about 'this fragile world'

Just before you reach the top of Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park, you'll see a sign that reads:

"Tundra Protection Area: Respect Closures and Tread Lightly in this Fragile World."

The first time I noticed it, I was struck by how poetic the phrase "in this fragile world" is for a sign created by a government agency. (Albeit, my favorite one.)

I love taking pictures that tell stories, and telling stories that change the way we see pictures. Rather than shooting in the boxes of portraits and landscapes, I try to explore the interplay between the two. My favorite pictures exist in the overlap between place and people, geography and humanity, the built world and the stories that fill it.

I spend a lot of time thinking about the philosophy and ethics of photography. And when the shutter releases, I hope all those ideas are captured in the frame. Sometimes they will and sometimes they won't. But I'm always trying to tread lightly in this fragile world.

Sign in ROcky Mountain National Park reading 'Tundra Protection Area: Respect Closures and Tread Lightly in this Fragile World

me

My name is Ponders. I'm a designer and tech person by trade, as well as a writer, musician, sound designer, podcaster, and, from the look of things around here, a photographer.

My other projects include the narrative nonfiction art history podcast Accession, and the fairy folk tale fiction podcast The Wanderer.

Selfie in a cable knit sweater with an evening blue sky out the window in the background.

photography gear

I shoot a mix of film and digital, but my heart really is in film.

I've got a trusty Pentax k1000 that I pulled out of my grandma's closet.

I had a gold Olympus Stylus Zoom 170 for the day-to-day, but I lost it. If you live in Hamilton, Ontario and have found a golden Olympus Zoom 170 in the past year, please reach out.

For digital I'm shooting on a Fuji X-S10. I also have the courage to admit that I like taking photos with my iPhone.

I've had my filmed developed at a few locations over the years.

Selfie with my Pentax k-1000 in front of the World's Largest Van Gogh Painting in Goodland, Kansas.

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Additional Photo Credits: Polaroids by Jasper Sparrow. Blurry film picture with flash by Patrick, who was two when the picture was taken.

bonus collection - moth, sampson breadworth III, and ella

Moth, an orange cat, sitting in his hammock on the cat tree. He is playing it cool for the camera, but wants to go back to sleep. Sampson Breadworth the Third, an orange cat, sits on a cusion by a window, his paws daintily resting on a copy of the Count of Monte Cristo. Ella, a dilute calico cat, stands on the railing of a screen porch patio, and looks at the camera inquisitively.