Duane Hansen

"Silence, Time, and Light"

Someone once asked me what makes a good photograph. And that is a very good question.There are all the technical aspects to consider, of course, but in the end only one thing matters.

Do you like it?

Over the years my photography has gone through many changes. Like everyone else I started out taking some rather ordinary photos of things I saw in my travels. But I did not like what I saw, or, to a point, what I was seeing on the film. "That's not what I saw," I would say to myself. But alas it was. I just did not know how to really see. Then I took the Mountaineers basic Photography Course. Photography was different back then. I learned "old school" with a film camera. You would take your shots for the class but would not get to see them until later that week! Times have changed. Bit by bit though I developed a style of my own and learned to capture what I was seeing. This is no easy task and by far and away is the hardest part of photography. Something you learn and learn again every time you go out to shoot.

Since it was a "nature" photography course I spent lots of time in the woods finding great things to shoot. I discovered the southwest with all its wonderful rocks that are orange and red and yellow. I found the Palouse in southeastern Washington with its rolling wheat fields that seemed to stretch on for miles. Off I would drive until some wonderful bit of good light caught my eye and would bring me to a stop for hours on end.

Somewhere in all this I discovered "the old broken building." It turns out they are everywhere and are some of the most interesting things to shoot. I found myself looking at buildings everywhere and noticing how the light worked with them. Not just ghost towns per se but even exotic places like Bellevue and Tacoma. You may not realize this but Tacoma has some of the best decay I have ever seen!

Once on a trip to Arches National Park I got this wonderful shot in the most unlikely of places. Like everyone else I hiked the trail to Delicate Arch.This is a wonderful hike that everyone should take with a view at the end that is second to none. The only flaw is that everyone has hiked it and has taken the shot at the end of the arch itself. It seems everyone walked right by my favorite shot. Right next to the parking lot at the trail head is the Wolf Ranch. It is this lonely log cabin built years ago next to the only water source for miles around. As everyone was headed up the trail I walked over the half-door of the cabin and took a shot of the interior with its one table, one chair, and one bench. "Click." This shot is still hanging in my house and from time to time in the gallery. My shots of Delicate Arch are still in the slide sleeves and have not been seen by anyone. There is nothing I like more than to travel to a spot that everyone goes to and coming home with a shot that no one has ever seen.

It is capturing that moment, that brief moment when light and form meet to mauke the perfect shot. You never know when, you never know where. That is the best part of all.

I hope you enjoy my work.