Ruminator

Photo by: Tim Bindner Photography Am I crazy?  Many would debate for and against the answer to that question.  Is doing something you love in 27-degree weather constitute being crazy?  If so then I am, but if I am then so are others. Today I arrived at Mt. St. Francis parking lot on this 27-degree morning jamming to Eminem and looking for my friends who planned to join me.  The music was intended to fire me up and get my brain going.  It did.  My body needs a little more coaxing.   For that, I rely on Mother Nature’s cold needle-like hands.  It worked. Today I was joined by some old friends and new ones.  Kristin, Matthew, Julia, Wendi, Troy, Aaron, Joe, and Rusty all decided to partake on an epic journey through the woods.  After everyone arrived we spend a brief minute or two saying hello and introducing ourselves then off we went. As we headed down a gravel path that eventually led us past a large water tower and on to a dirt trail, Rusty became our obvious leader and guide.  Rusty,...

Photo by: Tim Bindner Photography As a photographer, I have a superpower:  I can freeze time.  Having that ability is one thing; to use it with a meaningful purpose is yet another.  In my work, I focus on capturing the soul of the moment, whether my subjects are people, animals, objects, or landscapes. We can all take a picture with a cell phone, but my goal is to find that sweet spot of light and composition to create a time capsule that reflects the essence of my subjects at that particular moment in time. I believe those who see my photographs will be able to feel the emotions of that moment and get a sense of the time and place. Pictures can convey so much more than just color and shape. They can convey a story, and I’d like to convey your story. So why do I hike?  I have always loved nature from my childhood.  Growing up with allergies and asthma my ‘outside’ time was limited, especially in the Spring, Summer, and early Fall.  Maybe that is part of the reason I love winter so much...

Photo by: Tim Bindner Photography I began my hike along with my wife on an easy trail in O’Bannon Woods State Park.  It was our first time on the Tulip Trail.  This trail was listed as a one-mile easy hike but ended up being a .85 of a mile easy gravel trail.  On the warm 57 degrees December day we casually walked the trail looking for signs of wildlife but saw none.  We easily made the trail our own and finished with quite a bit of energy left. As we drove to the next trail I told my wife of the less manicured trail we were about to encounter and she was excited to see it.  We began our journey on the 2.43 mile River Ridge trail in O’Bannon Woods.  During the journey, we enjoyed the peace and quiet of both being alone in nature.  We spent many moments in silence letting the forest consume us while we soaked up all that it gave us.  As we meandered through the forest we welcomed the sights, sounds, smells and relative silence of the woods.  Each hill, curve in the trail, tre...