| > Take photos in a concert, and memories become fainter. I don't know about short- or medium-term, but long-term the photos can remain objective anchors for memories that reduce the memory drift for everything all around them. When you have a photo of an event, even if you didn't take it yourself, it locks in many facts that individually weren't important enough to memorize but do constrain other possible facts and thus keep memory more accurate. When I got into photography I took high-effort high-quality photos everywhere I went. There are so many minor events I wouldn't remember at all if not for the photos, and even for events I do remember, I likely would have forgotten that certain people even attended. Long term, I can be completely objective about the times, places, people, conditions, etc. of a great many events in my life, and every time I refresh and reinforce memories it's anchored in those objective details. There's a less objective angle to this that I still acknowledge and enjoy. When you take a good photo of a good moment, and look back on that as representative of the event, it has a way of making the entire event look that positive. You scroll back through a timeline of photos like this, it can make entire years of your life look as good as you want them to. That's part of why I think there's a big difference between scrolling a backup of all your phone photos vs hand-curating albums (regardless of the device that took them). When you choose what you'll see in future you influence how you're going to feel about it, and that's an under-appreciated mechanism for investing in your future headspace. |
> don't know about short- or medium-term, but long-term the photos can...
You're absolutely right, however I said concerts for a special reason.
> When I got into photography I took high-effort high-quality photos everywhere I went...
This is also what I do. When walking around in a city, or taking photos in a vacation, etc. You can do this. Because when taking photos in a relatively serene environment (when compared to a concert, esp. an open air, festival one), you can internalize whole event before taking that photo, so that photo becomes an anchor for that event. In a concert, everything is so fast. Trying to concentrate to take a good photo makes you ignore a large chunk which prevents you forming that emotion and memory.
> Long term, I can be completely objective about the times, places, people, conditions, etc. ...
True, but as I said, you had time to internalize that event before taking that shot. This is what it creates the anchor and reinforcing effect. You can't reinforce a memory you didn't form.
> There's a less objective angle to this that I still acknowledge and enjoy. ...
Photos bring joy, but not always. There are many positive photos which makes me feel bitter, or even sad.
> That's part of why I think there's a big difference between scrolling a backup of all your phone photos vs hand-curating albums ...
I can relate to that, but I also take a different approach. If I have the time and feel for it, I challenge myself with "1 scene, 1 shot", regardless of the camera I have with me. This allows you to ingest the scene you're in, take a purposeful look and decide which photo to take, which forces you to create a relationship with your surroundings. When you take that photo and revisit it in the future, that frame will make you remember the whole area where you searched for that one shot, and will bring tons of memories and visions back.
If I don't decide to or can't do that, I curate albums as you do, yes.
If you're interested, my photos are available at
https://flickr.com/zerocoder
https://instagram.com/hbayindir
P.S.: That flickr page needs some cleaning up and tidying.