What a lovely moment! “One sunny, listless afternoon, my husband turned to look at me. His eye, normally what people call “liquid brown,” met the light and wagon-wheeled with color: splinters of mahogany, tatters of aspen leaf, emerald shards, sandstone flecks, the sullied marble of petrified wood.”
Reading this just puts the salt on the scar that losing my pocket camera to the claws of the sea left on my soul, I gotta get one on the next damn payroll, beautiful read.
wonderful writing, thank you. And I, too, often come back to Light Years, every year for two. The last time while traveling through Bordeaux and on the train down to Arcachon. Nedra, so complicated a character...such an integral piece of Salter's own psyche.
it’s always a treat to read what other photographers have to say about their art. loved this piece, but mainly your closing paragraph: it’s eye-opening
The Midwest has its treasures and there is no flashiness to welcome attention, no look at me quality. Having left an industrial part of Indiana for the sunny coast of California, I feel so happy to read this. My foundational years were steeped in looking for the beauty, because, it just had to be there. So much to say, it also reminds me of how Dvorak created a couple of his regarded works during his time in Iowa. The place spoke to him and he heard it.
Read Light Years earlier this year and A Sport and a Pastime last year and absolutely fell in love with the quality of Salter's prose which somehow you capture so beautifully in your "event of light" photographs.
I did not mean to post that just yet. What I’m reflecting on is photography project I’m working on called Subway Legs (Subwaylegsphotography on Instagram). There is nothing special (to me) about the light in a NYC Subway car. I’m not intending to just document things - I’m trying to find creative ways to show what legs (often alone) can convey about a person but I’m trying to do this in an “artistic” way as well. I’m now wondering if, without the play of light, I’m achieving this.
Just one last thing…I think the world has enough photos of things reflected in puddles. Then again, the world has more than enough of a lot of things.
I look forward to reading your next piece and will look for more of writing about photography.
What a lovely moment! “One sunny, listless afternoon, my husband turned to look at me. His eye, normally what people call “liquid brown,” met the light and wagon-wheeled with color: splinters of mahogany, tatters of aspen leaf, emerald shards, sandstone flecks, the sullied marble of petrified wood.”
Thank you for reading!
Beautiful piece - I subscribed as soon as I finished reading.
You’ve given me pause to reflect
Thank you for reading and subscribing! I'm glad it hit the spot
Nice wordsmithing. You convey. And thanks for revealing the secret of Paris.
Loved even the brief Murnane reference. He would understand the Midwest, I feel, very well, even having never left Australia.
Oh he would definitely get it — thank you for reading!
This was FABULOUS. Thank you, what a joyous reading experience.
Reading this just puts the salt on the scar that losing my pocket camera to the claws of the sea left on my soul, I gotta get one on the next damn payroll, beautiful read.
wonderful writing, thank you. And I, too, often come back to Light Years, every year for two. The last time while traveling through Bordeaux and on the train down to Arcachon. Nedra, so complicated a character...such an integral piece of Salter's own psyche.
it’s always a treat to read what other photographers have to say about their art. loved this piece, but mainly your closing paragraph: it’s eye-opening
Thank you so much for reading!
The Midwest has its treasures and there is no flashiness to welcome attention, no look at me quality. Having left an industrial part of Indiana for the sunny coast of California, I feel so happy to read this. My foundational years were steeped in looking for the beauty, because, it just had to be there. So much to say, it also reminds me of how Dvorak created a couple of his regarded works during his time in Iowa. The place spoke to him and he heard it.
Read Light Years earlier this year and A Sport and a Pastime last year and absolutely fell in love with the quality of Salter's prose which somehow you capture so beautifully in your "event of light" photographs.
Happy to hear about Glenway! He's a distant relative of mine. I'll pre-order right away.
Oh that's fabulous! Thank you for ordering — I hope the intro essay does justice to the book!
I did not mean to post that just yet. What I’m reflecting on is photography project I’m working on called Subway Legs (Subwaylegsphotography on Instagram). There is nothing special (to me) about the light in a NYC Subway car. I’m not intending to just document things - I’m trying to find creative ways to show what legs (often alone) can convey about a person but I’m trying to do this in an “artistic” way as well. I’m now wondering if, without the play of light, I’m achieving this.
Just one last thing…I think the world has enough photos of things reflected in puddles. Then again, the world has more than enough of a lot of things.
I look forward to reading your next piece and will look for more of writing about photography.
Thank you…
Glad to have you back.
Thank you!