I finally got around to posting some pictures from the Seattle trip. (Check out my Escape Adulthood photo album) It’s hard to sum up the whole experience in photos. I think that when people go to visit new places, they try and take a million pictures of everything they see and do. And they end up taking the same standard shots that everybody else takes. In most cases, the pictures never do the place justice, and you’re always a little disappointed that you weren’t able to capture the “feel” of the place. Somehow, your photos never end up as good as the postcards you bought in the hotel gift shop.
Of course, my iPhoto album is jammed with way too many boring shots of the Seattle skyline that I took while on the Bremerton ferry. But I tried to make a conscious effort to look at things just a little bit differently. We bought a few really good “skyline” postcards and then I focused on small slices of Seattle; the little things. Surprisingly, I have found that these shots end up doing a much better job of helping me to remember the feeling I had while there. They capture the specific flavor and unique feel of my personal experience.
Next time you find yourself someplace new and want to chronicle your visit, don’t try to photograph everything. Focus on the little things that catch your eye. The things that give you that tiny spark of childlike wonder. Feel free to pick up a few picture perfect postcards in the gift shop if you want to. But a few years down the line, those postcards will be in a neglected shoe box somewhere, while one of those photos you took with a childlike perspective will be on a wall, starting spirited conversations and stirring up treasured memories.