November started as October ended. But the good news is that it got gradually better from a creative point of view. I have hopes that things will keep on improving in December.
Looking back at October
Last month felt like one of the worsts of 2020 photography-wise. But after going through my photos of October, it appears it wasn’t. It hasn’t been as unproductive as I thought. But even though the numbers tell me that October hasn’t been the worst, it still feels like it was.
For the first time, the problem wasn’t so much about not feeling inspired or being in a rut. It was about being overwhelmed by work. Work sucked all my energy and prevented me from thinking creatively.
My major achievement of 2020
November started as October ended. Although I was slightly less exhausted, the problem stayed the same for most of the month. But in the midst of my struggle, something unexpected happened… I managed to make some B&W photos I was happy with!
Even though I love looking at B&W photography, I’ve never been able to make B&W images. Every time I would try, I would prefer the color version. I always felt I was a color photographer and simply couldn’t see the world in B&W.
But this month, it seemed I finally succeeded. This whole topic will need a post of its own (most likely at Stuck in Plastic). I don’t want to say more about it now, but this might be my big Eureka moment of 2020. My major creative achievement of the year.
Before writing about it though, I will need to take more photos. However, I hope that by the end of the year, I can write (again at Stuck in Plastic) a blog post reflecting on my creative journey in 2020.
B&W film development course
This month I also participated in a B&W film development course organized by Yokamerat, the photography student society of the University of Oulu. While it could seem related to my B&W Eureka moment, it actually isn’t.
It’s actually a coincidence that both happened during the same week. I bought the film I developed almost three years ago. It contains photos going back to 2018, and the most recent taken in February 2020, just before the lockdown.
There were a few toy photos on the film, but none of them are really worth keeping. There are a few photos I like and that have something special, but they are not toy photo related.
At the moment I am unsure whether film photography is something I want to pursue. It’s possible I eventually decide to give another try at film photography, whether it is B&W or color, but it’s unlikely to be for photographing toys.
Winter has arrived
Last month I said that one of the things that fascinate me most in the North is the change of seasons. Thus, I can’t finish this blog post without talking about the arrival of winter.
As I said in the previous blog post, this year winter has been late. By the middle of November, the temperatures were still above zero. It was the first time for me in Oulu where there wouldn’t be ice by the end of October. But winter eventually arrived.
I’ve also just bought a pair of cross-country skis and I’m looking forward to the upcoming months with the days getting longer and the sky less cloudy.
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