Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2003/03/13
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]First of all, thanks Lea! You go girl! Finally, we have an account, even if second-hand, about what a blind person may be seeing. It makes total sense. We are not necessarily dependent on our eyes to perceive every one of our visions. I have a friend who is a cross country ski racer, who is totally blind, who participated in the Paralympics at Nagano. And while that may be amazing in and of itself, what's really incredible is that she used to be a DOWNHILL ski racer, also a record breaker in that area. She "sees" the track she skis just as much as anyone else. Yes, she has a guide, but you can bet she sees that trail because she FEELS it. A blind person can FEEL the world with many senses ... a photographer should be feeling, sensing the world with the eyes, and with the heart. What did Antoine de St. Exupery say? Voici mon secret. Il est très simple : on ne voit bien qu'avec le coeur. L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux. (It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; What is essential is invisible to the eye.) I think this discussion is enormously important. It isn't about discrimination at all. It's about creativity. What really matters about this discussion is not "whether" a blind person can or cannot see, but whether we will value what a blind person creates, regardless of our own inability to accept what he or she sees or creates based on a vision, be it inner, outer, or in-between. Even more important, it has to do with what we will accept from ourselves, what we will allow to come from within ourselves that drives our picture-making. Are we willing to allow things we cannot see to enter the creative process? I sure hope so! And to think ... they used to say that women couldn't do lots of things ... and look at us now! Point is, there ain't no rules that say we can or can't, and there ain't no rules that say a blind person can't make pictures! Onward and upward! ;-) Kit - -----Original Message----- From: owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us [mailto:owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us]On Behalf Of bdcolen Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2003 2:57 PM To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us Subject: RE: [Leica] Autofocus Leica R Lea, I wouldn’t tell anyone that they can’t do whatever they want to do - as long as it's legal!;-) But the fact that a blind person can live alone, go to college, work for Camp Fire Girls and organize events, has absolutely nothing to do with whether that same person can be a photographer. Create something using a camera? Sure. Create pictographs? Sure! Why not, that could easily be done by touch and feel, arranging objects within borders in a way that the persons brain finds pleasing. But photograph in the traditional sense? No. No way. And to Kit - No, I don't think that if Beethoven had been deaf from birth he would have been Beethoven. What I find most interesting about this discussion is the fact that we are having it at all. In suppose I should be encouraged by it, and take from it the thought that we have come far enough in our battles to eliminate discrimination against those with what are now called "differences," that some people don't believe there are any. That some people have come to fervently believe, and insist that when all is said and done, there are no differences between us; that there are absolutely no disabilities that cannot be overcome; that we are all the same and are all able to do the same things if only we try hard enough. Would that it were so. B. D. B. D. - -----Original Message----- From: owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us [mailto:owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us] On Behalf Of lea Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2003 4:19 PM To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us Subject: Re: [Leica] Autofocus Leica R <<Do folks who can't see live in what we perceive as "darkness"?>> << Yes, Kit, they do. It's not what "we perceive" as darkness. It IS, by definition, darkness.>> Not according to my blind friend...completely blind since birth, she sees colors. The reason she knows is because not everything she sees is the same tone, shade, color. My mother spent many years volunteering here in Kansas City at CCVI...Children's Center for the Visually Impared...a special school catering to the needs of blind children. I had occasion to visit there often and it was there that I learned very few people are truly blind. Most blind people see color or tone or shade. Some see shape and shadow depending on the light. And yes, these people are considered 100% blind. You can think what you like about deaf people not writing, playing or hearing music and blind people not shooting, drawing or painting pictures but I can tell you I've not met a single blind person who hasn't been able to do anything they put their mind to. That includes the young blind woman who lived with my parents for a year as a house guest...the same person I speak of above...she went to college, lived alone for many years (moved in to my parents' home while getting her masters degree) works for Camp Fire Girls and organized many events...including nature walks for young children. She is an amazing woman. I'd be the last person (well, Kit and I might tie here) to tell her she couldn't photograph if she thought she could. Lea - ----- Original Message ----- From: "bdcolen" <bdcolen@earthlink.net> To: <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us> Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2003 1:34 PM Subject: RE: [Leica] Autofocus Leica R > ROFLOL!!! > > Yes, Kit, they do. It's not what "we perceive" as darkness. It IS, by definition, darkness. > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us [mailto:owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us] On Behalf Of Kit McChesney | acmefoto > Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2003 12:03 PM > To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us > Subject: RE: [Leica] Autofocus Leica R > > > George-- > > What difference does age make? Or if the person was blind from birth? Since images are themselves "created" in the mind anyway, is the ability to visualize predicated on having had conventional sight, that is, using one's eyes to see, or is it an ability that is innate? Do folks who can't see live in what we perceive as "darkness"? > > Kit ;-) > > -----Original Message----- > From: owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us > [mailto:owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us]On Behalf Of George Lottermoser > Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2003 9:22 AM > To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us > Subject: RE: [Leica] Autofocus Leica R > > > kitmc@acmefoto.com (Kit McChesney | acmefoto)3/12/03 > > >I beg to differ that a blind person cannot see, or visualize. Just > >ask a blind person. > > Which sort of Blind Person? > Blind from birth? > Blinded at age 18? > Blinded at age 65? > > <€>Peace<€> <€>Harmony<€> <€>Stewardship<€> > > Presenting effective messages in beautiful ways > since 1975 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > G e o r g e L o t t e r m o s e r, imagist > _______________________________________________ > eMail imagist@concentric.net > voice 262 241 9375 > fax 262 241 9398 > Lotter Moser & Associates > 10050 N Port Washington Rd - Mequon, WI 53092 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > -- > To unsubscribe, see > http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html > > -- > To unsubscribe, see > http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html > > -- > To unsubscribe, see > http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html > > - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html