Day: August 1, 2020

When we talk of photography, it’s not something we think of in a ‘private’ sense all that much.

“Let me Share some Pictures I took”, “Here’s a shot I made at the park”, “This is some pictures I took on my holiday to Tuscany last year.” “My granddaughter’s graduation photos are here.”
“I photographed this Flame Robin at Woodlands Park in June.”
We share, Messenger, Facebook, Instagram, (No, No, not Tic Tok), prints, email and blogs to name a few.
Photographer type conversations sometimes start, “Whatchabeendoinlately?”

Yet one photographer I’ve followed over the years has the concept of “Private” as part of his creative approach.

His work is characterised by enchanted worlds full of subtle contradictions.

His name? Rodney Smith.

Noted for sharing his vision of the world with Humour, Grace, and Optimism.
He has since passed, but on his blog entitled intriguingly enough, “The End‘, Rodney Smith would describe his creative process as being  “intricately connected to how I examine my own life, how I got to know myself, and how I drew clarity of my emotions and translated them into pictures.”

So, if you want, you too can Go To The End

A further quote, “I want people to see the beauty and whimsy in life, not its ugliness. I feel the need to reach out for its soul, its depth, and its underlying beauty. I represent a world that is possible if people act their best. It’s a world that’s slightly beyond reach, beyond everyday experience, but it’s definitely not impossible.”

So here’s your humble scribe’s challenge. If you’ve manage to read this far without your eyes glazing over. (well done of you have!)

Follow this link over to his Gallery – the Humor Section.

While you’re there, have a look at several of the others sections, but do visit the Surrealism one as well.

Hopefully one or two will make you laugh, or smile, or just ponder a bit, or at least cause you to be amazed at Rodney’s sheer visual audacity.

Second part of the Challenge.
Pop a note into the Comments below, let us all know which one ‘privately’ appealed. Don’t have to say Why.   Just enjoy the trip.

Next week I’ll reveal my fav.  Hint, its neither of the ones with Hay Bales. But they did run a close second.

Took me a while to find a “Rodney Smith” Private moment among my own recent shots.

Don’t think its a great example, but at least I remember smiling when I pressed the shutter.

As Rodney is quoted, :”Choose Photography for Love, rather than fame, fortune or glory.”

I look forward to hearing from as many as possible.

Go on, you can do it.