walking in ontario, taken by tim
Last winter, I put a roll of film into my old Pentax camera. Every so often, I would find it and snap a picture. I have about 6 cameras going at any one time, so there was no rush. Last week, I got to the end of the roll, all 36, and when I went to roll the film back I discovered that it had never caught. The whole roll had been an imaginary undertaking.
For some reason, I wasn't really bothered. I can, in fact, still remember some of those shots that weren't shots. One was a single mellow golden window lit in the very top of a dark house, in the blue hour of dusk. Another was a white plane contrail in a deep pink sky, the black fringes of trees just showing at the bottom. When I take film shots, I really make sure it is a shot I want. I walk about and arrange the composition exactly. I notice the colors, the light, the details. I absorb the place. In the end, I don't even really need the photo.
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9 comments:
What a gorgeous entry-you really brought all those images to mind. Your blog (your photos in particular) are just beautiful &hearts
funny that imaginary roll...i had 2 of those rolls of film in 2 different cameras. and the photos in my eye, they are forever amazing because they'll always be perfect. :)
xo
I've had that happen before. Since I was only using one camera at the time, I was quite disappointed. But there is something strange and special about those photos that never were. Somehow, I think it might be better this way, as I will always remember them better than I might have taken them.
this is so perfect. because it's so true.
there's something magical in the fact that--with film-- you can't see the photo right away- like we are accoustomed with digital. you formulate the photo in your mind and heart first.
this post filled me with so many thoughts and feelings. thanks for saying what i didn't know i wanted to say :)
What an interesting thought. In the end, imaginary photos might even be more important than real ones, because you will carry the memories of those special moments in your soul whatever life holds for the future.
What an admirable photographer and post. I have done that before and just got upset haha. I love how you described each shot- a little preserved moment in time. It reminds me of something my writing teacher told me in high school. She traveled a lot when she was younger and went to all these different beautiful places, like Ireland, and she never brought a camera with her. When she got cries from our class about not documenting those moments she simply explained that often times we will take pictures of places and moments to document them, but we forget to experience those moments-REALLY document in our mind what happened. I thought that was such an ironic statement. Whenever I forget my camera I think of her and don't feel so bad about it. I think your experience is now sitting on the shelf with that memory for me :)
Such a wonderful post. Often when I find myself out of the house without a camera, I 'take a photo' by simply stopping and noticing that little bit longer. It's a fantastic thing that photography has given me, this eye for beautiful things, an eye that skips over the litter and concentrates on the flower beside it :)
"I absorb the place. In the end, I don't even really need the photo." Love this post Brooke. I was remembering the good old days with my pentax and 35mm film just the other day. I so get what you are saying here!
This is so interesting. Some of my strongest memories are linked to photographs, but to think a memory could be just as strong simply by looking through a viewfinder, no physical photograph required, it is an intriguing concept to contemplate.
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