behind the lens

By the end of this month, I may have actually succeeded in getting my trip pics from Spain (2010), Greece (2008) and the Baltic Sea (2006) into photo books. Better late than never, I must say. This may be a sign of the apocalypse.

As one would expect, Spain was the easiest to complete as I was there the most recent and it was the freshest in my mind, followed by Greece. The Baltic cruise proved to be a bit more difficult as I couldn't really differentiate between Denmark and Sweden at first (or fifth) glance. Eventually it all started to run together. And based upon the number of pictures taken, I had an affinity for the Slavic areas of Russia and Estonia as well as Germany. (I'm Polish & German....go figure).

Yes, it was nice take the pictorial view of my travels. However, in looking at the photos from 2006 and then the ones four years later, I noticed something. I believe my photographic eye has improved.

As someone who doesn't brag about her talents (or lack thereof), this is of revelation-type proportions. Maybe Spain is easier to photograph, than say Finland, thus the photos came out better. Well, at least it's more intriguing - no offense to the Finns. Then I thought it could have been the camera, but I used the same camera in 2006 and 2008. There's even a difference between those two years, the Greece more exciting than Finland argument aside. But even after (over)rationalizing, I came to the same conclusion: the photos really are better. (Note: you can actually judge for yourself by viewing my photo blog. Yes, this is a shameless plug.)

It is true that I did have a photography interest when I was younger, and even took a class in high school. And this was old school with the film developing in the darkroom. I even had a fancy-schmancy camera and everything. But the female teacher favored the boys, so I somewhat lost interest (and maybe sheer stubbornness played a part as well). After that, I pretty much only took photos of friends and stuff. Nothing serious.

It was the Baltic cruise that piqued my interest again.

After that cruise, I started carrying my camera around a bit more often just to get a little more "experience" behind the lens. Of course this also sometimes leads to taking pictures whilst driving, which is not recommended. It also led to the role of being official photographer where I work, which includes visiting facilities and capturing the therapist/patient interaction for marketing materials. Another example of how a hobby became part of my career.

Nowadays, I almost aways have my (or work) camera on me. Yes, I may very well be that person along the lakefront or driving down I-94 with her camera in hand. However, photography has allowed me to capture life's moments such as a rainbow over the Marquette interchange to a nine-month old stuffing his face with avocado, as well as to have a visual memoir of my travels. While I do enjoy sharing my photos (especially the travel ones) if asked, I really photograph for myself - simply for the art and escapism of it all.

To quote Ferris Bueller's Day Off: "Life goes by pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." Photography allows us to stop, observe and capture those life's moments that we might otherwise miss, forever.