Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Same thing. Different view.

Tallness
Grand Bend, ON
July 2012
Click here for more angled Thematic
Just because you have a picture of something doesn't necessarily mean you've told its story. And even then, you can never be sure.

Sometimes it takes a lot of pictures, from a lot of different angles, to really get a sense of whatever it is that you're trying to record. That's kind of what I was thinking as I walked up to the automated beacon at the end of the breakwater on the souther edge of Grand Bench beach.

I had already taken a photo of it that day (see here) and didn't expect to learn much more by walking right up to its base. But as I got closer, the thing that had looked so upright, flat and routine from a distance seemed to take on an entirely different life.

First, it stank. I mean, really. I didn't want to know what had gone on here, but I knew I had about 2 minutes before I had to bail. Or hurl. Second, it had texture. I guess standing way out in a Great Lake will do that to you after a while.

In the end, I stuck around for 3 minutes before my nose called uncle. But I'm glad I did, because otherwise this seemingly undifferentiated structure would have remained just that, undifferentiated. Instead, it became something real, with a dimension that distance and 90-degree angles simply couldn't reflect. Sometimes, you have to move around to see the same thing in different ways.

Your turn: Seeing the same thing from a different perspective. Please discuss.

4 comments:

Bernie said...

Love the perspective of this... It shows just how tall it is as it wanders off into the sky...

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

I'm glad you suffered to bring us this picture, Carmi. Wait...that didn't come out right....

;-)

Kranky Granny said...

Carmi, I love this shot. As they say great minds….. and all that. The post I scheduled for tonight will look like I am doing a copycat of this shot. But, it will also show that I have a history of trying to get up close and personal with some of my shots as well.

Sorry, you had to encounter the foulness in order to capture the wonderfulness of this shot.

Janet said...

wonder if some fish got caught up in there! Love the perspective :-)