Some pictures are hard to take

Some photographs are hard to take.  This one disturbs me because of the despair and sadness it reveals of the person.  When we were in Mexico I would often go to the the central plaza in the little town we were staying and have an afternoon cup of coffee mocha.  It was always quiet at that time of day because the local people were usually having a siesta.  On this particular day I saw this lady sitting nearby and noticed she never looked up or moved the entire time I was there.  She amplified the feeling I was having sitting in this quiet space.  I turned my camera toward her and made this one image, finished my cup of coffee, and moved on.  I didn't know her situation or life circumstances, but it reminds me of how blessed my life has been and how I need  to remind myself of that.

Land Use

Traveling around I am always intrigued with how we use the land.  This image was taken in upstate N.Y.  in the Finger Lakes region.  Most of these farms are owned and operated by Amish or Mennonite families.  Certainly the power lines are needed in this rural community to supply power to the region but quite a few of these farms operate without electric, especially if they are Amish owned.  I made my living constructing and engineering power lines in this region, and respected the relationship between the need to supply power to a community and honoring a lifestyle that rejected the use for electric.  Many of these lines were constructed back when bringing electric to the rural area was welcomed and the placement of the poles and wires were not much of a concern.  Today these lines and usually located along the roadways and not placed in the farm fields as these lines are. 

River boat

During our time at Cumberland Falls State Park in Tennessee we spent time hiking along the river and the falls area.  While photographing along the river I came across the little wooden boat tied up on the shoreline.  It was a shallow boat that was homemade.  As I walked along I discovered a few more tied in among the rocks.  To me they didn't look sturdy enough for someone to venture out on the river in.  A day later while visiting this same area I saw a couple of these boats out on the water with a couple of fisherman in each boat.  They were fishing at the base of the main Cumberland Falls area and strangely the current kept them in place as they fished.  As I travel around I enjoy seeing how local people have developed their own customs of doing things in their particular region of the country.

http://parks.ky.gov/parks/resortparks/Cumberland-falls/default.aspx

Old Mining Truck

While traveling through Kentucky we came into the small mining town of Sterns.  The area was a boom town for the coal mining and the lumber industry in the early to mid 1900's.  We camped for a few days in the Big South Fork National Recreation Area.  As we road around exploring the area we found a privately owned coal mining camp that offered tours into an authentic coal mining camp, with a walk down into an old mine.  It was a fantastic place to visit and learn about the early coal mining industry in Kentucky.  The camp had all of the equipment left on site from the day it had shut down.  I spent a couple of hours just walking around and looking at all of the different equipment used in the mining industry.  While walking down the railroad tracks I saw this old mining truck sitting in the woods.  Immediately it caught my eye and I was fascinated by its rugged stature and the sense of abandonment it gave to me.  I am certain that it provided a lot of hard work in its day at the camp and now sits quiet as part of the past.  When I come across old things that have been abandon it always stirs a sad feeling thinking of the people and their lives of hard work that have all vanished from these places.

http://www.barthellcoalcamp.com/ 

Banjo Picker

When we were in Tennessee a few weeks ago, we came across this guy playing his banjo on a park bench.  I could see he was an interesting subject so we stopped and listened to him play.  We were his only audience at the time and we were able to strike up a conversation with him.  He had a long history of living in the Tennessee Mountains and the town he lives in was named after his family who settled in the area as pioneers.  He gave us a history lesson about the area and told us how he had built this banjo from a tree he had cut down years ago.  He would play awhile, stop and then tell a joke.  He had my wife singing along with him and it gave me the opportunity to capture him while playing and singing a song.  We always treasure the people we meet along the trail in our travels.  They will always stay part of the memories we have of our trips.

Cumberland River, Ky.

We have been camped in the Cumberland Falls State Park in Kentucky for a few days.  It is July and the temperatures and humidity are high but that hasn't stopped us from doing our daily hiking.  We have been trying to make our hikes in the mornings or late afternoons to deal with the sticky weather.  We use the mid day hours to scout out possible locations to photograph in when the light is better.  We visited this area in the during the day and knew this would be a good location to return to.  This image was taken at dusk along the Cumberland River and was a fairly long exposure in the dim light.  I rarely ever set my ISO higher than 100 when photographing and enjoy the slow pace of using a tripod and making long exposures.  The mood of this location was very still and quiet as we walked around the rivers edge exploring the area.  The soft glow of light on the rocks and water reflects the mood of the place that evening.

http://parks.ky.gov/parks/resortparks/Cumberland-falls/default.aspx

Quiet Light

The most interesting time of day for me to photograph is near dusk.  The light is very soft and the details are revealed in the dark shadow areas that normally would be lost in harsh sunlight.  This time of day is usually very still because the wind settles down after sunset and give the opportunity to make the long exposures required in such lighting conditions.  I hiked along this stream just after a heavy rain and sloshed my way down steam until I came to a 80' waterfalls just beyond this big rock in the photo.  It takes a lot of energy to carry the gear and heavy tripod with me on these hikes but the rewards of the experience and making some new images is always worth it.
John Sexton a friend and fellow photographer has produced a book entitled "Quiet Light" that has one of the best collection of photography in low light.


http://www.amazon.com/John-Sexton/e/B000APB7S4