Some months ago, I had filled in a survey about how I use technology. The researchers then contacted to see if I’d be interested in participating in a ‘learning landscapes’ study.

They gave me a voice recorder, a disposable camera and a notebook. Every 60 to 90 minutes, I got a text message and had to take photos of my surroundings, and record myself describing what I was doing, how I was feeling, and what technologies I was using. If I couldn’t do that, I could jot notes into the notebook. It was a fun day. I ended up going into London to meet people and go to a seminar.

It felt strange taking photos with a film camera, let alone a disposable camera. I couldn’t see if the photo had turned out all right. I couldn’t take as many photos as I am used to. I have used film cameras before but had never felt the constraints of having only 24 exposures per film. That’s because in my film era, I only took photos of the same thing once. In the digital age, I take at least three photos of the same scene using different settings, different perspectives and angles.

Using a disposable camera is no excuse for poor composition. I tried hard to take the best photos I could without being able to adjust aperture, shutter length or film sensitivity. Today, we had a slideshow meeting, where everyone presented their photos and described their day. My photos turned out surprisingly well. The darkest ones must have been thrown out by the developer but otherwise the quality was really quite good.

I think I’ll do this again for fun — buy a disposable camera and practice being hamstrung by low tech and delayed gratification.