Why is the associative fabric important for the cultural life of a neighborhood? What is the relationship between photography and pediatrics? What challenges should you face when you are a beginner in photographic art? All these questions are answered by reader Esther Moral, who, based on her Chinese New Year photograph, chosen one of the best of February in La Vanguardia’s Readers’ Photos, tells us about her passion for photography.
A pediatrician by profession, he exercises his vocation for photographic art together with the photography amateur club of the La Barraca civic center, in his neighborhood, La Sagrera.
How did you get started and when did you know that photography was your calling?
Since I was very young I had a film camera, but I had always wanted to have a SLR, although in my house we couldn’t afford one. And, surprisingly, a while ago my children became interested in photography and that’s when we decided to buy a camera. It’s funny because sometimes what you don’t do for yourself you do for your children. But, as soon as they bought a cell phone, they abandoned the camera, and that’s when I took it over and since that day I always take snapshots. I have never studied photography, only some courses, workshops… closely linked to the neighborhood’s civic center. My notions of photography have been mostly self-taught.
Where does your inspiration for taking photographs come from and what do you like to express?
I am a very planner and, before going to a place, I look for images that I might like about the place. I use Google Maps to look for interesting locations to photograph when I don’t know the area. I like to have a plan of what I want to capture. Maybe later I will return home without developing the idea I had in my mind, but at least I am not carrying all the photographic equipment. I am organized, but I also let myself go, and I always take photos of things that convey something positive to me or that please me. Maybe there is a sunset that seems beautiful to me, but the partner next to me doesn’t find it interesting, because I’m going to steal the moment and save it.
What type of techniques and cameras do you use?
I have a Canon EOS 7 and five recyclable lenses, I don’t have professional equipment. But from what I use it, I have enough. My style of photography is based on taking photos that are not beasts, I don’t like to portray things that transmit any negative feeling. Perhaps the ones that are most difficult for me to take are portraits, because stopping people and asking them to take a photo slows me down, and it is my pending subject to have more detachment in this sense.
If I see an act or an event that might interest me, I ask myself what could happen and, from there, I take the necessary photographic equipment. I do a lot of urban photography, although I also like nature photos, especially the sea, I have a strong love for lighthouses. At home they tell me that I am like a pirate looking for treasures, looking for moments.
Have you participated in any photography contests or exhibitions?
No contest, but exhibition, yes, at the La Barraca photography club in the La Sagrera civic center, of which I am a part. We do several outings and exhibitions. It is a team effort, since each one sees the photographs of the others to be able to set up the exhibitions and it is a way of mutual growth. We have always held exhibitions in the civic center, but lately we have held more than one exhibition outside the venue, with the idea of ??collaborating with the associative fabric.
It is like a win win between us and the associations that allows an exhibition to be born. For example, we contacted the Voluntaris 2000 association, which had a very weak photographic source. Well, what we did was photograph the volunteers for their social networks and make their photo gallery more attractive. In exchange, they gave us the press pass to be able to go to the marathons and take snapshots. In the end, someone else can benefit from something you do, it is a reciprocal relationship, and that is very positive.
Is there any link between your profession, pediatrics, and photography?
There is no link but I wish there was. There are very tender moments with children, families… that I would like to portray. But it is a very sensitive issue, in relation to the privacy of the patient and the rights of minors.
In this Chinese New Year photo, what message do you want to convey?
I went to the Chinese New Year celebration with the idea of ??photographing Chinese dragons and the clothing. Luck has to hook you working and with your eyes open. Well, trying to capture photos of the outfits, I saw a girl who took her cell phone out of her pocket and used it as a mirror to finish making the final touches before the celebration. She caught my attention a lot, because she was at a very traditional and ritual party, and the cell phone was like anachronistic. If you asked me where a Chinese girl in this outfit would get her makeup or makeup done, she would tell you in a powder room. Well, it was an image that combined modernity with tradition.
Did you expect your photo to be chosen as one of the best among the La Vanguardia Readers’ Photos for the month of February? Why do you participate in this section? Do you like it?
I didn’t expect it, I have a level of amateur photography, and a rather low one. I feel like it is a recognition of our group of fans and I am very grateful. You see a lot of high-quality photos, and you think, mine won’t go anywhere, but you still send it with the possibility of it being published, and when you see that it is like that, it’s like it’s a prize for yourself. I started sending photos after the photo of a colleague, Mònica Planellas, was a finalist to choose the best photo of La Vanguardia readers of 2023, and she explained to us this opportunity that she was unaware of.
That’s when I started thinking about what photos might fit and sending them. I think that it’s a great initiative. Maybe you will receive an avalanche of photos, because now everyone can do and send whatever they want, but I think it is a way to channel the art of people who would never post anything and now have this space to do so.
Are you passionate about Chinese culture?
Not especially, my son is more interested. The group of devils that I am part of has a flying dragon inspired by a Chinese dragon. That’s why I was going with the idea of ??photographing dragons in the Chinese New Year photography.
What other hobbies do you have besides photography?
Everything that has to do with the sea. That’s where I charge my batteries. Then my other hobby is being a devil, I have been since I was 12 years old. The world of popular culture in general attracts my attention. When I joined the group of devils of La Sagrera, there were almost no women and the correfocs that we did in Plaça Sant Jaume in Barcelona had nothing to do with those that are done now. I have managed to pass this spark on to my children, since they are also part of the group. Both photography and being a devil have been a bond with my children.
Is the associative fabric important for the life of the neighborhood? What does being part of it give you?
It’s very important. I started as a monitor and transmitted some values ??to the children that I want them to maintain. If they had not gone to an esplai or cau, perhaps they would not have ended up having these values. So I am happy, because I have been able to contribute my small grain of sand.
In the major festivals there is someone who must organize them, apart from the City Council. It is essential to establish links with other associations so that, based on the budget offered by the City Council, we can reach maximum levels. For me, the associative fabric gives life and soul to the neighborhood. It is not the same when you go to a place with an active and varied associative fabric as when you go to a place where there is practically none. In my neighborhood, the Torre de la Sagrera is now self-managed by the cultural fabric. We are already responsible for the direct management of the equipment and for making it viable.
This fulfills me as a person, because you show people that resources are not unlimited, and that the associative fabric is the one that best manages them because, with the few means we have, we always achieve performance and maximum benefit. If it is the City Council that organizes an activity or event, it takes resources from anywhere, and in the end you don’t even know where they come from. But this is not reality. The reality is the resources that are managed from the neighborhood.
The La Barraca photography group, to which you belong, how was it born? Why are you signing up?
It counts as another activity of the civic center. We do three workshops and when we finish them, there is the option to join this club. We always meet every Tuesday, and there are days when we are in the civic center and others when we go outside. When we go out, we review the photos and then evaluate them with Rodrigo, our teacher. I have been one of the last to join the group and it has more and more filming, since we already make many outings outside the civic center and more days apart from Tuesday. We have also opened up to social networks, we are making ourselves known.
And is there something you’ve always wanted to portray but haven’t been able to do so yet?
I would like to take it a step further and take photos with double exposure. I know very little about editing, just the basics of a photography enthusiast. So this is my challenge this year. In the photography group where we are, they propose tests every year and this 2024 is to take time photos to make an exhibition. I want to try to make my time-themed photos double exposure. This would be a way to grow, challenge myself and find out how the technique is done, and try it until I get it.
So, how do you feel about digital versus analog photography? What photo editing software do you use?
Digital photography has a big drawback, that you can shoot a lot, but at the same time it is a big advantage for those of us who don’t know much about photography. In the Chinese New Year snapshot I took five of the same moment, otherwise, with the analogue, I would have taken one and wouldn’t have known the result until developing the photos. This is a virtue but also an obstacle, because when you shoot digitally you have so many photographs that later choosing which ones are correct is a job. But when you are learning you can correct instantly if you see that you have taken a wrong photo.
I don’t know much about editing, and if I do I move four parameters. At the moment, for the little I do, it helps me. I like colorful photos, so I only edit those that have very dark tones and increase the saturation and color. I try to ensure that what I have photographed is as similar as possible to what I have seen. I don’t retouch facial expressions or movements or anything, because I don’t know, nor do I want to, nor is it the intention. What I get is what it is.
You have an Instagram account (@esmora24) where you post the photos you take. Do you use social media a lot to post your portraits? Because? Do you think it is a useful tool to disseminate your projects?
I use Instagram so that people who know me can see my photos, but without much intention of spreading them in a big way. It helps me force myself to look at what I’ve done, clean it up, edit it a little, and hang it up. Because otherwise, with the pace of life I lead, I would keep the camera at home and the photos would remain forgotten there. In this way, I give myself homework: if one day I can’t post a snapshot, then I put it in a folder pending editing and I prepare it to post it another day. It’s self-discipline to look at the photos.
And, finally, apart from using Instagram, do you have or are you considering creating a website where your work can be seen?
I only have Instagram, I have no intention of doing so now, because I am not dedicated to professional photography. I carry two networks, the photography club’s and my own, and that’s enough for me.
