A Photograph to capture the moment

CEBU, Philippines — Any time can present an opportunity to view the world – a small piece of it at least – in an interesting light. The sunset looks different when seen through a row of shanties in a depressed community than when through concrete structures in a business district. Different – but not necessarily that one is more beautiful than the other, because the perception of beauty is somehow dependent on the beholder’s background personal experience.

The fizzy wave that sweeps through the beach line at high tide is the same; it stays on for seconds, giving onlookers the passing opportunity to relish the view. The beauty of the sunset stays there, for a bit longer, as if inviting thoughtful appreciation. A solitary tree in a deserted field is a beauty that one may come back to behold again… and again.

There are moments in life that usher in a kind of experience that people would want to keep for long. Such may be moments of awakening or enlightenment, of realization and discovery, or simply moments that warm the heart. In an effort to cling to the experience, people try to capture the moment… in a photograph.

And yet the person who is more eager to “capture the moment” is liable of losing a good part of it. When one’s focus is on the viewfinder, he or she isn’t likely to be able to fully experience what’s going on. Also, it’s very different when the intention for the photograph is for re-living the moment and when it’s for sharing on social media.    

With today’s ubiquitous smartphones having cameras makes it almost automatic for anyone to wave a phone at anything ‘interesting’ on sight. It seems like people nowadays would rather take a photo of the moment than live it. And by their very effort of capturing the moment, they opt themselves out of the experience.

And yet, there are people who swear that the photos they take bring them back to the moment. Well, it must have been the original intention of photography to capture the moment so people could re-live it. And it’s probably still true to this day that a photograph is taken for the right reason.

Taking pictures can have all sorts of benefits, according to Elizabeth Stinson at www.wired.com citing studies about the effects of taking photos in people. Snapping photos can both enhance enjoyment and improve memory of certain experiences, although “it can also reduce auditory recall,” given that the person’s attention is normally focused on the visual aspect of the act.

Stinson also cites a conflicting finding by a psychologist, who likens taking photographs to exporting one’s memory to an external hard drive. “As soon as you click on the camera, it’s as if you outsource your memory and told your brain that you don’t have to process any more information,” the psychologist says.

When it comes to maximizing photo-taking benefits, Stinson stresses, it really comes down to intent. A significant finding of the former studies is: “When we take photos with goal of sharing, it makes us think about how others are going to evaluate those photos. It makes us [more] concerned about how we’re going to look to others and that can lead to self-conscious emotions like anxiety.”

Photographs have the power to bring people back to moments forgotten and feelings lost. Some moments have the power to color the human life experience. And photographs – whether stored in the mind or on the phone screen – can make these moments last. - Reginald Sumayang