Photography’s best purpose

When you love photography, you spend a lot of time working on improving your work. A new camera, a new lens, new software, more training, new destinations…

But remember your goal when you first picked up a camera? You wanted to capture a memory and keep it forever. With this in mind, you took lots of baby pictures, and lots of vacation pictures.

Even as a professional photographer, devoted full time to becoming better every day with technique and with vision — I come back to basics. I pull out the old family photo, and transport myself back to that happy moment that I never want to forget.

My Dad, nearly 100 years old, is very ill.  He was youthful and active into his 90s, and of course, we hoped he would live forever. This week, I’ve been so busy taking care of him that I haven’t been out shooting new photos. So, I would like to share a happy moment from 2009 that seems like just yesterday. At age 93, he treated us to one last international cruise to my mom’s favorite destination: Greece. My daughter Caitlin, 24 then, was happy to be on board for her first cruise.

Anticipating fun times ahead on our Greek Island cruise as we set sail from Athens, 2009

 

Beyond the Horizon

Last evening I went down to the beach to watch the sunset, and nearly an hour after the sunset the sky gave me a gift.  Two bright blue light beams cut through the rosy western sky and they lingered for about 15 minutes, giving me plenty of time to pause my dinner, steady my camera on the railing and take a half second exposure of this special scene.

Crepuscular rays of light from beyond the horizon

I guessed that the blue rays were caused by clouds beyond the horizon blocking the rosy twilight, and my photography mentor Gary Hart said he thought that was the case. Today, I had another thought about this unusual sight.

 

These are tough days for our family, as my father’s health is in rapid decline and our hearts are heavy, knowing he will leave us any day now.  I just witnessed stunning light beams from beyond the horizon. There could be a message of comfort and hope from a place beyond my sight. I believe so.