HAPPY NEW YEAR!

And there you have it folks! The end of a year, and the beginning of a new one. I can't say 2011 came and went. It definitely wasn't a "fast" year. And it sure didn't go without a bang (or two) either. The year was far from uneventful. The year that went has got to be one of the most memorable years of my life, come to think of it. 2011 was the year when my heart, and patience, got tested to their limits. It was also the year when peaceful Oslo was struck by tragedy. Asia was once again faced with a natural disaster of a magnitude we only have read about in history books. History was written. History was rewritten. This was the year my generation made its mark.

This was also the year I started to take photography more seriously. After a period of self-caused (I blame my foolish heart) depression, I decided to pick up a camera and started taking pictures of my life. It started with photography lessons. And while I still have a lot to learn, I know that I now possess the skills to advance and be more creative with what I do. And after months of inactivity, I decided to once again pick up my camera, head out to the streets of cold, cold Oslo and attempt for the very first time to shoot fireworks!

I had to endure sitting in a crowded tram full of drunk people. This was followed by an hour standing on a ledge outside the Oslo City Hall with a tripod and a camera set to fully manual, again flanked by a drunk and rowdy crowd. My hands lost their feeling there for a while. It started to snow. And by the time the seance was over, I was shaking. The last bus heading home had gone and the night buses were filled to the brim with people now so drunk that they are near the edge of insanity. I had to walk home. The cold had shut down my iPhone yet again, so if something unfortunate happened to me on the way home I would not be able to call for help.

I had endured a lot. But looking at the results it was all worth it. I have to admit that I was expecting disastrous results. The weather was humid, and it was starting to snow. The wind was blowing quite violently. I had to support the tripod with my hands to prevent it from being shaken by the gusts of wind. The fireworks that did manage to shoot up in the air were mercilessly blown away by the wind in a matter of seconds, so I had to be fast. But a four second exposure is not fast! So I had to take many shots, clicking away picture after picture, praying that some of the shots would actually be OK. And they were!

In the end I got the pay-off I wanted. I had to suffer a little, but my efforts were rewarded. This is photography. This is what makes photography inspiring. This is what makes me passionate about photography.

So we bid farewell to 2011 and hope for better things in the new year we have been blessed with. I predict that this, too, will be an exciting year filled with many surprises (cliché, I know). 

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERY ONE!