“To see a World in a Grain of Sand 
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower 
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand 
And Eternity in an hour”                    

Auguries of Innocence--William Blake

I have made thousands of close-up photographs of flowers over the years. I am hypnotized by the sinuous lines, sensuous tones, synesthetic textures, lush colors. The shallow depth of field at such acute proximity causes rapid softening; some suggestion of great mystery, just out of reach. The subject becomes an abstract for something “other.”

“Remembering speechlessly we seek the great forgotten language, the lost lane-end into heaven, a stone, a leaf, an unfound door.” Look Homeward, Angel–Thomas Wolfe

I have been accused of eroticizing these subjects, to which I have several replies:
1) So what?
2) Georgia O’Keefe did it, so that’s pretty good company.
3) These are the reproductive parts of the plant, so it’s just documentation.
4) And, most importantly, what someone “sees” in a photograph says more about the viewer than it does about the photograph or photographer.

For more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index

So much of what we “see” is preordained. We see what we want to see, what we expect to see, what we are ready to see, what we are looking for. But what Witches’ Brew of emotion, intellect, training, bias, and physiology conspires to cause perception? The character of the lighting here makes for a dramatic image, but does knowing it’s in Bodega Bay make it ominous?

For more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index

Well, the decorations are down, and we are not expecting snow (more of a 10-12 year cycle for that), but it’s going to be very cold this week, for Savannah. I know, I know, most of the rest of the country will be much colder, with varying forms of precipitation. The rest of winter for us will be dreary more than cold; just gray days and penetrating, chill winds. I’m old and have intentionally thinned blood. I feel it in my bones, sometimes.

But that never lasts for more than a few days at a time, and then the sun is out, and the air is crisp, brisk, refreshing. The lower angle of the sun puts an extra edge on the built environment; the open shadows of the urban forest shimmer; and my city sparkles in this aphelion time zone. And then, very soon, it will be Saint Patrick’s Day.

For more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index

Every day, the first light to strike the United States opens onto the coast of Maine. Each dawn, like a new year’s beginning, offers the tantalizing tease of fresh starts, a chance to renegotiate with the universe.

This week’s post is a celebration for me, the two year anniversary of starting this (mostly) weekly sharing of photographs and thoughts. I wasn’t sure at the start if I could, or would, sustain the effort to post regularly, but I did, except for a few random times when I was traveling. And I have in mind a number of images I want to share going forward, so I hope you are enjoying seeing this as much as I am doing it.

For more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index