It's a bit of a wordy one today folks, but it's a topic
that has been bothering me, so I hope you are happy to grab a cuppa and listen
to my thoughts. As a blogger, I am a little bit addicted to taking photographs.
You name it, I do it; photograph my clothing, my surroundings, my holiday and
the ultimate stereotype, my food. However, during my recent trip to Paris, I was
frankly shocked by the sheer number of photographs being taken, often at the
expense of actually looking.
Particularly on holiday, we all want to record what we've
done. I know I am pretty bad at spamming Facebook and Instagram with my travel
snaps, as well as overusing the hashtag #travelbloggers and I'm not the only
one. However, I was appalled when I watched a fellow tourist in the Louvre
attempt to lie across a lion statue then grab its tail purely for some
entertaining photos. This statue was thousands of years old, but now tourists
were grabbing and pawing at it all for a profile picture. In the Sacre-Coeur,
people were ignoring the clear 'no photos' signs in order to pose next to a
statue or place of prayer with their thumbs up. Tourists surrounded the Venus
de Milo and the Mona Lisa, as they pushed and shoved for a photograph, before
moving on without a second's glance at the information surrounding it; it
needed recording simply because it was famous and something to tick off the
list.
I couldn't understand it; why the need to prove you were
there? But in my own way, I am entirely guilty. The fact I laughed at the
people pretending to touch the top of the Eiffel Tower in their photographs,
but kind of wanted to do it myself, sums up the dilemma. The culture of FOMO
relies on both the fear of missing out and the need to prove that we aren’t
missing out. Social media, in particular Instagram, ensure that we are
constantly assailed with perfect images and locations but when was the last
time you read a caption which actually told you a fact or a story? At the
moment, I’m loving Superlatively Rude’s Instagram for this very reason; she
combines totally swoon-worthy images of Rome with comments, stories, thoughts
and tales from her travels. That’s what it should be about; sharing those
images to provoke a conversation or share a moment rather than tick another
landmark off the list and move on.
It happens in the UK too. One of my genuine worries if I
go for an impulsive meal is "what if the meal is really good and I won't have any
photos to blog about it?" It's completely ridiculous but I'm sure fellow
food bloggers will agree that it is a very real struggle! The need to record my
life in photographs is a blurred line as a blogger because so many of the
opportunities I get and the posts I write are dependent on these images. I
suppose my argument is that there is a time and a place. I'm not criticising
blogging or acting the tourist at all, I am as bad as anyone and love doing
both, but when I watched a tourist walk into a statue and fall over because he
was so intent on his 3DS audioguide in the Louvre rather than looking at the
object itself, I had to stop and think.
I'm determined to make some changes; to start, I'm
switched off my mobile at night and I'm sleeping much better for it. I'm going
for dinner and leaving my camera at home, or wearing a great outfit without the
need to photograph it. I'm resisting that ridiculous pose outside a famous
landmark or maybe I'm thinking sod it, and doing it anyway - but with a pinch
of salt and thinking about what my impact might be. This article about a crossfitter posing on the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Euriope in Berlin sums up the problems
with prioritising a cool Instagram over paying attention to your surroundings.
I'm trying to ensure that I look and understand first and then perhaps record
what I've learnt in the form of an image.
Will you see less selfies and photos of my food? Probably
not. But I'm going to try to put down the camera a little more often and just
enjoy that moment; whether it’s an excellent meal or a once in a lifetime
opportunity.
Do you have any thoughts?
Jess
