What seemed like an interminable winter has suddenly come to a close. In March, there was sunshine and warmth. It was as if my joints thawed and I could move freely again.
Winter isn’t easy for me, and I don’t particularly like it. But I was almost getting used to the idea of forever being huddled up inside with books that the oncoming of spring was almost shocking. All of a sudden there was much to do.
In the spirit of the world springing back to life and getting moving again, this month I limited myself to capturing movement through long-exposures, a technique I never intentionally do. I’m realizing how deeply entrenched I am in my photography habits, unconsciously gravitating toward similar angles and compositions. I’d like to challenge myself to try new techniques and frames.
To ease into it, I started by photographing cars on the busy street near my house. And a trembling clump of dried grass.
Wanting to get some humans in the frame, but finding none nearby, I took some wacky self-portraits.
Eventually, I did find another human and he let capture his morning coffee routine. The movements are subtle, but we all move slower in the morning, right? Jokes aside, I do think I could have tried even longer exposures during this month. I mostly stuck to 1/30 for fast moving objects and 1/15 or 1/8 for slower moving objects.
This one looks more like I’ve frozen motion rather than capturing the motion blur. Nonetheless, it still conveys motion, but in a different way.
Stopping at the library on a windy day, I snapped this picture of their flags. A librarian accosted me for looking sketchy and parking in the library parking lot. He left me alone when I said I had just dropped off books into the nearby book return. I’ve noticed a camera, but especially a camera and tripod (which is necessary for long-exposure shots), makes people uneasy.
Finally, the main reason I feel like there was suddenly so much to do is that it was the time to start most of my herb seeds. Growing these plants for the first time and trying to start a business make me nervous. With every seed sprouting beneath the grow lights in my basement, I’m taking a step forward. Small successes compared with the amount of garden work to do soon, but I’ll take it.
This month’s challenge was met with varying degrees of success, but again, I’ll take it. Better to try than not try at all. At the end of this month, I’m feeling thankful for this year-long photography project as well as my budding herb business—two challenging endeavors that will inevitably lead to growth.
My 2021 resolution: Film photos. Every month for 12 months.