Skip to main content

Photos and Footprints


"Take only photos. Leave only footprints." - Unknown

This quote has crossed my mind often this weekend as my partner and I have spent the weekend hiking in the Red River Gorge area in the Daniel Boone National Forest. This is about two hours from home, but it's someplace we've not really explored yet (even though we've lived in Kentucky for 12 years now), so it seemed like a good place to go to celebrate her birthday. Our dog loves to hike with us, so we brought her along too. (Kitty stayed home with the house-sitter). We spent about three hours hiking each of the last two days. I had planned to post several photos yesterday, but discovered I left my card reader at home, so photos and a summary of the trails will have to wait until I get back.

I've discovered a few things:
  1. Our 9-year-old dog has more energy than I do.
  2. What the forest service people refer to as an "easy" hike, is not necessarily easy.
  3. Hiking downhill is just as difficult as hiking uphill.
  4. There is a surprising amount of graffiti etched or painted onto various rock formations.
The first three items on the list didn't really come as a surprise to this out-of-shape, 30-pound-overweight, middle-aged woman with arthritis, but they didn't stop me from enjoying our surroundings: Breathing in the smells of nature. Feeling the cold, fresh air on my face. Listening to the silence around us, hearing nothing but our breathing, our footsteps and our occasional conversation. I was surprised, though at the number of people who chose to etch their names into the rock formations as opposed to enjoying the environment around them. My partner made the comment that the "Michael loves Jackie" carvings have most likely outlived the actual relationships.

I'll never understand the lack of respect or appreciation people have for nature. As a photographer, I have the opportunity to capture a moment that means something to me. The photo may not always turn out the way I see it in my mind, but I try to capture it anyway. And I do so without doing damage to the subject. I enjoy taking photos as a way to create a sense of permanence. The scene may change over time, but by capturing it on camera, it remains that perfect moment frozen in time. I don't have to carve my name in a rock to know that I was there. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Would you deface a piece of history for a photo?

I read an interesting article yesterday on CNN. Russian photographer Vadim Makhorov and a group of his friends apparently disregarded rules that prohibit the public from climbing the Pyramids of Giza - just to get a few photos from the top of the pyramids. Were the photos worth it? I'm not sure. Yes, they were nice, but the idea that the photographers not only ignored safety regulations, but risked defacing one of the great wonders of the world - all for the sake of a photo - pissed me off. Now don't get me wrong. Oftentimes I do photograph a subject with the "It's better to ask forgiveness than permission" mantra. But I'm always respectful of my chosen subject, be it a person on the street, a field of wildflowers or a national monument. Of course Makhorov says he "would like to apologize for this ascension. We didn't want to insult anyone. We were just following the dream." Uh huh. He's not apologizing for doing it. He's apologizin...
2 comments
Read more

The "Peeping Tom" photographer vs. a subject's right to privacy

Where does a subject's right to privacy begin? A "peeping Tom" photographer/artist, Arne Svenson, in New York took photos of his unsuspecting neighbors through their windows. The photos (including those of children) are now featured in a gallery exhibit in Manhattan. Needless to say, the subjects are not pleased. According to the photographer, no invasion of privacy took place because the subjects in the photos can't be identified. I call B.S. on that. While faces may not be shown, I would bet that someone who knows some of the people in the photos could easily recognize them. I do agree that if you want your daily activities in your home to remain private, then you should close your curtains or window blinds. However, you should also be allowed to assume that your daily activities won't end up being turned into a gallery exhibit, raking in thousands of dollars for the so-called artist. And as this article  points out, people don't pay huge amounts of money...
2 comments
Read more

Do Schools Teach Students About Photo Usage and Copyright Infringement?

I know I've discussed the issue of copyright infringement and stolen photos before , but last week I had a few other instances occur so I thought this would be a good time to discuss it again. Here's what happened last week: I did an online search for my most-often-stolen photo (not the one pictured here) and sure enough: three more instances of the same photo pilfered without my permission. One website was a high school blog. Another site was a college website (their student online newspaper, actually) and the third was a news/entertainment-type site. I sent all three infringers my standard DMCA takedown request letter via email. In the email I explained that I am the copyright owner on the photo, they are committing copyright infringement by using the photo without my written permission and provided links to the photo on my website. Before taking further action, I requested that they either remove the photo immediately or send payment - a very reasonable fee for one-tim...
Post a Comment
Read more