Around the World in One Camera

The Famous Traveling Camera has finally made its way to me. I will have the honor of representing France in this International Photographic Project!

I opened my mailbox this morning to find a large package from Stockholm, Sweden. I immediately ran to my apartment and opened the box to find this famous little camera and its travel journal packed snuggly into its foam and bubble wrap protection. As I flipped through the journal, I could feel the energy of the previous photographers who have breathed life into this amazing project, calling out to me to continue the journey. Within an hour of receiving the package, the tiny traveler and I were off on a site seeing tour of the CITY OF LIGHTS.

First stop, L’Arc de Triumph

I am amazed at how tiny this camera is. Fitting comfortably into the palm of my hand, it is mere 3 inches long, and 2 inches high.

I thought about all of the wonderful places this incredible ambassador has been in the last year. Starting its journey in Los Angeles and making its way north to Canada. It has been to Mexico, Peru, Argentina,Chile, Colombia,Spain,Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Germany, Italy, Romania, Czech Republic, Poland, Sweden, and now France, with many more countries to go. We are all part of a greater whole working together in different regions of the world, sharing an experience, like no other before it. What an amazing feeling it is.

Second stop, Le Tour de Eiffel

As I walked to Le Trocadero, the plaza across from the Eiffel Tower, I began to think about the photo I wanted to take with our little traveling ambassador. I saw tourists hustling around trying to get the best shots for their memory books. I saw homeless people who were so down on their luck that the only relief they could find was in a bottle of cheap French wine.

It was becoming clear that this would not be an easy thing to decide. What will the traveler inspire in me? The possibilities are endless, with the sites and sounds of Paris as the backdrop for this adventurous little camera.

As I approached the viewing platform of Le Trocadero (across from the famous tower of Eiffel), I realized something very strange. I was standing in the very spot of that famous photo of Adolf Hitler after the Nazis conquered France during WWII. It was a profound revelation. Here I am with this tiny mechanized ambassador, standing in the footprints of history. The stark difference being that Hitler was an ambassador of hatred and evil, and this petite camera was an ambassodor of understanding and hope. A messenger to each and every person involved, that we are able to work together to make a difference.

After leaving the Eiffel tower I walked home energized by the feelings this “LITTLE CAMERA THAT COULD” inspired in me. I arrived at my apaprtment and began reading the journal that has been written by the previous participants. It was wonderful to experience this project through their eyes…all of us having the same feeling that we are part of something greater than ourselves. We are part of the Human Race…all parts of the greater whole. It is an amazing feeling.

I still do not know what I will shoot with our tiny Ambassador, but I know that whatever it is….it will never compare to the experience of getting to know the people who have come before me, and those who will come after me.

Podczas swojej krotkiej wizyty w Chicago bylem ponownie gosciem Magdy Marczewskiej i Pawla Kulinskiego w porannym programie Polskiego Radia. Posluchaj wywiadu.

Interview for Polish Radio.

Panorama Powiatu Brzeskiego features a short article about our project written by Sebastian Bar. Thank you!

Click image to see the page in .pdf

Matias sent us few photos taken while he was wandering with the traveler around the city.

I remember I got a little anxious about all this one-picture thing as soon as I signed in for the project. Then I realized that there was no point in overhinking things. I would just forget about it and first think about what picture to take when I had the traveler in my hands. Seasons changed, a new year came, I made some nice trips, met people, sticked to my suff… And so, Wednesday came along.

I have to say that opening the package, under the sun light, reading all the signatures on it and finally seeing the camera made me smile a lot. The traveler was finally with me, and it felt really good. I went home, fixed a couple of things and hit the road. The camera has been with me all the time since then. Of course, the old question came back, in bold letters this time: What to photograph? And with it, an unexpected feeling of responsibility. One picture.

I´ve been walking a lot lately, and still I haven´t taken the shot. I usually go around and make lots of pictures, but the fact that I only have one, really gives me some anxiety. The I-don´t-want-my-picture-to-be-the-crapy-one feeling plays against you, and it also makes you think: What is the picture about? Does it have to represent the country? Me in the country? Just me? Should it be a landscape? Should it be about people? What have the others shot? I like when a project makes you think about things beyond the action itself. I have to say this is one of those cases. I´ve been thinking about me in this country (I´ve only lived here for three years), about the relation between representation and responsibility, and about the undeniable autobiographic side of documentary as a genre , both picture and film. All this while looking at the city through the eye of the camera.

This afternoon, while going back home after not taking my picture I came to one conclusion, one of those old conclusions I always end up landing on: Relax; just do it.

I think this project is not so much about the countries, but a lot more about the people; people living in a specific place, in a specific time. 36 pictures of 36 persons in 36 places. The more relaxed and sincere I am the better the picture is gonna be. I decided - again - to forget how much a picture can represent a country or how that carries a responsibility. I´ll just take a picture I like and hope for the best.

Having the traveler with me has been great. I am very glad to be involved in this project and I´m looking forward to see the results.

Due to a recent change in my travel schedule, I will be staying if France for a few months. As I am next on the list to get the traveler, it has become necessary for me to change the country I will be representing. I wish I were still able to be in Morocco for my scheduled photo adventure, but I am looking forward to getting the camera here in Paris. I am not sure what I will be shooting yet, since this was not expected, but I will do my best to live up to the high standards set by all of the previous photographers in this project.

Peace,
Ron Modro
Now Representing……..France

Matias reports that our little hero has just arrived safely to Sweden! More news and photos soon…

Another major polish daily newspaper features article about the ptroject.

Gazeta Wyborcza we Wroclawiu publikuje dzis, 8 maja, artylul o naszym projekcie, czytaj wiecej.

Artykuł Dawida Ściora (aka fotomatik) w gazecie Polski Express w Dublinie.
(kliknij tutaj aby sciagnaj calosc w formacie .pdf ~6Mb)

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