Through the Eyes of A Lotus

Wanda Lotus, Photographer

PCC: Tell us about yourself.

Woman Crossing the Street

WL: I am a native New Yorker born in Brooklyn and currently living in the Bronx with my partner of 6+ years. Believe it or not, my formal education is in computer engineering with a specialization in digital hardware design. I have a masters degree and worked in that field for over a decade before my job went the way of the recession. I’m currently blessed with a job doing data entry from home, which gives me the flexibility needed to also run a photography business on the side.

PCC: What do you create?
WL: I create photos for home or office decor as well as for blank cards. My photos are mostly nature and scenes around New York City. Lately I have become more interested in street photography and am looking for ways to work some of those photos into my shops as well. I also have an entirely separate line of photos exclusively for exhibition and high-end art collectors.

PCC: What made you want to become an artist?

Manhattan Through the Cherry Blossoms

WL: Photography was my first love. My parents had a subscription to National Geographic, so I grew up pouring over the glossy photos in the magazines and imagining myself traveling the world to photograph people and places. To this day I subscribe to the magazine primarily for the photos, not the articles. I was probably 7 or 8 when my parents bought me my first point-and-shoot, and I've been snapping ever since. But it wasn’t until 2007, after I bought my first DSLR, that I realized there was a technical side to photography that I knew nothing about. That is when I truly began to study photography and make photos instead of merely snapping them. I took a few classes to learn the basics, actually read my camera’s owner’s manual, and started paying more critical attention to other photographers’ work. Once I learned how to control things like composition, exposure, shutter speed, and depth of field I started seeing the world like one huge photo opportunity. And when I got over my hangup over using photo editing software a whole new world opened up to me. When I walk down the street, or even just walking through our home, I often catch myself looking for potential shots. It’s instinct now. That’s why I try to always have a camera on me. I hate seeing a great shot and not having a camera available!

Nap Time

PCC: What is your process?
WL: My photography process is simple: I shoot whatever catches my eye. I try to go for unique views I haven't seen, particularly when photographing New York City. I use a Canon EOS 5D Classic and alternate between a Canon 50mm/F1.8 lens and a Canon 24-105/F4L lens. Once in a while I’ll use a generic 70-300mm lens. If I am shooting macros I use Kenko extension tubes with whatever lens I am using that day. I almost never use flash, but when I do it is a generic hotshoe flash. Most of my editing is done in Lightroom with the rare fine-tuning done in Gimp on my MacBook Pro.


PCC: What advice would you give to other women wanting to pursue their art?

Solitude

WL: Use what you have. So many people fall into the trap of thinking they have to have a certain level of gear or professional training before they can take their craft seriously. While good quality gear and informative training are valuable, the lack of them doesn’t have to keep you from doing what you love. You can still learn the foundational knowledge necessary to later make good use of expensive gear or the information you will learn in advanced classes. I know people who have thousands of dollars of photography equipment who take snapshots they could have taken at the same quality with their smartphones, and I know people who mindfully make gorgeous photos with their point-and-shoot cameras or smartphones that you would swear came out of a DSLR. It’s about knowing your craft, knowing the limitations of whatever gear you have--even the most expensive gear has limitations depending on the situation--and working within those limits.

PCC: What advice would you give to other women wanting to make a living as an artist?
WL: I don’t yet make a living as an artist, so this is what I tell myself: most artists have day jobs that are completely unrelated to their art, and that is okay. It doesn’t mean you are not a “real” artist. All it means is you have a day job. It’s not a statement about your worth as an artist.

A Day in the Park

Here is a piece of advice for working artists in America based on what I have learned from watching others. Get yourself a good accountant: someone who understands tax laws for self-employed people and can help you keep track of what to file and when. I have a friend who is a working artist, and she gets killed each year with tax fees and penalties from not filing things in a timely manner. Make sure you have an accountant handling those things for you so you don’t have that problem. That way you can invest more of your money into your work instead of into the IRS.

PCC: What else are you passionate about?

Beautiful Music

WL: Photography was my first love, and violin was my second. I played from fourth grade until I graduated high school then stopped for many years. But I kept my violin and picked it up again a few years ago. I hope to some day get good/confident enough to join a community orchestra and to perform jazz.

PCC: Anything else we should know?
WL:  I love being connected with other creative people, so I am happy to be a part of the Peppermint Creek Collective and other creative communities locally and online. Sharing ideas with other creatives keeps me motivated and helps me avoid feeling isolated or obscure. If there is anyone feeling unseen as an artist, I strongly recommend becoming part of a creative community. Even sharing in an online creative community counts.

PCC: Where can we find you?
WL: I blog and am active on social media and eCommerce, and you can find the links to all of those places from my website:
teal.lotuslandfineart.com  For my high-end fine art photography you can find my portfolio and the links to that blog and those social media accounts at   lotuslandfineart.com.
Photography - teal.lotuslandfineart.com 
Fine Art -lotuslandfineart.com
Etsy - www.etsy.com/shop/ThroughEyesofALotus
FB - www.facebook.com/ThroughTheEyesOfALotus

PCC: Wanda can also be found in her first and second gallery showings of 2015. We wish her continued success this year!
First Showing - Now Running
"I am proud and deeply honored to be one of the inaugural artists exhibited by Rush Street Gallery! Director Chuck Fletcher describes Rush Street Gallery as a digital exhibition of contemporary artistic photography. My eight-image series of black and white street photos can be found in the gallery’s West Hall."

Second Showing - Beginning Feb 1, 2015:
"I am honored to announce my submissions to Colors of Humanity Art Gallery have both been accepted for their juried February 2015 exhibit “Red”! The exhibit will start 1 February and will run through the entire month. This is even more meaningful due to the director’s commitment to donating a portion of the entry fees to charity each month. 10% of all entry fees from “Red” will be donated to the International Red Cross.

These are my two submissions to “Red”.

A few words on Wanda's Inspiration:

We are Happy to Serve You

 I saw these coffee cup lights hanging in a store and fell in love with them. They scream, “New York City!” to me. I couldn’t take them home, so I photographed them instead.

Raindrops on Roses

 I’m pretty sure this was one of my first forays into macro photography. I was stunned with the detail that came out of my 

Loving Child

 This is the type of street photography I would like to incorporate more of into my shoppes. I was in the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens and just happened to be standing there when the mother next to me instructed her child how to gently admire the flowers.

Reflections of Autumn

I made this photo during a spontaneous trip with friends to Bear Mountain. The bird flew across my line of vision just as I snapped the shutter. When I saw this frame compared to the frames I had made without the bird I knew this one was the winner.

Fire Ivy

 This is from when I first began seriously making photos. The next year I went back to make an even better series of images and all of the ivy had been torn down. Knowing I cannot remake this image makes it extra-special to me.

Other Items from Wanda that we love (check out her blog, website and etsy store for more great photography):

Standing in the Snow

A Light to the World

Parkchester Fountain

Grand Central Terminal

Which Way is Up

Snow in the Park

Musical Notes

Steel Drum

All Images are the property of Wanda Lotus and may not be duplicated or used without her permission.