Reflections on Photography...

In the last three months since I have been posting photographs I have learned more than I knew that there was to learn about photography.

In the last few weeks I have been focusing on wildflower photography, which has turned out to be much more difficult than I first assumed. I have found that the most difficult part of photographing flowers is the limited depth of field that a macro lens provides. Also, attempting to photograph flowers in different and unique ways has sometimes been complicated, and it has mostly been complicated because of the composition of the flowers themselves. Another thing that I have found to be difficult to do is to bring out the vibrant colors of the flowers.

The Indian (or Texas) Paintbrush has been very abundant this spring, and I have also discovered it to be the easiest to photograph. The geometry and fullness of the flower has allowed me to experiment more with the paintbrush than with any other flower, and with some success. The Texas bluebonnet has proven to be the most difficult to photograph in unique ways. Because of the composition of the petals the Bluebonnet is a flower that tends to be much more visually stimulating from further away than it is up close.

I have discovered that my favorite time of the day to take photographs is in the later morning hours. About ten o’clock in the morning seems to be the right time to take most photographs; the light is usually just the right intensity. There is also something about the time of day that I think translates into the photograph. There is another part of our senses that is active when we look at a photograph in which the time of day can be reasonably assumed.

I am going to continue to post new photographs twice a week, and I will be posting a blog once a week. I have other ideas that are working themselves out inside my head, including showcasing the work of other artist especially local artist. I am also hoping to post video vlogs on my YouTube channel once a week and these vlogs will include commentary and new photographs.

At the moment I am researching a project that I plan to take photographs for this summer; I have called the project “Life and Death in the Brazos Valley.” In the more immediate future I will probably be taking the weekend off from taking photographs. Last weekend I took four rolls of photographs, and I need to focus on organizing my photographs and negatives (I am behind at the moment). Also, I need to spend some time finding more prints for my portfolio. Hopefully next week I will have some news pertaining to that specifically.

For now I will leave you with a thought from Berenice Abbott: “Photography helps people to see.”