Kerry I

I am a bit nervous about approaching strangers to engage in the exchange but I know that it is a necessary step. In order to work up to that point, I am starting out by contacting friends and family. I am not only contacting friends and family to avoid other interactions but because this category will be an important data set. Will people who are close to me be more receptive to the idea and thus more generous with their offers?

The first person who I presented the idea to is my godmother, Kerry. We do not talk often but she never forgets to send me a card on my birthday or Christmas. Sometimes she has business in Boston and get together. Occasionally we talk over e-mail, mostly topical updates on our lives. I was responding to one such e-mail and the end of updating her on my life I included:

"I am doing my senior thesis on the exchange value of photography and it occurs to me that maybe you (or you and Jerry) would like to be involved. In short, I am seeing what I can get by trading my photographs in the "real world". Would you be interested in me sending you some prints and then sending me something back that you think is of equal value? Or I am thinking about making an online gallery of the photographs offered and you could pick one and then again, send me something that you think is of equal value? Whatever you send back is up to you- just whatever you think that photograph is worth. Let me know if you are interested."(9/16/09)

She wrote back and the second line of the e-mail read:

" I am VERY interested in the photography exchange project … and thrilled at the chance to see some of your photographs."

She went on to respond to the other updates on my life and at the end wrote:

"Let me know how you want to manage the photography exchange … and send me a link to some of your photos if you can."(9/22/09)

As soon as I get the images online, I will be writing her back to move forward with the exchange.