I heard someone say that to survive a winter in Iowa, you have to develop a state of mind. I think that means- you have to make the cold and snow work in your favor, you make yourself go outside and you have fun with it. RIGHT ! You see that's the part I'm having trouble with this year - the wanting to get out and take more images of snow and ice.
I have to thank my friend Dan ( www.danielruf.typepad.com ) for getting me out last week and scout the area looking for something that would make me want to get out in the cold and dust off my camera. Fortunately, we found a nice Iowa winter scene to capture and I had a lot of fun freezing my arse off while doing it.
Five years ago when I bought my first digital camera, there wasn't a barn in five counties safe from my camera and I spent many hours photographing them. Somewhere in the journey I moved on to other settings but I never lost the love of those old barns and homesteads. I often wonder what stories they have to tell and how many different families called that spot home. Who knows, maybe the desire for capturing a few of those stories will be what it takes for me to get out and keep the shutter snapping.
Thanks for stopping by and good luck finding the motivation that helps you survive this Iowa winter, after all "it's just a state of mind" !
You did a great job, Mike. I particularly like the treatments of the first image...kind of like looking out one of those frosty window panes that we all grew up with. And you're right, there are stories in these historical structures and you're doing a great job telling them through your camera.
Posted by: Daniel Ruf | January 23, 2011 at 05:53 PM