Sometimes I write lengthy descriptions of something mundane like a building, street or object. When I finish I stare and think “I don’t remember seeing that.” But if I look at the building, street or object again I will see it.
I don’t think that I consciously saw it the first time. The first time I uploaded images from my digital camera to my computer I couldn’t believe how much more the camera saw than I did. Yet the photos are framed in a manner that makes it apparent I must have at least seen shadows. Am always conscious of that now when I take photos.
I usually take three pictures of the same object; one in telescopic; second in wide; and the third of course regular, no mode. Then I take pictures in each mode, and lenses exposure, or want to but I don’t have an extra life to spare. Each photo in the first series comes out very differently and each lenses exposure sees vastly different things in a photo of buildings, streets, rivers, oceans, or buildings. The second series differences are usually more subtle; sometimes comical.
Think I began to do this because it’s very different than writing, yet very structured and calls for much patience. I am attempting to learn to be patient, and it seems to be a good way. It also helps me learn the mechanics and intricacies of description; something I intuitively know but have never broken down more than is done in school. Also think the same eye that might allow me to describe the one object that captures a person or inianimate object captures it in digitalese.
Though I think in leaps, I have a need to break everything down to its most basic component. Digital photography lets me examine each element and variable, and see the process behind description. This sounds obsessive and probably is; fortunately, I think, I have limited time to work on this or take every picture in every sequence. Sometimes I actually take one picture of something.
Read Shayna’s interview with me. Shayna’s an incredible interview; Any Courting reader knows how much I love to blog on blogging. If I say so myself I have a good take on the Internet and blogging.
When I answered the question on writers I like I realized that all are descriptive writers; all are past masterful at creating a sense of place and usually time. Updike’s the adjective king, and uses them with precision and brilliance. His descriptions are an exception to my rule.
Back to A history of violence vs Brokerback Mountain I seem to be mentioning them in each post. I prefer the descriptive narrative in A history.. and the quick views of the town than the expansive landscape in Brokerback… . The later is Updike meets Jim Thompson, a very strange but effective pairing.
I’m going to see both movies again shortly to see what I missed the first time. For some reason I saw Hurlyburly so many times I memorized the furniture. Each time my eyes would see more until there was nothing more to see.
I have always understood the power of description and how important that is to good writing. I never thought of myself as a visual person, but I have to be in order to remember so much detail. I’m beginning to see how all art is interconnected.
Blogging is going to make that very clear. I have called it the performance art of the millenium, but never realized exactly how much it is. Nor did I see how interconnected writing and visual arts are. I’m beginning to develop that thought and will stop here. This might be the most truly pretentious post I have ever written as I know nothing about photography, and can write fast and without conscious thought or spend hours thinking up the one perfect word.
I’m constantly amazed by how many layers there are to blogging. Just when I think I’ve hit them all,I look at things from a different perspective.
I used to feel the same way about music, never thinking I’d tire of anything new. Lately I haven’t felt that excitement though. Luckily blogging transfers that feeling for me.
I think a lot of times we do not realize what beauty we see in things such as buildings, neighborhoods, objects, etc until we start to actually talk about it or write it down on paper. I have also done this… 🙂
Pia thanks again for the interview… my little imagination enjoyed the location as well… Cheers to you my blogger friend! 😉
I totally understand what you mean about photography, because I think in leaps, too. I just don’t have the patience for it I don’t think.
It was a really fun interview. Your writing and photography would make a really interesting contrast between the still view of something and the winding one.
Excellent interview, interviewer and interviewee!!!!
Funny Pia, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is one of my absolute favorite reads too.
One more thing we have in common–I wear a 9 1/2 or 10 too! But I have narrow feet and next to no arch, which is why my shoes of choice are hi-top Reeboks.
And I LOVE “Tree”. They keep stealing our library copies and I keep replacing them. Wish they’d stop putting it on reading lists for 10 and 11 year olds–it’s a book I appreciated far more as a teenager and far far more now that I am (gasp) an adult!
Happy New Year and keep blogging!
OOooo patience.
Let me know how that goes–I have none.
The interview was lovely but mage me very hungry.
Missed reading your blog and glad to be on this side of the holidays!
Performance art – yes – what a wonderful way to put it. Each essay is a photograph in itself – layer upon layer of rich emotion and sense memory. Sculpting with language – that’s how I see it. To create, on a single dimension, the sight, sound and feel of a moment frozen in time. Like a photograph, or a wonderful film. If it’s good – you can come back often, and deepen the experience – good writers like good photographers give you that.
Ah – A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. I always come back – to both the book and the film. It reminds me so much of my own childhood, in many heartbreaking ways. And not just in being poor. You will include your photographs in the book?
I too share your love of details, whether it’s in photography, the written word, movies, sculpture, interior design, etc. I think it’s fantastic that you look at settings and movies more than once in order to suss out the many layers involved. It makes life so much richer to go back and savor the details.
Everyone has Patience. The question is:”Is this worth being patient with?”
I like to fix things. Sometimes it takes a while to see how it was supposed to work in the first place. You can only fix it after you know that. If I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t bother.
It’s all a matter of perspective and how much you care about it.
Good luck with photography! There are a lot of cool things you can do with photos. (I married a photographer.)