I dedicate this posting to my friend, Marty Ducheny, who kept me laughing and admiring his ability to turn a phrase. On one of our many walks in Spring Grove Cemetery—where he is now buried—he commented that my photography reflected a “reverence for light.” It was such a fine and true statement, I put together an exhibit of about eighty black & white photographs and exhibited them at Xavier University’s art gallery using that phrase (and this image) as the title. It was very well attended; very gratifying. Afterward, I published a Blurb book by the same title, using this photograph for the cover.

Light is energy and it’s also information, content, form, and structure. It’s the potential of everything.

David Bohm

Light created the eye as an organ with which to appreciate itself.

Johann Wolfgang Goethe

About This Image

I was rearranging my darkroom and had a common hardware store reflector with a 150 watt bulb in it, clamped to the rafters above my bench. It was just a work light. Linda came to talk and I noticed her beautiful fingernails. Wanting to photograph her hands and work quickly, I tilted the reflector up and had her hold  her hands in front of it—with her elbows on the bench to keep them still. I guessed at the exposure, took one hand-held shot and discovered that I was out of film. Some things are just meant to be.

One of the good things about self-publishing with Blurb, aside from the printing quality, is that visitors to the site’s bookstore can review a book by turning all the pages. If you care to visit, here’s the link to Reverence For Light and my other Blurb books.

I invite you to visit my portfolio site: David L. Smith Photography

An a reminder: My current email address is: smithdl@fuse.net