the open road — Photography Blog

I don’t spend a lot of time on social media, but I spend a few moments of most days on two photography-related sites: Instagram and Flickr. I’ve posted elsewhere what I think of these two sites, so I won’t repeat that here.

One of the things I do like about Instagram is that it exposes me to certain well-known and established photographers that I like to follow. One of those is Joel Meyerowitz who posted a series of “The Open Road” photographs and a somber description of the road metaphor, the new year, and aging around New Year’s Day (2024).

Photographs from the road are one of my favorite subjects, both from others’ road pictures and my own archives. When I’m out on long trips, I almost always make photographs of the open road. And have for years. Recently, those trips have been fewer and farther between, mostly due to the pandemic and some health issues I think I’m past.

This time of year, when it is often dark, cold, and wet in my home of Seattle, I get out a lot less with my camera. If it’s dark, cold, and snowy, that’s another matter. My back-up source for posting photographs – my archives – can be almost empty and bleak on these days. This is especially true for January and even more so for the first weeks of January. I often post from the archives in a “this date from the archives” theme.

So, in homage to Mr. Meyerowitz, and finding another theme to organize around, I’ve put together a few series of the open road.

various dates and locales

i. modern motel, Yachats, 2012
ii. Point Reyes, 2017
iii. U.S. 2, Washington, 2008
iv. Kangaroo Ridge, 2007
v. wind farm morning, Indiana, 2009
vi. coastal sundown, Olema, 2012
vii. coastal bridge, Florence, 2014
viii. orchards, Yakima, 2013
ix. Columbia River Gorge, 2013
x. coastal morning summer storm, Oregon, 2015

the open road, Series 2

the open road, Series 1