A Patio I Can Grow Old In

When I first saw this scene, all I could think of is that this is the patio I can actually grow old in. I imagined it as a place where I could go and read a good book all afternoon, or have a nice engaging conversation with someone. In the original photo below there were blotches of light coming through the trees and landing on the table and chairs on the foreground. I wanted to capture that but it was way too bright for me to do so. I was also amazed by the trees around this area so I was torn as to which one should be the focus of my photo. I tried my best to capture both the statement of the empty chairs and the majestic tilted tree behind it:

Date: December 21, 2008 | Location: Hearst Castle — San Simeon, CA | Camera: Sony Alpha A200K

| Focal Length: 18 | F-number: 9

The challenge I had while editing this is that I am torn between picking my focal point, the tree or the chairs and table. So I sought out inside of me what this scene made me feel when I took it. “A Patio I Can Grow Old In” is what came to mind — the table and chairs won. There’s just something about the idea of two empty chairs and a table under a tree that makes you want to be with a friend and have a nice chat during a slow afternoon. It reminds me of those days where I have a perfectly normal balanced day.

So when I edited this, I was again torn between making it colored or black and white. Was I looking back and reminiscing about those perfectly normal days? Or was I looking forward to growing old with somebody special when I took this photo? I remembered in particular that I wanted to have a patio just like this someday, so I went with the colored version of the photo. I also incorporated the rays of light that I wanted to capture when I was there 8 years ago. Lastly, I wanted it to be more vibrant and lovely to convey the feeling I had when I saw this location. Here’s what came out:

Originally published at charly pura.