CAMERAS

The coffee shop was filled with people on their phones. Me too, I read all the latest on the new iPhone 12. Faster they said, better camera than my trusty iPhone X. Yes, It seemed my phone took more pictures than my camera in recent times. Still the experience left something missing, but I was’t sure what. 

Maybe the phone is just too easy, too immediate. There were other things too, the phone proved difficult to hold for me when taking a photo. Most importantly though, it let in all the rest of the world. All those news updates, emails waiting, advertisements and applications lurked in the background. Some even popped up as notifications when I tried to take the photo. 

My thoughts turned to how different using a camera was. How it could silence the rest of the world allowing a more compete experience with what you saw. How you could create your own world with it. A world only limited by your creativity. How wandering became something different, more thoughtful and fulfilling.

Using a camera set you apart and provided a more complete artistic tool for you to use. One that not only caught the scene but gave you enough pause to perhaps catch the emotion of just seeing and being.

If the pandemic time we are in taught me anything, it’s the importance of savoring your experiences and taking the time to enjoy them fully. A camera slows you down and lets you do that. It can lead you to a new creative world and satisfying experiences.

I turned away from the article on the new iPhone, wanting to rush home and pull out my camera again. 

David Young