“The Bend” – Lakeshore Beach, Sandbanks Provincial Park
“The everyday, mundane paths can lead to new wonders, if we chose to take them” – Ed Lehming
There are many times when I simply look around for things of interest. Sometimes I have no idea what, specifically, I am looking for, but a scene will catch my eye. At the time, nothing particular jumps out, but subconsciously, I know that there is some element worth pursuing.
On this instance, I was at the beach with my grandson at the end of the day. He wanted the beach to play on, and I wanted new material to photograph. The sun was setting by this time, but the sunset itself was unremarkable. I’ve been to this beach many times and have learned to just look around at the scenes I’ve seen over and over, looking for “something” out of the ordinary, something that makes me look twice. That day, the path up into the dunes and past a half-dead cottonwood caught my eye.
The curved path into the dunes, the contrast of the half-dead tree, and the wispy clouds drew my attention. It took a bit of work to frame it without interference from some overhanging branches. I finally composed a pleasing shot and snapped the photo. It looked “OK” as a color image but really popped when I stripped it down into mono and adjusted the tones.
I can still see the original scene in my mind’s eye and am really pleased with how this one turned out. The well-trodden path leads toward what may lie over the dune, the grasses offer nice shadows, and the clouds add just a hint of mystery to the scene. What began as a simple exploration turned into what I think is a really nice image that captures the mood of the day.
iPhone 17 Pro Max
Main Camera — 14 mm
1/121 sec, ƒ/2.2, ISO 40
Ed Lehming Photography 
I agree with you—a successful result based on an everyday subject, the kind of thing one sees but doesn’t always truly notice. Here, the tree harmonizes perfectly with the cloudy sky.