Wednesday, March 17, 2021

 BARNS


There is something about barns that grabs my attention. They have character, whisper history to us, have varied designs, and are part of our sociological fabric. 

If you're like me, you have your own collection. If you don't, I hope my examples motivate you to take some day trips on those "blue roads" that lead between towns and cities. You'll be surprised what you might find.


Let's start with this old iconic Mormon barn in the shadows of the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. 
I positioned myself and the barn in order to accentuate the context in which this beautiful barn was built. 




This old barn would be disappointed if it knew that it had been converted to living quarters!
It's hard to tell from this photo, but the barn is right in the middle of town now--Eureka Springs, Arkansas.




So, who do you think is winning this battle? This falls under the category of surrealism.




I don't know where I acquired this ability, but I have great peripheral vision, which really comes in handy when (carefully) driving. Such was the case as I drove back home a couple of weeks ago, after an overnight stay at a lodge on the highest mountain in Arkansas--Mount Magazine.

In a matter of seconds, I spotted this barn to my left. I just had to turn around to get a slower and closer view. I loved the huge bail of hay that had been chipped away by horses. The remains looked like some sort of scary creature. The nearby skull hanging outside the barn just added to my composition!  




I saw this giant beauty outside of the small town of Heber City, west of Park City, Utah.




I "painted" this red barn after sunset, shining my off-road emergency flashlight all over the  barn, including the small trailer at the back of the barn. I walked around the side, then along the front of the barn, as I "painted" the surface, spending a little more time shining light inside the barn--that section inside the front of the barn. The BULB setting is required for this type of photography. In this case, it took me about two minutes to finish painting the barn.




Steamboat Springs, Colorado gets the prize for my barn photos. The small town was my canvas for four (4) of my favorite barn images. 

This is one is right in the middle of town. The town just grew around it.




I loved this setting--the cowboy walking his horse back to the barn in the background. The blanket of snow on the barn's roof really adds interest to this scenario.




This is the most iconic barn in the entire state of Colorado. I just happened to photograph it before the historic town (Steamboat Springs) was overtaken with real estate development. Another photographer told me this scene doesn't look like this anymore--there are condominiums now that fill the backdrop. Sad.  
                          


This modest but interesting barn is on the outskirts of town, just south of the city limits.




Here is a caveat when shooting barns, or any subject, in the snow. The bright snow will trick your built-in meter and histogram! To get a good acceptable image, you will need to overexpose your images by 1-2 stops, in order to keep your whites from going too grayish on you!  


You might talk to your local historical society or museum, or your state historical society and ask them if they know of old barns in your county or state. If you are interested in knowing exactly where the barns in my blog are located, please feel free to e-mail me and I will give you directions.
  

  




       




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