We were in an outdoor outlet mall in Napa. We were in an antique store, all filled with browns and golds and muted tones when through the window I noticed this pair of bright yellow vests floating against a wall. They were bathed in bright, bright sunlight and the color was so glaring compared to all the rest I just had to go take some photos.
I told them I would donate some money to their cause if they would let me take some photographs of them and they agreed. Just moments before I had passed the two cypress trees and loved their ‘symmetry / asymmetry’ against such a stark background. Once I got home and went through the photos I kept seeing these two girls with the two trees and so worked the images up to have that happen.
Another in my postcard series, #7 from our Colorado road trip in the summer of 2007. There was a great trail close to the home where we were staying and I took a hike on my own just for the purposes of photography. When I do something like that I often am not looking for a single shot (though I find those of course) but I am looking for pieces, for moments, etc. that will be part of the raw material for a collage. So in that case I am not worrying always about composition or lighting or a complete image. I am finding the essence of a place or a person and recording it.
In this case the trees had the knots in the shapes of eyes everywhere I turned, flowers were abundant and the creeks had the most amazing light playing on them. The final connection came for me when I saw this woman and her wonderful dog running on the path. The dog was protective and turned to scrutinize me, making sure I wasn’t a threat. The eyes of the dog were compelling and I loved the juxtaposition between the tree eyes and the real eyes.
