Lost in the Frame

That Moment of Complete Stillness, When the World is Blank

Click!

The shutter flickers at 1/400 of a second. Scene captured, never again will that exact same scene be captured in still form again.

Roar of rolling waves crashing on bleached sand; shrieks of car horns, sirens and the distant rumble of a street car; sounds of the sea, of the city, all dimmed to nothing as the senses sift.

And shift. Sense of time, just seconds, staged in blocks of individual sensations. Sight and sound flickering only to be combined by the cells of the brain to make cohesive sense. Faster than a shutter snapping, the brain forms a holistic story, a scene in front of you.

The familiar feel of the edge of the spherical component. A button. No second look for affirmation, index finger feel is sufficient. Half press or full clunk, it’s all registered. Muscle memory flicks into gear.

In that moment, as individual creativity, technology and the outside world merge, you become lost in your endeavour.

The world freezes before the shutter snaps and the visual representation of the scene becomes still. Calmness descends no matter the location; the brain detaches from reality as the eyes choreograph nature, objects and designated subjects. Nothing else lays weight on the brain.

It is these small moments as a photographer you are truly settled. Distant wars and nearby storms become ‘otherness’ for but a few seconds; the window of time is insignificant, the strength of the four walls of the frame impenetrable.

Being lost, but attached to the rectangular view, brings welcome rest bite from the overstimulated being associated with 21st century living. Momentarily lost in the frame.

Lost in the frame, when the world becomes blank, silent, and still.