In between pictures...

'Often while traveling with a camera we arrive just as the sun slips over the horizon of a moment, too late to expose film, only enough time to expose our hearts' - Minor White

Thanks to the generosity of Eve Kachaje - a great friend and mentor to me - I've had the chance to play photographer here in India this summer. I've never been one to travel with a camera, so there's been a learning experience tied to the small machine.

While traveling, the camera assumes an interesting role. When we arrive at scenes which we hope to 'capture', it becomes a link to the future - through which we would project this experience, either for loved ones or onto our own memories, clouded by time. But through what lens will we capture this moment? At what exposure? Shutter speed? Angle? - Premier Canadian photographer Ted Grant once said, 'When you photograph people in colour you photograph their clothes. But when you photograph people in Black & White, you photograph their souls'. -

So we resort to a frenzy of pictures, in pursuit of the accurate capture of these moments of beauty - often small windows of time which flee from the shutter of our cameras.

As I said, its been a process of adjustment for me traveling with a camera this summer. I've been notorious for leaving the 'Canon' behind, only to arrive empty handed at moments which take my breath away. And when 'a picture's worth a thousand words', I shudder to think of the task at hand in putting to language the gaps I've left through my photographic folly.

Not to be deterred - I put the question to the world wide web. Why is it that a picture's worth a thousand words? - I was surprised with what I found out.

The word photography comes from two Greek words - photos (light) and graphos (writing)... 'Writing with light' (love it) - Writing in the language of light? (even better). I'm no stranger to new languages - albeit slowly, I have engaged with new ones before. What I have found is that in doing so, it’s best to cut ties to your own so as to see the world through the eyes of this new dialect (don't believe me? www.rosettastone.com) ;)

This being so - I must then look to what allows our cameras to write in this 'language of light'... it was time to sit down with the 'Cannon' (again - thanks Eve :P). It asked me this...

'With what lens is it that you view your day?'

and

'To what extent do you leave your heart exposed?'

It explained to me,

‘Time flies by in the blink of an eye. But leave your shutter open for long enough, and you’ll come away with a magnificent imprint of what’s important around you. And when that image before you isn’t quite what you wanted, realize that it’s often just a matter of adjusting your angle.’

~

‘When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.’ –Ansel Adams

… it is often in these moments of silence - in between photographs - where the spectacle of 'photos in graphos' comes alive.

-G