Meet my bookshelf. It stands in my apartment and carries some of my favorite things: many books that I have read, lots that I haven’t yet. An awesome little textile rendition of my Richard character that my dear sister made for me. Some paintings I did when I was into acrylic and canvas one cold winter, including one I did on a cheap Converse knockoff. My old camera that introduced me to photography. Documents and receipts. A Coke bottle I liked so much I brought it home with me from a vacation in Croatia. A shoebox filled with small, trivial objects that remind me of my childhood. The kind of stuff you’d find in a shelf.
And it’s really just that: a bookshelf.
It’s also my most popular photo on Flickr. It has over 4000 views, almost over 30 favorites, it’s featured in 2 galleries, has provided me with invites to numerous groups, has won two Flickr group prizes and for a while it was one of the top results on Google Images. Whoa!
Why do I mention all that? Self-praise stinks, as we say in Germany. Well, it would, if I were trying to take credit for it, but I’m not. The whole thing just developed a life on its own, and I think it’s hilarious! Really, I love the irony: of all of the effort I put into my photos, it’s the boring, 2-minute, full frontal shot of a bookshelf that grabs all the attention.
It baffles the mind.
