Don't forget to have fun!

Signs Ahead
Originally uploaded by Way Ahead Photography

A recent natter on Facebook with one of my festival buddies reminded me that it's important to take photos just for the heck of it - to experiment and to HAVE FUN with my camera.

Now I'm trying to earn a living with my camera, I often spend way too much time take photos for a reason, and sometimes the only reason should be I want to take photos.

The aforementioned friend is a huge fan of a style of photography called Lomography, which came about after the discovery of a little known russian film camera back in the 1990's, and serves as a reminder to enjoy your photography.

Lomography devotees attempt to adhere to the 10 Golden Rules, which are essentially all about using photography to document your everyday life, rather than it being some fancy art form for "Sunday best" only.

I love the idea of breaking the rules, and this is positively encouraged in lomography. The website http://www.lomography.com is full of amazing photos, snapped in all sorts of ways, and well worth a good look.

Inspired perhaps by a visit to the site, I took the attached whilst driving my Mini yesterday! I quite like it. Not sure the police would tho...

Why Am I Doing This?

"Because we do not know when we will die, we get to think of life as an inexhaustable well. Yet everything happens a certain number of times, and a very small number, really. How many more times will you remember a certain afternoon of your childhood, some afternoon that is so deeply a part of your being that you can't even concieve of your life without it? Perhaps four or five times more. Perhaps not even that. How many times will you watch the full moon rise? Perhaps twenty. And yet it all seems limitless." (Paul Bowles - "The Sheltering Sky")

Sometimes you've just got to take photos for fun. If you ever lose sight of that, then it's no longer a passion. It just becomes another job...

Photography should be about capturing moments, stopping time and remembering that which is important. It should not be about earning money, or chasing fame and fortune. Sadly it's an easy trap to fall into in the world we live in where everybody wants to be somebody.