A Fuzzy Farewell
It is today we bid a final cordial farewell to you fuzzy, out-of-focus photo print.
You were the foundation of the traditional family album. You haunted most of the pages of my High School Yearbook. You were the unfortunate result of grandma’s shaky hands; the lovechild of Dad’s ugly thumb and the end product of a friend’s drunken stupor. You were the one shot on the roll - the
only shot - of that special person or that special moment no one bothered to take more than one snap of. You were the consequence of being ill-prepared and the result of not knowing the intricacies of ambient light, red eye and the uncooperative nature of fast-moving objects. You were what happened when random chance meets a flash bulb.
Ultimately we learned that the moment was fleeting, the timing was fixed and that film
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A Fuzzy Farewell
It is today we bid a final cordial farewell to you fuzzy, out-of-focus photo print.
You were the foundation of the traditional family album. You haunted most of the pages of my High School Yearbook. You were the unfortunate result of grandma’s shaky hands; the lovechild of Dad’s ugly thumb and the end product of a friend’s drunken stupor. You were the one shot on the roll - the only shot - of that special person or that special moment no one bothered to take more than one snap of. You were the consequence of being ill-prepared and the result of not knowing the intricacies of ambient light, red eye and the uncooperative nature of fast-moving objects. You were what happened when random chance meets a flash bulb.
Ultimately we learned that the moment was fleeting, the timing was fixed and that film was finite. We had no choice but to live with you and with your imperfections. You were the parting gift in the game show that is amateur photography. You were the best we had. We knew of nothing better. There was no alternative.
I’ve wanted to read your eulogy many times before this. In fact, there is no real significance to doing so today - to now. I suspect you’ve been fading away for some time now. Yes, tis true you do still exist, if only for a brief moment, but you are but one click away from eternal digital oblivion. You will survive now only as hopeless nostalgia, that page in the book that no one opens.
I guess I won’t be looking at you anymore. Actually, I suppose I never really did.
