We’ve been visiting The Sea Ranch for over thirty-three years. It is located on Highway 1, about 110 miles North of San Francisco. However in spite of the relatively short distance, it takes about three hours to get there, due to the long windy road. Perhaps this is why during the two and a half days we stayed there, we saw very few people on the trails along the ocean, unlike our recent trip to Carmel.
Years ago, we owned a second home there, but even then the longest we could stay was ten days. We sold the house, and have returned since at least twice a year. Every time we leave, we ask ourselves the same question – “When are we coming back again?” It is impossible to describe the experience of being there, but in a few days the head clears, and I feel recharged and brimming with new creative ideas. While in The Sea Ranch, we go for walks along the ocean, and sometimes to the forest on the other side of the main road, at least twice a day. Being here with Max forces me to get up at about six, since this is the time he comes to my bedside and “tells” me that I need to take him out. To make himself clear, he scratches the door. This in turn creates a familiar routine. At home, it gives me enough time for a work out. While here, we go out for an hour-long walk surrounded by nature, before the sunrise. I brought three cameras with me, plus various lenses. Being here as a photographer offers me a lot of opportunities to capture what I encounter at various times of the day in different lighting conditions. Since I have been photographing here for many years, and have taken thousands of images, you can ask, why to do that again and again? Who needs those images? Don’t I have enough? The answer and the title of this story came during my last morning walk.
During our vacations, we want to visit new places, and have different experiences. But then we come back. Why? Doesn’t the place look the same as before? You may have heard the Chinese saying “You cannot cross the same river twice.” However, there is a continuation – “since it is not the same river, and not the same you.” While this is a true statement; nevertheless, we “cross the river” again and again. We just need to learn how to see our world and the people we encounter through a “different” lens (the new iPhone 11, has three lenses, for instance). Of course you can learn how to become a better photographer, which in the core is an art of seeing, and then you will be able to perceive the difference.
P.S. I would like to share four “similar” images to show what I mean.
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