly visit “my muse” and capture her in the many different way she can look throughout the year.

I feel lucky beyond description to have something that provides me with so much inspiration and hope that everyone at some point finds a muse of their own.—Jamie A. MacDonald