Haunted

Ah. The title. I will get to it. Over the weekend, Melissa and I traveled home to see family. We have made the trip a couple of times over the summer and the fall. This was our first opportunity to make the trip after the holidays. I am always amazed when I get back to the region where I grew up and cover the land I used to frequent and see how it has changed very little, while I have been the one to change.

I don't always have my camera with me. Most of the time I do have my phone with me. Today's camera phones have come a long way but they still lack the ability to record and image the way it should be done.  I have become okay with what I get when I use the camera  phone. The fact that it gives a certain feeling to the images makes it worth using. The time lag when I press the capture button gives an uncertainty coupled with the grain in low light gives the images a dreamy feel. Another plus here is the camera phone gives a certain amount of stealth of unobtrusiveness. No one knew I was snapping a few images here. I had turned off the flash.

Oh I almost forgot. What does this title have to do with anything?  Well Saturday evening I let an image slip by me that will haunt me. The image above was made shortly after the moment had passed. Driving a long the interstate I had seen the image at 70 mph. A barn, on the plains, that reflected the cold of winter at twilight. I did not stop. Why did I not stop? I tell myself that it was cold outside, my monopod was in the trunk, and we were over 300 miles from home. Just wanting to be home.  I can make excuses all day but there is no getting what I had seen back. While I will be haunted by the image that I did not make. I realize that I had seen it and seeing images makes one a better photographer.