-INFRARED BUTTERFLIES-
(Click butterfly images for higher resolutions)

I began taking photos seriously after enrolling in a high school photography class for beginners. The instructor was Thomas Kwock; a young man who taught in a non-technical manner that appealed to me.
This was the first time that a teacher seemed to me to be more like a fellow student and less of a School Master. Mr. Kwock was unique in that you would "hang out" with him in class, but he was unlike the rest of the" kids" because he also commanded a special kind of respect. He got excited about images and many of us (pupils) aimed to impress him. I worked hard at my photographs because I wanted Kwock to like them. (We simply called him "Kwock" and he called me "Swift")

I remember when he taught us about infrared film. He told us that it was a special kind of film- A heat sensitive film that records images according to their temperature - "It can detect a range of temperatures. The warmer something is, the whiter it will look in your picture". Tree foilage, for example, appears white and body temperatrue might make skin read with a kind of glow (a type of aurua, if you will). How cool was that for a 16 year old budding artist to hear? I couldn't wait to try the stuff.

Infrared?
Butterflies?
 I immediately purchased the mysterious film that had to be kept in the refridigerater prior to loading into the camera. I began snapping away. After I had my fun, I hurried to the photo lab, developed the film and made a proof sheet of these- my very first infrared shots. I handed it to Kwock and told him I wanted to print the "butterfly ones". He examined the tiny images and then flashed me an odd look and simply asked, "Butterflies?" I knew what he meant- I could easily fall into a trap with these shots. A typical butterfly picture obviously would be seen as overly sentimental or kitschy- Usually (and especially in art classes), you don't want your picture to look like a thank you card... at least you don't want someone to respond to your work by saying something like..."Ahh, how sweet."

Kwock was giving me a warning.


I looked again at my contact sheet and decided to take a gamble- (contact or "proof" sheet images are strips of thumbnail photographs; small positive prints- exactly the size of the 35mm film frame).

"My butterfly pictures will be different", I thought..."They're infrared butterflies! They're gonna have an edge to them". In a weird way- they turned out looking kinda tough after I blow them up and printed them on 8X10 paper.

Yes! I was right; They were very cool and not sappy looking. I made the prints and handed them to Kwock on a Friday afternoon, fulfilling the requirements for his assignment. He not only gave me an "A", but he chose two of the prints to include in a student photo show he later displayed in a showcase next to the lockers in the hall.

I learned, through this assignment, that it's good for an artist to trust his instincts.