I know, I know, it’s not even Christmas yet. But this is a
story about
my New Year’s resolutions from THIS year, January 2015. Since I live with chronic pain, I know the importance of taking
an inventory on what I
want to do and
what I can do. This resolution was
certainly both, even though the later has been questionable. You see, the very
first time I saw the world through the lens of my 35mm film camera; I fell in
love with photography. But film photography has become a dinosaur, so I set
about figuring out how to fulfill my desire to capture and manipulate photos
using new technology, leading me to my 2015 resolution.
I will learn to use my new
Canon Rebel T5 SLR camera!
There is an underlying story here about keeping up with the
times, embracing change, and all that good stuff, to be revealed.
Resolution vs.
Resolution
I struggled to translate what I know about film photography
to digital photography. I even bought the book for Dummies specifically for my camera. My New Year resolution, I would
learn, was harder to achieve than setting the resolution of digital photographs.
Having short-term memory loss, I couldn’t remember from one
page to the next; white balance, color space, or focal plane, my head was spinning.
I am embarrassed to say, I couldn’t even remember how to turn the darn thing
on. But if I am anything, I am tenacious.
So, I ditched looking at the book from an academic
standpoint, deciding it was more valuable as a resource. After all, we don’t
read an encyclopedia cover-to-cover—right? (I have since found my difficulty
with this book is not shared with my otherwise mentally sharp friends, I
wouldn’t want you to think this is a bad book review.)
Intimacy with the
Inanimate
Six months in to the New Year, I set my sights on
accomplishing at least one goal.
Trash the anxiety and pick up the camera.
I would soon learn one of the most valuable tools on a
digital camera is the DELETE BUTTON!
My Chronic Pain
Friend and the Shutter Sisters
Probably the best advice I received regarding digital
photography came from one of my chronic pain sisters. You see, she also loves
to do what I do. She knew I was struggling, she understood why I was
struggling. In one exchange of emails, she asked me a question that would
change my world.
Have you heard of the
Shutter Sisters?
I had not, but I have now. I immediately went to their
website. I bought their book, and I quickly became intimate with my camera. I
forced myself to only use the manual settings, and I did what I did not think
was possible, I fell in love with digital photography.
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| The Cradle of Perfect Imperfection |
Here’s How it Happened
I found the LIGHT METER! Oh, what a glorious day that was.
It was my “ah ha” moment, MY “light switch” was on. Terms I thought were lost
to new technology like aperture, depth of field, F-stop, lighting, filters, subject,
ISO were all there. It is so much more than becoming intimate with the
inanimate, it was like that first time I zoomed my lens in on the stamen of a
flower, I was detailing my feelings, setting a historical moment in time, and I
was going to be able to capture it the way I wanted. More than that, I found I
have
Shutter Sisters that can see what I see the instant before I release that
shutter. They get why I do what I do as
a writer of self-help books too.
These people, my fellow passion driven brothers and sisters,
understand that automatic doesn’t always emote what I am trying to capture. To
me, imperfection often brings clarity, character, and a feeling of that moment that
will forever be etched in my mind, in my heart, and in my soul.
Miles to Go before I
Sleep
Those words, “miles to go before I sleep” (thank you Robert
Frost) can mean many things to those of us who live with daily pain, but in the
context of this blog, it simply means that for all I have learned, for all I
have regained, I have so much more to accomplish. That’s the beauty of it. I am
a work in progress and so is my photography.
So, before you give up my friend, know that your “ah ha”
moment is coming, but you can’t have it if you give aren't determined.
“Many of life's failures
are people who did not realize
how close they were to success
when they gave up.”
~Thomas A. Edison
Thank you Thomas Edison, the brilliance of your wisdom
continues to light the world and guide me as I embrace the power of perseverance.
~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~
"Adversity is only an obstacle if we fail to see
opportunity."
Celeste Cooper, RN
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