“Within yourself is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself.”
Herman Hess
I’ve come to rely upon the retreats I take within and in nature. They both work for me.
Sunset Shilouette
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Sunset Shilouette -
Lamp Post and Shadows
Lamppost and Wall “Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own hearts.” Albert Einstein
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A Morning Walk
The Potomac River It was warm and muggy. After the short walk the sweat on my body was causing my shirt to stick to my back. When the wind blew the coolness felt good. It was quiet morning, very few people were out and yet it was after 8:00 am. The empty park felt as if it was all mine. In my imagination all the empty benches were calling me to sit and rest. So, I picked one. I wrote a few thoughts and observations in my moleskin, enjoying the peacefulness of the small park. I also took a few shots of what I saw to help document the moment. It was a good morning walk.
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Casting Shadows, Anew
Lamp Post and Shadow While on a walk around my apartment complex I saw this lamp post and it’s shadow differently. I actually had walked past it when I noticed another lamp post and turned around to go back to this one. My earlier image was taken back in March with the shadow was on opposite side of the lamp post. I just had to take a photo.
So, I’m leaning my back up against a garage door, my knees are bent just slightly, camera to my eye and pointing upward. Let me tell ya, I was focused on this lamp post and it’s shadow. While I’m in this silly position, some man drives by in the parking lot, makes a quick glance at me then twists around to see what I’m trying to photograph. It wouldn’t surprise me if he tells his wife about the nut in the parking lot with a camera and wonders if they should look for a different apartment, or maybe a new town. It bet it was comical to see. If your not a photographer then this little scenario is probably meaningless but if your an avid photographer you can relate. I am at a place where I constantly look for images in everyday scenes and sometimes with new eyes.
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Empty Bench
Black and White Version Okay, I’m on my couch in a slouched position reading a new book I just bought called, “Within The Frame” by David deChemin. For whatever reason I remembered this image from a year ago and wondered how it would look in B/W. I looked up the image then did a comparison in Lightroom, which he mentions in the book, between a color version and a B/W version, and is a powerful tool that needs to be used more often. Which one stirs the emotion in people is subjective, so both work. But there is more.
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Waiting Together
Waiting Together Waiting is not something people like to do, especially in these present times, and I’m one of those people. While waiting in line at the bank yesterday, I found myself getting irritated. Even though I had nothing that important on my “to-do-list” I wanted a second bank teller. It was my perception we needed to be moving along faster. Has that ever happened to you?
As a child I remember sitting at a doctors office waiting to see a doctor. It seemed like eternity. Now that I’m a few years older I’ve come to accept sitting and waiting as a time to enjoy the moment, relax and take it all in. I admit to failing, as in my example above, but hopefully getting better at it. When we really think about it, there are no real short cuts in life. When we ask for it quicker we sacrifice something. No way did I want to be short changed by a bank teller. I like this image as it shows a couple waiting for a boat to carry them down the Potomac River to Mount Vernon. I went along with them and it was worth the wait.