Behind the eyes: Why I love photography

I can’t pinpoint the exact moment but all I know is that today I’m in love with photography. I’m pretty sure my job as a reporter for 10 years had something to do with it. My first on the job camera was a little Kodak Easy something or other, and at that point in 2004 all I did was tell people to line up and I snapped their picture for the paper. I didn’t really care about the photo as much as I did about writing the story.

Shortly thereafter I bought my first digital camera, a little Canon Powershot, and I started taking pictures of pretty much everything, just day to day stuff. But then something happened. I started to care. I started noticing certain angles, flecks of light, the smallest details. I started viewing life through my lens. Even without a camera, my mind now snaps photos on its own throughout the day. As I’m driving, my mind captures moments in time very much like a real camera.

I pick up the tiniest nuances in two seemingly identical photos and can tell which one one will be far superior to the other. I can usually tell just by the photo thumbnail if a photo is going to be good or not. As I line people up or position myself to take a shot, I can immediately tell if it’s going to be a good picture or not. And most notably, I see through the lens what a live view just can’t pick up.

I was once taking photos of a friend and a male friend of hers. The photos were supposed to be for professional use. There was nothing unusual about their interaction but when I saw them through the viewfinder, there was “something” there; I later told her that I felt that I was taking engagement photos. The camera was picking up things that I had no idea existed between them.

As I started compiling photos for this gallery the first time around I noticed a few common themes, such as lots of flowers and nature pics. Yet at the same time, I don’t seek a specific theme in the photos I take.

But if I did have to say something about it, it would be that I am moved by color, I love serenity, peace and natural beauty, with perhaps just an inkling of mystery. I just love to capture life. And my photographs are simply a reflection that; they are life through my eyes and my heart. They are equal part life as it is, and life as I long for it to be.

Life has been really hard the last few years, to put it really nicely. I lost all my creativity and the things that used to bring me joy, including taking pictures just for the joy of it. I got sucked into the vortex of survival mode and other unpleasant experiences that drained every last drop of anything resembling my former self out of me. But the fog is starting to lift. I’m making a fresh start. I write about that here.

Amongst many other worthwhile endeavors I’m embarking upon, I hope to start taking pictures again, even just with my crusty old iPhone 7 which desperately needs replacing. But it’ll do for now. I may also use my old Canon Powershot or an old Sony camera from 2008, the exact same model I used back in my journalism day. Just looking at it is a reminder of some of the best times in my life.

I’m not a professional photographer. My equipment isn’t modern. But all I need is an eye to see and a heart to say “that’s the shot right there” Click And that’s how a leaf, a flower petal, a human smile, or a crashing wave can become not so much a piece of art as a moment in time.