Perception is a timeless concept – it pervades, or is intrinsic rather, to nearly every aspect of life. For where would we be without recognition and understanding of the world around us? It follows, then, that altering the norm of this perception leads to entirely different recognition and understanding of our surroundings. I was fascinated by a certain condition of altered perception, dyschronometria, where individuals cannot precisely estimate the passage of time. Quite fitting for a physics major, but also quite daunting – time is a variable quantity, and to essentially push it aside is a task perhaps too difficult. What I focused on, then, was not the elimination of time in the photos I took, but rather the blurring of our perception of it – as if for some certain moment time was not a rigid quantity that passed systematically with each second, but a dense haze. The first thing that came to mind was the idea of an “endless night,” reminiscent of late-night projects where students like myself would work to an indeterminate hour – focused on the process and not the time that has passed. This idea is an easily accepted one. During the day we naturally associate the passage of time with the presence of natural light, such as the overhead sun and the elongated shadows. But during the night, when all we have to go by are the glaring lamp lights and the voided sky overhead, does time seem to move at all?
1/10, f5, ISO 800, WB 5000.
To begin, this image was taken at night, right in front of the library. The “horizon” of green contrasts nicely with the pitch black sky.
1/200, f2, IS) 3200, WB 5000.
I recall Levitt’s work in Mexico City – how she managed to capture a feeling of endlessness by having the streets converge into an intangible point. The light in front is almost an artificial sun, and there is not a soul in sight.
1/60, f1.8, ISO 3200, WB 4350.
I also wanted to create an eerie yet calm mood, reflecting the natural unease of night. I especially like how the convergent point here is just a void, like the world ends after that road.
1/125, f2, ISO 3200, WB 5000.
At night, the entrance to the Career Center is, to put it bluntly, creepy. The lighting here only supports this mood.
1/200, f4, ISO 3200, WB 4350.
I wanted to reflect the classic “door at night: picture, but this also had a personal note. I was headed home after a long night out – and looked at the door to my apartment a little differently this time.
1/80, f10, ISO 800, WB 6200.
I made the background black and white, and changed the color of the plant. This was actually taken in the greenhouse some weeks back. I chose red because it painted a different mood than its otherwise natural color: more somber and less warm.
