Today we’d like to introduce you to Esther Chase.
Hi Esther, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My path into macro photography wasn’t a lightning strike. It was more of a slow burn, a long-lost love note that finally found its way back to me.
The last real art class I had taken was in the 7th grade. After that, visual art drifted to the edges of my life, not because I didn’t love it, but because preparing for college demanded different skills. Still, I carried a quiet affection for images and the way they hold stories without saying a word.
In college, I took a photography course that included time in the darkroom. Watching an image rise out of those trays felt alchemical, like the world whispering to me, “See? You really can create.” I didn’t know then that it would take roughly twenty years for that whisper to become a full conversation.
For decades, art supplies were a luxury I couldn’t justify. My creativity had to shape-shift within my nonprofit work which often included design for the web and social media. On my own time, reading, daydreaming, and the simple act of noticing details characterized my personal sense of creativity. Nature became my co-author; every stroll, every leaf, and every flicker of light tucked itself into my memory.
Then came the plot twist. In a moment of modest financial security, I finally bought a used DSLR camera and a macro lens. Nothing fancy, just enough to open the door. The first time I leaned in close to a flower and let the background of the world blur into soft bokeh, something clicked for me. It felt very different than taking snapshots with my phone. Macro photography felt like coming home to the kind of art I always wanted to create. It was a return to the part of myself that had been patiently waiting for me to slow down and pay attention.
Today, the art of macro photography is how my creativity, my love of nature, and my life purpose braid themselves together.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Smooth? Oh no. More like a winding trail through rolling hills.
The first and most persistent challenge was financial. Cameras, lenses, film, developing. Those were luxuries for a life I didn’t yet have access to. There is a specific ache that comes from wanting to create and having to wait years to afford the tools, or having to wait for technology to simplify the process so it could become more affordable. It taught me patience I didn’t ask for but probably needed.
When I finally returned to photography as a creative practice, I had to start again as a beginner. That comes with its own blend of joy, humility, and self-doubt. Macro photography especially demands stillness and the willingness to fail a hundred times for one image that sings.
There are times when the wind sways every delicate flower in my purview like it has a vendetta against me. But every frustration I feel is also a lesson. Slow down. Breathe. Focus.
Macro photography is not a walk in the park. It is a discipline of devotion. And honestly, that is part of why I love it. If it were easy, I probably wouldn’t be interested.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My creative work centers on revealing the beauty most people walk right past. I capture petals, textures, and tiny worlds that exist whether anyone notices them or not.
What I am most proud of is that I came back to photography on my own terms, and I continue to cultivate my creativity through it.
My photography feels gentle, contemplative, and intimate, as if the viewer has been invited into a secret moment. I think that is what sets my work apart. I am not striving to make technically precise images. I am trying to make truly authentic and joyful ones.
Macro photography is a way of thinking and a way of seeing. It is the quiet hinge that connects my artistic work, my ethics, and the stories I choose to tell.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters most to me is attention. Real attention—the kind that asks me to pause, lean in, and honor what is right in front of me.
Macro photography is essentially a spiritual practice. It teaches me to respect the small, the overlooked, the fragile. It reminds me that beauty is not always sweeping or dramatic. Often it is held in the tiniest unassuming details.
I believe my dedication to sustainability is woven into that same thread. When I spend enough time looking closely at the natural world, I understand just how precious and vulnerable it is. My creative work is deeply aligned with that awareness. I want viewers to feel a sense of connection to nature through my photography, because connection inspires care.
Simplicity in art also matters to me. For a long time, I believed I would need professional training and a studio to call myself an artist. Now I know better. Creativity is not a gated community. It belongs to anyone willing to show up, pay attention, and let themselves be moved.
That is why my journey into macro photography matters. It hasn’t really been about learning how to capture perfect images. For me, it has been learning to how see again.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://estherchase.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/estherchase
- Other: https://miscellaneous.blog
Image Credits
Photos of Esther: Roxanne Turpen
Macro Flower Photos: Esther Chase
