“The dance between darkness and light will always remain— the stars and the moon will always need the darkness to be seen, the darkness will just not be worth having without the moon and the stars.” – C. JoyBell C.
These are some of my favorite photos from the beginning of my second year working at Silver Lake in the Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains. Each tells a piece of a story that is personal to me, and what I want is to convey some of that story, beauty and brokenness (but mostly beauty), through my lens.
Being here, even just for a short time, has been teaching me a lot. At the beginning, I was so homesick, but photography is my meditation, and it reminded me that oftentimes the noble thing to do is the most difficult as well. So I stayed and I’m glad I did.
The first photo depicts a difficult night where a part of my heart just wanted to go home. I went for a long drive to Lake Tahoe, and got pulled over for the first time. The officer was beyond kind, and practically offered me gas money and a safe haven if I ever needed it. This photo was taken at the top of Plasse Road x Route 88. The light in the darkness is hope and mercy through small and beautiful interactions I had, such as the compassion of the officer.
The second and third were taken from my favorite camping spot, a random pair of beautiful intertwined trees at the top of Shealor Lake. The moon was full but the sky was beautiful and made for great backlighting for the spot. This is my happy place. No matter what season of life I’m in, I think I will always find joy in simple little places like this.
The fourth and fifth were taken at the top of Squaw Ridge, overlooking Silver Lake. You can hike to it, or take a rough little road (yay for my perfect little Subaru!). A moment of pure contentment. The ones to live for. Except for the moment where we accidentally found a bag of someone’s ashes hidden under some rocks. Yikes.
With the photographer side of me kicking in, I tend to consider life in terms of light. There are moments of darkness, but even in those times, even a small flame will draw you in. It’s those flames that are meant to be held on to until they take light. From the hope in darkness of the first image to the full moon highlighting natural beauty in the 4th to the light illuminating an entire landscape in the sixth, this month has definitely been a story of light for me.