I believe that the photographs that I get are gifts that are given to me from above, with some pictures this is more obvious such as this last image, "Night Gas Station." As the sun was setting I found myself in a destination where there was no place to overnight close by. I was forced to drive for a total of two hours in search of a place to sleep (asking God, what's going on? Why can't I find a place for the night?). While en route well after dark I suddenly came upon this shining white new service station emerging out of total darkness. As soon as I saw it I immediately knew I had great potential for a picture. I pulled into the station and after waiting for some cars to vacate the gas pumps made this hand held exposure with my Nikon D60, which was appropriate for this photographic genre.
This image is a study of isolation in composition - the gas station emerging out of darkness without any distracting elements in the picture that would have been present during the daytime. The truck with its headlights and cab marker lights traveling up the road into the picture appropriately adds interest and a touch of environment as does the single light post in the background to the right indicating the entrance to the station.
As I got out of my vehicle to make this image I suddenly realized that God had inconvenienced me and taken me out of my way to give me this photograph which would never have come to light otherwise. I was thinking about sleep, but God took me on an after dark photo shoot and gifted me with one of my best images of 2026. Yet another opportunity to learn the lesson, "trust the plan when you don't understand." There is purpose in his detours. Without this last grand finale image this collection would be incomplete.
