South Carolina has so many rural, back country roads. In fact, you cannot avoid them on a trip from Charlotte, NC to Georgetown, SC, as there is not a highway that goes there. I was in Georgetown yesterday, visiting a friend. This morning, before sunrise, I headed by to Charlotte. Truthfully, it’s been a while since I’ve been out photographing in the morning, pre-dawn;
I was cruising along listening to Sirus-XM’s Bluesville channel. The combination of the blues, rural roads, the impending sunrise, the sporadic cotton fields, and the tall oaks at the edge of those same cotton fields, all seemed to blend together and make it a fantastic environment for driving and listening. Also, I got a brief flash of days gone by, thinking about slavery. I’m sure that it had to do with the blues, the cotton fields, and the oak trees.
When I came upon this scene, I was heading north; it was on my right. I admired it, thought of photographing, but then kept driving … I only made it about another 300 feet, or so. I made a u-turn, pulled into the cemetery that was next to this little pond, got my camera, got out of the car, and began photographing. I didn’t care that it was 29 degrees and that all that I had on were jeans and a t-shirt. Getting the photo was paramount. You understand how it is. 
Looking at the EXIF data, I was there for all of 3 minutes, not even quite the length of a blues song. I took 20 photos, some landscape, some portrait, then I moved on … on past the cotton fields, the oak trees, the dilapidated farm houses, heading back home. Sometimes, I do enjoy those back roads. Should I ever want to do a book on churches, I could drive from Charlotte to Georgetown and probably photograph about 150 of them. They seem to be ubiquitous around those parts. 
It was a great morning! I would like to go back and photograph some of those cotton fields and big oak trees.
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That’s what it’s about, listening to those voices within that whisper or shout. Next time I’d suggest a jacket or sweater and a reflective vest as you walk along the those backroads when it’s 29 degrees. Glad you had a good time. Love the stillness of the water.
Monte Stevens recently posted..Dreamer
Well, I could have put on a jacket, but you know how fast things change during the sunrise.
As for the reflective vest, that’s a damn good idea, Monte. However, this time, there was plenty of distance between me and the street. Not much chance of getting hit. I’ll need to get one of those vests and keep it in the trunk.
This sounds like the perfect morning to me.
This is a gorgeous photo. Is that snow on the bank?
ken bello recently posted..Wings of Progress
No, Ken. Thankfully, that’s just a bit of frost.
Very nice shot. I’ve done the u-turn several times, and wrote about the last time in my blog last year. Almost invariably, it’s worth the effort.
John – Visual Notebook recently posted..Big News
Thanks, John. I don’t do it nearly enough, but this time I simply could not resist.
Wow! So nice.
Thanks, David. It’s not a California view, but we have some nice things around the neighborhood here in the Carolinas.
It would have been a crime not to have turned around for this scene. My driving can get pretty erratic when I spot a great photo opportunity…pity those behind me.
Thanks, Earl. I believe that I’ve caused my share of irritated driver by being the guy in front that’s just pokin’ along, looking at the scenery!
Very familiar with the u-turn!
Mark recently posted..Morphing Landscape
I’m going to have to practice more of them, Mark. I don’t do nearly enough.
Truly speechless by those photographs. Incredible photography Paul!
Leon recently posted..Starting Food Photography
Thanks, Leon!