Shot Down

I've given up on photos.

That's it. I'm done. No more. I was at my sisters wedding on the weekend, and didn't take a single shot. When the bride and groom signed the marriage certificate, I stayed in my seat. There are professionals to do that kind of thing. When I was on my last holiday in the Northern Territory, I went on a jumping crocodile cruise where I took shots of the first two crocs, then put the Olympus away. I wanted to enjoy the trip through my own eyes rather than the camera lens.

I've realised that as a materialistic westerner, I collect experiences. I used to do it though ticket stubs. Now I do it through my camera. It's amazing how far our materialism extends. We no longer enjoy the experience itself, but we collect the experience. If I didn't get it on camera, it didn't happen. And the camera is the primary method of experience collection.

Well, I say, 'no more'! The camera is gone. If I really want a photo of a gig, I'll get it online. If I want a family photo, I'll get it off one of the other 12 cameras that get produced every time more than three people squash together and face the same direction at a family do. I hereby declare I am going to live in the moment, rather than after it.

In other words, I'm throwing out my experience collection.

To be clear, I think I'll keep the camera. Because I do enjoy the photography experience itself. But this wild snapping of anything that moves, is vanquished. A photo will serve to jog my memory rather than document the event.

Look out world, here I come.