Punctum? Damn Near Killed 'Em!

"The realism of photography is not a question of likeness or resemblance but of an encounter with something that was." Dr. Katrina Mitcheson

Alas! I love this quote!

I have always felt that the photograph was much more than just a mere copy of something else. To describe it as an "encounter with something that was" really brings out the magic that I associate with photographs. It also brings out the problem I have with photographs that I take myself. When I look at them, they never seem to capture the moment that I had witnessed when I took the photograph. They seem like a flat image or replica that really does not even show what I saw. There was punctum present in the moment, but it is rarely transferred to my photographs of those moments. 

According to Dr. Mitcheson, I may be lacking proper studium. She says, "There can be no punctum, and thus no encounter with the real, without the intentional and cultural realm of the studium."

The punctum is something that disrupts the studium. It cannot be felt if there is no studium to begin with. So, how do I create studium? In other words, how can I share my intentions and create photographs that people can relate to on this level? Apparently it is time for me to get out the photography "how to" guide to learn some conventional photography techniques. However, as Dr. Mitcheson points out, if you are too good and building studium, you leave no room for punctum to penetrate it. So there is balance to be found here. I suppose it will take some experimentation.

~L

Here are some more shots of my water bottle project: