Statement

Observing a landscape filled with the ubiquitous evidence of human presence can reveal an evocative connection to our surrounding environment. The unintentional accumulation of objects in space creates a fascinating relationship that can be enlightening or comforting, lonely or humorous. The view camera offers the perfect vehicle to explore this realm of the landscape. Being a unique and forcibly slow process in which every physical feature of the image is produced by an analytical decision of the photographer. And through the vast density of information, every captured entity becomes a distinctive figure punctuated by its individuality inside the frame. The banal objects of the everyday built world suddenly become personified members that speak to us about the relationship that exists between humans and nature. It is observation of these qualities that inspires me to photograph.

Bio

Lanning Shields lives in Portland, Oregon and works freelance in the film and photography industry. He holds a BFA in photography from the University of Washington.