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PARTING SHOTS
November 2008 |
By Roger Cox www.rogpics.com I like trophies. I like the look and feel of them. I like the "untouchable" notion that they impart. I think that while everybody can appreciate a trophy…. and while a trophy does mark an achievement, it tends to become a yardstick of some kind. There are similarities between yardsticks and trophies. For example, yardsticks measure things. Like yardsticks, trophies have a number of some sort on them, (First, Second, Third etc.), the physical size of it has some significance, (bigger means better), the date is relevant in some way (old trophies tend not to be as hip as new ones) and they are often used to measure the success (or lack thereof ) of something. In our case, it reflects a score that was achieved and awarded to an individual. The trophy cannot help but impart some judgment on the efforts of the individual who owns it, or is owned by it. While I do like trophies.…..I don't particularly love them. I think they miss the point. Photographs on the other hand, are all about the point. It is a photographers job to capture the point, and to create the impression. To get into the observers head and allow them to feel what they see. Photographs are what they are. There is no judgment involved. You look the best you have ever looked in your life. You did more squats than you have ever done before, and trained like a dedicated mad man (or woman, as the case may be). You were up at 4am to do cardio, and ate the blandest food that has ever been created. You set a goal for yourself and this is the result. Only a photograph of you in contest shape can afford that transmission to anyone, and they don't have to know a darn thing about bodybuilding, the NPC or what the cut off weight is for the middleweight class. A photo can tell it all. I have never seen a trophy that said that anything about who showed up, what you sacrificed or that progress does not mean perfection. Photographs will increase their value with age, and can bring us back to a moment that we cherish. Your trophy will comment on how you faired in the contest but your photographs can truly capture the moment. And yes, a picture is worth ten thousand words, and you, your family and your friends will probably look longer at your contest photos than they will at your trophy. So if you want to know how a contest was, admire the trophy, and then reach for the photo album. Let your images bring it all back to you as brand new. Because I believe that contest photos belong on the mantle, and trophies can reside happily in the den.
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