We're photographers, and in shooting pictures, we celebrate our sense of sight. But the sense of smell is our most primitive sense. We can't "show" others what it is we're smelling in any given place or time, but we can try to evoke it with photographs. That's what this thread is about.
I got the idea when trying to imagine what a March morning in farm country in County Tyrone, Ireland might have smelled like at the opening of the 20th century. (Long story.) It occurred to me that we on this Forum are from all parts of the world, and we pay attention to our surroundings or we wouldn't be shooting photos. So maybe others here are just as keen to exercise their sense of smell like we exercise our observational skills. Why not post pictures that hint at the smells that are particularly memorable, whether those smells were pleasant or not? Because one thing is certain: Good or bad, the memory of scent becomes lodged in our brains and when we smell them later in life, those smells evoke the place or situation that provoked so powerful a memory.
So let's see if we can "picture" some smells -- whether we find them to be wonderful perfumes or awful stinks. If you think it'll help, try to describe the smells you're hoping to depict and, if you like, tell what memories are evoked when you smell the scent(s). I'll start with some pleasing ones to me:
Satin and Coffee My uncle was stationed in Italy and he brought back a souvenir scarf from Rome as a present for my grandmother. I can still smell her on the fabric, or I've convinced myself I can, while the aroma of freshly brewed moka is very real.
The Scent of Wild Apples Wet from a heavy fog, the smelled sweet and tangy, while the dried-hay smell of decaying leaves from the growing season's end. These bring to mind countless wanderings in old overgrown orchards when I was a kid and then later in adulthood when on geoarchaeological surveys in autumn.
Apple Galette Baked apples perfumed with cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and a buttery crust. These warm aromas take me back to my mother's and grandmothers' kitchens in autumn and winter, family meals, happy times.
Last edited by Tamia; 06-24-2018 at 08:40 AM.