Smells?
We've talked in the past about how a successful image is
evocative. In other words, it provokes an emotional response, vivid memories, or provokes the viewer to imagine how an object feels, smells, or tastes. According to Discovery Health, "A smell can bring on a flood of memories, influence people's moods and even affect their work performance. Because the olfactory bulb is part of the brain's limbic system, an area so closely associated with memory and feeling it's sometimes called the "emotional brain," smell can call up memories and powerful responses almost instantaneously." So if we can successfully evoke a memory of a smell, we can tap into a powerful emotional response from our viewers.
I think I've mentioned in the past that I work with the North American Nature Photographers Association (NANPA) College Photography Scholarship Committee. As part of the College Scholarship Program we take the scholarship recipients on a photo shoot. When we talk to the students about photographing a location, I always try to emphasize the importance of establishing a "sense of place." Last year, a fellow committee member and I went on a scouting trip to our photo shoot location, an area the Nature Conservancy had restored along the Truckee River outside of Reno, Nevada. When we were discussing our observations after the scouting trip, she asked me what made the strongest impression, and was surprised by my response when I answered "the smells." You see we left the noisy, smoky casino in Reno that morning to go out to the photo shoot location, and arrived at a site that wasn't too far removed from the Interstate. It was a small area, with signs of the restoration efforts still present, and close enough to the highway that you could still hear the trucks roaring by. I was concerned that the students wouldn't be able to establish a "sense of place" that would enable them to connect to this small plot of land that had cost millions of dollars to restore to just a shadow of its former glory. Then I smelled the pungent sage, and the wetlands, and the damp leaves on the forest floor; and the roar of the Interstate faded into the distance and I was in nature. The smells brought back the same sense of "wholeness" that I had felt many times before when out in nature, and I knew this place could touch the souls of the students we would bring to photograph it. We debated for a short while about whether or not the students could really evoke the "smells" in their images, but soon moved on to more pressing issues. I believe that although it is challenging to do so, it is possible to evoke a memory of a smell through your imagery, and that if you can evoke this memory, you will tap into a rich emotional response from the viewer.
When we were out at the ranch this 4th of July, I went for a walk by myself through the "North Pasture." The weather was dreary and overcast, with a slight drizzle, and the grass was wet from the previous night's rain. It wasn't too long before my legs were soaked and I was squishing water out of my socks with each step I took. I struggled to connect to this place that was so different from the mountains I had come to love. The scenery consisted of tall green grass for as far as I could see, with a small rise in the distance to pique my interest. I followed a faint trail that had been made by the others as they passed through this pasture earlier in the day on their way to pick buckets of wild sand plums for homemade jelly. There was nothing in the scenery that inspired me, but the faint trail I was following passed through an area of blue sage, and the scent from the disturbed sage wound its way deep in to my consciousness and began working its magic on my soul. I didn't take a "real" camera with me on that walk, but snapped an image with our old Canon point and shoot. If I had done a better job capturing the sage, I bet a few of you would remember similar walks in the grasslands of your youth.
The North PastureHere's another image from the ranch that just might evoke a memory of a smell, and start your mouth watering. I think a little steam rising from the meat would have
really evoked a memory of the smell of barbecued beef.
Ranch DinnerThe assignment for the week of 5 - 11 July is "Smells." Please upload your images to the "Smells" album in the Weekly Assignments category of the Gallery no-later-than midnight (GMT - 07:00) on Sunday, 11 July 2010.
I'll look forward to memories of wonderful smells.
Keith
