There’s something about boats on the water that causes us to reflect on life and lessons and love.
The freest I’ve ever felt is running a flats boat really fast across Pine Island Sound where the salt spray catches onto even your eyelashes and the wind’s so loud in your ears you couldn’t hear anybody talking to you even if you wanted to.
And, there are other times where you’ll slowly drift the boat meandering to the back side of the mangroves or laying up under the setting sun with colors so exquisite you dare not break the spell by breathing too loud.
If I can’t be on a boat, the next best thing is watching them out on the water whether it’s ocean, lake or sea during a sunrise, sunset, rain or snow.
Maybe it’s all the water around boats that makes it feel like the best cobweb-clearing your mind could ever have! Whatever it is, boats in the water – whether going fast or slow – makes the perfect setting for reflections on whatever you wish to ponder.
Photographing Boats
Photographing boats is something I enjoy, and the variety of scenes makes it all the more interesting and thought-provoking.
Sometimes people on a boat will appear magically suspended like walking on the water with no boat in sight. Other times a sole individual on a kayak with fishing rod in hand will look like a tiny speck against the vast ocean. And, an empty boat tied up on the water feels like a call for a hop-aboard adventure.
Today’s blog post by The Daily Artisan includes some boats I’ve photographed, and also some favorite boating quotes I’ve superimposed on the pictures.
One photograph looks like it was shot in black-and-white mode, but actually it was combined snow and rain on a very early winter morning. If you’ll look closely, there’s a faint red cast from the American flag in the background, but everything else (including the cold-huddled driver) is moody and gray.
There are other varied boat photographs, with scenes of sunsets, and approaching summer storms, and (one of my favorites) a man and his dog.
Make time to be on the water or at least at the water’s edge – your reflections will be enhanced by a uniquely beautiful experience!
Do you enjoy being out on the water on a (fast or slow) boat? What do you like most about it? Please comment below!
