Don't Think. Just Shoot.

Today I discovered the Lomographic Society and I'm intrigued. Right now, they are featuring two new cameras endorsed by The White Stripes and that tidbit is what lured me into their photo-drenched world.

Lomography emphasizes casual, snapshot photography. Characteristics such as over-saturated colors, off-kilter exposure, blurring, "happy accidents," and alternative film processing are often considered part of the "Lomographic Technique." Users are encouraged to take a lighthearted approach to their photography, and use these techniques to document everyday life, as the Lomo LC-A's small size, simple controls, and ability to shoot in low light encourages candid photography, photo reportage, and photo vérité.

Since the introduction of the original Lomo LC-A, Lomography, an Austrian company founded in 1991, has produced and marketed an entire line of their own branded analog cameras inspired by the former state-run optics manufacturer LOMO PLC of St. Petersburg, Russia. Most Lomographic cameras are designed to produce a single photographic effect. For example, the Lomography Fisheye camera features a built-in wideangle lens, and shoots fisheye-distorted photos.

Similar to Eastman Kodak's concept of the "Kodak moment," the Lomography motto of "don't think, just shoot" presumes spontaneity, close-ups, and ubiquity, while deemphasizing formal technique (however to take a good 'from the hip' shot does take skill). Typical lomography cameras are deliberately low-fidelity and inexpensively constructed. Some cameras make use of multiple lenses and rainbow-colored flashes, or exhibit extreme optical distortions and even light leaks.

The following are the company's 10 Rules of Lomography: (I love these!)
1. Take your LOMO everywhere you go and whenever you go.

2. Use it any time - day or night.

3. Lomography is not an interference in your life, but a part of it.

4. Shoot from the hip.

5. Approach the objects of your lomographic desire as close as possible.

6. Don't think.

7. Be fast.

8. You don't have to know beforehand what you've captured on film.

9. You don't have to know afterwards, either.

10. Don't worry about the rules.

Here's a link to some of their products.

-- Kate