A Perfect Imperfection
Can a moment in time ever be recreated? I once thought so, but after trying to duplicate this photograph for weeks, I realised the futility of living in the past.
Can a moment in time ever be recreated? I once thought so, but after trying to duplicate this photograph for weeks, I realised the futility of living in the past.
It is almost ten years to the day that I took this photograph. I had been walking along the coastline at sunset, looking for an interesting composition, but nothing had jumped out at me, and I had pretty much given up when I came across this simple little pirogue. The sun was just moments away from setting behind the horizon, and after losing precious seconds wading into the sea to reach the boat, I had just enough time to capture one or two photographs before the light was gone.
It was only later I could properly study my photograph. While I liked the simplicity of the image, with the muted colours given by the sun in the background, one thing bothered me: the end of the wooden pole was out of focus. Once spotted, it was all I could see. I decided to return the next day to try to take it again, but when I got there, I discovered a slight breeze that wasn't there before. It caused the pirogue to drift into a slightly different, less pleasing position. And so I went back again, a few days later, but this time the tide was so low the boat was lying on its hull in a lagoon devoid of water to reflect the beauty of the sunlight.
In the end, I returned half a dozen times over the next few weeks, but no matter how often I went, the mood and atmosphere were always different. So many factors had converged to create that original photograph: the ebb and flow of the ocean's tide, the shadow cast by the setting sun, the angle of the boat as it drifted in the breeze, the very ripples I created as I waded into the sea, and likely a thousand other considerations that I could never know.
Over the years since, I have realised I could never have recreated that original photograph; it represents a unique moment in time, never to be repeated. Instead, I have learned to enjoy it as it is. Who cares if it is slightly out of focus? It is a perfect imperfection that reminds me of the futility of fixating on the little things of the past. After all, life is beautiful, flaws and all; we should cherish every moment.
