I feel like I have been resisting a lot in this past decade. Mostly in the past 2-3 years. There is this constant force for something external to grab our attention and keep us stuck in the external. That is not an optimal place to be, at least not for me. Due to this attention grabbing, in the past few years I’ve deleted Facebook, have kept Instagram around and use it less and less, and have turned off all notifications on my phone. I even have an old school alarm clock and keep my phone planted far away from me.
I often think of deleting Instagram as well. It is just pure noise, a highlight reel, total lies, and the ads are out of control. There are some good things to it but it feels like the bad outweighs the good. So I stay off of it but keep it when needed. As someone who takes pictures, makes art, and is showing in galleries every so often, I just can’t fully decide if it’s needed or not.
What does this have to do with photography? My resisting social media and some forms of technology to some extent has led me to shoot only film for the past few years. Shooting film and working in the darkroom is methodical, thoughtful, and a surprise. There is no rush involved and there is razor sharp focus needed. And I think my work has changed a bit to reflect this slower pace. I don’t think it’s better than shooting digital, just totally different. The end result of what I do with a photo feels different as well. I used to just post so many photos and I’m much more thoughtful about it now.
I’ve been photographing small towns in Texas the past 8 years or so. I’ve been doing this because I’ve felt a rapid change in Austin. There is a pervasive, vapid, and shallowness to the culture in Austin and I guess this is my way of resisting. I’m not someone who thinks change is bad. I am just someone who thinks the culture is disheartening. The culture is not all roses in these small towns either where politically we might all be held back by many decades. I guess I’ve found solace in these small towns: the quietness, the ideals I can embrace and the ones I can discard.
These photos are from Taylor, TX and Elgin, TX - October 2019
Film: Kodak TriX 400 - Camera: Canon Elan 7 with 40mm pancake lens - Developer: Kodak HC-110(b) - Processed and scanned at home.
