Of course, in a broad sense, I know I’ve been to Joshua Tree National Park in California. However, in reviewing some more of my archives, I found photographs that I have zero recollection of making. I know I visited this national park in California back in 2004. But unlike many photographs where I can remember some specific details surrounding making the photographs, the photographs from this time are almost like developing photographs of a stranger.
This mystery must be solved. Granted, it is possible someone could have broke into my house and inserted a thumb drive in my computer to covertly add photos to my Lightroom catalog just to mess with my head. Or, perhaps one night after one too many drams of a single malt, I hacked a fellow photographer’s computer and downloaded the images to make as my own. But my cunning skills of deductive reasoning have led me to believe I have encountered some limits of my long term memory.
Recently, a photographer who was on a 2009 trip to Alaska tagged me in a photo on Facebook waiting around for bears. I still remember quite a bit from that particular trip, little details here and there when specific photographs were taken. But for these photographs in Joshua Tree – complete blank. This makes me wonder if my long-term memory starts to fade off around 17 years plus or minus a few.
I am finding that with a lot of older photographs. Scrolling through thumbnails in my Lightroom catalog, something will pop up and leave me at a loss. I think to myself – I have no idea why or where I took this photo if I can’t associate it with another image I’ve already recorded the location on.
Anyone that has been to this desert national park knows it is not a forgettable one, especially for its namesake trees. I will simply conclude this is all on me. Thankfully for those of us that lack photographic memories, we have photographs.
Featured image : Brittlebush flowers at dawn, Keys View, Joshua Tree National Park, California photo ID # LA7521
I was wondering where my images of Joshua Tree National Park had disappeared to. ?
I also like the Brooks Jensen theory.
I’m wondering if having you wife dropping you off in Scotland for 3-4 weeks may cause the same effect. You can’t remember sh*t but have some really good images when you finally get home.
I also have found images on my hard drive that I remember nothing about taking and some that help me remember some experience I had. I wonder if sometimes I can’t remember because I was too focused on getting the technical aspects right that I failed to experience the moment. I say that because as I’ve grown in my photography life, it’s the experience of being there, in that moment, that is what I hope to remember. I’m just not as interested in getting the shot as in the past.
Wonder else you’ll find.
Haha. On the Brooks theory, I don’t find much deeply introspective of these images, so I think it doesn’t apply. After all, how could they be introspective if I have no recollection of making them?! 🙂 That dropping off in Scotland thing is a real danger indeed.
My wife read this post and began to list off “don’t you remember this… how about this? And this…?” So don’t go getting me in more trouble Monte.
By the way. I wrote this comment twice because the first time gave me an error. I hit the reload button but nuttin. So I started over. The second try worked but then I had two.
no worries Monte, I figured something went screwy
I was wondering who had stolen those images off my hard drive. In all seriousness, let me say, whoever the photographer you stole these from is a good photographer. I don’t know you that well but it sounds like if your wife dropped you off in Scotland 3-4 weeks, you may again produce wonderful images you won’t remember, also. ? And, I do like the Brooks Jensen theory.
I can say the same thing about my memory. It’s sometimes a pleasant surprise to see images I remember nothing about or images that cause me to remember some good experiences I’d forgotten. One of the things about being a nature photographer are the experiences of being there, image or not. Some of the lack or remembering may have been the active involvement of the process rather than the experience. At this age in my life, I want to have more the experiences.
It’s a shame that the person who gifted you those photos didn’t use a “better” camera. 😉 But it is amazing how even low resolution can now be compensated for in software. I don’t usually have a problem remembering the major places we have visited, but I do sometimes have trouble remembering little detail shots, and have to look at the photos before and after to figure out where I was! Fortunately, I store my files in folders by trip, which helps to narrow it down some.
For Scotch, we visited Glengoyne in Scotland and I really like their whiskey. I brought home a bottle of their 18 year and unfortunately it is now empty. We also visited Glenmorangie and I like their product as well.
The nerve of some “gifters” eh?! (wondering if that is truly the opposite term for burglars)
I’ve had Glengoyne 12 and 15 and definitely prefer the 15. I haven’t seen it lately. I would expect the 18 to be just as good or better. Therein lies the big question right? Is it so much better to justify the price hike on an 18?
I would be in trouble on a trip to Scotland. My wife often mentions going, but I don’t think she realizes it would be more like dumping me off somewhere and picking me up perhaps 3-4 weeks later. 🙂
Because I bought the 18 over there, I got it for a much better price than the $130 or so I’ve seen it for here – more than a little outside my usual price range, for sure. Although I have a bottle of Mount Gay pot still rum I paid more than that for, something I certainly don’t do very often. I still have that and am rationing it!
They are really beautiful photos Mark!
I do remember a LensWork podcast in which Brooks Jensen talked about this phenomena of finding photos in Lightroom that you don’t recall ever making. His theory was that these photos come from the deepest recesses of the subconscious guided by an inner ‘muse’ that sort of works on another level and might well represent one’s most personal work.
Of course if you don’t remember making ANY of the photographs from that trip….well, I can’t speak to that 🙂
Well I can assure you those deepest recesses are filled with a lot of emptiness, and I’ll go with the long-term memory guess. 🙂 Thanks though!
There are photos here and there that I don’t remember making but overall, as you said, it’s a wonderful thing that we have photographs to bring back memories. And to share! I’ve been to Joshua Tree, too, and would be happy to return. Meanwhile, I love that cactus!
Ha.. even though I have the photos to try to bring back the memories, all they show is I was there, and I still don’t remember. 🙂 But I take your point as generally true, and I hope this is an exception.
I guess I too have single photographs that I wouldn’t be able to really remember, but your memory loss seems to be on a larger scale! I’d blame the single malt. (speaking of which: got a favorite?)
It looks like you’ve been there at the right time of year to see some nice blooms, so consider yourself lucky — I live “relatively” nearby and witnessed this only once, and it was astonishing.
Lucky is the right word because I am largely ignorant about the right times for being in the right spot for desert blooms. That much I do know!
I am developing a preference towards certain distilleries like Glen Dronach and Balvenie mostly, some Aberlour – and some GlenMorangie. But I tend to like more sherry based profiles vs. the peated ones.
Hey, if anyone has photos of this quality that they want to “slip” onto my photo hard drive library, I’ll be more than happy to pretend I remember making them! 😉
Very nice!
Nah – These are “worthless” photos from a meager 4 MP D2H camera. 🙂 (with a little modern tech upsizing applied via Gigapixel)
Lovely. One I haven’t been, passed by last year and made a plan to cone back then covid. Funny that you forgot.