Tlee Divine Photography: September 2010

I usually don't try to explain the pictures I post on this site...I love for them to speak for themselves, but today I want to explain the series of pictures I have prepared to share with all of you.

On our two trips to Colorado over the summer, we were lucky enough to witness the daily grind of feedlot/ranch/ or how I saw it, last American cowboy work.

Let me set the scenery for you...miles upon miles of rolling plains, variety of crops as far as the eye can see, miles of black top road that just beg for company to run across them, dust, wind, dry sand for soil, and the only animals that you are for sure to see are horses, cows, and the dogs that belong to the men who take care of them. I know it sounds like an old western movie, but it's true, and I loved every minute of being in it. Time ticks much slower out here, not sure if anyone even wears a watch, it's like they almost revolve their day around where the sun is located in the sky.

I was totally consumed with the `way of life` here...it tended to make a person more relaxed, more down-to-earth about his/her feelings, made a person roll-with-the-flow of life.

The men get dirty at work...dusty wind blowing sand in your face...all the rough weather seasons staring you in the eye...cattle making them work for their money...the horses they ride being their best friends. Both the rider and the animal knowing each others every move and noise and what it meant. Working until everything is done, not just quitting when the whistle blows...the only whistle you're going to hear out here is the wind blowing through the open land.

Dirty hands are the norm. Cowboy hats, boots, spurs, jeans, and a pearl snap shirt are your uniform. Your briefcase is what ever you had along with you on your saddle, your rope was your communication. And out here it doesn't even matter if you wore the same exact pieces of clothing yesterday...they're good for at least two days.

Nothing about this `living` made me wrinkle my nose at them, or wish they would wash their hands, or wish it wasn't so windy out there. It made me be proud of how some people still work like men did 100 years ago. I loved that they didn't think it was anything special that they were doing, it was just what they did because it was their job and it had to be done.

To me it was a photographers paradise. The thought of all the rusted pens, horseshoes, and gates made my imagination flow. How could I capture these normal items and make them interesting...that was easy...just shoot them in their natural environment and they came to life. These rustic, natural objects are what defines me as an artist as far as photography goes...bringing something `everyday` to your eyes and turning it in to something new and exciting.