the camera is the ideal arm of consciousness

"We are only beginning to learn what to say in a photograph. The world we live in is a succession of fleeting moments, any one of which might say something significant. When such an instant arrives, I react intuitively. There is, I think, an electronic impulse between my eye and my finger. But even this is not enough. I dream that someday the step between my mind and my finger will no longer be needed. And that simply by blinking my eyes, I shall make pictures. Then, I think, I shall really have become a photographer." - Alfred Eisenstaedt

Last weekend's New York Times Magazine was their "photography issue," and as with all things Times-ian, it is best taken with a grain of salt, though there is always something there to enjoy, if superficially. So goes the paper of record in my esteem ... but, I digress, as I am one of those who is guilty of most of the quaint "ha has" they wrote of. Yes, I have over 4,000 photos on my flickr page, obnoxious, really, but, most of them are personal snaps of friends and family, to be shared, in what I feel is the most unobtrusive of ways--with the people most likely to care to see them, when it's convenient for them. It avoids the "look at my vacation pictures!" moment that most of us have, at one time or another, had to smile stiffly through.

I am constantly amazed at the quality and creativity that I find on these photo sites. Just a random scan of some of the "Explore" pics that flickr puts up, is a guaranteed thrill. I am also pretty lucky to have a lot of friends who take really great photographs, in addition to those fun throw-aways that come with a lot of laughter and shared good times ... memories preserved.

I checked back on Operation Photo Rescue, which I wrote about last February, and they have set up the OPR Workshop, as an extension of the work they did recovering and restoring the photographs that the residents of New Orleans lost in the horror of Hurricane Katrina, almost two years ago. As this year has passed, and photography has become more and more important to me in documenting what I have done and who I have become and where I have been, I understand the pain all the more deeply, of what it would be like to be without those moments, big and small.
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"clear exit" © 2006 duluoz cats