By Ted Grussing
… through life and forever occurs a single moment at a time and that is why I made my choice to remain exclusively with still/freeze frame photography so that we can ponder that fraction of a second and spend some time just enjoying that moment, irrespective of what has gone before and what will follow. This is a shot of a young hen mallard and her brood of five young ducklings on May 6th, 2017 at 3:08:39 PM and it captured the family over a span of 1/1250th of a second. Now, a year later the ducklings that survived are beginning their own families; probably only one or perhaps two have made it, maybe none, but life goes on and every species continues to try and perpetuate their species … like us they live in the real world and it is a world of survival of the fittest, there are winners and there are losers, that is just the way life is and perhaps we are the only species on the planet that tries to alter natural outcomes … sometimes for the good and sometimes not so good … ultimately, though, nature prevails.
A friend was wondering what my take on the volcanic activity in Hawaii is … I haven’t given it much thought, but it is absolutely beautiful and a display of natural forces that should give us pause. We are here on the surface of this tiny little planet and completely at the mercy of forces we have absolutely no control over or fully understand. Still, we proclaim how we are destroying the environment/planet and how we can control everything so all will be well … we build homes over areas of volcanic activity, or like Corky and I did when we moved to California, directly over the Newport Englewood fault line and to boot, it is in an area of liquification, which means when a strong quake occurs, the ground will liquify and the house along with thousands of others will simply be absorbed by the earth.
So, I guess the answer is simply that I am awestruck by the forces of nature, and equally amazed by those who think we have any control over anything related to the earth. We’re along for the ride, and we know not where we started, nor where we are going. It reaffirms my belief that choices have consequences including events relating to our choice of domicile. New land is being created which eventually will give rise to more land to build on … and they say land is the best investment because they are not making anymore of it? They are here!
There is a benefit with this eruption and all the other ones that occur in various places around the earth … the earth is dynamic and below the crust a seething molten mass. If these venting’s did not occur to relieve the pressures down there it is conceivable that the pressures would build to the point where the entire planet would explode and be ripped into fragments and all life as well as the earth itself would cease to exist.
So, I ponder the vastness of all that is, give thanks for the privilege of being here to witness it all and to share the beauty I find in life … it does not get better, nor does it take anything more complicated than sitting on a hill, by the sea or wherever and open your eyes and take in the beauty … and smile, we really are here … for these few moments we call life.
Keep breathing
Ted
I am the dawn, the whisper of winds, the perfume of morning.
The passing night fondled me, hovering close to me, softly, silently.
The breaking day builds the spirit temple of my joy, I abandon myself!
I see all as one, and nothing repels me, as this new day climbs noiselessly out of the valley of the night.
Peace lies over the world and over the world of my soul.
— Max Ehrmann
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The easiest way to reach Mr. Grussing is by email: ted@tedgrussing.com
In addition to sales of photographs already taken Ted does special shoots for patrons on request and also does air-to-air photography for those who want photographs of their airplanes in flight. All special photographic sessions are billed on an hourly basis.
Ted also does one-on-one workshops for those interested in learning the techniques he uses. By special arrangement Ted will do one-on-one aerial photography workshops which will include actual photo sessions in the air.
1 Comment
I totally agree with this photographer. We can not control nature, so it is better to take the time to appreciate the moments that we spend on this earth. A photographer who knows how to master his environment can achieve very high quality and natural shots. The mastery of photography techniques allows them to choose the best photographic perspectives.