Neighborhood Flowers (shot w/ a new camera allowing for immediate reciprocity)

Last year an elderly woman moved into the old one-room apartments near our house. Her husband had just passed away and she had to move to a cheaper place. This is an all too common situation in Japan these days where elderly people have to live alone on a limited government paid pension. But she is very social and seems to get on well with all of the neighbors. She can often be seen outside her apartment tending to her flowers. She is very good at this and her efforts bring some beauty to an otherwise drab apartment building. I wanted to take a photo of her with her flowers but she was too shy. But she appreciated the attention.

I took this photo with a new camera I recently purchased - a Fujifilm Instax SQ10 - it is like a Polaroid camera of old where you can print out the photo on the camera immediately. It is also a descent digital camera. So you can take a shot, have a digital file saved on a mini SD card and if you like it print it out. (It is a bit pricey compared to other models and the film is expensive.) I find it works well as a simple field camera - not too heavy or bulky. And you can print out photos of people you take in the course of research as an immediate form of thanks and reciprocity. The usual disclaimer holds - this is not a product endorsement. Rather it is a handy addition to my fieldwork/research gear. And it made a nice old lady happy...