Early last Sunday morning I was in Austin wandering around the Capitol taking pictures with the Holga lens on my DSLR. There were some runners out and about, just a few tourist staring up at the Capitol and over on Congress Street (Avenue? not sure which one) there were some homeless people. They were sitting on benches facing the sun, going through the trash cans or just standing around. This man was watching me photograph and when I got to where he was sitting, he said, "Take my picture." I took it and he wanted to see the picture. I showed it to him, and he said, "Thank you." I smiled at him and said, "I'll see ya later" and I moved on down the street.Why didn't I sit down and talk with him? This has bothered me ever since I downloaded and looked at the digital files.
7 comments:
Oh, Billie. I'm glad you posted your thoughts. Obviously you are a dear sweet soul. We've all had those moments where we tell ourselves that we 'should've' done something. But you did take the time to take his picture, and you showed him that you actually did take it. You took the time, and that means something.
I agree with yaya Billie. Look at his face and the serious happy look he has, because you took the time to acknowledge him.He is even holding his glass up to you. I feel the same way when I don't feel I've done enough for someone. Right now I've got an essay to do and it will be about homelessness. Don't let this experience haunt you, just think of it as a moment where you shared with a stranger, and he appreciated it.
Billie -- The fact that you did not look through him -- that you shared a moment of your life with him -- may be exactly what was needed at the moment. Thanks for letting us share that moment with you.
I am curious...with the Holga lens on the DSLR, you have a square image here but is that cropped from the DSLR rectangle? I am trying to figure it out. Does having that lens on the camera affect what becomes a square, or does it affect the whole rectangle?
yaya, Gloria and Steve, thanks for your kind remarks but I think it was a missed opportunity to be kind and a missed photographic opportunity too. It troubles me still.
Erika, I'll answer more of your question in an email but it is a square crop out of a full frame of the 5D.
Billie - I too agree with Yaya - you took the time and you engaged.
I get like this sometimes - but that is life - the "what ifs" and the "if onlys" .
One of my favourite movies is "Grand Canyon" its about a chance meeting for a whole lot of people - I think you would love it. Its very moving. I hope you can rent it and have a look. I have bought it ! LOL
I'm kindof at a loss as to what to say here. Why would you have wanted to talk to him? Because he is homeless, or assumed to be? Or did you think he may have had something interesting to say or have added to life experiences in some way? I think taking his picture was a kind thing to do and I think you did the right thing by leaving it at that.
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