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by RR Jr on April 30, 2008
We’ve had an unusually warm and dry month of April, but the rains finally did arrive, and I was eager to visit my favorite waterfall locations. One of these is Stony Kill Falls in Minnewaska State Park, which actually suffered a 3000 acre wildfire recently due to the warm and dry conditions. The falls and creek were really strong, so much so that I had a difficult time keeping my camera lens dry long enough to compose an image. Good thing I brought the best piece of gear in these conditions – a piece of chamois cloth from my local auto parts dealer which is the most absorbent material I know of and works great on lenses,
My goal was simply to convey the strength of the moving water and its deafening sound as it falls 87 feet and continues along the Stony Kill Creek. Let’s just say I didn’t manage to stay dry for long, but the experience was well worth it.
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2008 > April
by RR Jr on April 27, 2008
There is a note-worthy article on the New York Times this morning about Ansel Adams and his gallery at Yosemite National Park. It got me thinking about people’s perceptions about photography and the false belief that an expressive image is “taken” rather than created. It stated how many photographers try and re-create the conditions under which Ansel made so many of his famous images only to find they don’t turn out quite the same. A photographer even worked with an astronomer who had tracked the exact minute the moon would ascend next to Half Dome in the same way it did in front of Adams in 1960 when he photographed his famous “Moonrise and Halfdome”. Similarly, it also notes how many are disappointed when they arrive at Yosemite only to discover it doesn’t look quite the same as in Ansel’s iconic images.
What many seem to forget is that successful landscape photography is about an interpretation, an expression of one’s vision and emotions at the time the shutter is pressed. Ansel was not interested in documenting Yosemite, but rather creating images that expressed his unique vision. People assume that if a photograph is digitally manipulated, or as I prefer “corrected”, it is no longer a valid representation of a landscape. Yet we each have our own way of seeing, and the choices made when photographing, whether time of day, weather conditions, and what we include or remove from a composition all manipulate what is conveyed in an image.
With so many images being created today from all corners of the earth, it is only the strongest and most original interpretations that will stand out from the crowd. And there is plenty of room still left for unique and new ways of seeing. This is what motivates me each time I get up at 4:00 AM to go out for a sunrise shoot. The anticipation of what each day will bring, both in terms of visual beauty and new experiences, should never be taken for granted. As long as I can appreciate each moment for what is is, an original and interpretive image will always be possible if I really open my eyes and mind.
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2008 > April
by RR Jr on April 18, 2008
“The camera for an artist is just another tool. It is no more mechanical than a violin if you analyze it. Beyond the rudiments, it is up to the artist to create art, not the camera.” -Brett Weston
