Now That's a Stretch

 

This picture was supposed to be stylish when I took it, but now it's nostalgia in several ways. First, in a recent flood my only print of this picture was lost. You are looking at an edited scan from the negative. Second, it was taken more than two decades ago. Third, at the time I took the photo I lived about a half mile from the scene. And finally, this bakery, which opened in 1931, recently employed a family member.

So what was supposed to be stylish? The two red streaks across the photo. They were created by opening the shutter using a shutter release on the bulb setting while a car crossed the entire field of the lens. Just a fun technique I was trying out.

A Sense of Place

 

I took this picture because this bridge is considered a landmark of the town in which it stands. In fact, it is depicted on some of the city documents. The bridge is part of a park at one end of the city, and nearby is a dam with historical signficance, while in another part of the park is a small railroad museum. I meant for the picture to make the bridge look as inviting to the viewer as it did to me, snowy surface not withstanding. Many times I crossed that bridge to check out a city fair, the trails on the other side of the water, or the catch of several people fishing in the river.  Now that I look at the composition I realize that the horizon is at about the halfway point in the frame, but I believe that this is remedied by the dynamic angle of the bridge itself. A look at the sky and water tell me that I likely used a polarizing filter, but did not record the fact.