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Polaroid Photos

Sometimes there are lucky coincidences in life that expand your image creation possibilities. One of my daughters found a previously enjoyed Polaroid OneStep CloseUp camera. The challenge with a Polaroid camera is that Polaroid stopped making film for it. But luckily The Impossible Project came along with some remarkable people with the idea of creating new instant film for old cameras.

Instead of simply making the same films that were made before, The Impossible Project went in a bolder direction with their first film by choose to create a monochrome sepia-toned film called Silver Shade. The images are dreamy and soft with variations in the colour happening when the temperature is different. It’s lovely and magical and unpredictable which is one of the pleasures of film.

The design of the camera is quite interesting. It takes Polaroid 600 film, which is ISO 600 film that comes in a pack with a battery. The film and battery (and chemicals to develop the film) are all within the pack that goes into the camera. The camera has a flash which flips up to take a picture. The focus is fixed with a plastic lens that can be adjusted to two focus ranges – closeup (2 feet to 4 feet) and the normal setting (4 feet to infinity). A very simple and inexpensive camera when it came out in the late 90s.

The film arrived in the mail from The Impossible Project and I eagerly opened it. Inside the beautifully-designed package was the pack of film that I put into the camera. When I swung up the flash the dark slide popped out with the distinctive sound of a Polaroid motor ejecting a print. The first thing in a pack of Polaroid film is the darkslide, which protects the unexposed film beneath it and that is what gets ejected first. For The Impossible Project they made each one of their darkslides special by turning them into collector cards with different challenges and messages on them.

The camera appeared to be working, so I ran outside and took a picture of the car with the kids waiting in it. The picture popped out and I shielded it and shook it to assist the development. It worked! Then I took a couple of pictures of the kids and then it stopped working. Either something jammed in the camera which drained the battery or there was something wrong with the film. The Impossible Project very generously sent me another pack of film to test out. While waiting for the film I searched on eBay for another camera and purchased. Before that camera arrived, the replacement film did, and that worked, so I’ll have two identical cameras to take Polaroid pictures with.

It’s a magical experience to take instant pictures with the unpredictability being part of the thrill. Embracing constraints is fun and I look forward to creating some instant images with sepia-toned film and look forward to the other films The Impossible Project are working on.

July 27, 2010 camera, film, impossibleproject, polaroid

Being the Change: Day 4 – Field Trip to Pugwash

The final event of the Being the Change peace conference in early July was a field trip to Pugwash where Thinker’s Lodge is located in the seaside community. It was a beautiful and slightly windy day for a drive, but after a few days of warm weather it was very pleasant to have cooler temperatures. Pugwash is a very small and lovely town where Cyrus Eaton provided the space and support to allow the first Pugwash Conference on Science and World Affairs in July 1957. At the height of the Cold War, the conference was a critical first step in moving back from the brink of war and it established a process and lines of communication that continue to bring peace to the world today. The small town pulled together for the conference where local residents opened their homes many of the top scientists in the world. The meals took place in the Lobster Factory and meetings happened there, as well as in the Masonic Hall and Thinker’s Lodge. The tranquil and somewhat isolated location provided the ideal setting to put people at ease to be able to discuss the important issues that faced the world.

The group from the peace conference assembled in the Lobster Factory for some refreshments and then we had presentations by Sandra Ionno Butcher on some of the important women such as Ruth S. Adams and Anne Kinder Jones who made the process a success and by Ru Ling Susie Chou about her father Pei-Yuan Chu, who participated in many of the Pugwash Conferences. Members of the town also provided fascinating insights into the history of the village of Pugwash. John Eaton (grandson of Cyrus Eaton) spoke about the restoration and preservation of Thinker’s Lodge and invited the participants into the historic building for a tour. Being able to walk through a place filled with such important historical discussions and connections was fascinating. The walls of Thinker’s Lodge are covered with photographs of participants and those who inspired those who lived there. It is a comfortable and inviting place.

During the lunch break we assembled as a group and Alyn Ware brought out torches that were part of the Abolition Flame and the World March for Peace. The torches were passed between the participants as we walked along the harbour with the wind blowing. We walked from the Lobster Factory, to the Masonic Hall, and down to the centre of the Villiage of Pugwash. It was a beautiful way to remember the past and to continue to work for peace and disarmament in the world.

The conference was a great experience and gave me the chance to meet some amazing people and participate in something important that is connected to the province where I live.

July 25, 2010 btc10, peace, peacetorch, pugwash, thinkerslodge

Being the Change: Day 3 – Effective Communication Strategies for Disarmament and Peace

In the final concurrent workshop slot I was part of the panel for Effective Communication Strategies for Disarmament and Peace. The session was moderated by Bobbi Dunham-Carter of Organizational Learning at NSCC as well as the holder of fellowship with the United States Partnership for Education and Sustainable Development. The focus of the session was on a critique of the mainstream media and how both traditional and new media can be used by activists to make their voices heard.

The first presenter was Richard Zurawski, documentary filmmaker (with a focus on science, weather, and history), writer, meteorologist, public speaker and member of the media for a number of years. He gave a perspective on the way stories are constructed in the media along with advice for cultivating relationships with the media and how the mainstream media probably will not change, which is why you need to try to work within the system to get your message out.

Next up was Bruce Wark, Inglis Professor of Journalism, University of King’s College, and a former CBC Radio journalist and producer who also writes a regular column for The Coast. He wrote about how “Peace Works” in a recent column for The Coast and expanded on those ideas drawing on some of the thoughts of Ursula Franklin in his presentation which also drew out the idea of directed listening as a better way for journalists to work on their craft.

Finally it was my turn and my presentation (connect, share, be yourself) was about new media with blogging and Twitter. I drew inspiration from my late dear friend Errol Williams who had me edit his documentary film “When Voices Rise…” which told the story of the non-violent movement in Bermuda in the 1950s that ended segregation through a boycott of the movie theatres. The world now is a much different place with tools such as blogs and Twitter providing a platform for people to connect with each other in new ways. These new technologies and social media can be used to build your network of connections with people who have similar interests.

Not being intimidated by the technology is critical. You need to start making and sharing stuff an not lose focus on what is important. It’s about people and not technology and the most important network is made of flesh and blood. The media that connect us are only as strong as the people at both ends. The focus doesn’t need to be on the tin cans and the strings, but the people holding the cans and the people they talk to. Having followers on Twitter or fans on Facebook doesn’t translate into action. It’s quality, not quantity and connecting with people in meaningful ways will translate into action.

July 15, 2010 blog, bobbidunhamcarter, brucewark, btc10, chriscampbell, communication, disarmament, media, peace, richardzurawski, tv, twitter, wikipedia

Being the Change: Day 3 – Integrating Movements: Women, Peace, Development and Environment

In the morning workshop session on Friday, July 9 at the Being the Change peace conference at Mount Saint Vincent University I attended “Integrating Movements: Women, Peace, Development and Environment” moderated by Lana Neil (Communications & Research Officer, Canadian Cancer Society, Nova Scotia). The workshop was conducted by long-time peace activist, development and women’s advocate Pat Kipping (long-time member of Voice of Women for Peace and former officer at the Nova Scotia Arts Council and board member and fundraiser for Oxfam Canada).

In an interactive session built around Ursula Franklin‘s definition of “Peace, not as the absence of war, but as the presence of justice and the absences of fear” the group of mainly women shared the connections that made them part of the various movements. It was a remarkable and casual session where we made a web out of yarn as the participants told stories and shared history and ideas for more actions in the movement. History and personal anecdotes joined everyone together in a positive and nourishing way that will lead to more action and connections in the future.

July 14, 2010 btc10, lananeil, patkipping, peace, voiceofwomenforpeace

Being the Change: Day 3 – Sex, Death, and Violence in the Disarmer’s World

The plenary session at the Being the Change conference starting the day on Friday, July 9 was moderated by Rita Deverell (Nancy’s Chair in Women’s Studies at Mount Saint Vincent University) and it was given by Dr. Erika Simpson, Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Western Ontario, who is also Vice-Chair of Canadian Pugwash. The presentation was called Sex, Death, and Violence in the Disarmer’s World and it explored how men and women are treated differently in the world of war, peace, and disarmament.

Simpson explored how identity is socially constructed in the debates and discussions surrounding how we talk about war. Through a postmodernist and constructivist Feminist lens that questions implicit assumptions and biases she gave a thought-provoking theoretical framework for the day. She argued that whatever makes you passionate contributes to making a culture of peace.

July 13, 2010 btc10, disarmament, ericasimpson, gender, peace, ritadeverell, violence

Being the Change: Day 2 – Dialogue Across Divides: Pugwash and the Nobel Peace Prize

The afternoon plenary session on Day 2 of the Being the Change peace conference at Mount Saint Vincent University that I attended was a look at the important role that dialogue plays in breaking down barriers and working toward peace. The moderator of the session was John Eaton, grandson of Cyrus Eaton who provided Thinker’s Lodge in Pugwash as a location for the first Pugwash Conference and the presentation was by Sandra Ionno Butcher, Director of the Pugwash History Project and former coordinator of Young Pugwash USA.

The focus of the session was on how beginning with Joseph Rotblat leaving the Manhattan project and the Russell-Einstein Manifesto setting the peace movement in motion that lead to the establishment of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs that continue today. A clip from the documentary film, The Strangest Dream established the context and then some audio from the press conference in Caxton Hall on July 9, 1955 where Bertrand Russell read the manifesto to the world.

With a manifesto as a rallying point, the work then began to move things forward with a meeting of the top scientists in the world. That meeting happened in July of 1957 with 22 scientists assembling to relax and discuss peace. In many ways, this was one of the first non-governmental organizations and the scientists were able to influence the political decisions made back in their countries. An important part of the presentation was broadening the history by also looking at the role of women such as Ruth S. Adams (later an editor of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists), who was the only woman at the first Pugwash meeting. Adams said that the Pugwash conferences only became a community once the families started to come. The hostess of the first meeting was Anne Kinder Jones (later Eaton) and she formed the heart of the conference which established a template of light schedules and good food.

Pugwash has been involved in most of the major arms control treaties and has been vital in fostering dialogue to prevent conflict in the world. A backchannel that laid the foundation for peace during the Vietnam War, Pugwash works quietly in the background to encourage discussion and peaceful resolution of tense international disagreements. It’s a vital force combining science and technology to establish world peace.

In recognition of the role that Joseph Rotblat and the Pugwash Conferences played in the cause of peace, a Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to them in 1995. In a beautiful tribute to the important influence that Joseph Rotblat had on her life and work, Sandra Butcher named her son Joey after Rotblatt and she showed a lovely image of her son and her mentor together in Thinker’s Lodge in Pugwash. She also reflected on what an amazing experience it was to be present when Rotblat accepted the award. In his Nobel lecture Rotblatt concluded by saying:

The quest for a war-free world has a basic purpose: survival. But if in the process we learn how to achieve it by love rather than by fear, by kindness rather than by compulsion; if in the process we learn to combine the essential with the enjoyable, the expedient with the benevolent, the practical with the beautiful, this will be an extra incentive to embark on this great task.
Above all, remember your humanity.

July 12, 2010 btc10, conference, history, johneaton, nobelpeaceprize, peace, pugwash, sandraionnobutcher

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