La Jolla Abstracts

Abstract photography uses light, texture, patterns, shapes, and color to create a composition that is disconnected from the reality from which it derives. Abstracts can tell a story in the same way a landscape or a portrait tell a story. The larger scene offers the observer more cues. In abstracts, the story is more open-ended. I could say that the story is left to the discretion of the viewer, but that is the case with every photograph. The story I see and feel is not going to be the story you see or feel. We create these meanings from our own life stories, our experiences, our cultural backgrounds.

Of all the photography I engage in, I find the creation of abstracts the most gratifying. And to be clear, create for digital photography means:

I see it.

I have the experience and knowledge to capture the vision.

I have the techniques to create the image from the raw files.

These are all skills. I work on them every time I go for a hike, every time I pick up my camera, every time I open Lightroom and Photoshop. I work on my skills through the classes I take at Columbus State Community College. I work on my skills with each book and article I read about photography. I work on my skills watching educational videos. I get inspired by studying other people’s work in books, articles, videos, and web sites. Learning goes on for a lifetime. There is always room to grow.

Nancy and I spent five days in La Jolla, California in February. La Jolla is such a beautiful place. We stayed at a hotel right on the beach, just above the La Jolla Tide Pools. I was able to spend four days on the beach with my camera.

The La Jolla coast is rocky, there are sandstone cliffs, and there are beautiful beaches. Facing west, there are spectacular sunsets and moonsets. Down on the beach with hills to the east, there is a long period of sunlight before you begin to see the sun break the horizon. That means an extended period to shoot in lower light without harsh sunlight. The tides also significantly impact how you shoot on the beach. Before I travel to a location with my camera, I always research tidal charts, the times for sun and moon rises and sets, the moon phases, and of course, the weather forecast. I always have this information on my phone.

When I am shooting landscapes or seascapes, I prefer stormy weather on the coast. Storms create more dramatic skies. Also, having clouds will create colorful sunsets. You can capture some interesting minimalist images on perfectly clear nights, but if you are in search of color, you want the clouds; just not totally overcast.

For abstracts, I am looking for consistent or even light. As in portraits, uneven light or harsh light can make it very difficult to shoot a small scene. I am always looking for the elements that make up a good abstract. Texture, patterns, color, light. Contrast is important. There are times when shadows become a part of the pattern and there are times when shadows can obscure the textures and patterns and mute the colors. An abstract really needs to be tack sharp. Any blur in the image usually ruins the photograph for me. That can sometimes be a difficult proposition if you are unable to get close to the scene. I don’t do windows, toilets or focus stacking. The sharpest images are those where I can get the lens perfectly perpendicular to the subject.

What dominates my thinking when I am photographing abstracts are patterns. I also feel textures and color. That is an important point; I often feel these scenes before I see them. That happens by virtue of how I operate. I can’t see detail without my glasses. I’m too lazy to repeatedly put them on and take them off. I don’t use my glasses when I look through the viewfinder. I have the diopter dialed up to maximum.

There are times when I find an abstract, and I can’t believe what I’m seeing. They are moments. Rarely does a scene remain fixed in time and space for very long. I know that in seconds the light will change, a cloud will pass overhead, a wave will come in, the wind will blow, some out of control kid will stomp on it. There’s always a sense of urgency about capturing it before it changes or disappears.

Every photograph involves a decision by the photographer to frame the scene in a certain way. What remains in and what is out.

I am seeking the patterns. Having said that, sometimes complete chaos can be a pattern. Patterns represent the rhythms of nature. The rhythms that involve movement and cycles of the sun, moon and stars. The rhythm of waves. The rhythm of tides. Wind. The rhythms of plant and animal life. Some patterns can be explained by events that happened yesterday or this morning. Some are explained by events that occurred during the Pleistocene.

In my more contemplative moments (like when I’m stuck in the house alone for days at a time trying to save myself from the COVID), I think about why it is that I am so inspired by and drawn to these patterns. My aesthetic involves the order and symmetry in these patterns. Could it be my rigorous toilet training? I’m sure for many people, nature’s beauty is a spiritual experience. There is some element of that for me, as well. I am grateful for the beauty in our world. I hope we can survive to enjoy it. I hope we come to our senses before we destroy it.