Imagine There's An Image

Something I've been trying to learn about photography, especially now in the digital era, is to not pass up a chance to take a photo. Even if it's something you pass by everyday, maybe right in your own neighborhood, you never know if you'll be able to go back to that scene and take that shot.

American Snow Fence

The photo above is a good example. I stopped by that antique store that proved so photogenic a week or two ago and took some more photos. This is a closeup of the fence-flag in American Flyer. But a few days later, it would have been too late - this piece of folk-art was gone.

The photo below, which I took at the Jewish-American Reunion Festival in Baltimore last September, has a more poignant story. While I was at the festival shooting pictures and enjoying the ambiance, I ran into this enthusiastic and engaging man and his sweet wife. Like my family, he was a Shoah survivor, originally from Poland. And like many Survivors, he appeared to have a real zest for life.

I asked him and his wife if I could take some photos to send them. He immediately and joyfully took his wife's hand and led her in a few dance steps. I took his name and address and bid them farewell.

Max Winder (olav ha-shalom) with Erna, September 2004

But, hammerkopf that I sometimes am, I managed to misplace that slip of paper, forgot the name, and I let the whole incident slip from my mind - until last Friday evening.

Opening the Baltimore Jewish Times, I saw a photo of that same smiling face along with an article under the title, "He Was Unique." It told the story of Max Winder, Holocaust survivor and longtime Pikesville resident who had died that week at age 88.

Max would have loved that photo of him dancing with Erna. Now it's too late - that's what procrastination can do.