I'm about to embark on a journey. 15 years ago I became the caretaker of what's quite possibly the greatest treasure my family possesses. Suitcases filled with slides. Images that were captured throughout the lifetime of my great grandmother. These are the same slides that I watch on the screen in the great room at the resort my family built in the 1940's. They're the images that inspired me to become a photographer. Real life moments, many of them unposed. Brilliantly composed by a woman that had no formal training.
In the years that I've possessed these slides I've had to say goodbye to my mom, great grandmother, grandfather, cousin, and countless other people that I loved. They are all in these slides. The memories that have faded with time are about to come rushing back.
I had dinner with my 87 year old grandmother last night. I realized that we're running out of time. Many of the stories that go with these images will be lost when my grandmother, uncle, and aunt are gone. It's time to start scanning, and interviewing my family.
What a gift.
I found this sitting with the suitcases. My first professional camera. The only film camera I kept when I made the switch to digital. I can't believe I used to do children's portraits with this thing. It's hard enough chasing kids around, and capturing them in action with an auto focus DSLR. In the reflex camera, the light from the lens is projected onto a focusing screen. The waist-level finder makes this screen viewable from above, where the image is seen upright but reversed left-to-right. Oh, and there's an offset on the image because you're not looking through the lens the image is shot through, plus it's manual focus. Good times :)
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