Learning to see what's out there

          A successful photographer has an eye that sees the world as if a photograph has already been printed. My son has that eye. He is a creative, artistic photographer.

A solo walker on a path near Horseshoe Ridge at
Chickamauga National Military Park.

          Even if you are more of a mechanical photographer than an artistic one, you still need to look at the world in front of you and understand what photographic possibilities stand in front of you. The more experiences you have, the better chance you have to project the possible images each situation offers.

          The first image here was captured in the early spring on the grounds of the Chickamauga National Military Park in Georgia. Notice how stark the landscape is, especially with the man walking down the path by himself.



A quiet path in a park in Tallmadge, Ohio.

          Flash forward to September of this year. As nature began to change colors, I thought about the stark image at Chickamauga and added the fall colors. That led to the next image, captured during a walk through one of the parks in Ohio.

          Take a look at the world around you. There are plenty of ideas that will make great images. There are stories waiting for you.

There is a funeral home here in my town named Newcomers. We drive by the place once or twice a week and we remark on it every time. Okay, it’s an eye-catching name for a funeral home and you can fill in your own wisecracks.

One way in, no way out.

          But that isn’t why the picture had to be taken. Take another look at the sign for the driveway and then think about it.

          This is a classic image of an idea that sells itself. This stuff is out there, you just have to keep your eyes open and understand what you are looking at. Sherlock Holmes, the fictional detective, once said, “You see but you do not perceive.”

          Push yourself to perceive.

 

          Thanks for reading.