A Weekend At Home - Rolls 133-135
Many photographers, myself among them, feel that the element of chance is one of the most critical parts of our creative process. Unlike in mediums such as painting, where an artwork can be manifested out of nothing (not for every painter, but the possibility exists), the photographer relies on a variety of circumstances and situational opportunities to make their art. I became acutely aware of this during the weekend before Thanksgiving, as I found myself at home in Berrien Springs for the longest stretch of consecutive days in a while. Unfortunately, Malia had come down with covid that week, and although I wanted to take care of her we agreed that it would be best for me to stay away; with my partner out of reach, then, I had an open schedule and lots of boredom to contend with. This was when I realized that I had an opportunity to photograph in Berrien that I hadn't been given in a long time, and I chose to seize the moment, this chance that appeared before me, and make the most of my time at home. While I did shoot here and there in town after that weekend, this was the peak of my photography in Berrien Springs, and I'm happy that I was able to make something special in that moment.
On Saturday morning I woke up oddly early, and though I don't remember why I do know that I took advantage of being awake at that time of day to make some unique photos. With frost on the ground and the sun high enough to provide good lighting, I walked along an alley towards the center of town, with the hope of recreating a specific photo I had seen previously. At the beginning of October I had tried to take this shot, but, as it was on 35mm and an unfamiliar Leica, I didn't nail it the way I wanted to. Here, though, all the pieces come together—the assortment of buildings and power lines form a pleasing composition, the various elements in the foreground like the deer statues and lawnmower provide points of interest, and the strip of sunlight running through the center of the photo elevates the subject matter beyond my initial attempt. I always get nervous taking a photo like this, as I don't want to come across as creepy or intrusive, and the time of day helped me feel more confident that most people would still be asleep at this time. I find it significant that my very first photo that weekend was a successful one, completing a goal of mine that I'd had for months, and it got me excited to see what else I'd find!
Behind North Mechanic Street, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
There is a house, not far from where I used to live, that continuously drew me back time and time again throughout my years in Berrien. My initial photograph of this subject made it into my first photo book, Meet Me in the Forest, while the next shot it appears in is included in An Ordered World. It feels appropriate, given that history, that I approached this house for the third time that morning, stunned by the bright leaves of a couple small bushes in the front yard. Like in the first photo that day, the frost and sunlight accentuate the subject, and a tree in the center visually connects the bushes to the house and line of trees at the top of the composition. The colors—reds, yellows, and greens in varying hues—feel perfectly fall-like, and I get a pleasant chill from viewing the photo; it's almost as if I'm back at that scene, physically cold yet warmed with artistic intent. Here again I resolved an ongoing thread in my photography up to that point, although one I wasn't entirely aware of until the moment I shot this photo, and it left me feeling full of peace that I was doing what I was supposed to. With just these two images I would have been content, but the Ordered World called me on, and I continued to seek out more photos as I moved through the familiar streets.
North Bluff Street, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
One thing I enjoy about reshooting photos that didn't turn out is that my path is somewhat prescribed; depending on how many photos I want to attempt again, I may find myself walking in my own footsteps, following my earlier routes and stopping at the same locations. The next image is a product of this method, as I retraced my steps to the main street of Berrien Springs, where I stopped in front of the Journal Era building. Just like the first time I saw this scene, I shot it straight-on, focused on building out the photo from the interesting sight of a fish and some glass bottles in the window. There are hints of more things behind that first row as well, books and crates and some kind of hat, and the complexity of the interior contrasts well with the plain brick and ordinary electrical system outside, suggesting that this photo holds more than meets the eye. I also enjoy the double representation of myself, in the shadow and reflection, which adds another little bit of interest to the shot.
The Journal Era, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
On my way home from downtown, still following my predetermined path towards places I'd photographed before, I encountered the Berrien Springs Courthouse bathed in the nicest sunlight I've ever seen it in. I had never considered shooting it from this angle, but I'm pleased with the result; the trees on either side frame the building and contextualize it, while the leaves in front of the fence amplify the warm tones of the light. I do wish it was sharper—I was on the phone with Malia at the moment I took the photo, and consequently I had a little motion shake that I don't like here. But the shot is good enough that I can ignore that flaw, and I am just happy that I got to see my subject in a (literally) different light, one that made me appreciate it more! Looking back, that is a good way to frame the entire roll; I was shooting in locations I know well and with subjects that I'd tried before, but the circumstances of timing allowed me to see and photograph them in a new way, contributing to both my growth as an artist and this specific body of work!
Berrien Springs Historic Courthouse, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
Don't you hate it when someone reaches a nice stopping point, only to continue speaking anyway? I did, and growing up I experienced this a lot on Sabbath when my pastor would reach a great end to his sermon, and then reach it again, and sometimes two or three more times before he was actually done. I guess I have become that person in some ways (as evinced by my continuing this blog post that could very well end with the last paragraph), and I think I understand him more now; sometimes the point at which I think I should end isn't where I should actually stop. I finished that roll soon after taking the shot of the courthouse, and I thought that I was satisfied with what I had done that day. This is not how things actually went, though, and I couldn't resist the sight of a certain set of mailboxes I noticed while driving to my Abuelita's house for lunch. After returning home later I dutifully loaded another roll of film and started walking, committed to finding ten more photos including the one I had already seen. Of course, the strongest mailbox photo from that roll isn't the one I set out to take, but instead is one taken across the street from my house. I get a very strong Egglestonian vibe from this image, maybe due to the choice of subject or the harsh lighting, and I think this quality is enhanced by my subject's close proximity to my home—not unlike Eggleston photographing in his hometown of Memphis, I feel that my intimate knowledge of the location enhances this shot. I had seen these mailboxes a million times in passing; even though they hadn't spoken to me until that moment, I knew them in some sense long before I truly perceived them. Jesus and I have often discussed the phenomenon of passive perception, the way that we are sometimes subconsciously drawn to a detail in a scene that we don't *actually* notice until we look at the photo later, and this shot is like a macro version of that, a whole subject that I seemed blind to, but in reality was aware of deep inside. Once again, the elements of chance played on my photographic eye, and I took a photo I am very happy with.
North Mechanic Street, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
The next photo, like the shots from the morning, is one that I was reshooting after an initially disappointing attempt. Unlike the others, I made the original image during the summer, and my dissatisfaction with it stemmed from a technical issue—the fact that I underexposed it by accident. Here, thankfully, I have nothing to complain about. Not only did I nail the exposure, but I was able to improve the composition a little; where in my first photo I had the tree trunk at the extreme right edge of the frame, here I placed it just right of center, including a few horizontal branches towards the top that cut out some interesting shapes in the sky. Although I had been drawn to the fence first, I think that the tree makes this image, and I'm glad that I continued to push myself technically, figuring out what I did wrong and correcting mistakes I made in the past.
Behind Trinity Lutheran Church, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
When I think about the iconic parts of Berrien Springs, I don't necessarily think of downtown, Andrews University, or Lake Chapin first; rather, I think about this stretch of road, which contains among other things the town's Taco Bell, Subway, and Rite Aid. More than any other location here (with the exception of my dorm room and my home) this area is littered with memories—the late night Subway runs during college, the emergency trips to Rite Aid for medicine or snacks, the walks to Taco Bell with my sister during that year. This photo takes all these experiences, and more, and compresses them into a single frame. The Berrien Springs water tower, just down the street from my house, is present in the background. McDonald's, where my college friends and I would discuss crushes over milkshakes and fries, is represented by the classic sign on the right. Loving Care Homes, where my Abuelito is a resident, sits in shadow on the edge of the composition. And, like always, power lines and telephone poles form grids and boxes throughout the photo, giving each little piece of the scene its own territory. As a cumulative representation of my time spent in this town, as well as my artistic growth, I can't ask for more, and I ended this roll and my shooting for the day very happy with what I had done!
Berrien Springs, Michigan.
Once more I have reached an ideal stopping point, and once more I will continue regardless. That's the funny thing about being an artist, especially one that is called to endlessly categorize and pursue the Ordered World. At various times I reach peaks in my artistry, and those moments naturally come with the attendant question "what next?" The answer is simple: after the peak, I must still go out again and keep taking photos, despite knowing that I may not reach the heights of what I did the day before. In this case, it helps that I hadn't developed my two rolls from Saturday yet, and without being able to reflect on the shots I had taken I was able to maintain my desire to go out again and shoot more. The three strong photos from this roll are all of familiar places in town, starting with a shot of some donated, unsorted items at the back of Neighbor to Neighbor, the local family service center. Here I was compelled by the plywood cutout of an angel holding a sign that says "Peace," an odd thing to proclaim in front of a jumbled mess of furniture and other items, including a bike and a dehumidifier. I should say it seems odd, because what is more representative of the Ordered World than a photo in which peaceful order arises out of disorder? The camera brings together the disparate elements and makes sense out of them—the identifiable objects go in front, defined largely by their bluish tint, while the yellowish furniture recedes into the background. Just like that, order is restored, and the sign becomes not just a piece out of place but the anchor that allows me to understand the scene. I had never photographed here before, and I'm not likely to do so again; in this one shot I fulfilled the desire I had to explore this subject, and I am content with that.
Neighbor to Neighbor, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
The final two images are at locations I had previously photographed in 2018, during that time when I was first trying out film. They represent the growth I experienced in that five year interval, and I am proud of them! The first is of an abandoned motel across the street from Andrews. Where in the 2018 photo I used a straight-on composition to center the mailboxes in the frame (and for the record, I think that initial image is very strong), here I included the whole environment, incorporating power lines, telephone poles, the motel itself, and the moon in the background to add more points of interest. I was helped by the fact that a building that was there in the earlier photo is now gone, allowing me clear access to the motel, but I think that either way I would have looked for a different composition than I did before.
Abandoned Motel, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
The final shot is of the Village Car Wash, where I photographed an Auto Wash Pay Station as part of Meet Me in the Forest. Similar to that photo I once again used a straight-on composition, but in keeping with my current vision my subject is the building itself, decorated for Thanksgiving with inflatables on the roof and hay bales in front. Through the open wash bays can be seen rows of storage units in the back, and I even have the most illusive of subjects in my work, an actual person, standing by their car behind one of these bays. As I have discussed previously, sometimes a simple composition works best, and I think that is the case here, where everything falls naturally into place around the main building. As a coda to my weekend of shooting these last images work well to me; reaching back and revisiting familiar places, both recently visited and photographed in years past, allowed me to bring my time in Berrien Springs to a natural close. Like I said before, that weekend was not the last time I shot here, but it resolved some long-standing photographic questions and helped me reach a higher peak in What My Left Hand is Doing. I am thankful that I was able to see the opportunities given me and use them to my advantage!
Village Car Wash, Berrien Springs, Michigan.