Photography can be many things to many people. It is used for numerous purposes – from capturing the special moments of weddings to recording of a crime scene. (Hmmm, weddings and crime scenes. What an odd pairing!) I love photography for the artistic license it affords. I draw and paint as well. Mediums vary from charcoal, to pen and ink, to water color, pencil, oil paint, acrylic paint and pastels. I have put to paper the images I have captured with the camera and I think they are some of my most appreciated works. To create an artwork from a photograph requires a critical eye. And the intense study of a photograph draws one into the photo. That’s what happened to me today with the featured photo for this post.
I love photography of landscapes
As I’ve said in past, photography captures moments in time. But it also preserves memories, kindles emotions, ignites energy and brings calm. My photography is primarily focused on the outdoors. Nature and its inhabitants. Today’s photo does many things for me. It was taken ten years ago. Bottomlands near a cabin in the woods that I owned. The cabin was my sanctuary, the surrounding woods – my refuge. I connect at a near primal level to the outdoors when viewing this photograph. Thinking of my ancestors. I think of those people well before my ancestors. The first explorers in this untamed wilderness of West Central Minnesota. What an experience that must have been.
Living off the land
People speak of getting off the grid. Living off the land. Unfortunately, many of those people want to bring a lot of creature comforts with them. What would it be like to truly live off the land? Build a shelter with rudimentary tools, eat what one is able to harvest, find drinking water, make fire, survival. That is what I think of when I look at this image.
I want to walk into the image and explore the depths of the woods beyond. What a thrill! But then I think to myself, “I was there!” I took the photo. This image that stirs me today was captured by me ten years ago! I want to return. How long could I survive with just a hatchet belted to my hip? Days? Weeks? Mere moments? (I’d probably hurt myself with the hatchet and wind up in ER.) Food for thought. Some say we are not as tough as we once were.
I love photography for what it does to me
See what just happened? And it was all because of an image I viewed. And that is why I want to share my images. To stir the imaginations of others. To create a sense of excitement, enchantment, enrichment, in the lives of people who may not have the opportunity to explore this rural landscape I call home. Maybe some have lived here and moved away. Perhaps most have never been here. Well here’s your opportunity to see the land I love – through my lens – to bring focus to what may be most important for all of us – getting back to Nature. That is why I love photography. It can be experienced first hand and it can be shared.
For me, there is nowhere I’d rather be than right here. Living with the open spaces, the warm summers and chilling winters. Each season opens a door to new experiences – just like life.
The cabin
Here is another photo that really stirs my soul. It is a photo of my cabin. As can be seen, it is pretty spartan. That was both an aesthetic move as well as practical. I loved the bare simplicity. The small cabin became spacious with so little clutter. From a practical standpoint, there was less to entice a burglar to break in. Nothing to take. Yes, a fine cabin it was. I would go out to the cabin, spend my evenings there, sleep there, and return to work the following morning.
I remember all the night sounds. Most I could recognize, some I could not. One night I was reading a book by George Liljestrand, Land of the Wolf, if I recall correctly. It was late fall and I was very cozy in my cabin with the wood stove burning and my Coleman lantern filling the room with the most perfect of lighting. The book was a collection of tales experienced by George as he made regular trips into the wild. One tale involved sights and sounds in the deep woods that he could not identify. I let my imagination run wild as I lived my life through the pages of that chapter and his speculations. Reading. I love reading for the same reasons I love photography. Capturing moments.
What’s out there?
Suddenly, I stopped reading. Nothing in particular stopped me but my thoughts. I didn’t hear anything. I didn’t see anything. But I sensed something. I stepped out onto the porch with a flashlight and shown it into the inky darkness entombing my shelter. Out there, and not fifteen yards away, was a very large pair of eyes glowing white. I hurriedly stepped back inside, turned the lantern off and went up into the loft where I slept. Enough reading for that night! Anyway, it was probably just a deer. Go to sleep. (Bigfoot?) GO TO SLEEP!
Closing
Hey! Have you checked out my website lately. I’m up to nearly 400 images! I just added some new images in the Draft Horse Team Gallery and the Scenic Gallery. Be certain to check them out. And check out the great deal I’m offering right now – 20% off all regular priced merchandise. Be certain to contact me with any questions. I can speak to the quality of the photo lab I use as well as the satisfaction guarantee offered. Now is the time to take into your home an image of West Central Minnesota! Peace.
