A New Adventure

Today I started my new adventure - a 365 day photography project.  I'm using this project to motivate me to get out everyday and take pictures.  I then will post one of the pictures to Google+ for the project group to see.  Hopefully in the process I will learn some more about photography and I'll probably learn quite a bit more about myself.

I have been doing a lot more with my camera, exploring different styles and learning what its capabilities are.  I've been on the fence about this project for a few weeks but decided it was time to quit making excuses about why I should start one and just do it!  I have to admit I was encouraged by the amount of people on Google+ who I am following that are on a similar journey.  Those pictures and the user interaction they receive helped me jump off the fence.

To add another dimension to this project and give me a place to explore a little about photography I created another blog to record my adventure.  It can be found at Picture Day Blog.  Stop by and see how I'm doing (today is the first day so it will be a little sparse!).

A Little History

I would almost call it a landmark but I doubt most people are even aware of what it is.  It is something I have passed probably a dozen times or more each year since I moved to the Mohawk Valley 21 years ago.  You can see it as you drive along Mill St., from Martin St. to East Dominick St.  You might notice it among the southern skyline of Rome, NY as you drive along Route 365.  And lately I have become fascinated with photographing it.

It is the water tower from the old General Cable Corporation facilities next to the NY State Barge Canal just off of Mill St. in Rome, NY.  It is old, weathered and a little worse for wear but I have been having a great time trying to capture unique images of it.  It started a couple of weeks ago when I went down to get photographs of the spillway were the Mohawk River empties into the Barge Canal.  Before I could even get to my destination I was captured by the presence of this water tower.

This is the first picture I took that evening.  I don't think the name and logo even registered with me at the time.  I was enthralled by the tower and my plans for the evening changed immediately.  I was on a new mission.  To see what images I could get and how I could best capture this lonely sentinel.

I grabbed a few more pictures from across the street and then I headed down to the spillway.  I was able to get a few distant pictures using the trees from the park to frame the water tower.  I was trying different things and actually came home with more 'keepers' than I anticipated.

It wasn't until I was able to upload the pictures to my PC and start processing them that I noticed the name on the tower, General Cable.  A quick internet search provided me with a little more information and a few more days of digging produced some really interesting facts.

• General Cable Corporation was incorporated in 1927 in New Jersey.  It brought together facilities from various companies started in the late 1800's; Phillips Wire and Safety Cable Company, Rome Wire Company and Standard Underground Cable.
• Rome Wire Company developed the Romex ® brand of non-metallic building wire in 1922.
• Rome Wire Company was built near the New York Central and Ontario & Western railroad lines and had direct dockage on the New York State Barge Canal.

The water tower still holds a fascination for me.  Every time we have an interesting sunset or the sky has wonderful clouds I want to run down to south Rome and see what image I can find with this water tower.  Just the other night the moon was just about right in the evening sky so I drove down to the park across the street and was able to capture this:

I'm sure everyone else will be tired of me photographing the General Cable water tower but for now I'll be making a regular run by it to see what I can capture...

It's the Light

It is interesting to think about how my perception of the world is changing the more I explore photography.  The other night I shared a post on Google+ from Sandra Parlow.  She was answering a question posed by Levi Moore, 'What was life like, before photography, for you?' and her answer mirrored a lot of thoughts I have been having.  Here is Sandra's original post...  What was life before photography...


And her list...

• Not noticing which way the wind was blowing.
• Not noticing the clouds and the way the light bounced and reflected off them.
• Not noticing the birds sitting on a wire singing their song.
• Not noticing that one lone tree standing in a field all by itself.
• Not noticing the way the water runs over the rocks.
• Not noticing the mysterious and beautiful nature of fog.
• Not really looking at the colors of the leaves on the trees.
• Not looking at the scraggly flowers or even paying attention to the tiny details of the beautiful ones.
• Not knowing that spending an hour alone in a field listening to the hawks cry could restore my peace of mind.
• Not noticing the smallest details and textures of things I saw every day.
• Not using my senses the way I should have been.

I agree completely with the concept of this list.  I am aware of everything now, or at least a lot more of what is around me.  I'm always looking to see if I should stop the car and take a picture, or if what I'm seeing would be a cool image.  I'm noticing the wonderful detail in everything and I find myself always thinking how I would position the camera to capture it best.  It's amazing out there...  and I'm just starting to enjoy it.