NOT READY FOR MY CLOSE UP

Has anyone else noticed that not all of the advancements in technology are necessarily "a good thing"?

My point today; High Definition/Digital technology - NOT YOUR FRIEND.

Earlier this year we hosted a Ukrainian Orphan boy and while he was here we purchased disposable cameras for him and also brought out some of our ancient relics from the past - remember Polaroid "Instant" Cameras, and our old reliable 35mm drop and load which has been dropped more times than a baseball dipped in butter.

I was going through the pictures of our times together with a friend and noticed how many compliments she was lavishing on how "great" I looked, how happy; I had a glow about me etc, etc. etc.

This matter bore further investigation on my part as I hadn't heard compliments like that from looking at a photo of me since my wedding portraits 15 years before. I loved having this child in our home, but could 2 weeks really bring out one's "inner beauty"?

I studied the pictures closely and noticed the same clothes/make-up/hair style et al. I always sport. I looked at the people around me and noticed they also looked softer and gentler (It was like an ad for some sort of new toilet tissue).

Then it hit me it wasn't "inner beauty" it was poor quality camera imaging! The cheaper the camera that takes said photo is - has a direct correlation to your beauty quotient!

This is BIG news people. We are being led down the garden path to dispose of our disposables. Old reliable cameras that have served us well over these many years and invest high end $$$ for the brutally honest, tell it like it is, let it all hang out, YOU CAN"T HANDLE THE TRUTH, digital monsters of today.

With all of the HDTV hype haven't you noticed how many of the newscasters are being shot from a distance - it takes a crew of 10 make-up artists and a team of surgeons to be ready for high- def and most homosapiens are NOT.

Watch a Barbara Walters special sometime; that broad is shot in a freaking "cloud effect" you'll swear your glasses have fogged up or you need to invest in a de-humidifier for the fog bank that has settled in your living room; but it is the only way to see her 70+ year old face and not make the I Love Lucy "ewwwwwwwwwhhhhh" sound.

I experimented at home on my computer; I took a regular digital camera picture and was able to "zoom" in with such intense magnification (if it would have been an ant on the sidewalk, it would have burst into flames); you see things no one ought to see, except perhaps a very good Crime Scene Investigator or Coroner.

Do we really need to view one another's nasal and lipular forrestations, clogged pores, crows feet, moles and skin eruptions which need the attention of a good dermatologist?

Keep the fantasy alive; lay down your weapons of evil, the "Cybershots, SLR capable, Telephoto lens, 10x zoom capabilities and embrace the simpler days of a quick snapshot and the anticipation of getting duplicates made to share later.

I for one don't want to see that my Aunt Frida has a 5:00 shadow, and Grandpa could use a weed wacker in the ear lobe vicinity.

There is a reason I have replaced all of my friends with a geriatric crowd whose own myopia prevent them from seeing me in the harsh light of reality. My photos should help to document the reality in my head - not the one I am forced to live in.

Say CHEEEEESE!