Superpowers

Lately I have been thinking about all the ways in which Photography has given me superpowers. For instance: I can freeze a special moment (any moment actually), I can capture someone's soul (huge!), I can make people smile (and I'm so not the funny type), I can make someone feel beautiful (I only reveal the beauty that is already there), I can change the world (documenting and sharing stories), I can make one travel around the world (through images), I can create memories (for myself or someone else),I can make ordinary things look extraordinary (it's all about how you look at things), etc...

But I know it is not just me, right?

So tell me, what superpowers have you acquired since you've started carrying a camera? Can you share an image to illustrate that superpower today?

Comments

[roman harper jersey]

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[Marcie]

I can offer up the feeling of freedom and flight..a 'super'power us mere humans will never know:
http://www.marciescudderphotography.com/home/2011/8/18/flight-of-fancy.html

[Catherine]

My answer involves a goat. :)

http://catherinegervais.blogspot.com/2011/08/shutter-sisters-my-superpower.html

[urban muser]

oh, how i adore this post. i love it so much!
sometimes i capture a moment that makes me feel as if i have traveled through time. that would be a cool superpower!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/urbanmuser/5461867162/

[Doris]

As a graphic designer I became experienced in photo editing before becoming experienced in photography, even though I've been taking photos much longer. I recently attended a seminar that taught me new ways to look at images. For example as a designer I always want my subject leaning INTO the picture, but as a photographer I learned just the opposite is a good thing. Leaning out of the image creates "tension". Each new piece of information I learn makes my superpower stronger.

Here's an image SOOC taken recently:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/drdesigns/6062215494/in/set-72157627052307401#/photos/drdesigns/6062215494/in/set-72157627052307401/lightbox/ At first glance I loved the sparkly bokeh background, but in the editing process I realized those white circles of light were distracting.

Here's the final image edited and posted to my blog:
http://dorisrudddesigns.wordpress.com/2011/08/07/water-lily/

[Jill]

LOVE this post ~ My superpower is to zoom in and freeze the details of "the ultrafast moments" otherwise missed by the naked eye.

http://humbirdhum.wordpress.com/2011/07/30/the-hummingbird/

http://humbirdhum.wordpress.com/2011/07/14/the-moment/

[Ellie A]

I am just starting to learn what my super powers can do. It even shocks me. How through the lens I can capture the very feeling that was felt in that moment but couldn't by looking what I just took a shot of. Its like I have xray feela vision Ha...

[Cheri]

I can "see" lots of things that are invisible to most people.

[Alex]

I love all the powers you guys are mentioning!!! So good :)

Thank you all for sharing! xo

[pthurmond1]

My granddaughter is able to give me a kind of superpower. The power to catch the perfect moment.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/50901045@N02/6062524988/in/photostream/lightbox/

[Roxanne]

Oh Alex, how I love this theme -- what beautiful questions you posed! I love the beautiful distortions that cameras sometimes motivate us to embrace, even the unintentional ones. In this photoessay in the Atlantic's In Focus blog, photos #17 and #27 embrace that magical superpower of photography:

http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/08/six-months-of-civil-war-in-libya/100130/

I have loved Alan Taylor's work, from the Boston Globe Big Picture blog to the Atlantic, and I think the photos in this essay are heart-breakingly beautiful.

[georgia]

this is one of my favorite shutter sisters posts to date!

yes, yes, yes... all those things. i don't think taking pictures gives me any other super powers that you have not already mentioned. but it gives me all those powers you have mentioned {except for the making someone travel around the world, as i don't do much traveling myself... although, i guess someone in africa is traveling to my part of the world if they see a photo i take in my part of the world}.

what a delightful thought... to think of any art form giving us super powers. music, painting, photography... anything, really! wonderful!

here is a photo where i like to think i "made someone beautiful"... my mother and my son:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28567264@N05/6056611918/in/photostream
and yes, i was only revealing what was already there.

[Bridget [aviary]]

With camera in hand, I now have the ability to freeze time to capture a moment forever, and reflect upon it years later to remember how I felt when I pressed that shutter button at that particular moment:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aviaryimages/6061291955/in/photostream

[Kat]

I love this idea! I think one superpower I may have is finding deeper meanings my photographs.
http://www.kateyeview.com/2011/08/planting-flowers-of-generosity.html

[Kristina]

so well written post. i've been thinking that i am able to see so much more beauty around me and appreciate beauty in everydaylife since i started with photography. i am so glad to have this superpower :)

[Lucent Imagery]

This is a fantastic discussion topic. I'm really glad my friend sent a link to your blog last week. The topics are inspiring and thought provoiking. You've moved me to write a post on my own blog in response to your question. I don't want to seem like I'm spamming you with this link, but here it is.
http://www.lucentimagery.com/index.php/2011/08/21/photography-gives-me-superpowers/

[rakusribut]

with my photography i help preserve a piece of nature behind my house

http://kagerzoom.blogspot.com

by documenting the beauty of the landscape throughout the seasons i can help convince the authorities not to turn it over to project developers

today i was at a country fair, liistening to the band, when suddenly a tall, skinny old man got up and started to dance with a much younger woman (later someone told me his age was 91...!)
they were totally absorbed in the rhythm of the music and just kept on twisting and jiving, it was a sight for sore eyes
so i got out my iPhone and kept shooting, i so much wanted to capture their joy and their energy

http://www.flickr.com/photos/61760618@N08/sets/72157627478319086/detail/

[Sherralee]

Wonderful post and wonderful responses! I don't know if it's a superpower but I try to make art from life and link it to timeless truths.

http://www.galey.ca

[Lisa at Black Bear Cabin]

Bridget said what i wanted to say...my camera gives me the superpower of capturing a simple moment in time...that in time, will become more than just a simple moment!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/32448476@N04/6066394697/in/photostream

[Alex]

So so thrilled to read about all your powers, sisters! And if you are in doubt about your own, do not fret! Look closely and you'll sure find your thing! xo

[Liz]

LOVE this post. For me, it's all those things but put more simply, I can CREATE! Carrying my camera and documenting family, friends, and the world around me has been a beautiful way to tap back into the creative corners of my mind that had frankly been feeling a little dusty during the first few years of parenting.
As always, thanks for the inspiring posts.

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