25-NOV-2014
Isolation, Bonaventure Cemetery, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
It is often useful to isolate our subject in order to remove distractions and create meaningful relationships that will help us to tell our stories. There are a number of photographic techniques that may help us to isolate our subjects, such as selective focusing, cropping, lens choice, and vantage point. I combine choice of vantage point and lens focal length here to isolate a sculpture of a guardian angel mounted upon a column. I create considerable scale incongruity by contrasting the statuary to a massive forest of greenery. The angel becomes a lonely sentinel, standing guard for eternity. Using a telephoto focal length of almost 250mm, I am able to frame the sculpture from a considerable distance, and simultaneously shift my camera position until I eliminate all other monuments from my frame. I make sure to eliminate the sky as well, and in the process, I fill the background entirely with foliage. The statue seems to emerge from the palms on the right, and looks into an array of flowering trees on the left.
25-NOV-2014
Broken angel, Bonaventure Cemetery, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
This larger than life sized marble angel, mourning over the tomb of a long departed Savannah citizen, has lost the top of one of its wings. The sculpture was intended to express a spiritual idea, however the ravages of weather or vandalism have altered its symbolic meaning. The angel’s wing is now clipped, and its mission seems compromised. Using black and white imaging, I stress both the sadness and the function an angel symbolically brings to its mission.
This angel seems oblivious to the state of its crippled functionality. When I converted this image to black and white, the angel’s eyes mysteriously appear to be either opened and closed, depending upon how I looked at them. The angel could be seen as either symbolically looking upwards for heavenly support, or downwards in grief.
26-NOV-2014
US Customhouse, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
Savannah’s historic 1852 US Customhouse provides the background of this image. Aside from a few decorative flower blossoms, the monumental Greek Revival building is essentially monochromatic. A light rain was falling, and the light was absolutely flat. I waited for a pedestrian to enter the frame, hoping for a strong contrast in color. After several failures, this woman stepped into my picture. She is holding a red umbrella, and she wears red clothing. This burst of this primary color brings a vivid contrast and energy to what had been a flat scene. When composing this image, I stressed the interplay of the vertical and diagonal lines – the woman holds her umbrella diagonally, contrasting to the opposing pair of diagonal railings behind her. The woman’s vertical legs rhythmically repeat the vertical thrusts of the four columns at the top of the steps, the vertical blocks lining the steps, and three other vertical poles in this image.
26-NOV-2014
Winged Lion Fountain, The Cotton Exchange, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
This fountain was placed in front of the Savannah Cotton Exchange in 1889. It is made of red terra cotta, and represents a griffin, a mythological winged lion. I composed the image around its repeating curves – the flowing water, the back of its head, and the tip of its wing at the bottom of the frame. The curves start at the lower corners of the frame and lead to the expressive face.
26-NOV-2014
Unwitting huckster, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
This nineteenth century cast iron sculpture of a capped woman unwittingly wears a twenty first century sign advertising tours of historic Savannah. I found her nestled at the entry of an antique shop. I underexposed the black sculpture so that it blends into the background, becoming a figure out of the distant past. The statue’s expression seems sad, a fitting response to how it is now perceived.
26-NOV-2014
Restoration, Ort Hall, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
This nineteenth century Savannah building has been handsomely restored, yet emphasizes its vintage roots by showing off its inner brick structure as a casual, incongruously ragged architectural feature within the formal design of the façade. The building is presently used to host banquets for a neighboring restaurant. I cropped my image severely to compress and compare the raw, ragged brick pattern to its tidy geometric surroundings.
26-NOV-2014
Sacred and profane, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
The juxtaposition of the words “sacred” and “profane” is often used to express the difference between the interests of a unified group, such as a church, as opposed to mundane, individual concerns. I juxtapose the “sacred and profane” within this image by placing the roof of a parked car -- a mundane, individual possession -- before the open door of a church, which holds a mysterious abstracted sculpture of a religious figure. The car is monochromatic, while the doorway to the church is painted in a vivid red color, and framed by ornate lanterns placed within gothic embellishments. The sculpture within is a symbol sacred to the group of people who worship here. The graceful, aerodynamic curve of the car’s roof plays against the formal geometry of the church entrance. Both car and church are made more symbolic by abstraction – a hedge hides most of the car, while the soaring architecture of the church is pared down to only its entrance, and the statue within the doorway is deeply in shadow.
26-NOV-2014
Remnants, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
A well-used hand-made doll cradles its head against a rusting vintage lantern in the window of a local business. These remnants of Savannah’s past represent nostalgic symbols of local traditions. I pressed my lens close to the window to avoid distracting reflections, and built the image around the relationship formed by these disparate objects. The doll looks sad, and seems to welcome the support of the lantern. The diagonal tilt of its head compliments the opposing diagonal thrust of the lantern. These diagonals combine to form two sides of a triangle, capped by the faded post on top of the lantern.
26-NOV-2014
The Olde Pink House, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
This Georgian mansion was built in 1789, and is one of the few buildings in Savannah to survive the fire that swept through the city seven years later. A handsome Greek portico, featuring a Palladian window, stands at its entrance. This historic building now houses an elegant restaurant, known for its romantic dinners. Three elements combine to make this image memorable. The portico itself is of historic and architectural interest. The restaurant entrance is also surrounded by lush green plantings that provide a base for the entire image. But even more intriguing is the presence of two members of the restaurant staff. I found them taking a break at the front door beneath a glowing lantern. One stands with arms folded behind him, while the other clasps his hand to wrist at his waist. The man with the bow tie is shorter and seems to defer to the bearded and taller man wearing the apron. His commanding stature and costume suggest that he could be an important chef at this restaurant. I create a three-way relationship here. The shorter man looks at the taller man while the taller man looks at us, and we look at both of them standing together within a colorfully elegant and historic setting.
26-NOV-2014
City Hall, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
Built over 100 years ago, Savannah’s handsome city hall still houses the city’s government. Its most celebrated feature is a dome, now covered in gold leaf. (A tour guide told me that the gilding is a relatively recent addition. She grew up in Savannah and remembers the dome when it was covered in its original dull green copper patina.) I photographed the dome at sunset to compare the gilded reflections to the golden numbers on the clock below. I boldly cropped out the dome’s Victorian cupola here to simplify the image, reduce the amount of empty sky in the frame, and stress the geometric rhythms of the buildings architecture.
26-NOV-2014
Lost in time, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
I saw this man standing on a corner in Savannah’s historic district. I made this image because he seems incongruous in such a setting. When I viewed this image later on my computer, I noticed the reason for his presence here – a cigarette is in his hand. He obviously was not allowed to smoke within any of these old, and possibly historic, homes. The raw walls of the building behind him intensify the “back in time” mood. This man chooses to stand alone on brick sidewalk, surrounded by shadows. Dressed in a suit and tie, he spurns the sun that warms the same building on the far left. The man’s suit, solitary inactivity, and choice of chilly smoking spot intensify the incongruity of the scene, making him seem out of place, someone who seems lost in time.
26-NOV-2014
Police memorial, Savannah, Georgia, 2014
This sculpted figure represents the 43 city and county police officers that have been killed in the line of duty here since 1868. I photographed it late in the day so I could use the light and shadow falling upon the statue’s face to express a sense of both life and loss. Only half of the bronze face is illuminated. It stares with steely eye, straight ahead, and into the golden light. The officer’s cap symbolizes the occupation of the figure. The darkness covering most of the face and chest implies a sense of loss, while the silhouetted leaves overhead can represent the cycle of life itself.