To "gram" or not to "gram"...

A lot of people now associate me with my love of taking yoga pictures. For example, I asked a friend in the coffee shop in town the other day to take a picture of my girlfriends and me. As I handed him my phone, he automatically said, “Time for a yoga picture?” As hilarious as that is, it’s actually pretty true. To me, yoga pictures are a great way to “spice” up what could be a plain ole scenic picture as well as an artful expression. I have tons of pictures from travels and day-to-day life that are either solely scenic or where I’m standing awkwardly smiling in front of some mountain or shop. Popping a yoga pose in there instead of a posed smile makes it more fun and interesting! As a student of art history, I love envisioning a composition; I enjoy playing with the pairing of colors and patterns to my surroundings and picking an appropriate posture for the image I’m seeking to create. It doesn’t always come out the way I see it in my mind, of course. But I, along with as many people as I can recruit to join me as possible, have fun trying. And that’s the most important part.

The Instagram yoga community is expanding exponentially. There are so many ways to share inspiration, between the hashtagging system and all of the pose-of-the-day challenges. These challenges are a great reminder to try to practice every day and to try to capture a shot or two of that practice, whether it’s of a quick pose at work or while on a beautiful exotic vacation. I’ve found yogis and yoginis through these social media pathways that are all over the world, and I’m lucky enough to be sharing tips, “likes,” and inspiration with them. The creative representation of such great physicality in various locales (again, whether in the grocery store or on an exotic beach at sunset) never gets old to me. I find it simply beautiful and I love starting my day with a scroll through my Instagram newsfeed. I love being reminded that there are always new places to take my yoga practice: not only literal geographic locations, but also new variations of poses that I’ve been practicing for years. Taking yoga pictures and interacting through them on various social media sites is an exercise for keeping my creative juices flowing and for keeping my yoga practice fresh. Not to mention I really enjoy playing around with filters!

Pictures are also a great way to see what you're feeling. I know in my pinchamayurasana scorpion my toes feel like they're an inch away from my head. However, in pictures I see that I'm about 2 feet away! They're a great way to track progress in a posture as well as a way to coach yourself in a pose. You can see the tweaks you need to make for the posture.