Although far from a professional photographer, photography has been a part of me for many years. I can remember using a little Kodak 110 camera when I was just a kid. I used it to take pictures around town of things I found interesting. When I was in high school I became an editor for the yearbook and though I didn’t get to take a lot of the photos since I had staff photographers, I spent many hours working in a black and white darkroom.
In college I again served as yearbook editor and took every opportunity I could to get in the darkroom. In fact, there was a time when I considered going into photography as a career. I had the idea that I would merge photography and graphic arts, maybe do some advertising, but I moved on from that. In some ways I wish I had continued my interest in professional photography.
In today’s digital world, almost anyone can become a photographer since the digital camera does so much of the work. Knowing how to adjust f-stops and shutterspeed has become something to which only the most detailed photographer pays attention. Although it seems that there are photographers cropping up all over since they are no longer tied to a processing lab or darkroom. Editing software has been a welcome addition. Still, even with all those home photo studio startups, it can be argued that not all have the eye for it.
Whether in high school or on vacation in the mountains, I can remember shooting rolls and rolls of film just trying to capture the right image. Sometimes the same object would be shot from different distances or different directions in an effort to find the view which was most interesting or had the most depth.
Spring, summer, and fall get so much attention when it comes to photography. The colors which pop and images of life easily get our attention. It seems almost natural to discount winter. It’s often drab and dull. Trees and grass are dormant, appearing dead. Besides, winter is cold. Who wants to be out taking pictures at 15 degrees?
But winter has its own beauty. The frozen world is full of crystals and snowflakes which have their own identity, shapes, angles, and unique characteristics. Winter pictures can range from interesting to beautiful to haunting.
The lonely feeling which can be absorbed by seeing nature under the capture of ice or snow gives pause for reflection, wonder, and empathy.
