a photoblog
Inspired by nostalgia for giving gifts of mixed tapes, I thought maybe we could do something similar, but with film.
in late august dee came up with this very cool idea. last week we met up on a gorgeous melbourne afternoon and swapped our images. there were lots and lots of amazing shots taken by the very talented msm crew. i shot for dee. this is just a sample of what she got …
probably a title that has no doubt been used many times. but it is so right for expressing me at the moment.
writing writing writing
writing my thesis
writing for the museum
writing for my research assistant work
writing my blog … when i need a break from academic writing
i don’t think i would technically call myself a writer, therefore i must qualify that i have also been
researching
kung fuing
exhibiting
photographing
travelling
socialising
loving
booking ( international flights!)
life is full and good …
but i will really enjoy that holiday when it comes
this is my third winter living in melbourne and this year was the first one where i didn’t spend the whole three months griping about how much i hated the cold and dark (i did a little bit but not the whole time). the first two winters i found majorly depressing. this year i’ve quite enjoyed it and think either winter here was warmer, or i’m acclimatising. i’m rediscovering my love of melbourne winters engendered by 17 years of visiting my aunt here in winter – at a time i lived in sunnier climes and though wearing winter coats and boots was the best!
chris and i did couple things on a lovely melbourne winter’s day a few weeks ago (sounds like an oxymoron i know!) we explored south melbourne and ate chinese, and walked around the domain and botanic gardens – places i sadly have not been for years. it was lovely and romantic. it was also fun romping around on the stage at the myer music bowl. i can’t believe they just let you do that!
the afternoon winter light was gorgeous in the domain and it was perfect for some pola shots. i feel like the pinkness of the px70 push was just perfect for capturing the cold southern winter light and the beautiful shadows it produces, even early in the afternoon.
the crowd is his element … his passion and his profession are to become one flesh with the crowd. for the perfect flaneur, for the passionate spectator, it is an immense joy to set up house in the heart of the multitude, amid the ebb and flow of movement, in the midst of the fugitive and the infinite. to be away from home and yet to feel oneself everywhere at home; to see the world, to be at the centre of the world, and yet to remain hidden from the world … the spectator is a prince who everywhere rejoices in his incognito … thus the lover of universal life enters into the crowd as though it were an immense reservoir of electrical energy. or we might liken him to a mirror as vast as the crowd itself; or to a kaleidoscope gifted with consciousness, responding to each one of its movements and reproducing the multiplicity of life and the flickering grace of all the elements of life
charles baudelaire, ‘the painter of modern life’, figaro, 1863
as i’ve was going through some polaroids the other day, i came across these that i took in november last year in fitzroy.
i was in the midst of a flurry of polaroid shooting and, as i walked through fitzroy from carlton to get home in the afternoon, it was often my subject. i loved strolling down the streets, knowing i was on my way home, caught up in the joy that is finishing work, with all sights and sounds of brunswick street around me.
soon after this i started working in the city most days, so began to only see lovely fitzroy from a tram window as i zoomed (or crawled) through. i could often go a week without going there at all. maybe a quick coffee, popping into a shop for something or meeting a friend for dinner. but that’s not the pure joy that you get from walking down a city street with other individuals adding to the buzz.
the idea of flaneur has long been associated with urban & street photography & baudelaire has often spoken to me as a photographer, a historian & a lover of cities. these photos made me remember that this is how i felt when i walk about in fitzroy at the times when i have no purpose other than to soak up the atmosphere.
so when i looked at these i realised how much i miss this daily stroll, how much i miss fitzroy.
so yesterday, when i finished
when i finished work, i got off the tram at the start of brunswick street and did a flaneur’s stroll from one end to the other.
it was lovely.
i have three exciting photography projects in the pipeline right now, two of which involve polaroid photography.
i have been seriously taking photographs for several years. i only vaguely remember where my polaroid fascination came from. one day, somehow, probably via flickr, i stumbled across amanda’s wonderful blog. it struck a chord with me as we were both from the same suburb in sydney (glebe) & had recently moved away. i also bought one of her polaroids of glebe as a reminder of home. the photo is, coincidentally, a shot of the window of a vintage shop owned by my friend & i spent many lovely hours in there chatting & having tea.
i was newly arrived in melbourne & was finding it hard to find my place. gradually i discovered & was inspired by some amazing polaroid photographers like kat, andrea, emilie, francesc, jenifer, dave, anne & many many more. i dreamed of getting my own vintage sx70 & scoured ebay & etsy to find one that i could afford. meanwhile i avidly browsed flickr groups & blogs dedicated to polaroid, read all about cameras & film online, followed the progress of the impossible project, even buying packs of atz film (now sadly gone!) before i even got a camera.
meanwhile i began an apple a day, a 365 project using my iphone & polarize (a fake polaroid app). it was important for me to do this project as i hadn’t been taking photographs for many months after moving to melbourne. so this began as a way of getting back into photography & exploring the possibilites of polaroids through a digital medium.
one day i finally found my beautiful baby on etsy & waited eagerly for it to be shipped to australia from the states. i unwrapped it with glee & couldn’t wait to snap my first photo – with some trepidation as the camera was bought untested. i finally figured out how to get the film cartridge in & snapped. the camera clicked & whirred then spat out a photo. my heart lept! i agonised as it developed & turned it over so i couldn’ see. a couple of minutes later i peeked. damn! it was so dark! but it was nightime so i thought, hmmmm, i’ll try again tomorrow.
the next day was a beautiful sunny melbourne day & as we wandered to the tram, with my new precious in hand i wandered across the road from my house & snapped a beautiful rose … & when i saw the result my pola heart lept!
since then i’ve had a mix of great successes & great failures (usually when trying to photograph in anything resembling low light). but now it’s all coming to fruition … more about that tomorrow!
