So far, I have posted about a poker table, lights, closet door knobs, becoming complacent, and the irony of then going a month without posting anything - all on my photography website.
So, I figured it was about time to make a photography post.
As time goes on, I want to share some of my favorite photos, and hopefully improve along the way, so why not start with one of my favorites?
I absolutely love this picture, not because of any technical aspects, but because of the memory of the day this picture was taken.
I took this picture back before I had even a rudimentary understanding of photography. I didn't even know what RAW was. This was taken on our old waterproof, point-and-shoot Nikon, which has sadly since stopped working.
Anyway, I look at it now and see that the trees are overexposed on the left and underexposed on the right. I can tell that the colors were adjusted in Lightroom on a monitor which was not properly calibrated.
I like the composition, the way the river and trees come together, yet seem to go on forever. I like the stillness of the water, reflecting the clouds and the sky. Really, though, I think I love the memory of that day.
This was taken in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. We were staying with some friends at their cabin near Lake Vermillion, and decided to take a day trip into the Boundary Waters. I had never been there before.
We paddled up the Little Indian Sioux River, through Upper and Lower Pauness Lakes, and had lunch at Devil's Cascade, before paddling back to the entry point and driving back to the cabin. This picture was taken at one of the portage points.
It was a perfect day for a day trip in, and the BWCA is the most beautiful place I have ever been, though Zion National Park is right up there.
It was an exhausting day, though. I think it was about 12 miles round trip, paddling, and all four of us were in one canoe. But it was a great day, in one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, spending the day with some of our best friends.
This isn't a great photograph, and I know that. Still, it is one of my favorite pictures because of the memory of that day and the beauty of the BWCA, which I hope was at least somewhat present in the picture.
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One last thought:
As I am writing this, I find that I cannot quite call this a photograph. I have been following Brooks Jensen from Lens Work Publishing, and on his podcast, he often talks about "making" a photograph, like making a piece of art. I have taken that to show a distinction between "making" a photograph, and "taking" a picture. I wish that I had made this photograph, but deep down I know that I just took a picture and got lucky that I find it visually appealing.
I guess I'll just have to go back and make a proper photograph, rather than just taking a nice picture...