Serotonin is something we all have

Nature Photography

Serotonin was a concept I wanted to create for some time. I had the loose idea in my creative journal and kept coming back to it and refined the idea into a concept that could become a photograph for The Humble Hunter collection.

Serotonin is a hormone that helps to stablilise our mood giving a feeling of health and happiness. Our Serotonin levels rise if we exercise and eat well increasing our mood. Serotonin is known as the happiness hormone. And living our lives in good health is something we all strive for. Catching a dose of Serotonin from our environment in the form of artwork can only be a wonderful thing. Especially for those who may be needing a boost.

Colour theory

When working in colour theory, yellow and green stood out the most as viable options. The right shade of yellow makes us feel cheerful, energetic, happy and fun. Yellow promotes optimism, positivity and sparks inspiration. Yellow in a nutshell symbolises happiness.

Where green symbolises health. The right shade of green can make us feel in harmony. It makes us feel balanced and safe. Green promotes good health and prosperity. Green makes us feel safe and content.

Finding what I needed

Finding an item from nature that embodied both green and yellow was of course naturally very easy. The challenge was to ensure the photograph contained clean, curved lines with a possible curve to mimic the classic Yin/Yan symbol which reflects balance and harmony. I had the Yin/Yan thought in my mind and didn;t want to compromise on it. Strolling through my favourite florists store a yellow rose caught my eye. The shade of yellow was quite muted and subdued, the green at the petal base was a perfect shade also. I could see the final photograph in my minds eye.

I drew the concept in my journal, providing a base to work from. Taking my macro lens to the rose and finding the exact line I was wanting proved a lengthy task. Eventually I decide to peel back and remove the outer petals and see what shapes were presented deeper in the rose. I did a quick search with my camera hand held and found the exact 20mm space I wanted to photograph in. From here it was a matter of refining the composition and focal point.

As you can see, white plays a part in this image. White I feel has allowed the perfect break up of the yellow and green. White also softens the image as a whole and serves as a neutral space to prevent the mind blurring the other two colours of yellow and green.

The details

Having the curled edge line of the petal go from the top left corner to the bottom right corner encourages your eye to follow the flow down to the darker shades of green.

Its like a slide, a fun ride on which you wish to go back up and slide down again. Our eye is naturally attracted to the lighter/brighter part of any thing we are looking at. As our eye ends down in the bottom right corner it instantly flows back up to the lightest/brightest section of the image. Happily we go down the curved line and back up again, over and over like a child in a theme park.

All the while the yellow and green hues are talking to our subconscious mind giving us messages and feelings of health, happiness, balance and wellbeing. We like it here and we decide to stay for a while.

Soon enough as we float through the blissful haze of colour, tone and shape, we catch other elements that draw our attention from the curved slide… we notice detail calling us from the white edge of the petal. We see the delicate focus of structure and the incredible attributes of this beauty in nature. Our brains dive in, in search for a point of sharp focus by instinct as it tries to make sense of what we are looking at. We find the point of focus and it pulls us in further to try to get more information to provide an explanation to what it is. Here we see another set of shapes.

We look through, then zoom out to see the photograph as a whole to gain perspective. How amazing is it to be able to see something so small, in such detail. Maybe you haven’t stopped to look so close to a rose before, maybe you have. Maybe you’re reminded of the wonders that are just outside your doorstep.

The rise

The darker tone of green in this photograph you may notice, is uplifting. It rises, it moves you upward and forward. Towards the bottom right corner the hue shifts to become a lot darker, offering a strong and solid base in which to hold you, support you and also catch you if you fall.

As it rises, it takes you with it. Lifting you up to the centre of the image one again. It’s a ride, a constant loop, an adventure for your mind and soul… at the same time promoting feelings of health and happiness.

The composition I have used also gives a sense of having the photograph into two parts. Not quite equal to maintain interest, but somewhat balanced. An equilibrium. A symmetry offering two optimum assets of health and happiness. Health and happiness is all we often want.

Health and happiness

We wish health and happiness for ourselves, our families, our children and strangers we meet in our travels. With this it could be said that health and happiness are the secrets of success. If we have health and happiness, two things that money cannot buy, we have achieved success.

Of course there are varying levels of health and happiness and each is dependant on our own levels of perception. But health and happiness is the purpose and objective of this photograph. Allowing our eyes to wander in this photograph is to receive  a boost of this goodness we search for.

The process of creating this photograph was a beautiful one, and very fulfilling creatively as an artist.

Thank you so much for being here,

The Humble Hunter x

See many more examples of our nature photography or buy your copy of Serotonin