A Photo I Like – Part 1

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 I will admit I am a sucker for vintage films and photography. This form of artistic expression brings a unique aspect to pictures than your regular high-quality cameras. I get a very human feeling when seeing pictures that use vintage lenses, one of imperfections and mistakes. Still, it brings a story, a character, to the art.

The photo up above is one of my favorite photos I have seen recently. It was taken by a photographer Jaanius on the platform lomography. Shot on a Canon A-1, with a Vivitar 28mm 1:2.8 wide angle, in Nitra, Slovakia. The photo brings a haunting mysticism of the origins of the past. There is no doubt that the image brings out this very nostalgic feeling for many. For me, every photo has some story that comes with every photo. The story does have to be true to the image, but they come from a deep place for me. I am going to give my story for this photo.

The Story

It is a cold day deep somewhere in Midwest. Too cold for even the trains to run on the track, so they lay dormant away from sight. The snow slowly falls from the dark gray sky, devoid of any sunlight. The night is to come soon, and the light poles slowly begin their glow in preparation for the dark coldness ahead. The tracks run all the way down, going on forever and forever into the dark, gloomy fog forward. The railroads are silent. No, talking from town folks, no roaring of locomotives, only wind can be heard as it whooshes in the cold winter air. The brush around the tracks is a dead tan color, and the tree is frozen with ice lacing around the tree’s thick trunk.

A man slowly walks down the tracks. Bundled in multiple layers of melancholy colors of black and gray. He walks slowly, dragging his feet in the crystal white snow, letting his foot sink into the white powder. He then lifts it back up and slowly repeats the process. His face is covered with a gray scarf, only letting his dark green eyes be seen. Mist blows out of his wet scarf, in a thick white cloud, before slowly fading away in the cold around him. He wore a dark coat with various patches of his past on it. His arms dangle downward, with the coat only showing the gray fuzzy gloves. The man slowly walks down the tracks, crushing various brush down the way. He slowly fades into the mist, becoming less and less human and turning into only a blurring figure. He then disappears into the dark, leaving only the cold wind to blow in the lifeless scene.

Brief Conclusion

I hope you enjoy this little piece that I made. I plan to continue this series by diving deep into the art of photography. Photography has always had a deep place in my heart, and something about it just set it apart from all art forms. There is a human touch to photos, and always a sense of mystery and imagination in those photos, especially the old ones. If you enjoy the art of photography with the same passion as me, keep watch of this series. 

Austin Keith '24
Austin Keith '24
Favorite Director: Werner Herzog | Favorite Song: Peg by Steely Dan | Favorite Sport Team: The Cowboy's sadly | Favorite cat: KC | Favorite Band: Steely Dan | _ " I will only speak french if you have a gun to my head" - Werner Herzog

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