Inspired Roll

Like many others, this roll did not end up being exactly ‘inspired’ by the artist I studied, but nevertheless I’m proud of the final product. The image I ended up enlarging was taken while on a walk with my dog coming through the pathways around Freeport Town Hall. I chose this one specifically because the birch tree in the foreground and the evergreen on the other side of the shot a little further back and several bare trees filling potential dead space. The contrast these trees created against the snow and clear sky made it an attractive candidate for enlarging for it’s values and composition. The image is selective focus, although the lens was only shifted so as to leave the buildings in the far background out of focus. The two major trees, the birch and the pine, made for really good informal balance and potential framing of the flagpole in the center. My favorite part of the assignment was definitely the development. It took a lot of trial and error with test strips to get the right exposure and aperture on the enlargers, but it was fun to do and paid off really well in the end. As for a meaning to the photo, I think it works really well as a candid shot of a Maine town in winter, showcasing the town flags, a memorial site, and the small banks of snow laying around.