The Way Beauty Works

As luck would have it, photographer David duChemin published an IG reel today about a photo that elicited a variety of comments. Some people were not pleased with his edit and called him out for the extensive editing required to make the photo appear as he wanted.

His responding IG reel begins with the caption “I don’t make my art for your comfort, but for mine.”

I thought about that when I was editing this photo. The original is flat with little color and the contrast is missing. I edited the original RAW file to look like what I saw as I stood peering through tree branches and vines that are probably poison ivy.

All I knew was that this crabapple tree stands in contrast to its surroundings and the effusive praise given by so many people about Bradford pears and their overwhelming blast of invasive bright white this time of the year.

There is greatness about subtle beauty. When it slowly moves into view beside you contrasting with its closet neighbors, showing how its exuberance is worthy of examination and introspection. When the attention it requires is singular, only for it and not for any others. For the individual beauty that disrupts our ordinary view in a way that defies explanation and study. With a compelling attention driven by rarity.

That’s my edit.

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