I spent a long time wandering amongst these willows. They were magnificent after a day of hard rain, shimmering with perfect jewels of pure water. The air smelled wonderful – like wet wood and earth – and the water from the branches chilled my skin like ice.
I photographed the willow thicket with a fully open aperture, leaving only a fraction of the photograph sharp and forcing the viewer to fill in the scene with their imagination. The composition is purposely challenging and unstructured, using strong lines from the corners of the frame to divide long washes of colour. There is no comfortable resting point for the eye.
This final photograph is much like the willows – thick and difficult to navigate, but sensual, tactile and infinitely interesting.
Willows, Water Drops: Near Princeton, BC, 2006