Good, Better, Best

What are the characteristics of a good photograph?

A good photograph will have appealing subject matter and display good technique in terms of proper exposure, effective focus, and strong composition. The viewer's response: "Very nice!"

In addition to the elements of a good photograph, a very good photograph will have a pleasing combination of light, line, form and texture. The viewer's response: "Wow!"

A great photograph will combine all of the elements of the good and the very good photographs with an emotional impact - the image will resonate with something deep within the viewer's core. The viewer's response: Silence.

Enjoy!

Not long ago I tore a page from my 365-day calendar and noticed a quote by Samuel Butler that struck a resonant chord. “All animals, except man, know that the principal business of life is to enjoy it.”

About eight years ago I decided to expand my craft by learning the Zone System employing the techniques devised by Ansel Adams. At the time I was using a medium format system that I had moved to after shooting with 35mm for many years and I was frustrated by my inability to translate the exposure and development tests from single sheet film as used by Adams to the roll film that I was using. I sent my exposed and developed film off for measurement on a densitometer only to find that the results made no sense.

What is it with Acura's new vehicle naming budget? They must not have any room for purchasing vowels. All of their offerings utilize consonants only: RL, TL, TSX, MDX, RDX. Their latest entry is something that they call "the first four-door coupe" - the ZDX. That sounds sort of like an athlete's foot remedy to me. 

The point is raised because one of these vehicles now crouches menacingly on my driveway. The grille on the thing is, well, scary. Back in the 50's the joke was that the front of the Edsel incorporated a pedestrian eater. Mad magazine even ran a caricature of an Edsel with a pair of legs sticking out of the grille. If the Edsel was that daunting, then the ZDX is The Car That Ate Cleveland. I park it rear end first in my garage so that it won't give me the heebie jeebies when I walk down the stairs in the mornings.

Walking is my favorite form of exercise and my favorite place to walk is Radnor Lake State Natural Area - a wildlife sanctuary just a few miles from my home in Brentwood, Tennessee. The park's 1200 acres are largely comprised of wooded hills that are laced with hiking trails. It was established in 1914 and before that it was the property of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, now a part of CSX.

The lake is man-made and was originally used as a source of water for steam engines and livestock at the nearby Radnor freight yards. Otter Creek is the name of the stream that is the source of the lake and, yes, otters still inhabit the area although they are not seen as often as other forms of wildlife.

Cades Cove is the most popular spot in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited of our national parks. There are many reasons for this but two come most readily to mind. The first is that it is accessible by an eleven-mile loop road. Most visitors to the Smokies rarely get out of, or at least very far from, their vehicles. This is a great boon to those of us who like to hike, photograph, fish and explore.