Dunes at Oceano  1936

Edward Weston made this photograph, Dunes at Oceano, by exposing a sheet of film to light, sometime during his career which ended in 1948. I'm looking at these dunes and thinking about my own process. I'm wondering if Weston felt the same kind of pressure I do when I'm working – this feeling of needing to capture something essential. What was he chasing as the light shifted? There's so much repetition in those lines, but each one is unique. It makes you consider what was going through his mind as he framed this shot, waiting for the exact moment. It’s all about texture here, the play of light and shadow giving the sand a tactile quality. Like you could reach out and feel the grit between your fingers. It’s wild how he manages to make something so still feel so alive.