Finding My Way

Recently I’ve been on the search for the perfect everyday camera. Something small but packs a big punch; the Leica M system camera looks like the one for me. I’ve used the Sony RXIII and it did its job, but, I grew weary of the fix focal zoom lens as it had its limitations.

If you didn’t know, Leica isn’t the cheapest camera to purchase and the preowned ones are just as expensive. So, making this purchase is a commitment. While the reviews and everything makes this seem amazing, what if I don’t like it when I get it. And given the limitations of being based in the Caribbean and not a well-known content creator, I couldn’t get this sent to me for a test drive.

Lucky for me, technology is on my side. I decided to download and started to use the Leica LUX app for the iPhone, a great strategy by the way to make it accessible. The free version of the app, which I’m presently using, gives me a simulation of the different focal lengths ranging from 28mm - 150mm, as well as aperture and exposure control. You get around fifteen different LUX simulations in colour plus black and white along with a limited amount thirty six frames with this version . The entire set up makes me feel like I have an analog camera in an electronic form and I LOVE IT!

Earlier this year I hit a lull, that the level of excitement of wanting to go out and intentionally search for moments in time was almost lost. I felt uninspired with life and felt that my purpose was changing for the worse; praise and appreciation of the work can only lift you up so high and no more. So I went back to my books, browsing, reviewing, studying. I was looking for inspiration from those who set the standard for me, from their compositions, subject matter and lighting.

Philip-Lorca diCorcia - Hustlers, 1993

One particular photographer held me. He found a way of creating alternative narratives in his subjects. He staged his subjects in a manner that made one believe that they are who he envisioned them to be in his imagination. As it’s quite difficult to tell what’s on the inside, mentally, versus what we see presented to us on the outside.

Philip Lorca diCorcia’s approach to photography is slightly different from mine. His approach is generally about building or staging his photographs rather than searching for a moment to document. The skill of making those staged moments appear to be genuine is not an easy task, yet he does it effortlessly. Choosing the location, subject matter coupled with lighting and other, what he would call, “dramatising elements” he believes helps to give his photographs the power to tell a narrative. Funnily enough, he was never a fan of photographing people, so he created techniques to counter his phobia. He would use an assistant to stand-in for the subject, so that he could work out the lighting and composition or he would generally place his camera on a tripod so the view point was never (from) his own, but more of a balanced composition that would give these images a cinematic feeling. His hope is to showcase that to some degree life is like a performance, as generally who we see from the outside doesn’t represent who they are as person is internally.

One similar thing I noticed and felt with diCorcia images, is that we both creates scenes in which we give the viewer full autonomy over how to interpret the photograph. There’s no wrong or right way; what you see and feel is correct. Similarly, we both don’t want to always engage with subject. For me, it’s from the point that I sometimes want to be a fly on the wall documenting moments that carry their own narrative. This is where my desire for a Leica comes into play, as it’s camera known for being stealth like due to its size and the mechanics of the zone focusing technique which also you to capture these moments a bit quicker and easier. Things that excite me.

Right now, I am enjoying the fact that I can get a silver of what to expect when it comes to images quality and the colour science of the Leica system until I can add it to my collection of cameras.

Marlon James - Dazed, Lonely Wanderer series, 2015

Marlon James - Dazed, Lonely Wanderer series, 2015

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Finding a Way