November 4, 2005
Photographers think in terms of lightness and darkness
was the idea that flicked through my mind today
as I walked past Gasser’s photography shop on my lunch break
on the way back from getting my monthly pound of coffee
In the window was an ad for something called
a light tent
which reminded that making photographs is about light
and that a person who thinks in terms of photos
sees the world
differently than myself
or someone else
As soon as I dwelt on this
I found I could see
bars of light and shadow
all the way down the block
(I’m tempted to say
where none had been before
but of course they had)
Because some of the buildings are taller than others
in front of some storefronts the sidewalk was sunny
in front others deep shade
and the lines between the two were sharp
And I didn’t know it
and then I did
Some days I fear there is nothing new to see
because I walk the same streets
go into and out of the same buildings
do the same things I always do
Patently ridiculous when
really there’s so much here
that our eyes and brains
can never intake it all
have had to learn
in fact
how to block out nearly all of it
just to be able to function
There would be that much
in an empty parking lot
There’s a rigorous unlearning that needs to happen here
It could take a long time
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