Arrogance creates lost opportunities of rediscovering beauty and tranquility...
An empty park bench, sits lonely and idle in this late winter photograph, somewhat invisible, waiting patiently for the colors of spring, to bring parades of visitors to its feet.
I decided to shoot this photograph in camera B&W, because the park just didn't feel very much alive with me being the only person to inhabit the boundaries of the park while I was shooting photographs.
This bench had great character and depth, for such a simplistic design and function. I photographed this bench on February 13, 2007, in Jaycee Park here in Riverton, Wyoming, using my digital camera in black and white mode, as well as color. However, the B&W photographs exuded a great deal more personality and depth than the color photographs. I consider prints of this bench to be among my best work, as the 8x10 prints made from the digital files look absolutely stunning.
I would give anything to photograph this bench again, as I think it would make a superb black and white print, using 35mm B&W film, but that opportunity no longer exists thanks to arrogance, ignorance and maliciousness.. The prints made from my digital camera are stunning enough, but I think as a film print, it would have been much more charismatic and would have made a very emotive print enlargement.
Unfortunately, this unique, charismatic bench was completely destroyed by vandals around November of 2007 after being previously vandalized once before the date of its complete annihilation.
I consider prints of this photograph to be among my best work, and the fact that the bench was destroyed not long afterward makes this photograph that much more special.
However, I think this photograph also represents one of my disappointments. In a way, it represents lost chances to experience simple beauty in life that are arrogantly taken away, with no sense, reason or purpose, by pathetic individuals with malicious intent.
