You might look at this photograph and think, “Yes, two subjects, the darkened foreground and the colorful Argentine background.” Or perhaps you might decide that the two subjects are actually the two hikers. I look at this photograph and see all that, and more.
In this one picture, I see many shared adventures, but also the life journey we have made as a family. I see my husband and my daughter standing on a verge, both soon to be subject to great life changes. His little chick is flying off into the bright colorful world stretched out before her. He is waiting for the lady with the camera to catch up, and together we will fly home, but not to our empty nest. We also have wings with which to fly, and that wide world is also ours to explore in a new way, through new eyes.
People perceive every snapshot through their own eyes. One single image can hold numerous meanings to the same person. So many stories, based on the viewer’s experience, past and present, and loaded with hopes, wishes, and dreams for the future. Some of these visions occupy the forefront of our consciousness, others live quietly in the back of our minds.
There are always only two subjects that matter when we look at a picture–the eye and the beholder.
Writing Between the Lines 