August Desktop Inspiration

Whenever I visit photography forums it is the images from places that are exotic and far away that draw my attention first. Somehow, the photos seem to have more impact - the strange and unfamiliar at times may compensate for what in reality could be a mediocre photograph. Conversely, it is all too easy to be traveling around an area that you are all too familiar with and not realize the beauty of what is right in front of you.

Our trip to Washington State last year was proof positive of that. Yes, we saw plenty of unique and intriguing landscapes. Photographic opportunities seemed to be around each bend and at times it was difficult to get to a planned location due to unexpected and amazing sights along the way. In retrospect though, I can see where someone living in that environment could become jaded.

My wife and I often take day trips just outside our Guelph home. Within ten minutes we can be on country side roads that find their way through gentle hills and vast tracts of farmland. Venturing just a bit further we sometimes find ourselves in Mennonite country - Waterloo county to be more exact. After passing by a number of horse drawn buggies it feels as if  you are traveling back in time when the pace of life was much less rushed.

Driving on these side roads is an adventure and although you may have an idea of which direction you are traveling you can often loose track of where exactly you are. If there are hills in sight I usually head for the higher ground knowing that in all likely hood there will be a good sight line to some intimate scene below.

The photos that we come back with may not be a "dramatic" as ones from our Washington trip - no massive trees in a rainforest, no giant sunset into sea stacks and no mountain valley covered in wildflower blooms.  But the constant remains - good exposure, good composition and an eye for a slightly different angle - and the rewards are the same.