BNSullivan.jpg "Sea Fan, Indonesia")
We have photos -- many thousands of photos. We have boxes and boxes of photo prints and negatives. We have dozens of fat binders filled with slides in sleeves. Most of those images have not been looked at in years.
These days, who wants to set up a projector to look at slides? Who wants to pick through boxes of photos, even if they are sorted nicely in chronological order? (Never mind the ones we never got around to sorting and filing so nicely!) But what a shame to let them all just sit on shelves and in storage cabinets. How much better it would be to be able to review them easily -- to enjoy them.
So, we bought two scanners -- one for scanning slides and negatives, and another for scanning prints and memorabilia -- and we got busy. The idea was to digitize as many of our old photos as we could so that we could look at them easily whenever we wanted to on a computer or TV monitor. How long this will take remains to be seen: We have thousands of images, but we've only scanned a few hundred so far.
Each new batch of images we scan brings back a flood of memories -- not just of dives, but of people, places, experiences, past eras in our lives. We decided that we should not hoard the images and the memories they evoked; we should share them. We concluded that putting some of the more interesting images and stories on line would be the best way to do that.
That's how this project came about. We hope our readers enjoy our photos and the stories that go with them as much as we have enjoyed creating them.
Hi Bobbie and Jerry --
ReplyDeleteWhat a terrific way to share your love for the sea by creating an internet travelogue.
Although I am not a diver, I do enjoy the sea, mostly from what I visualize above the surface. Scanning in all of your favorite slides, negatives, and photographs allows everyone to see what you see and gain an appreciation of the great beneath.
I am sure that this site will eventually become a community where participants can share their stories and photographs, educating many generations to come.
Best wishes with the project.
Warm Regards,
Matt Keegan
Hi Matt -
ReplyDeleteWe both thank you for your warm well wishes. We hope you'll stop by The Right Blue from time to time to see what develops.
Bobbie & Jerry
It is really quite obvious how much time you've spent working with your photos and stories. I am so happy you decided to share them. I may be spending hours here reading and looking through all of them.
ReplyDeleteI have a love for the sea and a curiosity for what lives there. I wanted to try suba diving so that I could the beauty first hand. I made the mistake of simply taking a quick resort course while on vacation in the Bahamas, and rushing right into my first dive. I was so excited with the things I saw, but I found that my problem with claustrophobia got the better of me. I wish I had learned more about diving before jumping in over my head. :-) I will love living vicariously through you.
I just hope you realize how much we appreciate the opportunity to take advantage of all your hard work.
Tootie from Sanibel Island, FL
Hello Tootie -
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind words about our stories and photos. We're glad to know you are enjoying them.
So sorry to hear that your brief foray into scuba diving was not what you had hoped it would be. We always tell people to take it slow at first, unless they already are very experienced in the ocean in other ways -- long history of snorkeling, surfing, body-surfing, etc. The so-called 'resort courses' have their place, but you are not the first person we know of who was overwhelmed by rushing (or being rushed) into an underwater experience before they were properly prepared.
Maybe you would like to try again some time with proper training at a relaxed pace that suits you, beginning with some coaching on snorkeling from an instructor or qualified divemaster.
Bobbie
Thanks for the coaching Bobbie. I think you are exactly right about not being prepared. I really had not gotten enough practice so that I could remember what to do. That experience was very scary. Everytime anyone has mentioned wanting to learn scuba, I tell them to make sure they go to a licensed instructor.
ReplyDeleteIf I were younger, I might be tempted to try again, taking it at a slower pace. But now, I think I'll just take life easy and wait for interesting things to wash up at my feet. :-)
Hello dear friend,
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this blog. I wasn't aware of it until I found it on your "Twitter". You have done a beautiful job!
Someday I will take you up on that invitation to dive with you.
Winona
Well hello Winona! Welcome to The Right Blue. I did not realize that you were unaware of this project of ours. Thanks for the compliments on the blog -- and yes, one of these days we'll find an opportunity to get into the water together. ;-}
ReplyDeleteBobbie