Think X

Think X, originally uploaded by stussyjoker.

Alright, I was going to save this one for tomorrow, but I just couldn't resist. This is one of those shots that re-affirms to me why I love photography as much as I do. Some are turned off by the cross-processed look, but not me. I have a very loose photography personality. Some of my contemporaries get so caught up with the technical aspect of their cameras that they forget to be creative.
So to all you images with a soft focus, motion blur, accidental blur, light leaks, etc., I welcome you. I champion you. There will always be room for you at my table. Also, I titled this shot Think X. The original edit was Think About It. I am not exactly sure why I titled it the way I did, I just let the photographs decide most of the time. The ones that aren't ready, I just leave untitled. So, back to my original point I was trying to reach. Think X is a bit of a double entendre for me. Sure, it can be interpreted literally because of its cross processing, or x-pro, but I had much deeper motives than that. The day before this shoot, I watched Do the Right Thing again for the first time in a while, and I just love that movie. Definitely one of Spike's best in my opinion. But the reason I bring this up is because of the narrative that film gives about society. I'm not going to delve into that here, because I'd rather you watch the film and think about it yourself (and then discuss it with me!). But again, back to the point. At the beginning of the credits, there are two quotes; one by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and one by one of my personal heroes, Malcolm X. The quote is this :

"I think there are plenty of good people in America, but there are also plenty of bad people in America and the bad ones are the ones who seem to have all the power and be in these positions to block things that you and I need. Because this is the situation, you and I have to preserve the right to do what is necessary to bring an end to that situation, and it doesn't mean that I advocate violence, but at the same time I am not against using violence in self-defense. I don't even call it violence when it's self-defense, I call it intelligence."


Now, at this point you're probably wondering, "What the hell is he trying to say?" Well this is what I am trying to say. Look what we have done to the Earth. Now, before I go any further, I would like to mention that I enjoy four wheeling, as trivial as a defense as that is, but I wanted to be clear that I am not negatively commenting on such a recreation. But, in a way, yes, yes I am. Because again, look at the taxation that humankind has put on the earth. Surely we must have technological advances, but it is a shame that we have do try and preserve what we have left, instead of being able to maintain what should have always been there. Ok, so here is where the quote ties in, at least in my brain. The polar ice caps, the ozone layer, the fires, the abnormal weather patterns, it is earth practicing self defense. I know what some of you are thinking, but at least try to understand where I am coming from. It was bound to happen. I don't know why that quote made that connection in my head after I processed this shot, but it hit me like a ton of bricks. I mean it is such a heavy quote when taken in the right connotation, not to mention when nuts like me take it and pull it apart and use it for examples like that. I don't know, was that too much? Too far? You decide...