The Creative Eye - by David Ulrich (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Reclaim the art of deep perception with over 35 guided explorations, prompts, and contemplations designed to awaken your creativity and reclaim the full power of your attention.

After losing sight in one eye, photographer David Ulrich had to train himself to see again. Through that arduous journey, he discovered the profound difference between simply looking and truly seeing.

In The Creative Eye, Ulrich draws on this formative experience plus five decades of creative practice, contemplative study, and teaching photography to show how deep perception can become a doorway to unlocking creativity, developing self-understanding, and opening a path to spiritual awakening.

Influenced by the close mentorship of legendary photographer Minor White, Ulrich also shares White's influential teachings on awareness and perception with an intimacy and depth rarely available to readers.

He blends this lineage of spiritual insight with practical guidance to offer precise, grounded instruction in more than 35 creative exercises and mindfulness practices--many designed as long-term explorations--that train attention, heighten awareness, and cultivate lasting presence. These are interwoven with Ulrich's captivating personal narrative and photographs by Ulrich, White, and others.

For photographers, artists, meditators, and anyone seeking to refine their creative energy, this book reveals perception as a dynamic doorway and offers practical tools to walk through it--into richer creativity, deeper awareness, and more genuine connection with the world.

Review Quotes

"The Creative Eye is an invitation to engage in photography and seeing as a transformative act. David Ulrich studied with Minor White, and the legacy of his teacher and other luminaries lives on in the pages of this important book. It's like attending a workshop with a master photographer--exploring the mysteries of attention with a suite of exercises, stories, and insights. A must-read for photographers, seekers, and anyone who wishes to rediscover the gift of seeing."
--Jim Metzner, Producer of Pulse of the Planet and a Fulbright Specialist in Communication and Media

About the Author

DAVID ULRICH is a renowned photographer, author, and educator whose work has been widely exhibited and published internationally. His previous books, Zen Camera and The Mindful Photographer, have established him as a leading voice at the intersection of visual art and contemplative practice. Through his roles as professor, speaker, and workshop leader, Ulrich has reached diverse audiences--from creatives and spiritual seekers to those navigating the modern attention economy.