2022. The new year. As we turn calendar pages from one year to the next many of us reflect on the exiting year and speculate about the next. The beginning of a new year can represent a dividing line in time when we get to envision what we might do differently in the next 12 months. Sometimes new year goals are informed by past experiences. In my photography I value growth, evolution, exploration and pursuit of creativity. I find myself self evaluating now more than ever about what photography offers me as an outlet of artistic expression or, more recently, how it can tell a story through an image. I find sharing beautiful and interesting photographs of subjects meaningful to me very gratifying and rewarding. I want you, the viewer, to feel, through the image, the moment of being there even though you weren’t. I hope my photography grabs you and makes you feel something, usually something good but sometimes other emotions of the image is powerful or full of energy. Last year I worked on assignments, that I had envisioned and suggested, that expanded my photography range a bit. I was interested in getting to know some of the people who supply the food we enjoy here on the coast, the providers of our outstanding local produce, seafood and Delmarvalous chicken. Through this experience I met some really great people. The common thread through all of them, the farmers, fishermen, tour boat operators, and chicken growers I had the pleasure to meet, is the passion they have for their work. Enthusiasm abounded and they loved the opportunity to have their world shared and photographed. Their passion is contagious and I caught it. A great example of this is Ficner Farm, just outside of Dover, DE. I met the matriarch of the farm at the Lewes Farmers Market and asked her if I could come shoot early morning corn picking. About ten seconds later I had a phone number to call and an invitation to come to the farm any morning I wanted. The photograph shown here was from that morning just as the sun rose above distant trees. They were so accommodating and friendly, just great people and I enjoyed being in their fields as they went about hand picking ears of sun ripened corn which was tossed into a large cart for eventual delivery to daily markets around Delaware. So, 2022, I have a new facet to explore with my camera, the people who make Delmarva the vibrant and thriving peninsula it is. I have a lot of ideas of what I want to see and photograph and I’m pretty stoked about it. So much of what I want to shoot is warm weather based, but not all. I’m getting ready, are you along for the ride?
