Kim is the creative fire in our home, the one who operates on a different perceptual plane. When it comes to photography she is way out ahead while I just keep doing the same things over and over. Last night she taught me another lesson.
Her pedigree is different than mine. She’s been a professional science writer, published fiction writer and relentless photographer. I remember a phone message on her answering machine from an editor informing her that a short story had been selected for their magazine award (cash) along with “I had to smoke a cigarette after I read your story.”
I don’t get that kind of reaction to anything I write.
After earning a living with a camera since the 1970s you would think I have things covered in that area but I’m still receiving photography lessons from Kim. I should add she’s also responsible for dreaming up the title of this blog — Scooter in the Sticks — and just recently devised the road icon in my logo.
Last night I was looking at a series of images she made using an effects feature on her Canon G16 camera. Being a creature of habit and perhaps a photographic snob I only use manual settings on my own camera — in this case a Canon G15. Real photographers don’t rely on tricks just like real motorcycle and scooter riders never trailer their machines to destinations. It’s that sort of thinking that keeps me trapped rather than free.
Kim set me free (again) last night.
I never knew my camera had effect settings, and if I did I probably wouldn’t have looked at them. But looking at her series of images set fire to my limited photographic imagination. Sitting in the chair I tinkered with the Toy Camera setting to make this self portrait.
It was murky outside this morning as I departed to run a few errands. Experimenting further with the Toy Camera setting I realized it works to deepen the emotional feel of an already emotionally charged weather event. To this point, the only time I saw something like this was with images made using Instagram on my iPhone.
Autumn is not far off now and I can’t recall what happened to summer. Leaves are already changing colors and falling at my feet. The days are moving swiftly and if I blink I fear snow will be falling.
Throughout the morning I continued to play with the Toy Camera setting. It won’t work for every situation but for certain subjects and intentions it is the right tool for the job. That’s a big revelation for someone like me who tends to use the same tool for everything.
A gift from a loving wife for which I’ve not devised the proper thank you.
There are days when the desire to ride far and fast is strong. Especially when the sun is not beating on my back and the world looks strange. Imagination percolates and I wonder about elves and zombies. With either, a Vespa is what you want to be riding.
The view from breakfast on the porch of Cafe Lemont in Lemont, Pennsylvania. Chili and sourdough bread while watching the world go by and a few minutes to do nothing at all. I’m still learning how to let go of everything without feeling guilty or keep busy. Hard to slow down with those thoughts in your head.
When you’re in a hurry you miss the details — of the road and your life. Slowing down seems at odds with everything our culture tells us. More, more, more…
I’ve been reading “The Effortless Life” by Leo Babauta, author of the blog Zen Habits. He suggests it’s helpful if you’ve ever wrestled with:
- frustration
- struggle
- distraction
- anger
- impatience
- unhappiness
- relationships
- goals
- work
- being present
This book seems to have been written for me…
Each time I stop to make a picture it’s can seem like a lesson in living. Or changing. If only to practice focusing and being less distracted. Or just being present for a few moments.
I’ve been smitten by the Toy Camera setting for the moment as life takes on a cinematic quality. Not sure where it will go but I know it doesn’t matter. One of the photography lessons I’ve learned from Kim is that there are no rules, no expectations, and I can do whatever I want.
That’s a good place to be when visually things look as if you’re riding toward an apocalypse…
One last stop to pick up a loaf of rustica italian bread at gemelli bakery in State College, Pennsylvania.
I’ve not plumbed the depth of the Toy Camera feature or looked at all the other choices. Who knows where these photography lessons will go next.
I have been thrilled by the world of digital photography. I hated dark rooms and chemicals and I hated paying labs to mess up my pictures.
Now I get to take as many variations as I want, check them instantly and mess with them, send them, post them, gloat over them all for free. In color or monochrome as I choose. Lovely.
I have played with the settings but they don’t much suit me though u like having them for the rare occasion.
I agree with everything you say in characterization of the world of digital photography. Even, at times, hating the darkroom. But still I cling to that little room in the basement. I’ve come close to abandoning it along with my film cameras but something has me lingering.
For now though everything I am doing is in the digital realm. Well, except for things I write by hand in a Moleskine journal…
Hi,, Thanks for this issue of your blog which is of the usual high standard.
After your heart attack someone gave you some excellent advice to try a bicycle…at least part of the time…i have note heard you have done so thus I remind you….slow…smells of the autumn…time to soak it all up….great rhythmic exercise for much of the body which stimulates the meditative state….cheap…no emissions…..
Because, as a faithful reader, and more importantly a fellow human…i value your health
and selfishly wish you to continue speaking to me through your blog…i implore you to
borrow a bike and give it a try on a lovely weather day….choose your own pace…
You will be rewarded in many ways…
I am just getting my Moto Guzzi Nuovo Falcone back on the road….to go slowly…
but it will never completely replace my bicycle.
Thanks to whoever it was who gave you that bike advice in the first place and thank you for your thoughts and your blog.
Good health and happy riding (of whatever)
David Gilliland in England
I’ve moved my mountain bike from the basement to the garage — one small step toward riding it again. Since completing cardiac rehab last week and now on my own to exercise I’ve been walking and using a NordicTrack elliptical trainer along with lifting weights. But the bicycle will soon become an option to the elliptical. At least that’s the plan.
And I want to stick around a while longer myself! Lots of rides I want to take, trips I would like to do with Kim, and watch my granddaughter grow up a bit before I ride off the mortal coil…
Thanks for you advice and well wishes. I appreciate them David.
Steve,
You definitely married a smart girl. The effects settings on my camera have sometimes resulted in “the shot” of the day for me. Go wild, experiment, it’s not like you’re wasting celluloid frames! ; D
Having said the above, I tend to rely more on the SCN settings for particularly difficult lighting shots. I especially liked the results of the “hand held twilight” setting which allows for shooting in low light without a tripod. Comes in handy indoors in places such as Italy’s churches.
What are some of Kim’s fiction works titles?
Kim definitely is smarter than me. Had health issues not struck her so hard I’m certain she would have done more. Her fiction writing career began while she was still working as a researcher in molecular and cell biology — looking at algae and spending time in swamps in Lyme, Connecticut collecting the stuff. You can imagine what happened there.
During that time Kim wrote a short story and submitted it to Mademoiselle magazine’s fiction writing competition. From the thousands of entries she won the competition and a big cash prize. That work was titled “The Other Side of Innocence”. Not long after she was offered a fellowship and spot in Cornell’s MFA Fiction Writing program that she couldn’t pass up.
Anyways, health and medical issues grew and by the time she completed the program and was teaching at Cornell she had to stop. Worked as a science writer for awhile and some other things. She’s kept her writing to herself aside from two published pieces and some grant awards. I’ll let her decide to share things.
The new digital cameras are magical. You can shoot in the dark. A far different experience from shooting color film.
I rarely venture into away from the aperture priority setting of the camera into the scenes or effects. There seem to be enough toys to play with digital photos using other apps after the fact. About the only “special” thing I delve into is app-assisted HDR.
I generally shoot the original images straight and process after the fact. But the toy camera feature is sweet. And it forces you to deal with the way it sees up front. I’ll keep playing with it for awhile.
I enjoyed your thoughts on living in the moment. When I ride alone, I am able to stop and smell the roses via my digital camera. I can linger at lonely barns and scenic vistas and see the world differently than I could while zooming by at 70mph. I recently found a new riding partner that enjoys the moment as I do and although the ride was longer than planned, it was also more enjoyable. Cheers to living in the moment.
Going slow and riding alone really allows a person to stop and look around in a manner that’s just not possible when someone else is along, no matter how much they’re into it. For me, I just feel bad stopping so often. I can start a ride thinking 150 trip and end up going 20 because of all the things I stop to see.
Keep living in the moment!
Steve your skill at composition is amazing to me.
The issue I have with the Scene settings is that they tend to make the picture too… tricked out. Like adding peanuts, caramel and hot fudge to a handcrafted vanilla bean ice cream. The subtlety of the composition, the nuances, which keep you coming back to a satisfying photo, tend to be drowned out.
They certainly have their place. But I think your approach, a cleaner approach, in the end, yields the better result.
Just my two cents.
Thanks for your kind words David. I appreciate them.
I largely feel the same as you in regard to technical gimmicks with photography — either digital or film, in the camera or post processing. That said, there are times that I’ve found a “gimmick” to be the perfect tool for the job at hand, whatever that may be. Indiscriminate use of filters and processing tools lead to some bad work. For me, the toy camera feature on the camera has enough merit that I need to explore it a bit. Who knows where it will lead.