Day 339 Lens Lessons

November 13, 2015

(If we live with an open and grateful attitude, every day will bring a gift. This is one of 365 gifts during the year I turned 70.)

 

An early art photo I took with a simple Kodak camera when I was in my early teens. I positioned my younger sister in front of a white sheet that was backlit by a floodlight from a hardware store. I cut out stars, punched a hole in them and hung them in front of the sheet. I am grateful to my sister Jaymie for being a patient model for her novice sister photographer.

A friend recently asked me about my art, what I enjoy and what influences me. I am grateful for these questions because they make me stop and think. 

I got my first camera when I was in second grade, a Kodak Duaflex camera. It took 620 roll film that I had developed at a corner store in the neighborhood. To take photos, I held the camera at my waist, looked down into a viewfinder and then snapped the shutter. It was a simple camera but there were two controls for the shutter—instant and long (time exposures). It also had a double exposure button and a tripod mount. Not bad for a simple, basic camera.

Today I started thinking about what photography has taught me, beginning with second grade.

• I have learned the importance of balance between light and dark.

• I have learned that memories and recording them as part of my history help me maintain another type of balance.

• I have learned to try taking new perspectives and looking at life in different ways—including an ant’s eye-view and a birds-eye-view.

• I have learned there can be much to gain by taking chances and experimenting.

• I have learned that “selfies” or having others take your picture will help you learn more about yourself.

•  I have learned to laugh and have fun while creating.

•   I have learned to communicate not only with words, but also through images.

These lessons were not limited to photography but are a real part of important life lessons that have made a difference to me.

My gift today is photography's  life lessons.

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> Day 340 Song for Unity

You can find links to my other posts on this project here:
http://bjschupp.blogspot.com/2014/12/365-gifts.html