Size: 7.5” x 7.5” on 8.5” x 11”

Signed & stamped in verso

Finding order in seeming disorder, that is the hallmark of landscape photography. The landscape cannot be styled and positioned the way a still life can and so it’s a search as much as anything else. Sometimes the subject is obvious and doesn’t require much of a search. Other times however, like here, it takes steadfast observation to find the place which yields the least distractions and isolates the subject I intend to photograph.

I lightened the foliage using a yellow #8 filter which soaks up yellow and lighter green values registering a light gray on my film. This accentuated the trunk, which was my base subject. There was no way to not have the branches break the trunk and the more I stood and looked the more I like that break in continuity. By putting all these pieces together I found a way to isolate my subject and limit distraction from it.

Every image has its puzzle to unlock. It’s a key feature in why I love this art form. I get to use my tools and experience to figure out how to capture what I want to capture.

Location: Jedediah Smith, CA

Technical Info: Hasselblad, Kodak T-Max 100 BW Film, Zeiss 80mm, yellow#8, N developed in Kodak X-tol 1:1