Holga

Holga-ing has been a huge challenge for me.  I was not completely stable on physically using the camera and I wasn't really sure what Holga pictures were supposed to look like.  Also, I was thrown off by the lack of actual things on the camera- there was no focus other that this little dial you turned depending how far something was away from you, and then there was the "take picture" switch.
     Nonetheless, I tried my hardest.  The pictures that appeared after a grueling developing process (spending an entire 40 minutes in a dark closet can evoke some deep emotions) were not anything like these, but it's a learning process.

I like this picture for a lot of reasons. I like the angle that it was taken from.  It gives the feeling of laying down in a field of dandelions.  I also like the vignetting and the reflections of light in the lens.  This picture has some imperfections which, to me, makes it all the more perfect.  Imperfections are embraced in the world of Holga photography, and if there's one thing in photography that I'm good at it would be imperfection.

This picture is the epitome of a multiple exposure photograph.  Although it looks like the artist just stood under a bunch of electrical wires and spun in a circle (which is completely possible), the fact that this was exposed so many times and is still not too bright is an amazing accomplishment.  I also love that this very average situation was turned into a unique piece of art.  This is truly an artist making something ordinary into something extraordinary.

I think that this picture is really appropriate to end my Holga saga.  For the previous two photos, anyone would look at them and this "wow, this is beautiful".  But, this picture does not present its beauty up front like the other two.  It is what I would describe as situational art.  This artists has gone to a place, and in one photograph captured its entire essence.  In this photo, we see a bunch of greasy youngsters dancing the night away to the music of some underground band that has decided to situate itself directly in the middle of the floor.  The crowd is decked out in glasses, tattoos, beards and ironic trucker hats and in the corner we see a pair of grungy converse flailing around in the air.  This artist has captured a feeling and while the picture itself might not be beautiful, that feeling is.