A Photo

Is worth a thousand words they say.  I think they are worth a million more. They are the time capsules of our lives.  I love talking photos.

I think I can blame my dad for that.  Growing up we always had a lens shoved in our faces.  "Smile" would be said as my mum would dance some strange moves behind my father to make us grin.  They both do the same now to the Ferals .. am glad to see that has been passed down !



Happy Ferals

 I have photos of myself from the time I was born till now as most people I assume have.  They were lovingly placed in albums for me to keep by my mum and again I have done the same for the Ferals.

There are photos of me at all stages of my life ( some not so pretty I can promise that..not very photogenic I admit ) but as I have become older they have decreased.  I do not enjoy having my photo taken but, I also realise it is important for this history of my family.

My dad is a camera nut.  He was  always chasing us around snapping away on his old SLR camera.  If he wasn't chasing us kids though he would be photographing the wildlife or the tiny orchids that are native to Tasmania.  He is a specialist in the field of orchids.

So many lenses to change and rolls of film to develop.  Back before the digital camera he would take rolls of film in the hope that at least one photo would come out award winning.  He also took many slides.  It was a great tradition in our family to have other members over for a meal and for dad to then set up the old slide projector and screen for an evening of family snaps to the sounds of all the ooos and ahhhs as we watched and reminisced over the memories captured.

I loved these evenings. To curl up with my Grandmother in the dark as she relived our childhoods was very special. 

I love taking photos.  In College I studied photography. I even won an award for a photo I took of my sister.  This is where I also learnt to develop negatives and black and white prints.

Going in to the dark room to see what I could create was wonderful. Winding the negative onto the spool in complete blackness though was not.  It was all done by feel and one muck up and negatives were ruined.  But it was amazing creating these.

To print the photos was a lot of fun.  Mixing the chemicals that have a distinct odour to them. To expose the photographic paper to the negative light for the desired amount of time took alot of practise.  Counting 1   2   3   4  ..... 10   11 , in the hope that it was all exposed correctly was a game of chance.  But to then place that paper into a bath of solution and watch it develop before my eyes was amazing.  It was great to experiment and see what prints I could create.  I still have my own developing equipment in the cupboard.  I often look at it and wonder if I will ever use it again.  The answer is I don't know, but I don't want to get rid of it  'Just in case '. 

The digital age though has changed photography forever.  I must admit I was hesitant to purchase a digital camera.  My old and trusty SLR takes amazing pictures.  My dad actually won it in a photographic competition.  Great lenses and very clear, but as with all film cameras I took alot of bad photos to try and get just one goody.  All that printing costs.  At least with a digital I can snap away to my hearts content and then only play with the ones I want.



Holiday memories ...

 What I don't really like about digital photography though is they way they can enhance anyone to look different.  I can understand using it to fix lighting or to enhance them in a natural way but the body shaping and smoothing to me is fuelling the way we .. especially women.. view our selves.  They show and suggest that obviously 2 months after having a baby we are meant to be back to a new improved shape with not a stretch mark or cellulite wobble to be seen.  It is unrealistic and yep it annoys me. Where are the real women that printed photos did not lie about?  They say a photo does not lie but I am afraid in today's society they do.

 Anyway, photography to me is a joy.  I will continue to chase the ferals to get the perfect pic.  I will watch my mum do silly dances that are so endearing to her in an effort to make them laugh.  I will continue to capture all around me because in the end, a photos good or bad is still a part of my history for the Ferals to look at one day when I am old and grey (er) to say to them selves " I remember that ! "