What if your photography did not end with the click of the shutter? In this episode of Lensbaby Presents, host Liz Willson welcomes fine-art photographer, educator, curator, and Lensbaby Ambassador Mara Magyarosi-Laytner for a thoughtful conversation about experimental photography, physical printmaking, visual poetry, creative courage, and building a meaningful artistic practice. Mara shares her journey from high-school darkroom photography to earning degrees in photography, art education, arts administration, and an MFA in photography. She discusses how teaching and making art work together, why experimentation matters, and how her project-based approach allows her work to evolve over time. A central theme of this conversation is simple but powerful: make your art real. Photography is not only a digital file or an image on a screen. Mara encourages artists to print their work, experiment with materials, create photo books, pursue exhibitions, apply to open calls, and place their art where it can connect with people. You will also hear about Mara’s evolving body of work, The Subtle Body of Living Things, which explores memory, time, identity, health, anxiety, absence, and altered perception. Through video, photographic fragments, Polaroid lifts, hand-coated prints, projections, Lensbaby OMNI effects, Edge optics, and experimental processes, she creates work that reflects the disorientation and fragmented experience of lost time. Whether you are a photographer, artist, creative entrepreneur, photography student, or someone who has been waiting for permission to share your work, this conversation will challenge you to try the hard thing, embrace the learning process, and keep moving forward even when self-doubt shows up. In this episode, you’ll learn: ● Why your photography should not end with the shutter click ● How to turn digital images into tangible, physical artwork ● Ways to start exhibiting photography in galleries, libraries, hospitals, coffee shops, and local art spaces ● Why applying for creative opportunities matters, even when you expect rejection ● How artists can use experimentation, symbolism, and visual poetry to develop deeper work ● Why ongoing photography projects can evolve over months or years ● How to create a photography book or artist monograph ● How Mara uses the Lensbaby OMNI system, colored crystals, Edge optics, and Velvet lenses ● Why in-camera experimentation can reduce dependence on heavy editing ● How photography, video, alternative processes, and mixed media can work together ● How to work through imposter syndrome, rejection, and creative failure ● What it means to “shoot extraordinary” Mara also shares the story behind Nova 24 Photo and Film Festival, an experimental photography and film festival she co-founded to create more opportunities for innovative artists and filmmakers. The festival features exhibitions, artist talks, projection galleries, film screenings, and work from artists across the United States and internationally.EP-04-Conversation-Behind-The-Scenes-with-Mara-Magyarosi-Laytner.txt Creative reminder: Do not be the first person to tell yourself no. Apply for the exhibition. Submit to the open call. Print the work. Share the project. You never know who needs to encounter your art. Connect with Mara Magyarosi-Laytner Instagram: @maramagyarosi Website: MaraMagyarosiLaytner.com Mara shares her artwork, creative process, exhibitions, and artist opportunities through her website and Instagram.EP-04-Conversation-Behind-The-Scenes-with-Mara-Magyarosi-Laytner.txt Explore Lensbaby creative lenses, OMNI filters, and photography tools, and use code PODCAST for 10% off as referenced in this episode.EP-04-Conversation-Behind-The-Scenes-with-Mara-Magyarosi-Laytner.txt Question for you: What piece of art have you been holding back from printing, submitting, sharing, or putting out into the world? Subscribe to Lensbaby Presents for more conversations with photographers, artists, Lensbaby Ambassadors, visual storytellers, and creatives who are learning to shoot extraordinary. Chapters 00:00 Why Photography Should Become Physical Art 00:26 Make Your Art Tangible, Printed, and Real 01:20 Where to Share Your Photography Beyond Galleries 02:13 How Art Can Bring Hope and Healing to Others 03:11 Why You Need to Share Your Work 04:16 Welcome to Lensbaby Presents 04:45 How Mara Magyarosi-Laytner Started Photography 05:27 Discovering Photography in High School 05:56 Learning Through the Darkroom 06:24 From Photography Degrees to Fine Art 07:16 Teaching, Arts Administration, and an MFA 08:17 Building a Career as a Fine-Art Photographer 09:06 Why Artists Must Keep Making Their Own Work 09:57 Creating More Opportunities for Experimental Photography 10:32 The Story Behind Nova 24 Photo and Film Festival 11:26 Supporting Experimental Photo and Film Artists 13:30 Project-Based Photography, Symbolism, and Visual Poetry 14:06 Why Experimentation Creates Unexpected Results 15:07 Photography Does Not End With the Image 15:36 Alternative Printing and Experimental Photo Processes 16:09 Combining Photography, Video, and Mixed Media 17:14 How Mara Begins a Photography Project 18:28 Exploring Creative Methods Before Knowing the Outcome 19:30 Building Inspiration Boards for Art Projects 20:38 The Beginning of The Subtle Body of Living Things 20:51 Anxiety, Vasovagal Syncope, and Altered Perception 22:48 Searching for Peace Through Photography 23:44 Using Video, Crystals, and the OMNI System 24:33 When Video Began Reflecting a Personal Experience 25:32 Photography as a Medium for Exploring Time 26:01 Creating Images From Missing Pieces of Time 26:37 Polaroid Lifts, Film Fragments, and Experimental Books 27:27 The Aftermath: Art as a Conversation With Yourself 28:07 Music, Rhythm, and the Disruption of Time 28:40 Why an Art Project Can Remain in Progress 30:13 Knowing When a Photography Project Is Complete 30:40 The Untended Garden Photography Project 31:37 Turning a Long-Term Project Into a Photography Book 33:28 Experience Creative Freedom With Lensbaby 34:26 Why Mara Makes Physical Prints 35:20 Hand-Coated Paper and Visible Brushstrokes 36:13 What Comes After Creating the Digital File? 37:03 Art, Time, and the Value of Long-Term Creativity 38:50 Imposter Syndrome, Failure, and Trying Big Things 39:20 Why You Should Not Be the One to Tell Yourself No 39:48 When a Printing Experiment Does Not Work 41:04 The Reality of Rejection in the Art World 41:47 Applying for a Guggenheim Fellowship 42:56 Why Rejection Does Not Mean You Do Not Belong 44:00 Keep Trying, Learning, and Moving Forward 45:24 Living for the Hope of It All 45:44 How Creative Risk Builds Confidence 47:24 What Mara Is Creating Now 48:17 The Intersection of Photography and Film 48:46 Creating Effects In Camera Instead of Editing 49:06 How Mara Uses Lensbaby Tools 49:48 Why the OMNI System Changed Her Work 50:41 Using Colored OMNI Crystals for Artistic Expression 50:59 Creating Self-Portraits With the Velvet 56 51:17 Why Mara Loves the Edge Lens and Tilt-Shift Effects 52:23 Lensbaby as the Beginning of the Creative Process 53:32 Speed Round: Photography Inspiration and Creative Rules 53:56 The Photography Gear Mara Loves Most 54:02 The Most Overrated Photography Rule 54:24 What Makes a Photograph Instantly Interesting 54:42 A Subject Mara Always Photographs 55:00 Photography Is Better When You Are With Friends 55:06 What It Means to Shoot Extraordinary 56:43 Curiosity, Growth, and Pushing Photography Forward 58:04 Where to Find Mara Magyarosi-Laytner 59:19 Artist Open Calls and Creative Opportunities 01:00:07 Final Challenge: Make Your Art Real What does extraordinary creative freedom mean to you as a photographer? Our mission is to give photographers the tools to move through their fear of shame, judgement, guilt, and being a part of the status quo. Photography isn't about fitting in. Photography is about discovery, risk, getting out of the box, saying no to what everyone else is doing and being EXTRAORDINARY as defined by you. We believe that creativity isn't about what THEY do. Photography is about what YOU want to do! What does being a photographer mean to you? How do you #ShootExtraordinary Learn more about Lensbaby Https://www.Lensbaby.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.Instagram.com/Lensbabyusa Elizabeth (Liz) Willson Website: elizabethwillsonphotography.com Instagram: @Elizabethwillsonphotography YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elizabethwillsonphotography #Lensbaby #LensbabyPresents #ExperimentalPhotography #FineArtPhotography #PhotographyPodcast #PhotographyEducation #CreativePhotography #AlternativeProcessPhotography #MixedMediaArt #PhotographyInspiration #ArtistInterview #OMNISystem #LensbabyOMNI #PhotographyExhibition #PhotographyPrints #VisualStorytelling #CreativeProcess #ShootExtraordinary
