Man in een motorboot op een rivier bij Sereda in Rusland 1903 - 1904

This photograph, Man in een motorboot op een rivier bij Sereda in Rusland, was taken by Joseph Cheetham. It shows a river scene with someone in a motorboat, captured in a way that feels both distant and intimate. The sepia tones give the whole image a kind of dreamy, nostalgic quality. It's not crisp, it's not trying to be super-real, and that's what gets me. The way the light reflects off the water, almost blurring the line between the river and the sky, it’s like Cheetham is using light to soften the edges, making everything flow together. It’s a really interesting way to see. And look at the trees on either side, they're almost framing the scene, but not in a rigid way. It feels like a snapshot, capturing a moment. Artists like Peter Henry Emerson come to mind, the way they played with natural light. There's something so honest about its simplicity. I think that’s what makes it so compelling.