My favorite photo from our St. John trip. More than any pretty photo I shot that week, more than any beautiful sunset, I feel that this photo tells a story and captures the essence of this man at this moment in time. I was extremely lucky and I’m not afraid to admit it was a complete accident that I was able to even get this. Driving to the airport on our way back home, my camera was set to manual and set for a dark photo I had just taken inside the car.
We stop at a light and I see this wonderful scene in front of my eyes. A man resting. Who is he? What is he looking at? What is he thinking? What does he do? Is he taking a break from his job? If so, why is he sitting out on the pier in the hot afternoon Caribbean sun? Is there a breeze coming off the water? Why is he shirtless? Is he homeless? Why did he take off his shoes? All of these and probably a dozen more questions race through my mind in that instant. I know I don’t have much time. I quickly reach for my camera and snap a shot, but when I look at the LCD on the back, all I see is white. I go to readjust the settings for the bright exterior, but I suddenly feel the car moving. It’s too late. I missed my chance.
I review the shot I did take again. ISO 800, F/5.6, 1/250s. Ugh. It’s hopeless. A few days later, back at home in front of my computer, I pull in the shots from this day and again I see the almost all-white photo. But through some magic in Adobe Lightroom, I’m somehow able to salvage it and get what you see above. And you know what? I love how it came out. The stark, washed out palette, the white pier, even the blue tint that magically appeared in the corner after my adjustments. Somehow it all works and makes me happy that I was able to get something, anything from what I saw that day. Otherwise it might have joined the collection of what must be millions now of photos that I didn’t take or missed just floating around in my head.
Now back to the questions. Who is he?
