This morning, I headed out the back door to grab some of the small water bottles stashed in the garage, where we keep those backup supplies. It’s only a few feet to the door of the attached garage, but in that few feet I was hooked. Ummm. Nice shadow. The next thing I knew, I was out there in my pj’s—cold, but shooting like mad and having more fun than a grownup should. This got me to thinking. How on earth do we all thank Paul Butzi enough for issuing his challenge? I, for one, expect to be feeding off this experience the rest of the year—at least. I certainly hope he is enjoying the trip.
Like Paul Lester, I am enjoying the shooting so much, I will have to give myself a nudge to dig deeper into the layout and editing. I suppose I need to set a deadline. Phhhhht. Deadlines. Yesterday was a good example of how intoxicating this experience is. If had had any sense at all, I would have made it a short day after the three-hours of sleep the night before. Nope. I thought I saw the potential for the sunset shot I had hoped for, so we headed over to the Haul Road with an eye on the sky. (The Husband is often willing to set the standard for patience and act as my faithful Sherpa—fact is, he enjoys that type of outing.) The sky looked promising, but while we waited for the sun to slide down, I wanted to shoot some of the plants. From out of nowhere, we had a reprise of the morning's wind gusts—making close-ups of plants in waning light impractical.
As recently as a few weeks ago, I would have caved in to frustration and resigned myself to waiting for the sunset show to begin. That was then. This is now. I decided if Nature didn’t want to work with me, I would work with Nature. It was a good opportunity to play for a few minutes with impressionistic images. Before I had time to fully exploit that possibility, the wind died as suddenly as it had begun. In the meantime, the colors were beginning to show and the flocks of crows were arriving, headed for their roosting place for the night.
The whole evening was free, legal, non-fattening, and no animals or humans were harmed in the making of any images. We had a splendid evening—walked a bit, enjoyed the quiet, the fresh air, ogled all the horseback riders passing by and silently evaluated the parade of horseflesh. I have several sunset shots, more than a few with crows in flight. I got one impressionistic keeper and feel still more comfortable with another tool in my kit. Who needs sleep when you are having that much fun?
Like Paul Lester, I am enjoying the shooting so much, I will have to give myself a nudge to dig deeper into the layout and editing. I suppose I need to set a deadline. Phhhhht. Deadlines. Yesterday was a good example of how intoxicating this experience is. If had had any sense at all, I would have made it a short day after the three-hours of sleep the night before. Nope. I thought I saw the potential for the sunset shot I had hoped for, so we headed over to the Haul Road with an eye on the sky. (The Husband is often willing to set the standard for patience and act as my faithful Sherpa—fact is, he enjoys that type of outing.) The sky looked promising, but while we waited for the sun to slide down, I wanted to shoot some of the plants. From out of nowhere, we had a reprise of the morning's wind gusts—making close-ups of plants in waning light impractical.
As recently as a few weeks ago, I would have caved in to frustration and resigned myself to waiting for the sunset show to begin. That was then. This is now. I decided if Nature didn’t want to work with me, I would work with Nature. It was a good opportunity to play for a few minutes with impressionistic images. Before I had time to fully exploit that possibility, the wind died as suddenly as it had begun. In the meantime, the colors were beginning to show and the flocks of crows were arriving, headed for their roosting place for the night.
The whole evening was free, legal, non-fattening, and no animals or humans were harmed in the making of any images. We had a splendid evening—walked a bit, enjoyed the quiet, the fresh air, ogled all the horseback riders passing by and silently evaluated the parade of horseflesh. I have several sunset shots, more than a few with crows in flight. I got one impressionistic keeper and feel still more comfortable with another tool in my kit. Who needs sleep when you are having that much fun?
Hah! I had to laugh at the title! :-) I'm glad that I'm not alone in my fun-having ways!
ReplyDeleteAs soon as I read about the windy day and plants, I thought: "Ah, if she would just slow down the shutter speed and let the plants dance in front of her lens, she'd have a great time!". Then, I read on, and see that you did some impressionistic type photography and a big-ole grin just spread across my face. :-)
This outing that you described, including the use of a willing Sherpa, of which I have none, sounds perfect!
I'm glad that you are having so much fun. I'm really enjoying reading about your experiences.
Your work certainly has inspired me in more than one area (for example, I am carrying around in my mind the image of that stunning curved brown leaf), but you have been one of the primary inspirations when it comes to the impressionistic pieces. I have long been drawn to that type of expression, but needed more confidence.
ReplyDeleteI am so blessed to have a willing Sherpa. On reading the exploits of all of you big guys, I often feel pathetically puny. Then I think, "Yeah, but they don't have a Sherpa. Hah!"
I suspect knowing that you are having so much fun is thanks enough.
ReplyDeleteI hope so. The project seems to have had an impact on so many people.
ReplyDelete