Seeing the world in a new way

When I was nine I got eye glasses for the first time. I was born with terrible astigmatism but it went undiagnosed and uncorrected until I was adopted. Up until then I had just assumed that everyone saw the world the same way that I did – all fuzzy blurry and devoid of detail.
But those new lenses brought everything into a sharp and sudden focus and I was amazed. I never knew such a world existed.
Learning to see was an adventure. I spent weeks examining things I thought I knew, things I thought that I recognized and things I had just believed were the out of kilter things I’d grown used to. My world changed. Not only was I able to adjust how I moved through it, I changed the way I related to it because I could now define it accurately. It was a huge development in my life.
Just recently I’ve taken up photography. It’s been something I’ve wanted to do for a long time mostly because I’m a poor visual artist and the only painting I do that looks like it’s supposed to is on the walls and even there my edges could use a lot of work. I’ve always been awed by the texture and detail of things and I wanted to be able to capture that sense of wonder. Taking a picture is how I can render the world into art or at least, a semblance of it.
When I was small all that everyone had were those old Instamatic cameras or the Polaroids that allowed you to hold the picture in your hand and watch it develop. I was always amazed when I stood and saw the image emerge from the paper like a ghost from the shadows. Even then photography was like a magic show for me.
Nowadays, of course, we have the new digital cameras. The one I use is a Nikon D80 digital SLR. That’s camera lingo for Single Lens Reflex which in turn is photo nerd for “there’s a lot more buttons on mine.” It just means there’s more to confuse me really and there are times that I miss the old point and shoot cameras. Fortunately there’s an automatic mode on the camera that still lets me do that.
That Nikon takes wonderful pictures and I’m amazed at how easily I’ve come to understand how to use it. There are a lot of complicated things to learn about a high falootin’ camera but I’ve managed to take some great shots with it and it’s encouraging me to go further. I experiment with shutter speeds and apertures now and I’ve even become familiar with ISO settings, white balance and the really cool flash attachment.
What I like most about photography is that it gets me out onto the land. I don’t want to take pictures of cities, I’d rather preserve images of the land, the small details I usually miss or the view I might not stop long enough to recognize. Having a camera gives me a good excuse to get out on the land often and I’ve taken a lot of hikes over the summer just to shoot images.
The other thing I like is that I’m learning to see the world in a whole new way again. Just like when I got my first pair of eye glasses I’m actually learning to really see it. I used to walk around oblivious to the simple beauty of things but having a camera makes me really focus and look hard at the world. I’m getting used to really looking at things and seeing them as I might frame them for a photograph. It’s really changed the way I interpret the world.
I never knew such shapes and textures existed. I’ve taken photos of plants, trees, rocks, the sky and stunning landscapes. I’ve taken pictures of moss, fungi, the way a rock overhangs the startling blue of a glacial lake, shadow, the effect of light on the land and the faces of my friends when they don’t know I’m shooting them.
My camera makes me more conscious of the world and the people around me and I love that ongoing and empowering connection.
That’s odd because one of the things I’ve learned over time is how much the land informs my sense of identity as an Ojibway person. But even we Native people get preoccupied and lose connection to the simple things around us. Having a camera on hand keeps me looking, keeps me searching for art in the simplest of places and there’s art everywhere because if there’s one thing I’ve learned – it’s that the Creator can really paint.
I’m getting better at recognizing the magnificent hand of Creation in the land and the world around me.