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Friday, August 22, 2008

Creative writing: Picture no. 14 “Sunrise, sunset, sunrise, sunset ...”



Notes:

(1) I took this picture way back in 1990 using my beloved Canon AE-1 Program camera and my favorite black and white film Kodak Tri-X.

I then turned it into a color picture using Kodak’s Create-A-Print machine (if I remember correctly). By experimenting with the filtration settings, I was able to create several pictures with different tones.

(2) If you hover over the picture, you’ll see in a pop-up widow the sample creative text for this picture.

(3) Kodak Tri-X happens also to be the favorite film of world-famous photojournalist Salgado. I wonder, does Salgado now use digital cameras instead of his trusty Leica?

(4) Photographers call sunrise and sunset as the “golden hours,” meaning, they are the best times to take pictures. Since this picture was originally a monochrome image, it’s hard to tell whether it was shot during sunrise or sunset, right?

A lot of you may be familiar with the Broadway musical “Fiddler on the Roof” from which the song “Sunrise, Sunset” came from. The chorus of the song goes like this:

Sunrise, sunset,

Sunrise, sunset,

swiftly fly the years,

one season following another,

laden with happiness

and tears.
Wikipedia summarizes Fiddler’s history, distinctions and awards:
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, was the first musical to surpass the 3,000 performance mark, and it held the record for longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it.

The show was highly acclaimed and nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned four Broadway revivals, a successful 1971 film adaptation, and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It is also a very popular choice for school and community productions.

When used as the inspiration for an essay, the setting sun usually evokes emotions of loneliness or serenity.