(Note that there's no picture with this post.)
I've taken to walking to try to improve my deteriorating heart-health (having your ankle chained to the leg of the desk all day isn't all that good for you, turns out). I walk a circuit around the river (bridge to bridge) because it's flat. Our thoughtful town fathers installed not one but two paths—one for walking, the other for anything on non-motorized wheels. Trés civilized.
Yesterday was a perfect day for walking: clear, 64°F (~18°C), windy. And partly cloudy—but they were those gorgeous, fleecy, lit-from-above clouds that seem made for the camera. (I think those of you on the East Coast are due to get the same weather today.)
Regarding that "made for the camera" comment, I know it's said you should always carry a camera, that the best camera is the one you have with you, etc.—you know the adages. I didn't take a camera with me yesterday, however, on purpose—because I need to keep moving, rather than continually stopping to work a picture.
And a good thing. On a fine Saturday, the people are out. I would have gotten distracted by warm'n'fuzzy little human-interest ops. A small boy tethering a huge bundle of helium balloons, fer instance (okay, a little sappy); a couple sitting on the riverbank picturesquely holding hands; a very pretty blonde mother with a mop-headed blond child on a recumbent bike with—never seen this before—a recumbent-bike sidecar; a very tiny baby (maybe a year old—with his/her parent, of course) feeding a flotilla, an absolute Armada, of mallards—I mean like two hundred of them. Not greatly promising ops, maybe, but good guilty pleasure stuff if you've got a camera in your hands.
I might have been able to ignore all those if I'd been feeling disciplined. But then there was this: right next to the town's life-sized, lifelike statue of three bears...a guy in a bear suit. I know. (And, don't ask me.) How could I have resisted that? I would have stopped for that, for sure, no question.
I even encountered some bonafide wildlife. I got right up on a red-tailed hawk. It was at eye level and not more than eight feet away (I would have said six, and I really think it was six, but if I say six you'll think I'm exaggerating) when it took off right across my path. And get this, I didn't even notice it until it took off. It was right in front of me, on the lowest branch of a small sapling, but there I was, just trundling blindly along, dum-de-dum-dum.
This may be nothing more than a gentle conceit, dear Reader, but here's what I believe. If I'd been photographing rather than just walking, I wouldn't have missed that hawk. I would have noticed. Having a camera in your hands just puts you into a heightened state of seeing, one tier higher on the visual alertness scale. Just holding a camera I miss less. It's not entirely something I can turn on and off at will. The camera is the switch.
Going by the weather, at least, yesterday was the first day of the fall, and fall is by far the best season in Wisconsin. Not a day too soon.
Mike
"Open Mike," the moniker for the Editorials on TOP (often but not always or completely off-topic), shows up on Sundays.
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Original contents copyright 2012 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved.
Featured Comment by Jim Simmons: "I hear ya, Mike. When I was in my 20s and lived with a camera strap practically sewn into my right shoulder, I saw everything around me. Heightened visual presence at all times. Having spent a few years in art school helped hone that discipline of course.
"But then I took on dependents and responsibilities and other forms of adultism. The camera would get left behind. And slowly my mind began to be overwhelmed with the mental noise that Eckard Tolle has taught me I am sometimes consumed by. I can now walk for miles and not see a damned thing. My head is so busy 'thinking' and my eyes are so dulled, it's a wonder I don't get run over most days. Common phrase in my family—'Earth to Jim.' I am realising more and more that I need to carry a camera and work it as a form of therapy. Photographing and 'trying' to play the guitar are the two best forms of forcing thought to leave my head. I need it terribly!"
Featured Comment by Lois Elling: "I feel naked if I take a walk without a camera, but I'm also well aware of the fact that I do less walking with it than without it. So, I understand your choice to walk without one.
"Last June I was walking at a local reservoir and was walking on a cloud because I'd just spent several minutes photographing a beautiful great blue heron. He seemed to be quite patient with me and let me shoot away. After he left, I moved on down the path, rounded a bend, and was surprised by a hawk flying out of a low-hanging branch right in front of me. And I did have my camera with me. Of course, I kicked myself for not paying more attention. On the way back, I found the hawk (a juvenile) again and got some pictures, although he wasn't nearly as accessible as the heron. Some images just have to be burned into your brain, rather than on film or sensor, I guess."
Mike,
I enjoy reading your blog most every day. To this end I am reminded of the cartoon whose caption reads: "What fits your busy schedule better, exercising one hour a day or being dead 24 hours a day?" Answer that will ya'
Joe
Posted by: Joe | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 11:40 AM
Here's a compromise for you, Mike: by all means go out for your walk without a camera, but imagine you have one. The most important thing photography has done for me is teach me to look — on a good day, to see as well, but for me it's the looking that has contributed most to life.
With years of practice I'm able to turn on the camera in my head at will; it doesn't interfere with what I'm doing or where I'm going, just makes things and perspectives and colours and contrasts more visible.
(And, as we would have observed in the sixties, it's cheaper than drugs…)
Posted by: David Miller | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 12:42 PM
Have you had a camera, you would have missed the hawk entirely: you never would have made it to that place in time to see it! ;-D
Posted by: Bert | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 12:57 PM
You could, of course, take a second walk with the camera (g).
But more to my point, for me it is preferable to leave the camera on such walks and experience my surroundings and be in the moment. Be present. Notice sounds and smells. Don't wear headphones. I recall last year driving home one night at late dusk. As I was crossing the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, I noticed ahead of me a full moon visible more or less exactly between the upright supports of the center span, alongside a glowing view of Mount Rainier to the left. Because I didn't have my camera with me, I was able to experience this rare opportunity. I regret nothing!
Patrick
Posted by: Patrick Perez | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 01:17 PM
Sans a camera, you have managed to paint very pleasing word pictures of whatever you encountered on your promenade in your piece.
My reckoning is that I'm a year older than yourself, 1956 being my year of birth, and walk a lot just to keep the ticker in good health. Living in a rural area like the Rhone-Alpes (France), there are no flat circuits to walk - which is a good thing! Most times I carry a DSLR in a backpack along with a supply of water and other bits and pieces. While I manage to walk in the region of 35-40 km a week and get a lot of pictures, my writing suffers. I have been romancing with the idea of starting writing a book for a couple of years now and I am no closer to it. The idea of having my ankle shackled to the leg of the table spooks the living daylights out of me.
Result: I have heaps of photographs which nobody wants to look at and not a word in the bank towards what I call a pipe dream for now.
There appears no prospect of a change in the situation as autumn will be around soon enough with its enchanting hues.
As for you, keep a balance but do keep writing. TOP is bookmarked and remains a daily must-read. Keep it up!
Posted by: Pritam Singh | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 01:31 PM
Hi Mike,
Apropos your lyrical editorial, may I quote back an "editorial" poem by Fernando Pessoa. Pls disregard the title (first line) knowing as how you don't like pictures of flowers (or anything florid)?
......
If at times I say that flowers smile
And if I should say that rivers sing,
It's not because I think there are smiles in flowers
And songs in rivers' running...
It's because that way I make deluded men better sense
The truly real existence of flowers and rivers.
Because I write for them to read me I sacrifice myself at
times
To their stupidity of feeling...
I don't agree with myself yet I forgive myself
Because I'm solely that serious thing—an interpreter of
Nature—
Because there are men who don't understand its language,
Being no language at all.
.......
From Poems of Fernando Pessoa (p. 22)
Translated and edited by
Edwin Honig and Susan M Brown
City Lights Books, SF CA
No copyright notice
Posted by: Sarge | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 01:50 PM
A friend enjoys telling people that he is as fit as he can possibly be bearing in mind the parameters of his lifestyle.
Posted by: Patrick Dodds | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 01:53 PM
Excellent post; thanks. Very sorry to hear that you have a heart health problem. I wish you excellent health. So many people in your situation have found this documentary to be life changing:
http://www.forksoverknives.com/
Streaming on all the usual video services (Netflix, iTunes, Amazon . . .). Very worth the time.
"A Great Film." -- Sanjay Gupta, CNN
"A Film That Can Save Your Life" -- Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
"I Loved It And I Need All Of You To See It" -- Dr. Oz, The Dr. Oz Show
Posted by: Scott L. | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 02:35 PM
Hi Mike,
Have been living with same problem for a while. Brisk 3-4 mile walk every day makes a huge difference, even if I do take a camera (it's part of the motivation).
I usually pick a place that takes a while to walk to, spend a while mooching about with the camera, then a brisk walk home or back to the start point.
I use Google Maps to find interesting places, plan a walking route which is 5-7 miles and then drive or take the tube to the start. Have discovered many interesting locations that way which makes the "chore" more of a treat.
A pedometer is a good investment. Try and average around 10,000 paces a day and cram in at least two serious treks a week of around 5 miles plus. When it starts getting easy, increase it to 10 miles or so.
Posted by: Steve Jacob | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 03:28 PM
We indeed did get your weather today. I also went for a walk, but couldn't leave the camera behind. Having a camera along makes the whole of the walk seem more ... sensible.
Posted by: Timo | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 03:45 PM
Dang it.
I was going to send along one of my red tailed hawk photos; I used to do a lot of wildlife photography. I have a handful of very good red tail shots.
Except that I forgot how long ago it was. They were taken on K64 slide film! The slides are still in good shape, but my slide scanner (an excellent Dimage 5400) unfortunately was orphaned by the demise of Minolta, and its driver no longer works with any computer I own. Third party software may do the trick; but I haven't gotten around to seeing if Vuescan will work with it.
Sigh. Backward, to the future. That'll be next weekend's project.
Posted by: Geoff Wittig | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 04:36 PM
Take a camera along with you. Anything. That's what the Holga motto is all about. Just have a camera with you and photograph what's around you as you go along.
When I was on the bus the other morning heading into work, I saw three balloons that had become entangled in the median strip. Purple against dead grass tan, in the early morning. And then I was past it. Of course I didn't have a camera ready; I never do when I'm sitting on the bus, spacing out. But it was there, and it would have made a good photo.
Posted by: Brian Miller | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 06:15 PM
Or you could just become a birder. Then you would have noticed it.
Posted by: Murray Lord | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 06:44 PM
As for the exercise, it is OK to stop and take a picture, as long as still do your total of an hour of walking. Figure out an hour's walk and follow the course. It just may take you longer to get it done. The important thing is to get it done every day. If the camera helps get you out the door, all the better. But face it, you are not going to do it all winter, so you need to find something else to do indoors. A workout step is the simplest and cheapest I have found. You just want something that is a normal step height. Put it in front of the TV and catch up on your movies/sports/whatever for 45 minutes a day all winter.
Posted by: Ed Richards | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 07:23 PM
Did it look anything like this one?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/78687170@N00/7967285778/
Not the safest habit to have, but I try to keep my camera in the car seat next to me on my drives from the country into my city job and back again. This hawk was feeding on something in the right ditch as I came around a curve and I was able to catch a grab shot through the windshield as it flew off.
Posted by: Marshall Smith | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 09:20 PM
Aaaaah, I wondered what you meant. Yes, me too. I've had three ambulance rides to hospital in three weeks last month. AF with chest pain. I'm reassured, "Don't worry, you won't die of AF, try to ride it out, but if the pain gets too bad, by all means call 000 and come in to hospital."
And it's the same problem - too much sitting (among a couple of other things). I had an awful bout of black depression last year which made me lose the will to do anything but sit and read and do this.
I'm out of the hole now, but these computers, fantastic as they are, are going to be the death of us. I just get absorbed and forget how long I've been motionless.
Result: my leg muscles have wasted (not the only reason, but a big factor) and walking is now stick aided and slow. Nothing for it but to try harder.
So don't let it get this far. Get up. Set a timer. Pay attention. Be disciplined. Or else.
Posted by: Peter Croft | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 09:30 PM
On seeing: back in the 80s when I used to do a lot of nature photography, I came to realise that we don't see immediately. I learnt to walk very slowly, and stop frequently and just look. And look again. And keep looking. Look through the foliage. Look for movement, particularly. Animals and insects are masters of disguise.
On one memorable day, this got me a close up view of a praying mantis eating a small frog it had caught in its front legs. I got three or four shots, but my CU skills weren't great then and getting it all in focus eluded me. I'd do a lot better now, but I doubt I'll ver see something like that again, mainly because I won't be there!
Posted by: Peter Croft | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 09:38 PM
I would guess that had you stopped to photograph the balloons, the attractive couple, and the unnecessary duck feeding ( waterfowl make a good living and don't need handouts ), you would not have crossed paths with Yogi or the hawk. So, you actually enjoyed the sights, and generated less of the bad-for-the-heart-sitting-at-the-computer time needed to process your photographic images. It all evens out in the end, Mike.
Posted by: Jack Foley | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 09:47 PM
@Joe: here's another one...
"There's plenty of time for sleeping when you are dead."
Posted by: Sven W | Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 11:19 PM
If I'd been photographing rather than just walking, I wouldn't have missed that hawk. I would have noticed
I you had been photographing, there would be no hawk for sure :-)
Someone should finally invent a chip which would take photographs directly from brain, so that no camera would be needed.
Posted by: Lukasz Kubica | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 03:10 AM
You can still snap pictures of stranger's kids and not get arrested as a paedophile ?
Not in the U.K. you won't and even in Ireland I'd be very wary
Posted by: Paul Mc Cann | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 03:32 AM
Mike,
I really empathise with this post! I've been recently thru-hiking and alpine mountaineering, and in both cases, I had my cameras on me (a DSLR for the thru hike with two large 2.8 lenses, and an S95 compact for the mountaineering).
What I found is this: the first time I did the hiking, I would be looking to take photos all the time. By about the 4th or 5th time, I think I was getting photo fatigue, the camera stayed more or less away until I really saw something I was interested in taking a photo of (even if I was hiking on a new trail).
Sounds good that you're looking after the your body: keep on walking / hiking whilst the weather is good!
Happy trails, Pak
Posted by: Pak-Ming Wan | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 06:09 AM
You know sometimes you just don't need a camera. The picture stays locked in your head for ever. I have a library of images in my mind that never made it to the camera and I still enjoy them.
Posted by: Graham | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 06:52 AM
But Mike, if you had been photographing instead of just walking, the hawk would have probably long been gone by the time time you photographed the boy with the balloon, the family feeding the mallards, etc :)
Posted by: Sixblockseast.blogspot.com | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 07:03 AM
Right at the beginning of my career in photography I went to Utah (the usual places - Bryce, Zion, etc.). One morning while out early I realized that I wasn't vacationing but working. Since then I either travel for work or I travel to travel. No matter which one I'm doing I never stop seeing pictures though.
Truth be told: In my case I think carrying a camera has warded off those moments like you had with the hawk. But that's just my impression..
Posted by: hlinton | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 07:23 AM
In case you are looking for a picture of a Red-Tailed Hawk to go with your post, here's one of a parent taking flight from the nest:
http://www.komar.org/faq/colorado-red-tailed-hawk/colorado-red-tailed-hawk.jpg
It's a bit "busy" with all of the tree branches, but almost full-frame and looks pretty cool on 30x20" print.
Wildlife is pretty cool to watch and yea, if you look around, it's there ... but too many people (especially the younger generation) have their heads buried in their mobile devices to look around. These Baby Hummingbirds were at a nearby golf course I walk too:
http://www.komar.org/faq/travel/hummingbirds/nest/
And these baby finches were on my front door! ;-)
http://www.watching-grass-grow.com/house-finch/2011/
Posted by: alek | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 07:54 AM
Mike hi
I get what your saying, but I have to admit that after so many years of photography, I am always 'taking photograph' - with or without a camera or mobile phone.
It's just second nature and I find I'm always saying to myself [ quietly in my mind !] snap - good pic !
I do a similar type of walk around the Thames in London, from Blackriars Bridge to Westminter Bridge, then cross over and back again on the other side (about 5 kilometres), walking fast(ish) but clicking mentally all the time.
Regards
Bruno
Posted by: bruno menilli | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 08:12 AM
@ Geoff Wittig, Vuescan works well with my Minolta Dimage 5400 under Snow Leopard, better and more crash-proof than the original software, I think. All the best to Mike and the others struggling with heart health.
Posted by: John Ironside | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 11:55 AM
I find that somehow, the picture in our mind is always perfect - framed just right, infinite dynamic range, never over- or underexposed, well-focused, no distracting backgrounds, no noise, etc etc.
Posted by: toto | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 12:00 PM
Once again, you've posted an essay that could be about me.
I'm chained to a desk too, and about 6 months ago, my cardiologist pointed out that death would crimp my social schedule. He suggested a standing desk.
This one works for me:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006269TD0/ref=wms_ohs_product
Takes some discipline to crank it up, and frankly makes your legs hurt for the first month or so.
But that's a good thing.
Posted by: Paris | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 12:15 PM
Yes, Paul, when I bring my toddler to the local playground, I take a camera. No one has gotten upset with me for photographing their kids, though I do generally ask.
People have some pretty amazing misconceptions about the laws around this stuff. A colleague recently told me he'd forcibly stop anyone who photographed his kids on the street, and was taken aback when I told him he'd be on the wrong side of the law.
Posted by: Ben Rosengart | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 01:40 PM
Hiya!
I at first misread "(~18°C)" as minus 18 degrees Celsius and thought, if he thinks that's "a perfect day for walking" then they must be really hardy pioneer-like folk there. Then I realised, I'm the one in the southern hemisphere where it's winter...
Dean
Posted by: Dean Johnston | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 02:57 PM
Not a red tail.
But a hawk...
I love BC for talking walks and pictures.
This one posed for a good thirty minutes while I got up to about 6 feet away, where I stayed for about 10 minutes.
Juvenile sharp shinned hawk I've been told.
http://masters.galleries.dpreview.com.s3.amazonaws.com/701870.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=14Y3MT0G2J4Y72K3ZXR2&Expires=1347331013&Signature=4XC7skZ3dRYs3aJ7TFsTypUFspM%3d
Posted by: Graham | Monday, 10 September 2012 at 10:29 PM
On the same theme as the Forks Over Knives poster, here's an audio interview with Esselstyn http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2437606/caldwell-esselstyn-plant-based-diet and a video on some other benefits of a plant based diet http://nutritionfacts.org/video/uprooting-the-leading-causes-of-death/
Posted by: Rhys | Tuesday, 11 September 2012 at 05:34 AM
Howdy
Sitting at a computer all day was getting to be painful! Old age, arthritis etc., so i built a standing work station!
I used some butcher block counter top material and cabinet legs from Ikea to make a two tiered platform. It took a bit to get used to, , but It has really helped a lot!
Don't give up those walks!
I'd send a pic but I need to finish a project and tidy up first!
Posted by: Garry Stasiuk | Tuesday, 11 September 2012 at 12:29 PM
http://www.unphotographable.com/archives.html
Your post reminded me of the above.
Posted by: Tom K. | Tuesday, 11 September 2012 at 05:44 PM
The obverse of Jim's featured comment - I've taken to not taking my camera with me when I walk to clear my head. Not because I need to keep moving, but because I need the 'noise' to process, to work itself out.
Posted by: ault | Friday, 14 September 2012 at 06:28 AM