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Every Photograph Has A Story
Some of the prints available on the website include the stories behind them. For example, “The Carnival Stopped” is from one of the “Roadside America” trips along Virginia’s eastern shore where I was checking out the villages, sea marsh and fishing boats for photographs to make. In Wachapreague, Virginia, population 230, the fishing boats were either all out at work or gone forever. I am not sure. The docks and handling facilities appeared to be in a state of disrepair, worn out or shut down. But there at the corner of Atlantic Rd. and Ice Plant Street was the carnival. Not a soul to be seen. A carnival stopped – a place of fun and where a community gathers. In this case, it was empty, a little eery and even ghost-like. Much like the village itself.
In Henry Carroll’s new book, “Photographers on Photography, How the Masters See, Think & Shoot,” I was struck by this quote from Jason Fulford:
“When a person looks at a photograph you’ve taken,
they will always think of themselves”
Henry Carroll in his commentary notes, “right after we interpret the literal aspects of the image…we enter into a second, much more personal meaning. The second reading is informed by elements such as our memories, personal experiences, tastes and cultural backgrounds…this second reading is unpredictable and entirely outside the photographer’s control. For Fulford, this gap between what is pictured and what it might mean is where photographs come alive”
There is an image on my website whose owner told me it touches her deeply to the point of tears when she reflects on it. Another image has been described by its owner as “art that stirs the soul.” For yet another owner, their print has an intimate feeling, and a nostalgic tone with a sense of timelessness.
It is these kinds of personal reflections that turn the literal stories behind the images into art that means something to you. That is what brings an image to life and gives it real meaning.
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