The title is inspired from the late 19th-century French word oeuvre which broadly refers to the body of work of a painter, composer, or author is normally a work of art, music or literature. Let’s adapt it to books and the way of presenting them beautifully.
So this is one of the days where you get inspired by the art of photographing books. This is one of those ‘photography genres’ if I may say so, that’s refreshing in any of its formats. Internet is no short of ideas to get that perfect book shot. E-book bandwagon cannot replace the feel of a paperback on paper. And books are one of the most patient subjects that you can find to craft your art. I recently tried a shot with some warm afternoon light and with some backgrounds around me. The usual stuff includes coffee mugs, lights, etc. I went off with some money plants and a vintage film camera and with some Airpods sprinkled into the scene. So here is a shot of this kind that I tried for the first time with a beautiful book by Elif Shafak. And a bonus, that’s a nice book too!
“I love to soar in the boundless sky. In the vast emptiness of the blue, my soul rejoices listening to the soundless music of the wind.” Banani Ray, World Peace: The Voice of a Mountain Bird.
“Tea is the magic key to the vault where my brain is kept.”
― Frances Hardinge
Tea is wealth itself, because there is nothing that cannot be lost, no problem that will not disappear, no burden that will not float away, between the first sip and the last. – The Minister of Leaves, The Republic of Tea
“Social counterpoints can be a shrieking reality. But life may nevertheless become a colorful canvas with an array of opportunities, allowing us to escape from the suffocation of our enclosure if we hold ourselves receptive to the healing power of the daily little marvels and stay aware of the vivifying unexpectedness of the ‘moment’.
As modern life becomes so convenient and advanced in China, local specialties treasured by China’s rural communities are often under-appreciated and even sometimes considered a hassle by the younger generation who have migrated to bigger cities. Hoping to inspire this generation to rediscover and celebrate their parent’s love; “The Bucket” shows that underneath these local specialists lies the unique love from their parents, which serves to connect them to their families while away from home.
I highly encourage you to take a look at this video if you haven’t yet as it’s so heartwarming. I’m attempting to conceive a humble photo narrative version of the same concept. Hope you enjoy skimming thru and leave with watered tongues! ; – )
“Because forgiveness is like this: a room can be dank because you have closed the windows, you’ve closed the curtains. But the sun is shining outside, and the air is fresh outside. In order to get that fresh air, you have to get up and open the window and draw the curtains apart.”
..“Everybody wants to reach the peak, but there is no growth on the top of a mountain. It is in the valley that we slog through the lush grass and rich soil, learning and becoming what enables us to summit life’s next peak.” -Andy Andrews
Stumbled across this old video aired by Doordarshan (For those who are not aware, it is India’s public service broadcaster) somewhere in the 90s. This ad came as a part of some government initiative which encouraged parents to take their kids to school and provide them with a good education and this movement drove a huge push towards mass education throughout India. This video used to air all the time on the TV back then promoting this spirit and is truly beautiful.
I’m a 90s kid and I have vivid nostalgic memories of the time. I’m not sure of how many of you’re recollecting the general life in India during the lovely 90s. It was the age before high-speed internet, Instagram and this fast-paced life that we are used to these days. Maybe, it’s my perception and can vary from person to person, but I strongly believe life was much more vibrant and jovial at that time (in general sense) with lesser hustle and bustle. Not sure of you, but this one really took me out to a blithe throwback of memories. The most exhilarating aspect I could recollect first is the relationship between people. Although online technology explosion have made our lives easier, somewhere we have swayed adrift the “human touch” in everything we deal with. Most of the things we deal now are fed on an algorithmic mode or is based on some kind of automation. I discussed this topic earlier of losing the human touch & the cultural aspects with the intricacies in our life in my review on the book Sensemaking: The Power of the Humanities in the Age of the Algorithm. For instance, back in the day, when we get something from a nearby shop, we foster a friendship with the person. Coffee with warm conversation in the 90s turned to Venti soy mocha lattes with photos and cafe tagging now. Summers in the 90s with outings to the beach with music turned into the time now when everyone is absorbed into their Pandora or Spotify stations in quiet rooms. Dinner in 90s was lot of laughs around the table for on and on whereas now we have check-in tagging, checkouts, snapping photos of menus, dinner photos with descriptions. I’m not rambling, and none of these are wrong and of course, we cannot generalize into everyone. Neither can we do something about it or fly back in time. The least we could do is to do our part in being kind and cementing profound human relationships and friendships in whatever avenues we are profiling through. God bless with you a beautiful day. More 90s reminiscents and throwbacks coming soon!
