Photography is Enjoying One Moment In Time

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Whitney Houston’s One Moment In Time sang it best,  but I find the title of her hit song is what photography is all about.  I will preface my comments by saying I consider myself an amateur photographer at best. My love of capturing what I see will make me better as I progress. 

One Moment in Time Changes Every Day

I’m not sure why, but in my early 20’s I got serious about photography.  I think it had a lot to do with where I was living. After graduating from college, I was off to the Naval Officer Candidate school. As a new Ensign assigned to a small Top Secret Navy base on Nantucket Island, 30 miles south of Cape Cod, every day inspired! 

From Inspiration to My First Camera

For those familiar with the island as a summer playground, I can attest its true. But as a single guy during the months of October to May, there isn’t much going on there. Especially in 1973. 

Regardless of  the season though, the one constant of Nantucket is its beauty. The ocean, beaches, flowers, and whaling captains homes were all subjects compelling me to capture in pictures.

I bought my first “real” camera, an entry level Nikon SLR , on Nantucket. During my days off, I would bike all over the island taking snaps of my favorite spots. From there, a transfer took me to the same type base on Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas. As you can imagine, my new Nikon got a great workout there as well.  

One Moment In Time: Shifts & Evolves

As a married man with kids, I found that in my 30’s, 40, and 50’s, there just wasn’t a lot of time to be going off spending hours away from home doing the “photography thing.”  As a corporate VP, I worked for the same staffing company as Sheen which is where we met.

In my 60’s, life changed.

My working life slowed down. My kids were all grown up. And, to be honest, my wife was hoping I’d find a hobby to get me out of the house.  So a few Christmas’s ago, she bought me my first DSLR, a Canon T-6.  I hadn’t touched a camera in over 30 years, but it felt like riding a bike again.

The best part of digital? Taking hundreds of pictures of the same subject, see them instantly, and deciding which ones I liked best.

Over time, I to realize that taking pictures is all about capturing one moment in time. The same subject can deliver very different and amazing moments. I pick subjects, and take the same picture during different seasons, during morning, daytime, and night, snowing, and raining.

Each moment in time brings a new perspective on that subject.  It tells the full story.

When taking a picture in summer, returning to that subject during the winter or fall offers a renewed perspective. I also find  that people’s personal reactions to pictures vary. For example, some prefer the shot at nighttime compared to the day. Or the presence of fog is more interesting than a crystal clear day. 

Photography is never a “one and done” event.  One of my favorite photo subjects on Nantucket is the Sankaty Head Lighthouse and as evidence I offer one picture taken at 6 AM on a overcast morning in fall  with a hurricane approaching the island versus a magnificent sunset taken at 8:40 PM (featured image for blog) after the sun sunk below the horizon on a warm summer evening.  

So everyone. Get snapping. There’s lots of moments to enjoy.    

Related reading: When Inspiration Chases You, Good Things Happen