The other morning I was cycling a route that I must have cycled and walked more than a couple of hundred times since I moved to my present house. In so doing I passed a collection of old, quite large, agricultural sheds at the edge of a smallholding. These rickety buildings, now characterised by an almost complete absence of horizontals and verticals, have been the source of a previous blog photograph and several other shots that I deemed not good enough for publication. On this occasion, as I rode by, I noticed another potential photograph out of the corner of my eye and slammed the brakes on.
What I'd seen, perhaps accentuated by the bright but overcast light, was the juxtaposition of a couple of quite nice pieces of grain in the wooden planks of the black painted wall. A thin veneer of green lichen added a touch of colour to the otherwise black and grey wood. As I dismounted and looked more closely at them they reminded me of the black and white patterns on the hind quarters of a zebra. Taking out my pocket camera from the bike's bar-bag I selected a portrait-format composition, took my shot and pedalled on my way. As I did I reflected on a photographic truism that I've come to appreciate over the years. No matter how many times you walk (or cycle) a specific route, no matter how mundane it comes to seem, and no matter how many shots you take there down the years, there are ALWAYS more photographs that will either present themselves to you, or which you can search out. The variations in light, time of day, season, weather, and in the fluctuating capabilities of your brain and eye ensure that it is so.
photograph and text © Tony Boughen
Camera: Lumix LX3
Mode: Aperture Priority
Focal Length: 5.1mm (24mm/35mm equiv.)
F No: f2.8
Shutter Speed: 1/100
ISO: 80
Exposure Compensation: -0.33 EV
Image Stabilisation: On
