One of the things I was itching to do when I purchased my F4 was to test out the multiple exposure function and see how layered images might look when produced on a camera that isn't made out of plastic. As part of my very first test roll, I took to the Fitzroy Gardens on a sunny Autumn day to get some standard flora shots (which I did, and which served the purpose of getting to know my camera, but are far too boring to post here). The sun was really performing and I used the opportunity to get a silhouette of one of the garden's magnificent palm trees, with the intention of shooting some colourful flowers as the second exposure, which would theoretically show through the black area of the tree. But I guess the flowers were all pretty much dead because everywhere I looked was just green and brown.
Frustrated with the lack of opportunity and about to shoot a patch of grass just so I could move on to the next frame, I noticed a small splash of colour on an ancient towering tree trunk. Upon closer inspection I realised that someone had stuck letters onto the trunk, the kooky formation spelling the work L-O-V-E. Well, even if it was a bit boring, at least it wasn't grass. And so I got out the massive flash for the first time, pressed a few buttons in the hope that it would fire some light, positioned the letters in the frame where I recalled the palm leaves had been, and took the shot.
When I saw this image about a week later, it took me a second to recall exactly what it was. Because it doesn't look like anything, really - it doesn't even look like a real photo. It almost reminds me of a badly put-together Photoshop job. That it is, in fact, a real photo, for me turns it from an aesthetically ugly image to a remarkable example of what this camera can potentially produce. And despite the photo being a bit unsightly and borderline corny, I think the composition is really cute - LOVE in a natural explosion of excitement! Just like being in love! OMG!
And let's face it, despite everything else, we all need some love now and then. Even if it isn't so pretty.
Lovely.
ReplyDeleteI thought I was looking at an image printed on bunched up fabric at first but then I read your blog. I didn't register that the letters had been placed on the trunk until I read what you wrote, which was a bit dim of me. I don't know what I thought, actually, I mean it's not like the letters would have been up in the tree.
It's Michael, by the way.