The serenity of a November morning in western Lowndes County inspired artist and amateur photographer Laird Bagnall to capture images with his Nikon D60 camera.
As the day awakened, a mist rising off the river and land prompted him to take photographs near a secluded railroad bridge on Old Macon Road, a horse farm on Old West Point Road and a boat dock near the entrance to Camp Pratt, off Highway 45 South. His image of a vibrant bank of trees reflected in the water was taken at DeWayne Hayes Recreation Area. The lone kayaker, Willis Pope of Columbus, was photographed earlier this year, exploring Tibbee and Catalpa Creeks.
Bagnall”s work in oils, watercolor, copper sculpture and mobiles is often seen on display at the Columbus Arts Council”s Rosenzweig Arts Center in downtown Columbus. Many of his landscapes and nature paintings are based on photos he took, with an artist”s eye.
“When you”re looking for something to photograph, you really focus, you really look, so you see the sheer beauty of nature,” Bagnall shared. “Concentrating on anything, you see things other people may be in too much of a rush to see. You can see pictures in everything.”
Bagnall is a member of the Golden Triangle Photography Club, spearheaded by Judy Howle. The group meets monthly in Columbus, discussing and critiquing various photographic techniques and post-processing software. They welcome new enthusiasts. For more information, contact Howle at 662-329-4745.
“We look around our world, which is becoming increasingly crowded … we see man-made things, and nature gets kind of crowded out,” said Bagnall. “Nature is where the true beauty is. Unless we destroy it, it recuperates, it”s always there, it”s constant … it sustains us.”
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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