Canyonlands Moonrise
Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA
I remember the first time I saw Ansel Adams’ “Moonrise over Hernandez.” The stark contrast and negative space immediately caught my attention, and I was mesmerized.
On a drive back from northern New Mexico, which happens to be the home of Hernandez, my wife and I stopped in the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park for a morning hike. And there it was: a half-moon set against a deep blue sky above the sandstone mounds of Needles.
Immediately I thought of “Moonrise”, and thus inspired, I set about capturing my image.
Full disclosure: I fear that this photograph looks too much like “Moonrise”. Perhaps it does — indeed, the framing and negative space are similar. But such is the nature of art: inspiration is inspiration. And for my part, I have no qualms about naming my sources, even if the source is the great Ansel Adams.
I once heard from a well-known photographer: “Photography isn’t all that hard. Look at other photographs, and notice the characteristics you like. Then do more of that.” It’s a simple, perhaps obvious idea, but I find that in life, as well as in art, it’s the simple ideas that tend to serve best.