-
Seeing Beauty
I see these things with an intense joy,
and while I observe, there is no observer, only a beauty almost like love.
For an instant, I am absent, myself and my problems, my anxieties, my troubles,
nothing but the wonder exists.
— Krishnamurti
This poem is a word-painting of how I felt in the dance of capturing this photograph at sunset on Schoodic Point at Maine’s Acadia National Park. It had been a long day of driving, hiking, scouting locations. My daughter Helena and I had been to this spot earlier that day, in harsh, bright light. Then, the pinks in the granite were hidden by the sun’s sharp glare. But we got back for sunset. As the sun was dropping below the horizon, the eastern sky charged up its soft pink glow, blushing these granite rocks, staggering a cracked rugged pathway to heaven before us.
For several minutes as the sun was setting I quickly jumped from spot to spot, setting my tripod, arranging compositions in my camera’s viewfinder. You’d have thought me a mad scientist or a skittish mountain goat. But I knew the light was changing quickly, that each minute brought new shapes and colors into presence for my wondrous black box to record for later viewing and digital development. And in all of this, I was an extension of the camera, or, it was an extension of me? Like a dancer given a wondrous symphony to move to, I was glad I had practiced my steps. I moved from composition to composition, arranging the shapes and lens zoom, adjusting focus and exposure by feel. My fingers had learned where to poke and push, and my ears had learned to listen for the peeps and pops, confirming the camera’s syncopation with my artistic vision.
For that instant, my worries and troubles drop away, replaced by the joy and love before me. My gratitude is unspeakable. My self dissolves at the wonder.
Dear One, Harry, With your writing composing the Acadia photo in words, the essence is clear and focused. The photo will be “the frosting on the cake,” superfluous, especially for those of us who choose cake without frosting. Love and Light, Robbie PS We saw the full moon arising in a pink set sun afterglow. I took a mind-photo of her.
________________________________
Thank you Robbie for your kind and sparkling words. I love your poetry too!!
Dear One, Harry, With your writing composing the Acadia photo in words, the essence is clear and focused. The photo will be “the frosting on the cake,” superfluous, especially for those of us who choose cake without frosting. Love and Light, Robbie PS We saw the full moon arising in a pink set sun afterglow. I took a mind-photo of her.
________________________________
Thank you Robbie for your kind and sparkling words. I love your poetry too!!
Ahhhhhh I pushed on the lock and it opened to a photo!
I appreciate the square shape of photo 1 !!!! The square aids me in looking in all directions and not just from the top down! R
________________________________
Ahhhhhh I pushed on the lock and it opened to a photo!
I appreciate the square shape of photo 1 !!!! The square aids me in looking in all directions and not just from the top down! R
________________________________
You captured the exquisite beauty of Acadia….the blending of the granite of the land and the fluidity of the ocean. Thank you.
You captured the exquisite beauty of Acadia….the blending of the granite of the land and the fluidity of the ocean. Thank you.
Thanks, Harry, for your putting into words so well the feelings I often feel in a similar situation. The poem is wonderful, and your own poetic words add so much more. You have a gift of using language to even give more strength to your beautiful photography ! Thanks for sharing that with us.
A kindred spirit,
Bill Pehrson
Thank you Blueberry Bill. I really enjoy your art too! See you at the next Mayslake Meeting.
Thanks, Harry, for your putting into words so well the feelings I often feel in a similar situation. The poem is wonderful, and your own poetic words add so much more. You have a gift of using language to even give more strength to your beautiful photography ! Thanks for sharing that with us.
A kindred spirit,
Bill Pehrson
Thank you Blueberry Bill. I really enjoy your art too! See you at the next Mayslake Meeting.