Iconic images.
You know them. The ones everyone has seen.
Mather Point at the Grand Canyon.
Zabriskie Point in Death Valley.
Horseshoe Bend on the Colorado.
The bridge over the Virgin River in Zion is one of those iconic photographs as well.
A shot most everyone takes after finding a place to park. Some folks hike more than a mile to get on the bridge for this shot of sunset in the summer. A Google Image Search turns up dozens of this scene (and quite a few of the footbridge at another location). All are similarly taken from the same bridge, but all of them have nuances both large and small that change the image in seemingly magical ways.
When we are confronted by these iconic images, right there in front of us, there is a tendency to compare and contrast with all those we have seen before. The ones on bright spring afternoons, or with dark and foreboding winter skies. And all of the weather/time spectrum between.
Photographers gathering on the bridge over the Virgin River at the mouth of Zion Canyon. Some times of the year find this bridge nearly impassable for the tripods and photographers!
I always wonder if I should take the shot or simply pass with the knowledge that someone else “got it”?
I nearly always take the shot. I don’t know why, really, other than it is my record of being there. My version of what it looked like that late afternoon with the wispy clouds, and warm light. Mine.
Perhaps it is because I make photographs for myself. I am not looking to ‘please’ others, nor am I young enough to think that everything I do is unique and ‘cool’. It isn’t. Probably never was.
But those images are ones I like, and they add visuals to the memory of some wonderful new friends, an excellent experience, and for the brief moment that the image was all mine.
While I may never set the world on fire, I can kindle up a few sparks of my own… and that is one of the things that I love so much about photography.
Love hearing that others have that same debate with themselves instead of just following the tourist herds.
As a matter of fact I often don’t take the shot. A few reasons why:
If I take the shot, I want to do it justice. Meaning I want to at least try to make it 10% better than the shot you can find on Google Image Search or the post card on the tourist stand. Which means it can’t be a snapshot, but I have to put in the time and effort to make it that good. Sometimes, especially if I’m there with family or company, I don’t have the time to be that intentional. And if I can’t, then I’d rather not do a mediocre attempt.
Sometimes I like observing the places like this not with the camera in front of my eye. Especially in these situations, well I create a better mental picture of the place, and a good memory, by not being pre-occupied. I can feel the wind, see the big sky, listen to the sounds.
Well, and then there is not just being another tourist….