Photographic Memory

SNAP AWAY

Taking pictures has never been so easy. Back before the smart phone days, we had compact cameras that were our means of capturing the moment, but it was only really after 2000 that compact digital cameras were becoming good enough for this job over their film camera alternatives. But even then the quality, the storage and the battery life were not up to a standard where we could take them everywhere we went - hence they were usually only pulled out on very special occasions, like birthdays etc. Before that time, with film cameras, the limitations on film roll size (24 or 36) and the expense of developing film/prints, meant that photos were very considered, composed and every effort was taken to ensure there was no wasted shots.

Fast forward to the present day and everyone seems to have some form of camera on their person at all times of the day. The latest offerings from Apple and Samsung also means we can shoot bursts in hi-resolution, panoramic or fire off HD video - even in slow-mo. Afterwards, everything can be edited before they magically move themselves across to the 'cloud', where they simultaneously materialise on our other devices too.

Storage is also not much of a problem these days as Flikr give 1Tb for free and other storage providers like Dropbox, The Box, Google Drive etc. are finding even more ways to seamlessly integrate with our operating systems of choice - and all for very low cost. Battery issues are still a minor limitation, but carrying a miniature charging device or USB plug around with us (or even spare device battery), means we can top up on the go. This means that we can snap away to our heart's content using our cameras as memories for all the good times we've had. With metadata, we can even track the time and place where the shots were taken and look back at them on a map alongside a timeline of great memories in our lives.

Make The Last Moments Special

FINISHING ON AN UP

No matter how good an experience is, the lasting memory will always be based on the latter moments from that experience - be that a night out on the town or a week's summer holiday.

If it's just a night out, the final moments can be marred by simply having a poor experience getting home at the end of the evening. But provided the night's been a success in every other way, having a blip at the end merely diminishes a tiny fraction off of an otherwise brilliant time spent in enjoyment and experienced within just very recent memory. But on longer periods like a week, earlier good points will be already diminished in memory over the days that follow and the period of lasting memory will be built up from the later section of the trip.

So if you're planning on doing something on a final night of a trip - make sure it's something really special to better cement the recollection of the entire trip as something you'd want to remember.