The art of mindful photography is a meditative act. Learning to use the camera in a functional way that produces results is often only one side of the equation. At some point, once a level of proficiency is developed, the photographic mechanical process fades into the background and all that remains is photographer and subject. When this meditative state is reached, the act of pressing the shutter release is the moment of capture; the decisive, definitive moment of any situation is the quarry.
The perfect photo of any situation, is a combination of contrast, light levels, shadow and highlight, as well as symmetry and subject. The feeling of capturing the exact image I’m after, is at times electrifying – especially when a good amount of work goes into exploration, sourcing the shot, and time spent waiting and observing, to ensure the best possible result.
Beauty is an excellent entry point for meditation. The act of capturing a beautiful or ebullient image provides inspiration to allow the mind to recede from the distractions of daily life and dissolve into the natural world, become part of what is unfolding around you.
In Buddhist practice, the mandala is the ultimate form – a fractal image that folds outward and inward at the same time, and is thought to be the seed of creation. A mandala is often used as an aid to meditation and is meant to symbolize a state of wholeness and provides a representational model for the organizational structure of life itself.
The mandala ultimately represents the nature of the Pure Land, Enlightened mind. A good photograph is like a mandala: it has a centre from which meaning and form unfold. A scene that presents perfect quietude can be captured for posterity, and will inspire the same pensive, meditative state that the original scene provides in all its fidelity.
I carry the original intention in capturing the photo with me during the editing process, to properly define what qualities I see in the original image.
These photographs were taken at the Kathok Buddhist Clear Light Meditation Centre, in Coombs, British Columbia.
Tulku Karzang Rinpoche 
