I started this Journey in Creative Photography at the end of the summer in 2014, and built this blog in September.  In the ‘About’ page, I said that I wanted to make better photos and learn new techniques.  I think I held true to that goal for most of my journey, but I had a couple experiences this week that caused me to pause and evaluate my journey and the path I was taking.  There’s no need to get into details about these experiences, because they are in the past.  The resultant evaluation process is what’s important.

As I thought about my photographic journey this week, I realized that, while I was making much better images than at any time in my life, there were times when it wasn’t fun as it used to be.  I found that I was taking pictures for the wrong reasons.  When I bumped into a photographer friend out by the wild horses and he talked about being so busy with his photo business and how he missed just going out and shooting, my thoughts came together and I realized that I wasn’t on the path on which I started.  I am still thinking about the direction I am going and the future of my photography, but I know that I am committed to having fun with photography again.

Consistent with this re-commitment to my original goal, I drove the PHOTORANGER in a different direction (literally) than I’ve gone in a while to look for fresh subjects and found myself on the West Carson River playing with neutral density filters and long exposures, specifically to make images of water flowing smoothly with tack sharp rocks and vegetation.  Many of those shots will never be seen off my computer, but I managed to get one that I will share and, when the weather settles later this week, I will go out and try again.

This is a fun composition with the ‘driftwood’ in the corner. I will time my next visit for better natural light, and maybe some new snow!

I also ventured out with my new friend, Dwayne Hicks (dwaynesworld.com).  Dwayne has been a landscape photographer for decades, and has tremendous knowledge.  He wants to transition to nature and wildlife photography, so we shared lots of information and had a great time.  At one of our stops, we had the opportunity to make images of kids (baby goats) and a ‘future farmer’ taking care of the herd.

Kids are very cute and they put on quite a show!

Yup, that’s a future farmer feeding the herd!

After feeding the herd, the future farmer and his sidekick took a walk, under the watchful eye of the ranch dog.

With the emphasis on getting back on path, you’ll see fewer images in my blog – only the best of the mix.  And you’ll see different subjects and techniques, too.  Stay tuned!

Enjoy – Roger aka PHOTOROGR