Do you believe a photograph records what the eyes see? Or do you ask for more than a visual revelation? Often when i am taking a photograph my intention is to capture what my eyes see. However that isn't what happens. Never. In fact i have yet to have the experience of looking into the viewfinder, pressing the shutter, and finding that twin image on my LCD screen. Mostly i experience bewilderment at the contrast between what i see and what i get. That isn't always a bad thing. Sometimes i 'see' something that has little to do with my eyes, something that is revealed when time is stopped in it's tracks and the viewer a willing pilgrim. Other times i wonder if perhaps i do not have the necessary compositional eye to be a good photographer. One is the voice of the heart, the other the voice of the mind. The magical or technical. Which will i choose?
As i drove through the desert on my way home from Phoenix i would look out the window and see something that i should capture with my camera. There was a gold-mine of compelling photographs sliding past and yet each time we stopped my resulting images neither rang true to the physical reality or the heart. I didn't feel much. I think my heart was too busy, too distracted to be fully present for taking good pictures. I decided to surrender and let go of effort. I just looked out the window and let my mind wander.
On the last day we stopped for lunch and walked down a wooded path that led to a river. There were no people or cars, nothing to distract from the sounds of the wind and the song of the river. It was here that i found what i was longing for. I watched in silence as the natural world around me came to life. Instead of the camera i had binoculars. If i wanted to capture and hold something of the moment it would have to be with my own memory, my heart. We saw a brilliantly colored bird dart over the river to meet it's mate. It was such a surprise, like nothing i had ever seen before. Then an otter slid out of the water on the opposite bank and went about the business of doing whatever it is that otters do when they are on land. There were dozens of swallows that swooped in formation making that trilling, chirruping sound. Their choreographed movements seemed to reveal a hieroglyphic message that i couldn't understand. They flew with a natural grace and agility that made me smile. A little ground squirrel stood quite near and watched us watch him darting into the ground when we turned the other way. Like he was trying to keep a secret. All of these things made me feel glad to be alive. Happy to be able to walk upon this glorious earth.
The only photograph i kept from our trip is this one of my sister and me as we stood in front of our Dad's house for the last time.
When taking a photograph what are you looking for besides the image itself?
Love, robin
