Maeve Photography

 Most of you who graciously visit here know by now I am crazy in love with shooting analogue film.

I tend to live in my own private universe of thoughts and never gotten into the ‘why’ of it all with you.

I show the beauty of it but neglect to tell of how it all came about in this era of digital everything.

Like
 many 
of
 us 
I
 started 
out 
on 
film 
when
 there
 was 
no 
other 
option.

I
 took
 classes 
that
 taught 
me
 about 
apertures 
and 
composition
 and 
choosing 
the 
correct
 film.

I
 even 
took 
darkroom 
classes 
which
 lead 
me
 to 
create
 my
 own
 darkroom 
in 
my 
basement.

But
 over 
the 
years,
 as 
technology
 changed
 and
 the 
ease 
of
 digital
 photography
 progressed
 I 
found 
myself
 boxing
 up 
my 
film
 cameras 
and 
immersing
 myself
 into 
all 
that 
was
 digital.

But
 something 
was 
missing.

Yes, digital 
has 
its 
advantages
 when 
you
 are
 under
 a 
deadline.

And
 when
 you
 have 
a
 moving 
target
 it 
is 
quite 
easy 
to
 take
 300 
photographs
 to 
get
 the
 one 
that 
you 
want.

But
 after
 spending 
hours 
on 
the
 computer
 editing
 these 
photographs,
 after 
following 
every
 fad
 that 
is 
out
 there,
 I 
found
 out 
that 
my 
photography 
had 
lost 
its 
soul.

It
 was 
no 
longer 
simple.

 It
 didn’t
 reflect
 me
 anymore.

I 
almost 
gave 
up 
my
 photography.

And 
I
 did
 close 
my 
portrait
 business.

But 
those 
long
 forgotten
 film
 cameras 
seemed
 to 
be 
speaking 
to 
me.

And
 once
 I 
had
 my 
camera 
in
 my 
hand
 and 
loaded
 my
 first 
roll 
of
 film 
I 
knew 
that 
this
 was
 my 
calling.

For
 me 
it’s 
about
 the
 authenticity 
of 
the
 medium.

It’s 
about 
that
 well 
thought 
out 
photograph 
that 
is
 only 
created 
once 
I
 am 
satisfied 
with 
the
 composition.

It
 is
 about
 the
 light
 and
 the 
shadow 
and 
the
 grain.

It 
is
 about 
the 
quiet
 and 
pensiveness
 and
 soul 

that 
comes
 through.

It 
is 
about
 the
 imperfection
 of
 seeing 
life 
through 
film
 that 
makes 
it 
perfect.

It 
is 
a 
total
 reflection
 of 
my 
own 
personality, 
my 
truth 
and 
my 
calling.

I 
am
 glad
 to 
be
 back.

I admire that Joan has stayed true to her love of black and white film and uses it exclusively.

Joan’s emotional images reflect the uniqueness of any subject in front of her lens.

Her portraits stand the test of time as pieces of art on walls of homes and become treasured heirlooms.