Seeing with the Heart: Contemplative Photography & Poetry
November 3, 10, 17, 24, December 1, 2025 Mondays 6:30 – 8:00 pm
In a world filled with noise, speed, and distraction, how do we return to the quiet miracle of presence?
This 5-week course invites you to slow down, look deeply, and express what you see and feel through the twin lenses of contemplative photography and poetry. Inspired by traditions of mindful seeing and creative reflection, we’ll explore how ordinary moments can become portals to beauty, insight, and truth.
Each week combines gentle teaching, guided practice, image-based sharing, and writing exercises. You’ll learn to approach your camera and pen not as tools for achievement, but as companions in attentiveness and expression.
No prior experience in photography or poetry is needed. Just bring your curiosity, your smartphone or camera, and something to write with.
Location: The Sawtooth School for Visual Art, Winston-Salem, NC To Register: sawtooth.org (Photography)
Contemplative Photography: Seeing Into Winter
December 2, 9, 16, 23, 2025 Tuesdays 6:30 – 8:00 pm
Winter invites a quieter kind of attention. In this season of stillness and simplicity, we can learn to see more clearly, feel more deeply, and awaken to the hidden beauty of the world around us.
This 4-week contemplative photography course explores winter not just as a backdrop, but as teacher. Each session will offer a blend of mindfulness practice, photographic exploration, and reflective inquiry. We will slow down and open our eyes to the muted colors, stark contrasts, subtle textures, and quiet stories that winter has to tell.
Open to all skill levels, this course emphasizes presence over perfection. Bring your camera or smartphone, a sense of curiosity, and a willingness to discover what winter can reveal—both in the landscape and in yourself.
Location: The Sawtooth School for Visual Art, Winston-Salem, NC To Register: sawtooth.org (Photography)
Contemplative Photography & Poetry: Seeing and Saying the Present Moment
Photography and poetry share a common heart: both invite us to pause, notice, and respond to the world with presence. This class brings the two practices together as a form of contemplative artmaking.
Self-Portraiture as Contemplative Practice
Traditional self-portraits often center on identity, image, or performance. Contemplative self-portraiture, by contrast, asks: Who am I in this moment of seeing? It explores self not as fixed identity but as presence in relationship to the world.
Urban Landscape Photography
Urban landscape photography serves to encapsulate the very essence of urban life, from its bustling energy and lively scenes to its captivating architecture that tells countless stories. It is about understanding the unique language of the city, and translating that into an image that can effectively communicate a compelling story, idea, or feeling to the viewer.
Introduction to Macro Photography
During this engaging class, we are combining two fascinating topics into one transformative photographic experience: the practice of Mindfulness and the technique of Macro Photography. Get ready to slow down, see deeply, and experience a meaningful shift in how you perceive the phenomenal world around you.