Photo:Engage

  “ The eye should learn to listen before it looks. ”  - Robert Frank     Mahatma Gandhi, best known for his contribution to the Indian Independence Movement through non-violent resistance, once taught us to,  “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”      Stunning as it seems, Gandhi speaks two Stoic truths here. The first is memento mori, to remember our deaths are inevitable and unpredictable, so we should live as though it's our last moments on earth, with our words and actions fitting how we desire to be remembered.     The second is that we need to keep learning all through our days. As soon as we either think we know it all or that we cease being intellectually curious, we are essentially done. We will progress no further. And sadly, I almost fell into that trap with this this week's photograph. Fortunately, I remembered my Epictetus, as I wrote about in my post from March 26, 2022... ...

“ The world moves fast, changing everything around us with each new day. Photography is a gift that can keep us in a moment forever, blissfully eternal. ”  - Ali Novak     Our world does move fast, with events sometimes overwhelming us with their speed and ferocity and urgency. So much is happening that it's all too easy to lose focus of what it is we want to do with our limited time. The events of the world outside ourselves pierce our attention and compete for our emotional energy, but are usually well outside of what we can actually control. So I ask you to think about what you're focused on, for that will let you know what you truly value.  As I wrote in my post on February 5, 2022...      Taking the liberty of translating into a modern voice the timeless wisdom of Marcus Aurelius, who was both emperor of ancient Rome and a moral man, he wrote in his personal journal the following lesson about focus:      “Concentrate every minute on...

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept. ”  - Ansel Adams     The arrival of hot weather signals the start of the crowded tourist season at the Delaware beaches. For many, it's a Faustian bargain between the money the vacationers freely spend at the local restaurants and shops and the hard-to-find parking in-town and the traffic jams out on Coastal Highway. For the fish who spawn and live in the inland bays, streams, and canals, the high temperatures make any poor water quality issues worse by rapidly consuming dissolved oxygen levels. Fish kills of hundreds of thousands of mostly juvenile fish are often the the unfortunate consequence.     Another contributing problem is the algae blooms that feed on excess fertilizer in the water, consuming even more oxygen and blocking sunlight from reaching as deep as it should. Runoff from commercial and resi...

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ Photography means painting with light. And that's what you do. You paint a picture only by adding light to the things you see. ”  - Katja Michael     I have found throughout my life that the excited anticipation of some future event is often as pleasurable as the event itself. Knowing about a planned trip to Disney World, for example, is just as joyful as being there. Years ago, when I still enjoyed professional American football, the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl with the constant television hype, analysis, and player interviews were often more fun than the game itself which was usually a blowout. As I've grown older, I've found myself much more in tune with the changes that happen with the passing of the seasons. I especially love Spring with its inherent sense of rebirth, especially at the ocean shore. As I wrote in my post on May 1, 2021...      If you’re lik...

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ Only photograph what you love. ”  - Tim Walker      For whatever reason, this was my worst performing social media post so far. Perhaps the image was weak. Although I love this view of wild beach grasses glowing with golden hour sunlight, maybe it just didn't resonate with my audience. Personally, I am tired of seeing the same basic photograph of the beach at sunrise or sunset. They're beautiful, of course, and some photographers capture them better than others, but the look is repeated ad nauseum. I am trying to move my audience to something fresher... something unexpected. And perhaps by doing so, I am falling prey to my own pride.     Because maybe my images just aren't what my audience wants to see, good intentions and good writing be damned. Or maybe the photography I'm currently producing isn't that good, no matter what I think. The new editor of Sidetracked ma...

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ Don't shoot what it looks like. Shoot what it feels like. ”  - David Alan Harvey      My friend David Benton remarked, " This has your unique stamp of composition. No one else would have seen that." This post blew up compared to most of mine. I received more than 500 likes on one Facebook group (my first photograph ever to do so) and hundreds more in my other social media and what's even better are the many comments where people described how much they too enjoyed the blessings of the bays.      Lower Delaware is lucky to have Indian River Bay and Rehoboth Bay, as are the many animals and plants that live in these remarkable estuaries. People also commented how they worried that the bays may become ruined from overdevelopment and their concerns are valid; many new homes and condos are being built on the bay shore as people flock to the area seeking waterfront living....

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still. ”  - Dorothea Lange      Another one of my pleading missives about the dunes: please stay off them while enjoying the beach. The fences and warning signs are there to protect the delicate sea grasses which keep the dunes intact despite the steady ocean breeze and powerful waves. I can't tell you how many times I've seen people of all ages ignoring the signs, breaching the fence, and traipsing all over or lounging on the dunes, often for a group snapshot or selfie. Unleashed dogs are frequently the culprits of grass damage because their owners won't follow the law.      We must protect our beaches and natural resources. Everyone of us needs to be a steward of the environment so we and our posterity can continue to enjoy its many blessings. Working together is the only way forward. While it us...