analog obsessions © Lilly Schwartz 2012
Recently I’ve been getting quite a bit into vinyl records. This is actually relatively strange, since it happened because the main character of my novel is really into records and this got me researching quite a bit. So, basically my novel ended up influencing me and not only the other way round.
I really like how records make me focus more on listening, since you end up having to clean them, turn them over, handle them carefully, which makes listening to music into more of a ritual. Just clicking on an mp3 file just isn’t the same and I’m really starting to appreciate that.
Maybe I should get into analog photography as well and see how that changes the way I perceive taking pictures.
If you like things to be ritualistic, and intentional, film definitely will do that – a view camera being the apex of that. I’ve got a record player, but the needle is broken. I’ve never listened to vinyl before but have been considering starting a collection, is the sound as good as people say?
That’s so true! Listening to old record gives me so much more joy then a mp3 or cd. You realy have to do something for it but the experience is so much better. The same goes for photographs. When I make a analog picture on my dads old Olymps OM10 I have to wait for the roll is full and then give it to my local develloper to devellop it. When I get I back the pictures have way more meaning then when I can shoot digital pictures with a flashy camera and just trow them away when I don’t like them. You don’t do that with something that took so long to develop. Keep on the analog lifestyle!
Great pic BTW. Whats the element?
Hard rocking, Ms. S!
I think you’d really enjoy analog – I know I did! It’s been a while since I’ve had the opportunity, but when I was in school I had access to all kinds of darkroom ‘stuff’ – chemistry, enlargers, exposure units, etc. so I was able to process film and do some printing, too. Even had the chance to do a few alternative things – liquid emulsion, Van Dykes, Cyanotypes – a lot of fun. And surprisingly relaxing. Some day I really hope to have the chance to do more… I’d particularly love to do some wet plate stuff… fingers crossed…
🙂