"A photograph is memory in the raw."

-Carrie Latet

Have you ever thought of the significance of a photograph? We take them all the time. Especially my group of friends and I. There's no way we're going to have a party, get together, or just any special day without at they very least one of us having a camera.

I spent this summer in Algeria, a country located along the Mediterranean coast in North Africa. My uncle, who lives there, used to be an avid photographer and still, semi sort of, is. He remarked that I took a lot of pictures, which I did (I love taking pictures). He turned to my other uncle and said, "Remember when we were kids and pictures were special? Now, it seems, they've lost they're charm."

That comment right there, made me stop and think for a second. I'd always thought of pictures as significant pieces of time. When that shutter opens and closes it captures a moment, one that would have otherwise been lost. When you take pictures, it seems, you almost have the power to record time.

"You don't take a photograph, you ask quietly to borrow it."

-Author Unknown

As I said before, I love taking pictures. Last year I worked hard until I had the means to buy my very own camera, and if I could, I'd carry it around with me virtually everywhere. It's the greatest disappointment to me when a beautiful moment slips by unphotographed. If I had a penny for every time I thought, I wish I had my camera with me, well I might actually have enough money to buy a new camera.

It makes me wonder though, am I abusing my right to take pictures? Am I really taking too many? Am I diminishing a photograph's significance by having thousands on my computer? I honestly don't know. Whenever I'm taking pictures I always feel like taking as many as I can because the likelihood of getting a really good picture is rather slim. In about the 250 photos that my memory card holds maybe 10 or, if I'm really lucky, 20 will be even worth saving.

When I take that many pictures, I alwasy tell myself that I'll just delete the ones that didn't turn out well, but most of the time that doesn't work out. It's honestly very hard to bring myself to delete a picture. It's realize that it's pretty ridiculous, but I still often find myself rummaging through the recycle bin, on my computer, looking for the pictures I may have mistakenly or unwisely deleted. I end up restoring pictures that should probably just have stayed in the trash bin.