I have recently been giving a lot of thought to my life and my photography.
We were asked in photography school to describe where we felt we were at in our photography. My statement was...
I feel like I'm treading water in the middle of the ocean. I can't see any land around me. I'm tired, frustrated and becoming impatient. If only I knew what direction was the right direction, I would have something to work for.
This statement is just as true for my everyday life as it is with my photography. It's a pretty big world to feel lost in!
Recently I have been spending a lot of time going through my photos from the past couple of years. I've been to some amazing places, seen some awesome sites and met some incredible people. But looking through my photos, I feel there is something missing. Your life finds its way into your art, whether you like it or not. There is a subconscious reason why you shoot what you shoot or why you see the way you see. And as I look through my shots I notice a common theme. There is a sense of solitude and loneliness that can be found in most of my photos.
I have been reading "127 Hours" by Aron Ralston and there was one paragraph that really hit home for me and can probably describe it better than I ever could. It says....
"These places, and the experiences I had in them, were mine and mine alone. The senses of solitude, ownership, and place that I felt on these trips were creating a private world that, by definition, was impossible to share. Nevertheless, I tried. I took photographs and posted online albums of my trips; however the images failed. They were unsuccessful because they were removed in time and location from what I went through to be IN that place AT that time. To a person sitting in an office or a living room, a picture of a winter mountain sunset is just a picture. To me, it was the experience of taking the picture."
Below I have posted some of my own photos that pertain to what is written above.
