12-NOV-2003
Shimmering Swan, Scottsdale, Arizona, 2003
There are few sights in nature photography as graceful as a swan floating across a quiet pond. This is the same swan I photographed in close-up earlier, only now I show it afloat upon a shimmering reflection, a contrasting follow-up to the previous shot. I use the spot meter to expose for the swan itself, allowing the rippled water to go almost black to emphasize those reflections. The sweeping curve of its long neck is repeated within the water, and I shift the swan to the right side of my frame to give its tail feathers and head the space they need to work.
12-NOV-2003
Farewell Plunge, Scottsdale, Arizona, 2003
The swan I feature in the previous two pictures repeatedly dives to wet his feathers. I express the force of its dive from behind, using a very fast shutter speed. The result: an incongruous image of a swan abstracted by a sheet of flying droplets, offering an ideal end (pun intended) to this sequence. This three photograph sequence, as well as the other images I display in this gallery, tell us that we can find opportunities for expressive travel photographs within our own communities as easily as we can in more exotic, unfamiliar places far from home.