Apart from the fact that I enjoy being out in nature, one of the main things that drives me to do what I do is an understanding of the power of photography to have an impact on how people view the world around them. Most people never have the opportunity or at least take the opportunity to see the beauty that is nature. I hope that by photographing it and making it available to a wider audience, more people will value it enough to preserve it. But no two people are the same when it comes to human emotional makeup and the perception of beauty. What one person may view as the mundane may well be transcending beauty to another.
About 5 years ago, I took a walk in the Vanderbilt National Park which I am fortunate to live about 6 miles from. I was actually killing time before I needed to pick my son up from school. It was a damp and dreary day in which most would choose to stay indoors if they could. A freak warm spell in January (50 degrees) had the snow cover steaming with a mist that drifted straight up in the absence of any wind. I recall a few joggers looking straight down as they passed me; oblivious to their surroundings. A passing senior citizen commented to me about how he hated the winter. I, however, was intriged by how other-worldly the park seemed. The fog and limited visibility had a calming effect on me and I started to get a natural high from what I was experienceing. I only had to take a few steps from the beaten path before I felt alone. It was completely quiet and serene. I really haven't been the same since and have taken my camera and searched for that same euphoria many times since.
Below is one of many pictures I took in the park that day; the day no one wanted to experience. The day the joggers looked down at their feet and the senior grumbled how he hated winter. I have shared this image numerous times at art shows all over the Hudson Valley and sold it over and over again. The comments and noteriety I've gotten from this image will last my lifetime and it's magic is still not done bringing joy to others.
After picking my young son up from nursery school I returned to the park and took the image below. From this one image I have won 2 professional photography competitions http://www.westpinedesigns.com/About%20Us.html and a ton of free publicity for my landscape collection and portrait business.
A third image, also taken that day at the park, has been sold over and over again and has been published to a regional magizine.
Hope you experience the POWER TO SEE- you will never be the same!
Feel free to visit my website and give some feedback as I'm new to the blog thing.
"Keep Clickin'" West Pine Designs website
Mike
