I have wanted to visit and photograph a field of sunflowers in bloom for many years. But I never quite got the timing right. When I thought about looking around for a location it was either too late in the year or too early or the field I found was further away than I wanted to drive.
“A sunflower field is like a sky with a thousand suns.”
―
Sunflowers!
This year I heard on the news about a sunflower memorial created in Buffalo, Minnesota. In February of this year, thirty-seven year old Lindsay Overbay was killed in a mass shooting in a clinic in Buffalo. Four others were injured in the shooting. This spring the community planted a heart-shaped sunflower field by the clinic. The sunflowers represent “Buffalo strong” and were planted in memorial for Lindsay, a medical assistant, who left behind a husband and two children.
It certainly was a place where people came together! I was surprised by the number of people gathered around and in the sunflower fields (there are actually two small fields planted, one in front of the clinic, the other behind the clinic). The creators of the memorial scattered paths through the sunflowers and tucked in interesting old cars, tractors, pickups, and even a boat, that families could use as backgrounds for family photos.
“What god does a sunflower believe in? That’s the god I believe in.”
―
Small Town Vibe
I drove out to Buffalo (a 40 minute drive from our home) last evening so that I would be there for sunset. There was a lovely small-town vibe at the scene, as neighbors greeted one another and stopped to catch up on the latest news. I found lots of families posing their children for family photos. And I saw several other photographers out with their cameras, enjoying making photographs of the sunflowers.
A local fire truck drove by the field as I was walking back to the car, blaring it’s horn and giving a few short siren blasts to greet those who were gathered in the fields. Yup, small town life is like that.
The heat of the day eased off a bit as the sun sank towards the horizon, but I was still hot and sweaty by the time I finished hiking through the sunflowers with my camera.
Though the fields were small, I worked to find angles that made it look as if the sunflowers were all one could see as far as the horizon.
And although I sometimes avoided including people in the frame, at other times I intentionally focused on the way that families were enjoying making photographs in the midst of the beautiful sunflowers. I also wanted to show enough of the town in some photos to give a sense of the size of the area, and it’s proximity to businesses and other buildings in the town.
“The sunflower is mine, in a way.” – Vincent Van Gogh
I probably spent about 45 minutes walking through the fields, making photos. As time went by I got a little more creative with my shots and began doing more close-ups. Watching the sunset was lovely.
“My work is the world. Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird – equal seekers of sweetness. Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.” – Mary Oliver
Memories of another small town
Walking through groups of chatting neighbors reminded me of summertime trips to my hometown where neighbors met and chatted on Saturday evenings, the only evening of the week that stores were open. When I was in high school, our band gave a short concert every summer Saturday night in the center of downtown. My hometown (Odebolt, Iowa) was a very small town with a population of about 1600 people. Last night reminded me of those sultry summer evenings when I played my bass clarinet in band concerts and where everybody seemed to know everyone else.
Do you also love sunflowers?
May you walk in beauty.
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