This was one of the outtakes from the lighting challenge. Let me explain what I saw when I took this shot. I was walking by the lake, and this rock stood out like a beacon near the end of the sandy shore. I saw it with the light behind it, and went wow. As I was shooting it, I felt an incredible state of euphoria. It was so meditative and the water ripples were so lovely. As I worked on it at home, I came up with the name Rock of Ages, because as I was walking during this shoot, the hymn kept going through my head. I saw this image as many layered. It had an animal quality with the golden tones. It had a religious quality as I saw the hymn unfold before my eyes in this picture. It also had an incredible meditative quality. The different size rocks also spoke to me, of the beginnings of time with the small rocks, and the growth of larger ones as they thrust out of the earth. I saw all these things, but the voters did not think the one I submitted was all that great. Agreed, this one is much better, but I also felt all those things with my entry. I see this image as one of the best ones I have ever taken, for its artistic quality, its meditative quality, its spiritual quality, and its depiction of the timelessness of our cosmic home. |
