Twelve Kinds of Silence

Last year I acquired a half-frame film camera. One of the unique qualities of this pocket camera is that it takes twice as many pictures than a standard camera exposes on a roll of film. A 36 exposure roll becomes 72. I was intrigued by the lack of restraint the camera released in me. I shot freely, without thinking too much. The freedom this little camera granted me brought me to the idea of a year-long project. I have been visiting the bosque of the Rio Grande near my home in Albuquerque, NM quite frequently over the years. The project evolved into a once-a-month visit to the area along the river. I would shoot one roll of film each month. Always in one visit. Once the 72 photos were taken, I was free to leave. I considered these visits to the bosque as time for myself and my thoughts. It became an almost spiritual ritual, and I came to consider the bosque as a personal, natural cathedral. And though nature has the upper hand here, there are always a few signs of human encroachment present in the environment. I was not here to judge, only to be quiet, to look, and to say a private prayer in a place that has inspired me to return, month after month.