Programs: (Zoom) Wabi Sabi with Lisa Cuchara

Description

This program will explore the beauty of imperfect and/or unconventional subjects. As nature photographers we often seek out the flowers, leaves and such that are perfect, with no blemishes or defects. This program highlights subjects that are not perfect, such as flowers that have character, double headed flowers, decaying fall leaves, the deformed coneflower that stands out as flawed and hence different and beautiful, rust as it creates abstract patterns amidst the decay, etc. We will also explore the concept of slowing down and appreciating the beauty of everyday life, things that might be overlooked. As purveyors of rust and decay we appreciate the perseverance and beauty of “life after humans” as cars and equipment falls apart and succumbs to oxidation and decay. Wabi-Sabi teaches us to find beauty in everyday life. It is a kind of anti-aesthetic, an alternative to the dominating discriminatory ideas we hold about beauty. “Wabi means a beauty of elegant imperfection. Sabi means aloneness. Together, they suggest the beauty of ‘the withered, weathered, tarnished, scarred, intimate, coarse, earthly, evanescent, tentative, ephemeral.’ ~ Crispin Sartwell, Six Names of Beauty. It is a way of honoring that everything is impermanent, and we are always in a state of both becoming and falling away. It is used to describe a particular philosophy that beauty can be found in the old, the everyday, the imperfect. Wabi Sabi applies to more than nature and the seasons of change and decay, but it also to the “Life after Humans” arena or UrbEx (urban exploration). As a side note, the term Wabi Sabi can also be part of the social movement of embracing imperfection of your physical traits as a human being, especially with respect to self-perception and celebrating imperfection in a society that encourages people to be perfect and pressures people to be flawless. 

Bio

Lisa Cuchara, PhD — OM SYSTEM Ambassador, Seeker of Light, Time, Pixels, and Creativity.

In a world that rushes by in blinks and heartbeats, Lisa Cuchara slows time with her lens. A Master Craftsman, a Master of Artistry, and a Master of Photography (PPA), she weaves wonder from pixels and light, balancing science and soul as only a true alchemist of imagery can. With a heart tuned to nature’s quiet chorus, Lisa sees beyond the obvious — catching the iridescent flutter of a hummingbird’s wing, the secret stillness of dew-kissed flowers, the noble decay of forgotten places. Birds and blossoms, rusty relics, frogs with stories in their eyes — all become muses for her storytelling soul. Whether in the hush of a forest or the echo of an abandoned space, she doesn’t just catpure photographs of what things looks like — she captures what they feels like. A fieldwork sage and a digital darkroom poet, Lisa transforms ordinary moments into storytelling landscapes. Photography, for her, is mindfulness in motion — a way to inhale the world slowly and exhale its beauty through art. Her eyes catch what others miss; her camera remembers what time forgets.

Alongside her husband Tom, a fellow kindred creative spirit she met through photography, Lisa co-runs a studio sanctuary in Hamden, CT. Together they teach light painting, macro, still life, flowers, and the magic of post-processing — blending technique with imagination, offering not just instruction but inspiration. Their work has graced galleries, calendars, magazines like Wild Bird, ABA Birding magazine, Birder’s World, and Adirondack Life, and even the cover of a novel. Their books — Create Fine Art Photographs from Historic Places and Rusty Things and The Frog Whisperer — celebrate both texture and tenderness in photography, urging readers to see the world as a canvas of marvels. Lisa and Tom are tireless educators and generous mentors, presenting across the globe in person and online. Their motto — “Creativity is contagious, pass it on” — speaks to their mission to spark joy, curiosity, and vision in others. Subscribe to their YouTube channel, sign up for photo tips and photo event announcements, and explore more offerings at www.LisaTom.Photos. So whether you’re looking to capture the shimmer of a dragonfly’s wing, the fleeting movement of a bird catching a fish, or master the mysteries of light and shadow, Lisa welcomes you to a journey where creativity blooms and pixels dance. Because when you learn to see the unseen — like Lisa — every day becomes a work of art.