One of the most frequent remarks that people make about my web site is that they didn't realize how much effort can go into setting up and shooting a photograph. In the today-world of digital photography, each individual photograph doesn't cost any additional money. Unlike when film was your only option and 24 exposures cost you $3 plus $8 for developing. Now, your average picture-taker sets their camera on rapid-fire, takes shots of everything they see, and is bound to get a good shot sooner or later. I'm not knocking it; in fact when you're on an evening stroll with your family, that's the only method available.
Hence this photo.
On a lovely May evening while visiting Shannon's parents in Napa, we took a stroll around the neighborhood. I spotted this little elephant, smiled, snapped a single photo, and moved on.
I imagine that if I had more time (and if the neighbors didn't mind me setting up camp in their front yard) I'd try some different angles or different depths of field to see what would work best. Really, though, when I spot something silly like a ten-inch red elephant surrounded by ivy, the moment of mirth that filled me probably contributed to my subconscious framing of the photo. I'm not sure I could have gotten a better picture if I had spent an hour fussing with it.
