What is Darby Creek?
Portions of Darby Creek are designated as State and National Scenic Rivers. Because of its bio-diversity, The Nature Conservancy, in 1991, designated Darby Creek as one of a dozen “Last Great Places” in the western hemisphere. This creek is reminiscent of a vast ecosystem of hundreds of miles of meander-ing creek that existed in the forested glacial till areas of Indiana and Ohio from pre-colonization times.
Why photograph Darby Creek?
“A Glimpse of Darby Creek: One of the Last Great Places” is a linguistically-based fine art project. The project has a depictive subject intent - to show the aesthetic and ecological significance of the Darby Creek area. The experiential outcome intent will allow the viewer to experience the beauty and character of Darby Creek and become aware that many beauties of nature may already be close to them, but simply overlooked.
How is the Darby Creek area to be photographed?
The formal qualities of the images are paramount to achieve the desired experiential outcome intent. The color images will be recorded using tilt-shift lenses and long telephotos on a DSLR camera to create a unifying formal characteristic throughout the project of selective focus to direct the viewer's attention to key elements in the scene. Color and tonal value will also be important formal qualities within the images. HDR imagery will occasionally be used.
Thoughts about Darby Creek:
The Darby Creek waterway has existed since the last ice age began to melt 12-13 thousand years ago. The area has experienced slow climatic and ecological changes since then. It was once a small insignificant part of a vast wilderness that existed until just a couple of hundred years ago when man began to colonize the area. But what is unique about the Darby Creek area is that there still remains enough of once existed to give a glimpse of the natural order of things as they existed under the natural laws given by their creator. It is a remnant area of what was once a vast wilderness. Now, the creek currently runs through countless farms and near many towns and cities that were once forests.
Just as a city or town has a personality or character which is the sum of the people who live in the town, the creek has a character which is the sum of its inhabitants - trees, plants, birds, animals, fungus, etc.
Just as music is more than rhythmic sounds - it reflects the personality of its author or performer, the creek is a reflection of its author or divine creator.
Thoughts about the Artist:
When I photograph Darby Creek, I do not photograph what is there, but I photograph what should be there. The project “A Glimpse of Darby Creek: One of the Last Great Places” should not be photographed objectively, it must be subjective. It is necessary to understand what is modern man's influence on the creek's environment, and minimize that influence in the images, in order to let the true character of the creek be revealed to the viewer.
To be in-tune with the creek on an emotional and spiritual level is essential so that the imagery reflects it's divine creation.
My interest and years of observing and studying the natural world is key to my subjective analysis of photographing the Darby Creek area.
Mark R.
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