A Creative Conflict- How my Blackberry became my multimedia tool.

Camera vs. Artist

One should really use the camera as though tomorrow you’d be stricken blind.  D. Lange

I recently discovered this quote and it provoked a sense of guilt for not using my cameras as often as I should.  I’m going to indulge in a seemingly absurd dilemma I’ve been having the past year or so.  Its the artist versus her tools dilemma- or something in that arena.

The Bart

I often struggle with the relationship I have with my camera. I haven’t actually named my cameras, but I refer to them with endearment using pronouns, usually in the feminine.
What I struggle with in this digital versus analog world is the actual relationship with my digital cameras.  When I pick up my digital camera, it does nothing for me.  No instant electricity occurs when I grip my digital SLR, unlike the feelings evoked upon handling my film camera.  That sense of excitement and precision that I feel when I put my eye to the viewfinder is lacking when I shoot digital.  Granted, I’m not shooting with a Leica M9 or a Hasselblad worth more than my vehicle- that might instill some sheer joy upon sharing the same room with the camera.  But, this is my dilemma.  Call it ancient, call it failure to evolve, call it what you will- its my creative conflict.

Due to this slightly childish mentality, I’ve neglected to really shoot anything for the sheer pleasure of shooting in almost a year.  I’ve utilized my camera to make some income in the commercial world, but beyond that, I was utterly unmotivated to shoot any of my normal topics of interest.

I embarked on a “relocation” last month, that deviated into a “walkabout” (with the help of Amtrak, some dear friends and the occasional plane ticket) and in an act of defiance, I left my digital SLR on the East Coast. Thousands of miles away from me.  And it felt fabulous.  I packed my video camera, an audio recorder and my trusty Canon 1V film SLR with a 28mm fixed 1.8 lens that takes me to my happy place every time I look through the viewfinder, regardless of the subject before the lens.

But while walking down the street in Berkley on the first leg of my walkabout, I saw something that just had to be documented and the only tool I had on my person was my small Blackberry.  So, I took the picture.  Then, a few blocks later, I realized that my image needed a little video b-roll imagery to support it, so, I hit the video function on the Blackberry and, shazam!  I had a multimedia tool that fits in my pocket!

Lice Removal Business

Granted, I’m not producing any 1080i HD masterpieces with my little piece of shit phone, but I derived some positive creative juju that had been missing from my shooting for many, many months.  Just the basics, a stripped down shooting device and my perspective.  That’s truly what photography is about for me, documenting a point of view.  The passion of creating the images is also an intricate element in the picture making process, but any device that captures an image can be utilized.

A friend and former dart playing partner, Shawn Rocco has created an entire body of work using his cell phone and the results are quite beautiful.  I now understand why Shawn originally came to this device as a means of spurring the creative juices that can be buried in the technicalities of modern photography- the megapixels, the terra-bytes of data, the hours of photoshop, final cut and outputting, blah, blah, blah.
Buried beneath all the modern advances in photography lies the true driving force of our craft.  The passion to capture our perspectives and share them with the world.  So, strip away all the complications whenever possible, and just shoot.  I’m trying to embrace this mantra- and its helping me fall in love with my cameras all over again- as odd as that may sound.  And yes, I’m still shooting film.  Though my DSLR is packed and ready to be shipped upon request, I am still clinging to my analog tendencies.