Out of focus

 

“Stay focused!”, “Focus determines your reality!”, “Never lose your focus!” are the common slogans in a time of permanent optimization. The latter being defined as action of making the best or most effective use of a situation or resource. When optimizing ourselves we tend to run after the ideal versions of ourselves. We want to get it right, of course. I like to visualize my goals and am totally aware of the power of our mind and that our actions will follow our thoughts. Yet, I want to go into bat and speak up for the sporadic joy of blurriness.

 

In some random therapeutic way, analogue photography has taught me to spot and appreciate new framings when being out of focus. Not just the focus, also the framing determines our reality. If some parts are blurry, unexpected new focus points may arise.

 

It can be a pure delight losing yourself into a moment, diving into it without controlling what is happening by any means. However, losing focus tends to get negatively associated with losing oneself.  Better be prepared for fascinating in the blurriness off-piste.

The collective desire to perform and impress on social media has an absurd effect. We  control and perfect moments in order to produce perfect images, a well effective catalyst for peer pressure and boosting “FOMO”, Fear-Of-Missing-Out. Enjoying the moment for the simple joy of the moment without any digital reproduction seems old-school and avantgarde at the same time. But isn’t this intrinsic level of joy all we have to maintain our happiness no matter what? The analogue lens has pulled me off the fast lane of optimization, acceleration and perfection and taught me the joy of imperfection. In photography. In special moments. In random moments. In marriage. In everything actually. In the look into the mirror. I hit 40 after all. Wabi-Sabi anyone? 

Be aware. It gets tantric now. In my yoga and meditation practice I keep working on my so-called soft vision, looking with eyes half closed, having a somewhat blurry effect. It is a way of being totally connected to the inner self and yet being open and attentive to the outer world. To conceive through the inner gaze of the heart, rather than through strict judging eyes. The ones that check you out in the mirror. It helps to melt into the moment rather than controlling it, to sneak behind the scenes where all is one and connected. One and connected.