Sunset, Stanley Lake

Sunset, Stanley Lake

Sunset, Stanley Lake is one of the first really colorful images that I have had success with. I grew up as a black and white photographer. I loved shooting large format black and white film. I developed my own film, printed my own images. The darkroom was my home. I studied Ansel Adams Zone System and felt like I had really mastered the art of black and white. The science behind it was a part of me. I no longer had to think about it, but could let the art in me come out because I knew exactly how to achieve the desired result.

Then came digital. I saw the advantages of digital first in my commercial work, so I jumped in, thinking all along that I would hang on to film for all of my personal work. It didn’t happen that way. I learned to control digital photography, not let it control me. I learned what it could and could not do. I began exploring color. That same love affair that I had initially with film was beginning to take shape with me and digital photography. In almost all of my early color work I used a very simple color palette, many times still monochromatic. That is the way I see. Then on one trip to Stanley Lake with my family, I found this image.

I had been out fishing and arrived back at camp just in time for sunset. I grabbed my camera and tripod and started walking. No more than thirty yards from our campsite I found this marshy area near the outlet. The sun had set just 10 minutes earlier and there was a haze in the sky that I later learned was caused by a wildfire that had started earlier in the day. I quickly set up and carefully composed and metered the scene. The light beautifully illuminated the haze and reflected in the water in the foreground, creating very strong color contrast in the image. The green grasses and bushes were illuminate by a wide open sky and seemed to glow. I was captivated not so much by the composition, but by the color. This was very different for me. It was an incredible feeling. I saw and felt something that I had rarely seen or felt before, and I was hooked.

I still do quite a bit of black and white work, but have now added color to my working palette. Photography for me is a journey, one that I very much enjoy. I will continue to evolve, change and grow, and as I do I will continue to share what I learn with any who wish to ride along with me!