We all have what I call comfort zones.  They are usually someplace we like to be, or something we like to do, or something we like to believe in.  They are areas that we retreat to when confronted by what we don’t like or at least find uncomfortable.

The above images represent some of my comfort zones.  Physically I often have pain standing or walking and those are times when I retreat to my lounge or computer chairs.  I also find that making pictures takes my mind off of other things that I find to be uncomfortable to deal with.  And the above processing style is something that I have grown to be quite comfortable with and prefer.

It would be nice if we could always spend our time within our comfort zones, but that isn’t always possible.  In my case I need to go out to find suitable compositions to photograph.  To make photographs has come to be my favorite thing to do these days.  What else is there?

For lack of new and different things to photograph, I need to go somewhere and the closest area for me to go photograph, other than here at Homewood at Plum Creek, is to Hanover Borough.  I had planned to do that yesterday since it finally warmed up, but I didn’t go.  My back was giving me a lot of trouble and something else was bothering me.  I have taken many pictures over the last 5 years around Hanover, but I have never made any that really enthused me.  Last evening, I think I figured out one of the reasons why.

In the past I have mostly photographed in the middle of the day and I never found the kinds of light I like.  I prefer shadows, steaks of light, lots of dark areas, etc.  It turns out that the middle of the day is the most comfortable time of the day for me to go to town to make pictures.  It is looking like I need to extend the boundaries of my comfort zones and figure out how and when to go out looking for images when the light is better.