My nearly four-year old son, Rohan, is quite intent on following me around with his own camera. When my brother-in-law gifted an older Kodak (I have no idea what model or how many megapixels and that kind of information hardly matters to me anyway), Rohan took to it like a fish does to water. He naturally liked the idea of the flash going off and he was soon exhausting the poor rechargeable batteries. Then when he had completely filled the 64mb (yeah, tiny) compact flash card, he came running to me to download it. I have gone through about three cycles with him and while he still walks around the house, points at the wall and shoots, in anticipation of that flash, I think he is starting to develop a knack for making some decent images.
As a parent, I absolutely want to encourage his creative spirit and I was so happy that he is into photography like I am. No telling how long this will last, but I am hoping to memorialize some of his images here. Nurturing a child's need for exploration is so paramount. As a young parent, I am still learning the ropes what to yield to because it makes sense for the long term and what does not. I also think children have an incredible way of looking at their world. Sure they are shorter than adults, so right away their perspective is so different. But their sense of timing and composition is also something to marvel.
The camera Rohan is using has its limitations. No doubt about that. But a child has no such hangups. It's the very act of doing that brings him joy. I am just amazed that in some respect that's how I am when I am photographing a portrait or documenting a multicultural wedding. It's serious business and one must get THE shot, but without the freedom to play, experiment and flex those creative muscles like children do, you would rarely see an image that is unique to you or your event.
Enough chatter, let's move on to those images Rohan has been making. Your comments here will mean the world to him when he has the capacity to read, understand and appreciate what he had embarked on. So, step right up! |
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