A Little Rain Must Fall

Water as a subject for photography fascinates me. You may, over time, notice it tends to be a subject that I focus on quite a bit. Water is the most powerful force on Earth and so few people see it that way. If you freeze it, water can split a boulder. During the course of years it will wear a stone in a stream down smooth. It covers 2/3 of the world and we humans can't survive more than three days without it.

I could spend the rest of my photography career photographing streams and waterfalls and ocean vistas and never tire of the job. Disney had it right in Pocahontas when she spoke of never being able to step in the same river twice. You can't even photograph the same spot twice and get the same picture.

I was sitting on my front porch on a cool, later summer eve, working on learning Sympathy by the Goo Goo Dolls on my guitar when thunder started rolling in on a cool and steady breeze. It hasn't started raining yet but the thunder is still rumbling enough to let me know it's coming. It was perfect weather for sitting and playing and enjoying the buildup to a storm. We haven't had much in the way of strong thunderstorms this summer. It's a blessing, I'm sure, because severe weather can't help but have consequences to the people it rolls over, but I enjoy a good thunderstorm. So I've been a little disappointed in the lack of thunder and lightning, particularly since I haven't had the opportunity this summer to photograph nature's greatest light show.

Instead, I'll post this photo of a puddle. It sounds less than glorious, but it's one of my favorite photos. I took it in the alley beside our office on day two of a three day rain spell last year. Surveying is, by it's very a nature, an outdoor job and after two days of rain there's only so much work left to do in the office. So I stuck my head out the window for this picture and it worked out much better than I expected it to. I really enjoy looking at all the ripples and how they distort the surface of the water without ever breaking it.

And as much as I enjoy the rain I hope that it holds off Friday. I've got a photo excursion of sorts planned for Friday that I'm looking forward to. It will be a much needed chance to relax and chase photos that aren't wedding related. I'll cover the highlights of two counties on a day of running, so with any luck the rain won't mess that up.