Photographers go to great lengths and expense to keep their cameras still so that a sharp image will be rendered. It is perhaps why I find it so liberating to move mine while shooting. Part of my Swiping the World, One Photograph at a Time Project.
Title: Reaction to our ever changing times
Like a bee being drawn to honey, it was the vibrant colors that drew me to this image. Yet when making the photograph it was only when I removed the color that it began to sing to me. I allowed myself to explore the many possibilities when creating this image and that made all the difference.
Several years ago I made one of my favorite pictures, abandoned buildings covered with graffiti and rust, in San Antonio. On a recent trip, I was excited to return to the location to capture the shot that got away. Instead of finding run down buildings, a new restaurant occupied the spot. Besides enjoying the food, what to do. I threw away my preconceptions and allowed myself to see what was before me, rather then what had been.
I love to paint the colors and textures I find in our amazing world with my camera. Yet when I was making this picture, the colors were a distraction. I kept reducing the saturation until it was black and white. Somehow in the process, capturing my mood about the ever-changing news as it zooms past me.
Several years ago I photographed the Grand Canyon from various vista points, capturing the views as they stretched before and below me. Towards the end of the trip I began to lookup as well. At Desert View Watchtower framed by passing clouds and at the murals painted on the ceilings within. As I continued to wander, light from above caught my attention. Looking up I saw a glass ceiling illuminating stonewalls aged by time and the elements much like the Grand Canyon walls below me.
Look up, look down, look all around, the images surround you.