The Moment

As most of you know, I worked and shot at the International Food Festival in West Springfield Massachusetts over the Memorial Day weekend. I took a few shots that really exemplify what photography is all about to me, and I want to write on this for a minute.

To me, photography is about preserving and portraying the emotion from that exact time in history. Photographers try to capture the soul of the subject which they are shooting. Whether it be a person, animal, objects or landscape, there is an essance to that image. I think photographers see the world from a different perspective and are able to actually see the soul of the subject matter.

Take a piece of paper and cut a 1 inch by 2 inch rectangle out of it. Now look through it. This is the view of a photographer. You need to portray a feeling within that 1x2 inch window. Some people have it...the "eye" for photography. It doesn't mean you have good eyes, it means you can see beyond the image and into the emotion of that scene. Most really good photographs bring out some sort of feelings or emotions for the viewer of the image.

This brings me to the images which I was speaking about.

The first shot is my daughter watching my favorite guitar player, Jeff Pitchell, wish me a happy birthday on stage. Now the image is personal to me but I believe it captured her pure emotion at the exact right moment in time. The glint of the tear in her eye makes the image. I edited it to be a little darker around the edges to make her stand out.

This next image is of a friend, Bobby Shedd. This was taken during the singing of the National Anthem on Memorial Day. Bobby signing the National Anthem out in the crowd, head held high and his hat over his heart shows his pride for our country.

These next shots were taken during 2 minutes of silence on Memorial day of the event for all the fallen servicemen who fought and payed the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

Now the next couple of photos are not from the event but do evoke some emotion and are good examples of what I have been talking about.

So, I know I went pretty deep this time but I felt like I needed to let you guys know what I actually feel photography is about. I do get emotional at times when I seethe image through the viewfinder and know I am going to capture something really poignant. It is a great feeling when I am able to capture and preserve that moment in time for people to enjoy for years to come.

See ya next week!

Thanks,

E

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