Dappled

‘Marked with spots’. If you add a word here and a couple there you will have most of the definitions of ‘dappled’ covered. Dappled light, in photography, usually means a dark or shaded area that is ‘marked with spots’ of light that has penetrated the shadows. It means you’re eyes are probably looking at something pretty awesome if the light spots are hitting the right things. It also means it’s going to be hard to photograph. The shadows are too dark and the bright spots are too bright to be able to point the camera at the scene and simply push the button. Recreating the beauty you see and want is probably going to take some work. You’re probably going to have to take at least three whacks at it to complete the task.

Landscape photography itself is dappled. You wander around in nature, experiencing good stuff and letting your batteries recharge a bit. Occasionally you run into some dark spots (usually because of bad choices). Occasionally your peripheral senses will tap you on the shoulder and show you something absolutely mind-blowing.

Life is nothing if it isn’t dappled. Lots of awesome with corners of dark and scary and scattered spots of breathtaking light. Life, landscape photography or the single composition of a dappled scene … all things that can be difficult. It may take several whacks to get the result you want. You need to work on the dark spots … enjoy and pull in the bright spots and then merge them both back into all the awesome.

All three of these ‘images’ were things that caught my eye on a family trip (life) with a personal ‘landscape photography’ agenda. All good stuff and the source of many great memories. It only took a few whacks … DAPPLED is a good word :)

The Wisest of Friends

On the Same Page?