The variety of flora and fauna on this planet is amazing. No matter what a person may dream up - whether beautiful or horrific - it won't top what nature's provided already. All you have to do is look closely enough - or far enough away - at the right time and in the right places and it'll be there.
Herein lies the job of a photographer, to capture these subjects as well as moments in the lives of these subjects. Quite the pursuit, if one is to take it seriously. And regardless of the subject, great bodies of work can be accomplished and shared with the world. For example, in a frame shop one time here in Houston the lady proprietor had a bin full of amazing photos of staircases. There was a guy that liked staircases, particularly the winding kind, so he scoured the region and accumulated an incredible series of photographs. Staircases indoors captured as abstracts. Staircases outdoors with beautiful sunsets shining through. Old staircases that evoked memories of days gone by. New staircases that pointed to the future. You name it. These pictures were stacked in a bin and for sale at reasonable prices. When I asked the lady if this guy was still out there doing his thing, she said that No, he got tired of it and just wanted to liquidate, which was the reason they were in this bin for sale. Being an enthusiastic beginner wannabe, I was surprised that anyone might actually get tired of creating this amazing work.
Ruminating on all of this brings to mind a couple of "bucket list" items dreamed up at the beginning of my photography "career", if one can call it that: 1) I've always wanted to travel the state (Texas), stop in little out-of-the-way towns, and spend a few weeks there capturing the life, history, culture - and perhaps decay - of the places, along with a selection of their citizenry; and 2) thought it would be interesting to go into public places to capture a particular emotion as the day's self-imposed assignment. For example, one day go out and capture joy, sadness, or fear, then pick something else another day. I'm approaching retirement age, so who knows...
Same pic in its larger extent below:
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