Saturday, May 31, 2008

Foggy Vision

I was born and raised here in Colorado, choosing to be in the Rocky Mountains or in Denver. Until recently, I never spent much time in the eastern plains and farmland. Once again, my camera and my curiosity got the best of me when I followed some thunderstorms out in that direction one evening in 2006. Since that time, it has become one of my favorite shooting locations. With sparse, open landscapes, farm relics, old trees, turbulent weather patterns, and abundance of wildlife, it now excites me to drive out on these dirt roads. After just a handful of songs from the stereo of my truck, I am out in the wide open spaces, away from the congestion of the city. Reminding myself how fast it is to get out of the metropolis provides me comfort. I suppose I might move to a less-populated area, but for the sake of my businesses, Denver is a good place to be, for a while anyway.

Earlier this week I took the drive out to eastern Colorado at dawn, on a wonderfully foggy Stephen King-esque (books, not movies) morning, with fog so thick that it seemed to be as tangible as the fields of earth it covered.



Driving was a very near-sighted journey, but I was really enjoying the eeriness of it all.

Every once in a while an object off the side of the road would break up the endless grey that blanketed my view. This old windmill caught my attention.




Gradually the fog lifted enough to actually see something, as the sun rose over the horizon. The trees, as usual, are my favorite shots from the morning.





These train photos will become part of a series I've been working on over the past two years. The body of work will be posted on my site sometime in the next few months.

All of this excitement, and I was back home by 8:30 in time to start my work day.

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Surreal images and wonderful writing. I love this post. Can't wait to explore the rest of your blog.

Anonymous said...

Farmthroughtrain is fantastic! What can I say....worthy of your fine art portfolio.

Barry said...

Yeah, that last one is my fav. Great work, you definitely have a good eye for photos!

Anonymous said...

I'm a railroad buff so I love your photos, But the shot of the crossing with the view between the cars is especially impressive.

Scott said...

Thank you Rob, Barry, and Ned! Anonymous too, wink wink. It's so nice to see new people here. Make yourselves comfortable, it's going to be a weird ride.

Jennifer said...

The train series is amazing...I'd be interested to see the ones that didn't make the blog cut "the B-sides" if you will.

I love the way you write the story of the photography...I haven't explored too much in your space, but it's great to feel, as the audience, that we were along with you. It really comes out in the writing that accompanies the fog lifting.

Scott said...

Thank you Libelula!
I've always felt that adding writing to a series of photos, although it takes away some of the mystery, is a great way to bring my viewer into my reality. The things I see on my photo adventures are often so inspiring that I drive home with a good dose of adrenaline going, inspired by what I have seen. This is the perfect platform to share that excitement. Thanks so much for your comments!

Anonymous said...

Oh Scott, I think these are the best fog photos I've ever seen. They are convey so well the feeling I used to get driving or hiking in the fog back in Maine where I grew up. They give the sense of muting the chaotic world and bringing everything to a stand still. I love that. They are excellent and I love them all. I think the tree ones are my favorites and the first one that is simply road and fog, nothing more. You have a creative mind which is reflected in they type of photos you take. You see something "more" and capture it so well. Wonderful job! Thanks Scott! PS Really enjoy the writing and the lead up to getting out of the truck. Very nicely done.

Scott said...

Thanks Robin! I would have replied earlier, but am in the process of building a new computer. Thanks ALWAYS for your comments!

Reflections Magazine editor said...

Scott, words cannot express how fascinated I am by your photography style. It's hard for me not to enjoy your photos since I too am drawn to those unusual places you capture early in the day or early in the evening. Sure, I love color, the sun and things that are alive, but I so enjoy the semi-darkness and the darkness, the obscure, the mystical and the uncommon. You see something more where others perhaps see little. Of all the posts I have read, this one by far is one of your best.

Scott said...

Thank you Marlene! It is the mystical and obscure that seems to capture my interest most. My whole creative process seems very accidental sometimes - I'll have an idea or something that I want to shoot, and go shoot it, and it takes on a completely different shape than what I had originally envisioned, and usually much more amazing and remarkable than anything my imagination could have conjured up.

Lately my creative energy seems to be at full force and feeding off itself, and I'm having a lot of fun going along for the ride. Thanks for your kind words! - it gives me great joy to have others interact with my art.

I can't wait to get the prints of these done! (Prints are so much more exciting to me than pixel representations)

Handledancer said...

Awesome photographs, the first one is my favorite. How did you manage to drive and take photos at the same time? ;)

Geminai said...

Hey! Is that Union Pacific shot taken just by panning or were you using something like a lens baby or something on a still train?

Your talent is so enviable, Scott .. your passion, too! I hope we get to meet up with you again soon. :)

Scott said...

Kippy! I'm so happy you're here! I just left a comment to your comment on the other post.

The Union Pacific shot was handheld (as are all the shots on this post), with me tracking the train movement. It was going really fast, so I feel lucky it worked as intended.

Your compliments made my day - you've been my 'mentor', so give yourself a pat on the back... :)

Digital Polaroids said...

Excellent visions Scott!

Anonymous said...

Hi dear scott, How are you? Loved your very thoughtful comment on my blog post - MYSTERY PHOTOS. I was just looking through your galleries again and those night shots are just ASTOUNDING! That second one titled: TIMELESS is unbelievable. I wondered if you were using your vehical lights for lighting. Whatever you use it is mind blowing the effect it has on the photo. Just gorgeous. I'll probably do my next Chaco post today, been running behind with summer. Trying to hike 3 times a week in a schedule that allows almost no time. I wake before sunrise. I've also started hiking barefoot and it is amazing what it does for my whole body and sense of clarity. Better than coffee or tea. My feet are now to the point I can run barefoot. It makes me feel so alive to feel the earth in that way. Looking forward to your next batch of photos. You are a gifted photographer.

Scott said...

Thank you Digital Polaroids!

Thank you Robin! Not car headlights, but rather more of a painting technique with a modified spotlight over long exposures. "Timeless" was a 2.5 minute exposure.

I did not know you were in New Mexico! It is on my list of places to make it to this year, and really not too bad of a drive from here. I went to college in Durango (Fort Lewis) only briefly (due to the fact that I attended more mountain bike trails than classes) back in my 20's, but never ventured over into NM too much, except to go cliff-diving at Navajo reservoir.

I love it that you hike barefoot! While in the mountains last week, I went barefoot for a couple hours, and realized how soft my feet had become, and decided to put the shoes back on when the burn started. I used to be barefoot from April - September every year.

Thanks so much for your comments, Robin! I am hoping to get some time this week to do a photo post or two. The photos and stories are stacking up on my computer - I still have many Utah photos to go through from back in April!

SkyNymph said...

Namaste' Scott! this was a great read, I felt I was there and yoyur so right so steven kingesque! (the books not the movies considering I've been a fan forever! good comparison) those trees look like they are in some dance of survival together. Oh the stories they can tell ;0)

I used to follow the rail tracks where I grew up, I would either hike them or bike alongside them for hours, so these pics bring back a lot of nostalgic memories! They were but one way to teach me to enjoy the journey not the destination at the end.

Metta

Excellent blog!

HEALTH CARE said...

I love these so beautiful picture.