I was reading this blog the other day and came across this quote  by David Bruno:

“We’re so distracted, we’re missing our own lives. The parent who records his kid’s dance recital or first steps or graduation is so busy trying to capture the moment – to create a thing that proves they were there – they miss out on actually living and enjoying the moment.” 

Courtney goes on in her post to assign a mini-mission:

Make Moments instead of memories. Leave your camera at home on your next vacation or outing. See what happens when you are fully engaged in the moment, instead of catching the shot. Since mobile phones have become a better camera than calling device, you might need to leave that behind too.

I’m not suggesting that you never take another picture, but consider why you are behind the camera. If you are already thinking about the comments your picture might get on facebook, you might be missing the point. Of course photography is for sharing, but sometimes we shoot to share instead of preserving a memory. Not to mention, your actions may be interfering with the experience of others. We’ve all sat next to the parent at the school play narrating their own video or using their flash during the ballet. Not fun!

How can you be present when you are framing a shot, or adjusting the shutter speed on your camera? To really enjoy an event, to make the moment something unforgettable, you need to really be there.

Remember that less is not nothing, so please don’t abandon your cameras all together, just use them with purpose and see what it’s like to leave them at home.

This mini mission hit a chord with me because I have been purposefully leaving my camera behind a lot lately.  For example, on a recent weekend trip to meetup with my sisters and mom I only broke out my camera once – the morning we left:

This completely suprised me – I thought I would have spent the whole weekend capturing as many memories as I could – this was the first time I had been together with with my sisters in four years!

I do confess I captured a few cell phone photos of us in our PJ's late at night as we visited and laughed together – but the rest of the weekend there is nothing… and I call myself a scrapbooker?

Well yes I do!  I don't know if it's getting older or what has changed for me but this past year I have found myself setting the camera to the side and just fully immersing myself in the moment.  When we gathered together I also saw Aunts and Uncles I haven't seen in 20+ years and I may never see again.   You think I would have wanted my camera. 

In hindsight my camera would have been an obstacle to the moments I enjoyed.   There were hugs, laughter, tears, memories shared – things I don't think would have flowed so freely were a camera present. 

The irony is that because I left my camera behind – I enjoyed several priceless moments – very few photos to mark the occasion – but deep memories in my heart that are priceless.

I've been organizing my photos and I just keep thinking, "Life is too important to be overwhelmed with stuff."  I have hundreds of photos dating back some 6 generations in my family and they are priceless to look at – I am so grateful for them.   The photos document life and moments – nothing like the number of photos we take today.

However, what I find myself drawn to even more than the photos are the memories written by my great grandmother in her little pocket notebook she carried.  I doubt she thought it would survive her – but it did and through it I have seen a side to her I would have never seen in photos.  In fact, there is not one single photo to mark anything in that book but I feel I can see a picture of her days more clearly through her words than I ever would a photo.

So I guess I'm publicly declaring it's ok to consciously leave the camera behind, to live more in the moments and write memories in our hearts.  The reality is we only pass through this life once and it's too important to be overwhelmed with photos.

So how does this translate to the photo portion of class?  Expect simple.  Expect streamlined and expect your memories to be more with less – you don't have to follow my lead exactly – but hopefully it will give you some food for thought so you can organize your photos and find the photos you want to tell your story without being overwhelmed by a complex system.  Technology should be easy and simple.

Back to work on the curriculum.  I'd love to know your thoughts on this – what do you think?  Are you leaving your camera behind more or less lately and for what reasons?