You are hiking or driving somewhere with your camera and you come across a great subject. It has a wonderful focal point object, a strong foreground, mid-ground, and background – and it is relatively close to where you live. So if you are looking at this artistic endeavor as a science experiment, it becomes your constant. And then when considering to go back to a great location, all you have to consider is variables. Variables can be time of day, season, sky, variance in weather, or even just perspective or technique.
One of the best examples of this is when dealing with a beautiful lone tree. Way back in 2010 while driving along Highway 99W, just south of Corvallis, I had my camera with me. I noticed, just back from the road, a beautifully shaped tree sitting near a gravel road in the middle of the Willamette Valley looking west toward the Coast Mountain Range. Because of its easy access (20 miles from my home), I have re-visited it over the years in different variables. And each time came away with more appreciation of this scene. With more experience, better equipment, and greater knowledge of the craft of photography, it became a treat to revisit and see what I could create. It serves as one case study of the value of returning to a scene…..
…..Click through the Photo Gallery above to see this tree throughout the years.
