On one of my last days in the Badlands area I passed this relic sitting off in a field and, being a real sucker for clunkers and junkers I decided to spend some time investigating and recording this "still life" of the past. Time had worked it's miracle on the hard steel of this machine and what was once a finely tuned polished man made ornament had now been morphed into a canvas of colors. The sun and rain had altered the hues and passing humans had done the rest.
As I got closer I realized that the hard steel contained the scratchings of visitors, I suspect mostly young, causing this hulk to become a sort of epilogue of the life of this old car. Most of the "trails" of life were of old flames leaving their mark of true love and had wandered to this spot to be alone, fan the flame of passion, sort out a fading love or discuss their future together. Whatever their cause for being in this quiet spot I was reminded of those same talks that I had encountered as a youth, each and every one of monumental importance, or so I thought during my "teen" years.
I walked in the stillness looking for a good point of view, close up, wide angle, front or back, and decided, as the sun was marking the cliffs in the distance that this position, with the patchwork of clouds leading to infinity, that this was a worthwhile position for this portrait of life. This is a three shot HDR with some minimal work done with Nik Viveza and some tighter cropping. Since this capture, while working on finalizing the "relic" I have thought of other angles that I should have attempted, but I'm not sure that carving this piece of history would serve to enhance the beauty of this testament to those that built it, drove it or shared some time with it. The relic has made a mark on many lives and still it sits calling this individual from the road, camera in hand, for one more time of sharing.
There is still life in this still life.
Take time for you family and enjoy the fading spring.
For more views of my work visit;
"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa http://www.apieceofworkinc.com
"Art On 16th" http://www.hankhallarton16th.com
Artisans Road Trip www.artisansroadtrip.com
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