Endframe: Radiant Pastels by Guy Tal

Wayne Bingham talks about one of his favourite images

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By Wayne Bingham | December 12, 2016

Wayne Bingham

Wayne Bingham is an amateur photographer residing in Utah. He finds joy in making images of the beauty of the earth.

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Guy Tal’s “Radiant Pastels” represents one of the many images that drew me to his photography. It impresses me with its deep energy, stillness, and contemplative quietness.

It also was taken close to where I live, a few short hours away. I was at first impressed to seek out the locations where the photos were made and make my own trophy, seeking to emulate the style and depth of his images. Having driven by similar scenes in Utah where they were taken I could just stop and find similar places and subjects.

Then I found two eBooks he has written and made available online. I downloaded “More Than A Rock” and read it thoroughly. I discovered through his articulate writing the reasons behind his photography: finding and living in his place, his relationship to the stillness and quiet of the Colorado Plateau. He changed his life from a participant in information technology in Silicon Valley to be nearer to the place that resounded deeply with his being, a place that spoke to his soul. He quit his day job that was unfulfilling and moved to a small community to be where his heart related and he could express himself through photographic art.

I sense in this image and his other photographic art a mindful awareness, with all of his senses clearly open; hearing, smell, vision, and touch are engaged. Day after day, year after year for decades he has placed himself in contact with his place, the Colorado plateau, and allowed the essence of his experience to find expression in his photography. Fully engaged in the place over time he has increased his awareness of the subtle nuances of seasons, weather, light and wildlife.

I began to realise that my seeking to make images like his would lack the full commitment to place that he has made and continues to make.

This image challenges me to experience my own unique life more mindfully, and when moved, make images that convey my sensitivity to my place. My wife and I built a small retreat in Eastern Idaho in the valley of the Grand Tetons where we live during the summer and autumn.

Day after day, year after year for decades he has placed himself in contact with his place, the Colorado plateau, and allowed the essence of his experience to find expression in his photography.

I walk daily on doctor’s recommendation and take a camera with me. Making images has become deeply satisfying and an opportunity to share my deep resonance with our place with prints for family, friends and neighbours. I also began a resolution to select an image per day and post it on-line. I have found my place and my images are the result of observing the changing light, weather and seasons for over a decade. I’m still walking and making images and sharing them.

The world doesn’t need another Guy Tal, or Ansel Adams. I can within an hour stand where Ansel stood and make my image of the Snake River Overlook or Oxbow Bend and bring home a trophy similar to his. And I have done this, they reside in my computer, however the satisfaction of expressing myself creatively comes not from replicating their vision but discovering my own.

I find myself having greater satisfaction walking within two miles from home and seeking deeper meaning in expressing my love for this unique place in my own way.