I finally got the second roll of film from the Monterey Bay Aquarium developed (selections from first roll here).
I was feeling greedy for some pictures of the jellyfish, because they're just such trippy sweet-looking animals and photograph nicely in the bare, professionally lit tanks. But of course, that's what everyone else was thinking; it wasn't a crowded exhibit, but people were certainly blocking the view, particularly the ones with their cameras and phones.
Then it occurred to me to consider the scene from an anthropological/documentarian perspective, according to which the story needs a lot more thickness, is a little more meta, and would be worse off if I recorded the presence of jellyfish without a mention of the people taking pictures of the jellyfish.
So I took these pictures instead.
(Do you begin to see the connections between me loving documentary photography, having a degree in anthropology, and being a mindfulness devotee?!)
ohmeohmy. these are lovely. i like your thoughts, too.
ReplyDeleteThese are rad.
ReplyDeletezoe and Erin - Thanks, stas! I'm rather pleased with this roll too.
ReplyDeletefirst of all these are really great photos. and i had to laugh about your story and the explanation, sometimes i think the same way about taking pictures - "the story needs a lot more thickness, is a little more meta". it's just more interesting that way.
ReplyDeleteanalog - Exactly! The more you tell, the more interesting it is.
ReplyDeleteI like this very much. The thinking, the photos, the thickness. Beautiful jellyfish pictures would be amazing, since they are something most of us don't get to see (except peering over the side of a boat, seeing their tops and maybe a few trailing tails). But this is beautiful jellyfish and something to smile about.
ReplyDelete