Is this Art? (Pics from Glenmoore, PA)

I gotta be honest.  These photography posts haven't been as popular as I might've hoped.

Granted, I probably need to take a class or read a book or something and maybe learn a little more about the craft.  But no.  I read a few articles off the Internet, bought a camera, and leaned into my new hobby with a ridiculous, adolescent enthusiasm.  From writing, I know to at least shoot pictures intentionally; just as you don't want random ideas in your writing, so too you don't shoot pictures without having a specific idea or intent.  But that's kind of a basic concept, and it's really the only one that I have.

Honestly, I'm not sure I even know enough even to be dangerous at this point.

I just happen to enjoy shooting pictures.

This first shot is about loneliness.  It's such a terrible, compelling emotion, and I feel like I understand it a little too well, though the truth is that I've probably been luckier than most in my life.  Still, the months immediately after my divorce were tough, as were the first months I spent in New York after 9/11.  Pics like this remind me of that time, and  for better or worse, I keep shooting them for that reason.

The lonely stump

I like to shoot 16 x 9 because I feel like that aspect ratio gives context to my subject matter.  However, like a lot of the stuff on the blog, this particular shot is a little deceiving.  In fact, there's a tree overhanging this stump, and my first cut kept it in the shot to try to frame the shot itself.  Ultimately, I decided to crop that branch to enhance the sense of isolation, but that was a choice.

A lot of the blog is like that.  You're getting the view that I give you.  I'm cropping stuff and presenting it in a way that suits my needs.  The blog itself is attempting to reflect reality in an intentional way.  That's also true of these pictures.

This next pic is of a trailhead at the park.  I cropped it to try to reduce the noise in the shot and give it a sense of focus.  Without that, it looked like an undistinguished copse of trees.  With the trail as a focal point, I punched up the colors, trying to give it an unreal kind of fairy glow.

Fairy trailhead

I took these shots the day after the Army-Navy Game.  We stayed just outside Philly with Sally's sister Margie and her husband Tom.  They live in a little Pennsylvania town called Glenmoore, and on our way out of town that Sunday, we stopped by this little park.  They wanted to show us around a little, and I broke out my camera.  I'd shot a ton of Army-Navy pics the day before, so this little stop represented a chance to shoot something different.

I then forgot I had these.  I found them this past weekend, and edited them yesterday.  In many cases, though, I couldn't remember what I'd been trying to achieve when I took these pictures.  So these are basically new edits.  Whatever intentionality exists, it's layered on top of the original shots.

This next shot is arguably the best example of that.  I have no idea what I was thinking when I shot this, and though a couple of folks have said they like it, I couldn't exactly tell you what it's trying to say.  There aren't any leading lines, nor is the house enough of a focal point to be the picture's sole purpose.  Ultimately, I liked the colors, and here we are...

Farmhouse on the green

These next two were similar.  In editing, I tried to bring out the contrast and create something interesting.  In one case, I went back to the theme of loneliness.  In the other, I leaned all the way into color.

These boulders could be together, but at least from this angle, they're stuck apart. 
They'd look like a pair with a different crop.

A different shot of the trailhead.  J.J. Abrams could get away with that
lens flair, but from me, it's an unfortunate mistake.

These next two are Sally, our kids, Sally's sister Margie, and her husband Tom in blue.  These are candid shots.  Was hoping to catch them the way that they are.  And again, we're back to the 16 x 9 aspect ratio by way of presenting context.  This is supposed to be real life with context attached.

Tour Guides.  This was my favorite from this set.

This last shot is Tom.  He's a serious guy but low-key.  I wanted to catch that, but I'm not sure I did.  

It's worth noting that Tom wore all blue.  That reflects his personality in the sense that he's not out there trying to show off through high fashion, but his clothes at least match.  Though he's dressed simply, he doesn't look like an asshole.  

However, the blue really popped when I started editing.  It took me awhile to decide how to handle that.

Tom

That's all, folks!  I hope you've enjoyed this little experiment.  Thanks for your time.