Look Closer

"Marshland Treasures"

I used to just point my camera and snap. Point and snap. Point and snap.  But I was twelve then, and in a hurry.

Now when I venture out with my Canon, I take my time, searching high and low, side to side, pausing every few steps to really look at my surroundings. I'm not as interested in landscape photography as I used to be, although I have taken plenty of images that I'm proud of. 

What I love most is zeroing in on something unusual that is usually overlooked by people who are in search of the traditional idea of beauty, like the decomposing leaf floating in a marsh (above), or this half sanddollar I came across on a beach recently:

"SandDollar Recession"

"Persistence"

This next image was taken at a wildlife preserve wetland area. I thought it looked almost like  liquid silver, from the reflection of sky and trees in water.

I've been known to gather a "bouquet" of droopy, dried flowers and leaves, plop them in a vase or bottle, and photograph them. I think the old, wilted debris has character, don't you?

"Dried Flowers in Cobalt Bottle"

Looking closer has turned photography into a treasure hunt.  For me, it's not about capturing a pristine flower that blossomed twenty minutes ago, but digging for details and respecting the beauty of less-than-perfect members of nature. 

It makes my outings a lot more fun and less predictable.