Before I get to the prescriptive post I just promised, a random snap. Last night's sunset over the soybean field out back. Why? Because this place has been really short of pictures lately—we haven't posted any pictures at all since David Bailey's portrait of Maud Ford a whole week ago. That must be some sort of record.
Did you know that there hasn't been a single great sunset picture ever taken, in the whole history of photography? That's because, compared to the experience of watching a sunset sky, a picture of it is just a souvenir. The photograph is never a greater thing than the thing itself. You can enjoy the experience just as much without taking a picture at all, and any picture you make, even a good one (this is a pretty good one, a stitched pano—and the colors are pretty accurate, too, they really were like that—) is just a token.
I stood in the soybean field till it was nearly completely dark, and my mind was full of certain thoughts; what I remember is what I was thinking about. It was a magical sky, spectacular, but peaceful.
Mike
(Thanks to S.)
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Featured Comments from:
Richard Newman: "And I don't think there's ever been a single 'great' sunset painting either, for much the same reason."
Mike replies: Turner, maybe? I always liked Van Gogh's "Willows at Sunset," although maybe it's not among his greatest. What about Winslow Homer's "Saco Bay"? Great painting, maybe not great sunset. [s]
Jon Bloom: "We had a great sunset last night. My wife was driving me over to friend's house to fix her computer. My first thought was, 'Darn, I don't have my camera!' But each time we turned a corner or topped a hill I got to see a different aspect of the sunset. If I had stopped to take a photo I would have missed the multiple intakes of breath as each new element revealed itself. I'm glad I didn't have a camera with me."
